My favourite Leicester City FA Cup game - Part 3: a Bamba fiesta, penalty heroics and a local drubbing
Ahead of Leicester City’s trip to Stamford Bridge this weekend in the FA Cup quarter-finals, we asked our writers for their favourite Foxes games in the competition.
To add a bit of variety, nobody was allowed to choose the 2021 final…
Here’s part 3, featuring a game dominated by one man, a hattrick, two replays and some penalty heroics.
The Bamba Show
Becky Taylor
January 9th 2011, a real buzz of excitement felt in the air as the big-spenders of Manchester City were to be welcomed to the (then) Walkers Stadium for a 3rd round FA Cup tie.
I'd had a word with myself to just enjoy seeing a big PL team down here, to expect nothing, and this might be one of the bigger matches I'd get to watch live as a Leicester fan. (Oh how little did I know.)
In stepped Sol Bamba on his debut to put us 1-0 up after 1 minute. What a moment. He cemented himself as a cult hero immediately and had people shouting his name like he'd been here for years.
He continued to terrorise Man City from corners all night; genuinely could have had a hattrick, but that goal was one of those moments where I can still remember the excitement and celebrations like it was yesterday.
Football is about moments and that was certainly one of them!
I have almost zero recollection of Paul Gallagher beating the first man at a corner in his whole Leicester City tenure, except for this match.
James Milner ran the show for Man City; the ever obliging Leicester City allowed him to score his first goal for them. Then when he set up their 2nd I thought that was our fun over, but when Joe Hart decided to drop the ball to Andy King to equalise it was electric again.
It feels weird saying a 2-2 result was a favourite match but it felt a big deal at the time. The chance of a replay at the Etihad - which I ended up sat front row and couldn't tell what was happening all game - felt like a real high after our long stint outside the top flight.
Something ridiculous about this game was a number of Man City players wearing snoods to play in. I don't think it was even that cold but I'm glad that's a fashion that wasn't allowed to continue.
With the ridiculousness of the years to follow, particularly some of our results Vs Man City, this game seems irrelevant now, but in that moment it was a classic FA Cup third round cup tie and rejuvenated my dream of seeing us win it.
Viva Sol Bamba!
Pegguy on pens
Editor’s note: After we delved into the first fixture via Adam Hodges’ piece, it’s the reverse fixture, it’s time to really talk about the replay in 2000 against Arsenal.
Joe Clarbour
It’s only when you’re tasked with naming your FA Cup memories that you realise, as a Leicester City supporter it is rather easier said than done.
The fact that a 1992 third round win over Crystal Palace immediately featured in the conversation as being particularly memorable for two of us says something about our somewhat barren record in the competition over the years prior to that 2021 win. And, legendary as it is and compelling as it must have been, the 1982 Shrewsbury quarter final was 42 years ago.
So, where to go with this? The quarter final loss to Wycombe in 2001? Chelsea 1997, Erland Johnsen and “That Penalty” as it’s described on the Youtube footage? I’d better not….
But there are some bright spots, one or two moments of hope. Strange to say perhaps but my own personal stand out memory was the two gruelling matches against Arsenal in the 4th round in 2000. Over 200 minutes without a goal at either end, up and under clearances and rear guard defensive action. Football the way we used to like it – we had to. At times, there was no other way.
Plucky little Leicester up against the footballing aristocracy of that day and sticking it to them. We were never going to outplay an Arsenal side containing Viera and Petit in the midfield but we sure outfought them. We were never outscoring them given they’d got Henry and Suker upfront but nor did they outscore us.
And we were certainly never going to beat them in a penalty shoot out given they’d got England’s number one in goal and we’d got some French bloke in pyjamas with fewer than 30 senior appearances to his name. Were we? Were we?! Pegguy! Pegguy!
In truth all I really remembered of any of this was the chest swelling pride of having watched the first match on a Leeds pub television surrounded by a bunch of Man Utd / Liverpool / Spurs supporting college mates and the shootout win. The rest I admit I had to fill in from the Youtube footage (the entire first match at Highbury is oddly available for those inclined).
It was worth checking out – I’d forgotten that several key members of the team had been hit by the flu before the first match. I’d forgotten that Matt Elliott started up front and that Darren Eadie got sent off. And I must admit I’d kind of forgotten Stuart Campbell too. It all made it a somewhat more impressive result somehow.
Beckford blows Forest away
Helen Thompson
Picking a third-round replay doesn’t always scream excitement but when you get to face your local rivals, it’s always a gripping game. For my second pick, I am going back to the fourth round in 2012, after a 0-0 draw, Nottingham Forest had to come back to the King Power.
I had to remind myself what state Forest were in back then, I just remembered how unhappy their away crowd was by the end. They weren’t in a good place at all, and us? Well, we’d just been royally booed off the pitch away at Barnsley after losing a couple of days before (not helped by the tunnel being next to the away end). Matty Fryatt copping particular abuse.
My biggest memory of this game though was centred around the polarizing Jermaine Beckford and for two different reasons. For anything great about him, he was more parts frustrating. He often had an air of nonchalant or disinterest and his first touch (lack thereof) frequently had me venting about locking him in a room with Paul Gallagher until he improved it. I remember this as being his best match in a short-lived Leicester career; reason number one.
Reason two? I just remember Pearson being very keen to point out post match that he’d been ill and suffering from a cold. No idea if that was meant to praise Beckford, shame Forest, or both. Given how quickly he fell out of favour, you decide.
It was a perfect start for us, George Boateng gifting us the opening goal after just seven minutes, unfortunately on the end of a Lloyd Dyer pass. We doubled our lead before half-time, useful as my other lasting memory was it being bloody freezing. A Lee Peltier cross troubled the goalkeeper who only palmed away as far as Beckford’s head. One of the easiest headers. Forest’s defence were all over the place, nobody marking our target man.
Beckford had a touch of the Kelechi Iheanacho, seeming to love scoring the cup. He finished the game with a hattrick, but had we taken more of our chances, we could have really shown up our rivals. His third was the best of the lot, he also took the crown of being the first Foxes player to bag a hattrick against Forest since 1948.
Leicester would go on to beat Swindon and Norwich before losing to Chelsea in the sixth round at Stamford Bridge. Here’s hoping history does not repeat…
