After the disappointment of defeat in the FA Cup final at the hands of Derby County a year earlier, Charlton had the chance to make amends with a second consecutive appearance in the final of the world’s most famous cup competition, becoming the first London club to achieve the feat.
Rochdale, West Bromwich Albion, Blackburn Rovers, Preston North End and Newcastle United were all put to the sword during the road to Wembley, with Burnley lying in wait at the national stadium.
There were five survivors in Jimmy Seed’s lineup from the 1946 final, with Sam Bartram, Jack Shreeve, Bert Johnson, Don Welsh and Chris Duffy all getting a second chance of glory, while there was redemption for Peter Croker, who had missed out at Wembley 12 months earlier with a broken leg he had suffered just 10 days before the big day.
A crowd just shy of 100,000 were packed in beneath the famous old twin towers as Welsh led his players out alongside their counterparts from second-division Burnley. Referee Jim Wiltshire, sensing the tension of the occasion, felt no need to hang around, blowing his whistle to get the match under way a full five minutes before its scheduled 3pm kick-off.
That tension, perhaps, translated into action with one reporter describing the play as “unexciting”, while another said: “this must be one the dullest games ever on Wembley’s great arena.”
Indeed, one of the highlights of the game was when, for the second successive year, the ball burst while in play (this was later put down to the poor quality of leather available following the Second World War.)
Chances were at a premium, but it was Charlton who looked the more likely in front of goal. Welsh tested Clarets stopper George Strong with a shot from a good position inside the penalty area, but with no goals after 90 minutes, Seed’s men were heading for extra-time, just as they did in the previous final.
With the action remaining tight, it looked as if the match could be heading for a replay, before Charlton sealed their moment of glory in the 114th minute.
When a right-wing cross was headed away by a Burnley defender, it only fell as far as Duffy who lay in wait before slamming home a first-time volley from 12 yards to bring the cup to south London.
