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NOTTINGHAM FOREST HISTORY
9 March, 1974

Newcastle pitch invasion voids cup tie

On this day in 1974 Forest’s FA Cup tie at Newcastle is voided after a pitch invasion.

Controversies and incidents

Infamous on-pitch incidents

Nottingham Forest were caught in one of the FA Cup’s most notorious controversies when their quarter-final at Newcastle United was voided after a pitch invasion.

Forest had led 3-1 at St James’ Park, putting themselves in a strong position to reach the semi-finals. The match then changed shape completely after crowd trouble disrupted play. Newcastle later recovered to win 4-3, but the circumstances made the result impossible to treat as an ordinary cup defeat.

The FA eventually ordered the result to be void, sending the tie to replays rather than allowing Newcastle’s comeback to stand. That decision made the match one of the most talked-about FA Cup incidents of the decade, remembered as much for the disorder as for the football.

For Forest supporters, the frustration was obvious. A 3-1 lead in a quarter-final had turned into confusion, controversy and a replayed tie. The first replay at Goodison Park finished 0-0, before Newcastle won the second replay 1-0 to progress, but the original match remained the defining moment of the whole episode.

Archive Footage

Sources

The City Ground; FA Cup historical records; When Saturday Comes

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On this day …
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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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1974
Newcastle pitch invasion voids cup tie

Nottingham Forest were caught in one of the FA Cup’s most notorious controversies when their quarter-final at Newcastle United was voided after a pitch…

Controversies and incidents
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