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NOTTINGHAM FOREST HISTORY
21 February, 1885

Win over Old Etonians to reach semi

On this day in Nottingham Forest history in 1885 Forest beat Old Etonians to reach the FA Cup semi-final.

Cup runs and campaigns

Reached final / semi-final / quarter-final

Nottingham Forest reached the FA Cup semi-final with a 2–0 quarter-final win over Old Etonians, one of the strongest amateur names in the early history of the competition.

The result belonged to a very different football age, but it still marked a major step for Forest. The FA Cup was already becoming the great national test, and beating Old Etonians placed the club deep into the competition at a time when former public school sides still carried real weight.

For Forest, the 2–0 win was not just another cup result. It showed that the club could compete with established opponents in the country’s most important knockout tournament.

The cup run ended in the semi-final against Queen’s Park. Forest drew 1–1 in the first match, then lost the replay 3–0, but the Old Etonians win remained a significant early landmark in the club’s FA Cup story.

Sources

11v11

Forest timeline

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Notts County 0–2 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 3–0 Blackburn
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Vitória SC 1–1 Nottingham Forest
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Portimonense 1–2 Nottingham Forest Sporting CP 4–1 Nottingham Forest
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Udinese 1–0 Nottingham Forest Barcelona 1–0 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 2–1 Bayer Leverkusen
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Nottingham Forest 2–0 Stade Brestois 29
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Nottingham Forest 0–1 Leeds
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Nottingham Forest 0–2 Leeds
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Liverpool 2–2 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 0–0 Tottenham
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Aston Villa 1–2 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 0–1 Coventry
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Crystal Palace 14:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 16:30 Arsenal
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Ipswich 20:00 Nottingham Forest
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Brentford 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 17:30 Manchester City
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Bournemouth 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 20:00 Chelsea
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Hull City 20:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Brighton
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Sunderland 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Everton
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Manchester United 16:30 Nottingham Forest
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Newcastle 19:30 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Fulham
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Nottingham Forest 19:30 Hull City
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Manchester City 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Bournemouth
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Chelsea 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Brentford
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Fulham 20:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Manchester United
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Everton 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 20:00 Newcastle
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Tottenham 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Aston Villa
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Leeds 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Liverpool
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Sunderland
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Brighton 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Crystal Palace
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Arsenal 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Ipswich
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Coventry 16:00 Nottingham Forest
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On this day in …
1885
Win over Old Etonians to reach semi

Nottingham Forest reached the FA Cup semi-final with a 2–0 quarter-final win over Old Etonians, one of the strongest amateur names in the early…

Cup runs and campaigns