FA Cup final 2025

[seandel1]

Congratulations to our resident Palace fans! What a win, what a day! Hope you managed to pick up LOTS of souvenirs!

[littlewiggy]

Delighted for Pete (Picture Palace) & Dorking, days like yesterday make all the suffering worthwhile and these two loyal buggers richly deserve it.

Made up for you, lads.


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NEWPORT COUNTY & GENERAL FOOTY BADGES:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/newport-county-badges/albums

[colchestersid]

I thought as well of Nick Harling who always used to pop up at various games all over the world when I was groundhopping/following England. Massive Palace fan but we had a bit of a falling out which was a shame. He notably went to every World Cup final from 1966 to 2018

[flashhat]

As a side note, I went to Wembley today to the Women's FA Cup Final, I asked at the Wembley shop if they had any programmes left from yesterday, a very nice member of staff disappeared out the back and came back with a mint issue, and wouldn't take any money for it. Made my day
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I was born in Bedfordshire, bred in Bedfordshire, & have been lumbered with Luton Town Thanks dad R.I.P.

My football memorabilia: https://www.flickr.com/photos/192140619@N08/albums

Non-league photographer https://www.flickr.com/photos/143473465@N03/albums

https://www.sportsshots.org.uk/

[Pete’s Picture Palace]

Thank you for the lovely comments, guys. It was a truly great day and I feel privileged to have been there. And I paid £68 for my ticket. I don't think it's really sunk in yet. As I've been telling people, my grandad took me to my first game, 63 years ago (April 62), which was 57 years after his first game (1905). The closest he got to a cup final was our 1965 quarter final v Leeds (L 0-3). He waited 60 years for that, but he gave up watching after being barged about a bit in October 1968, aged 80, also v Leeds (League Cup, W 2-1). Us young-uns have had it easier than that. And now we are FA Cup winners. And between me and grandad (Ernest Gray), we've covered every season in our history.

I didn't buy any memorabilia yesterday, though the "crispy onions" on my pre-match hot-dog were probably old enough to have qualified.

Got to say it.... I'm feeling, Glad All Over............

[Five and In]

Pete’s Picture Palace wrote:

Got to say it.... I'm feeling, Glad All Over............

Delighted for you Pete and all the other Eagles out there

Now on to Wednesday night and hopefully our turn......COYS!

[littlewiggy]

Five and In wrote:

Pete’s Picture Palace wrote: Got to say it.... I'm feeling, Glad All Over............ Delighted for you Pete and all the other Eagles out there Now on to Wednesday night and hopefully our turn......COYS!

Good luck on Weds night, Five, would love to see a Spurs win and I quite like Ange.
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NEWPORT COUNTY & GENERAL FOOTY BADGES:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/newport-county-badges/albums

[Five and In]

littlewiggy wrote:

Five and In wrote: Pete’s Picture Palace wrote: Got to say it.... I'm feeling, Glad All Over............ Delighted for you Pete and all the other Eagles out there Now on to Wednesday night and hopefully our turn......COYS! Good luck on Weds night, Five, would love to see a Spurs win and I quite like Ange.

Cheers Liam.
I quite like Ange, but I think he's gone regardless of the result.
Everything crossed that we turn up and finish the job!

[Dorking]

Hi guys, thank you so much for your kind words.

I will try and keep it brief, but of course it won't be.

When something like this happens, it is like your whole life as a supporter of a club flashes before your eyes, especially in the days before. In my case 43 years a fan, in Pete's case I am sure a lot longer. You think of your first game, your first badge or scarf, your grandad taking you, and especially all the times you had near misses the semi finals and finals before (if you are so lucky to have had even those).

About winning the Zenith Cup before and making the most of that because you never believed you'd win a 'major' trophy in your lifetime. If we never win another thing again, I can die a happy man, as can my son.

Many friends and family members never had that, so I am lucky.

I think of growing up and seeing Coventry and Wimbledon win it, or in recent years Pompey and Wigan.

Or for you older guys you will remember Sunderland in 73 or Ipswich in 78.

The game in this country has become a closed shop sadly. And Palace are part of that - 12 consecutive years in the Prem, I can't see us being relegated from it until the ownership changes and the owners mess it up. The 3 teams who come up to the Prem (including a huge club in Leeds) will probably go straight down - that has been the case for the last 2 seasons, which is not healthy at all. And I don't know what the answer is.

All I can say is my team won. I have followed them home and away consistently my whole life, since a teenager.

I consider myself a part time fan these days as I miss 2 or 3 away games a season, but I think that is still pretty good by most fans standards.

Anyway, I have been avidly colecting all the merch, keeping the tickets, getting the hardback programme (!) - is there more than 1 version??

Buying scarves and the rosette, hats and pin badges (much fewer badges this year), and no doubt winners stuff like mugs and keyrings etc. It's a collectors dream!

I hope to get my tickets from every round framed up (I saw a Sunderland fan on here with a set like it framed) - so glad I insist on collecting a printed ticket everywhere.

What else am I looking forward to?

Getting the match embroidery on my replica shirt

The Europa league next season - at least 8 group games however bad we are

The Community Shield in August (never been to that)

Triangular corner flags at the ground??

Entering the EFL cup at Round 3 for the first time ever although I like round 2 normally as its a chance of visiting a League 1 or League 2 ground I might not have been to before)

And never having anyone say to us again that we have won nothing.

As I said earlier, it is a crying shame that so few 'normal' clubs ever win something like this, how can it be that the same handful of teams seemingly win 99% of the major cups, and everyone else has to have winning the Championship or a play off final as their big day?

But with patient club ownership, maybe a Bournemouth, Brentford or Fulham could do it one day soon too? I was so happy for West Ham when they won their European trophy, when Villa had their big Champions League nights this season, lets hope the tide is turning for more supporters who have waited a long time.