We get Chorley in the Cup and we can’t watch

by | Nov 1, 2020 | News

COVID screws up a great tie

It is the Emirates FA Cup first round and for only the third tie in about 20 years we are in the draw for the first round. We wait with bated breath to see what team we draw, and it arrives with a sense of sheer joy – Wigan Athletic v Chorley.

The realisation kicks in that we will only be able to see the game on TV and all the euphoria suddenly turns to depression. There wouldn’t have been a full house, we know that. But the occasion would have been electric.

For decades we have wanted this as a draw, but have always missed it, having to settle for a couple of pre-season friendlies.
Don’t get me wrong, it is not that there is any rivalry between the two teams, more of a case that we started from similar backgrounds, and of course half my family live in Chorley and a couple even have them as their second team.

Yes, like Wigan most of the ‘football fans’ in the town support other teams than their home town team, but these occasions don’t come round often and we can only sit back and wonder what the day would have been like.

The other side is we are not even confident that we can win it, yes our academy lads should be able to see them off, but at the moment. Confidence isn’t exactly great.

I suppose we can grab some comfort from the online betting sites, they have us as clear winners and lets hope they aren’t wrong.

Latics haven’t played Chorley since entering the Football League in 1978, apart from a couple of friendlies. Though we have quite a few games under our belts from non-league days:

All in all we have played Chorley 34 times, recording 18 wins, six draws and 10 defeats, scoring 65 goals in the process.
Our first meeting with the Magpies came in the 1934-35 Lancashire Junior Cup second round, a 5-1 away victory for Latics. The following season saw Latics win 4-1 away in the fourth qualifying round of the FA Cup, the first of nine clashes in the competition.

Latics have won five times, drawn twice and lost twice against Chorley in the FA Cup.

LATICS V CHORLEY FC IN THE FA CUP

1935-36 | Fourth Qualifying Round | 4-1 (A) | Colquhoun, Felton, Scott & Robson
1937-38 | Second Qualifying Round | 1-0 (A) | Grange
1938-39 | Third Qualifying Round | 3-3 (H) | Appleton, Hartill & Whittaker
1938-39 | Third Qualifying Round Replay | 1-5 (A) | Parle
1945-46 | Second Qualifying Round | 2-5 (A) | Hampson (2)
1957-58 | Fourth Qualifying Round | 2-1 (A) | Banks & Smith
1965-66 | Fourth Qualifying Round | 4-0 (H) | Lyon (3) & Llewellyn
1969-70 | First Qualifying Round | 1-1 (H) | Sutherland
1969-70 | First Qualifying Round | 5-2 (A) | McLoughlin (2), Fielding, Breen & Sutherland

Maybe it is just me that is a bit gutted eh?

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