Southampton's surprise victory over Liverpool in the EFL semi-final this week may well have deprived many of a much wished for 'Clash of the Titans final', for others it has set up a rematch of one of the classic FA Cup Final upsets of all time.
When the Saints and the Red Devils walk out onto the Wembley turf on Sunday 26th February to contest the 2017 EFL Cup Final, the thoughts of anybody over 50 years old will return to a beautiful summer's afternoon in 1976. May 1st was the date and it was indeed to become a true 'Mayday' occasion for United.
United were not the force then that they are now having just a few years earlier suffered the indignity of relegation to the Division Two of the Football League - yes, there was a time BPL (Before Premier League). They were, however, a team packed with full Internationals featuring household names such as Steve Coppell, Lou Macari, Sammy McIlroy and Martin Buchan as well as the veteran goalkeeper and hero of Wembley '68, Alec Stepney.
Southampton were a middle of the table Second Division team, who despite boasting a couple of Seventies superstars of their own in Mike Channon and Peter Osgood, made up of players who for the most part had careers that had been and were destined to remain footnotes in the history of English football. It would have been a brave man who would have predicted that Peter Rodrigues would avenge his 1963 Cup Final defeat to United when captain of Leicester City and walk up those famous steps to receive the trophy from Her Majesty the Queen.
The game itself was not a particularly pleasing spectacle with what few chances each side produced being snuffed out by some quality goalkeeping. As time ticked away on a baking afternoon, one that was a portent of the heatwave summer that was to follow, the players all began to tire and extra time looked increasing certain. However, with 83 minutes showing on the clock, a hopeful long ball upfield from Jim McCalliog was met by an unmarked Bobby Stokes who struck a left-foot shot past Stepney into the bottom corner of the United net.
What followed was an agonising nine minutes for Southampton until Clive Thomas blew his whistle to end the match. Disbelieve for the red hordes from Manchester, utter jubilation for the Saints fans. Wembley was a see of sunshine yellow as Rodrigues got the revenge that he had waited 13 years for and Southampton secure there first and to this date, only, major trophy. United returned to Wembley the following May and beat Liverpool 2-1 in the 1977 Final before moving on to be the footballing giant we know today, whilst Southampton returned to the Dell with the Cup and within two years were promoted to the First Division.
Bobby Stokes went down in history and although he only ever scored one more goal for the Saints and left the following year for bitter rivals Portsmouth, he will always be the man who won the Cup for the Saints. He also won himself a brand new car for his heroics, the irony being, he couldn't drive!
Source: DSG
