1 September 1948 Manchester United 3 Blackpool 4

WEMBLEY WITH A DIFFERENCE

Manchester United 3, Blackpool 4 

By “Spectator”

THIS was Wembley 1948 all over again - a game as magnificent - but with a difference.

Twice Blackpool took the lead, and, as at the Stadium in April lost it. With 22 minutes left - it was 20 at Wembley - the United went in front for the first time.

Then, when everybody was saying “It’s going to be 4-2” again, all resemblance ended. For this time it was Blackpool who came out fighting from their corner in the last round, to make it 3-3 with eight minutes left and to win in the last 30 seconds.

GOALS DRAMA

The goals tell the drama of this unforgettable match:

32 minutes: Wardle glides a long pass down the left flank to Mortensen who crosses it. In to meet it races RICKETT to head a goal as a full-back’s boot grazes his face and rocks him back on his heels.

43 mins: Robinson advances to intercept a centre from Manchester’s left flank, loses it. Friend and foe impede him as he seeks vainly for a path back through a surging pack of men to his empty goal. Out comes the ball loose off a Blackpool man to the off-side DELANEY, who, put on-side, shoots across the untenanted line.

51 mins: Mortensen creates position superbly for Wardle to centre a high falling ball which cannons into the net off a leaping swarm of men. Nobody knows who has scored until they give the goal to McINTOSH m the dressingroom afterwards.

57 mins: Rowley chases a long forward pass, is losing the ball which Hayward is watching over the line as the Manchester leader falls under Shimwell’s tackle. Blackpool protest, but the referee gives a penalty which MITTEN converts.

67 mins: Great goal after a Suart clearance, sliced to Delaney has given the outside right the chance to cross a ball, which, after swift neat passing, MORRIS stabs into the net.

82 mins: The goal of the match as Wardle takes the corkscrewing over to the right, lures the Manchester defence with him, halts abruptly, ‘hooks it back to the left where the unmarked KELLY scores his first goal in the First Division with a great rising shot.

89 mins: A throw-in taken fast on the left. Wardle pounces on the ball, crosses a high centre. To it near the far post, as Manchester’s reserve goalkeeper half grips it, McINTOSH leaps to head an amazing goal.

NEW CLASS

What converted Blackpool into the brisk assertive never-say-die team of last season’s Cup conquests? I rank in order;

(1) The complete convincing come-back of the two wing halfbacks, Johnston (in England class again) and the industrious Kelly.

(2) The intelligent football of McIntosh who had the line moving as a line, fluently, no longer in jerks and spurts, with Mortensen in new open spaces as aggressive as in last season’s barnstorming days.

(3) The perfect centring of Wardle, who, still not' yet conversant with the unorthodox pattern of a lot of the front-line’s tactics, made three of the goals and opened the raid which produced the other.

The defence had to pay a high price for its few errors, but, as a team, Blackpool were in a new class last night.

Result:

MANCHESTER UNITED 3 (Delaney, Mitten, Morris)

BLACKPOOL 4 (Rickett, Kelly, McIntosh 2)

---

BLACKPOOL TRIUMPH IN 7-GOAL THRILLER

By a “Special Correspondent”

LAST movement in a thrill-packed game produced a winning goal to Blackpool and completed a bad match for Brown, United’s goalkeeper, deputy for the injured Crompton. It was only his second senior appearance.

So last season’s Cup finalists are all square this season. United won the first game at Bloomfield-road by 3-0.

Brown cannot look back upon this match with any satisfaction. He was at fault when three of the goals were scored and was well beaten by the others.

United lost a game they should have won. They had played second fiddle to Blackpool in the first half, but struck some, of their best form afterwards and at one time led 3-2.

Then Pearson, for whom nothing appeared to go right, broke through as Blackpool expected him to pass to a colleague standing offside. Down he streaked towards the goal, with no one in front of him save Robinson.

But he shot against the goalkeeper's legs, and in the next few seconds the ball was in the United net for an equaliser.

IN LAST SECONDS

In the last seconds came the winner. Wardle, who had played a great game throughout, squared the bail over from short distance. Brown could have punched it away, btat he failed to connect. McIntosh didn’t - and it was at the back of the net. As the ball was placed on the centre spot “ time ” was blown.

Brown was badly positioned when Rickett opened the scoring in 31 minutes from McIntosh’s centre. Delaney equalised, in a scrambling movement, on the interval.

McIntosh then headed through - and bundled the unhappy Brown to the back of the net in doing so after 50 minutes.

A foul on Rowley produced a Mitten penalty equaliser five minutes later, and Morris put United ahead in 67 minutes.

Ten minutes from the end Kelly accepted, a back pass from Wardle to level the scores. Then came McIntosh’s winner.

MISSED CHANCES

Many chances were missed. Apart from Pearson’s error, Rowley should have scored soon after the interval, and McIntosh missed when the game was only five minutes old.

United are not yet in their last season’s form and this is the second successive home defeat.

Carey, Aston and Chilton were good defenders, but the wing halfbacks were below form. Morris Was the pick of the attack, with Delaney a good partner.

There was much better football from Blackpool, especially in attack, with Wardle, McCall and Mortensen the stars.