Blast from the Past: Omens are good for West Brom, 50 years after beating Reds
It’s been 50 years since Albion last won the FA Cup.
That year, under the guidance of manager Alan Ashman, the Baggies overcame Liverpool en route to the showpiece final at Wembley.
And now, half a century on, could history be set to repeat itself?
Alan Pardew’s side triumphed over the Reds again on Saturday to make it through to the fifth round of the world’s oldest cup competition.
It was a game full of talking points with VAR taking centre stage.
But these two teams are no stranger to drama and controversy, as their epic quarter-final battle back in 1968 proved.
Liverpool travelled to The Hawthorns on March 30 of that year only for an uninspiring game to eventually end in a 0-0 draw.
But from the moment the final whistle had blown, the spectacle sprang to life.
Liverpool boss Bill Shankley kicked things off by saying the Baggies would be ‘half a team’ in the replay without midfielder Bobby Hope.
And that meant Ashman’s side travelled to Anfield on April 8 with a real point to prove.
What followed was an end-to-end encounter the Express & Star would later go on to describe as ‘all action soccer’
It was the hosts who started the brighter, but just after it seemed Albion had weathered an early storm, Tony Hateley put the Reds in front.
Albion though fought back and they equalised in the 68th minute when Jeff Astle leaped to head home a chipped Tony Brown cross.
From that point, it was Liverpool who had to hang on with keeper Tommy Lawrence forced into a string of spectacular stops.
Unable to be separated in 90 minutes, the Baggies remained on top in the first part of extra-time with Lawrence again making two good saves to keep them at bay.
But the end-to-end nature of the clash would continue with Liverpool hitting the crossbar in the final few minutes.
In an era where FA Cup games were not decided on penalties, it meant the two teams would have to go into battle for a third time – at Maine Road on April 18.
Before kick-off, Ashman made the bold decision to play Clive Clark, who had been feeling the affects of a pulled muscle.
A pre-match pain-killing injection seemed to affect the winger’s pace in an entertaining first half.
But it didn’t stop the Baggies taking the lead with Astle again the man on target.
Liverpool battled back with Hateley nodding in an Ian Callaghan cross.
But, after the interval, Albion’s schemers Hope and Ian Collard took control.
And the Baggies went on to win the tie when Brown slipped in Clark, who then repaid his manager’s faith with a cool finish.
“We’re on our way to Wembley – we shall not be moved,” sang jubilant Albion fans.
They were right, too, Albion beating Blues in the semi-final before Astle’s glorious extra-time winner against Everton at Wembley.
