Wembley – Saturday 20th May
Liverpool 3 (Aldridge, Rush 2) Everton 2 (McCall 2)
Liverpool : Bruce Grobbelaar, Gary Ablett, Steve Staunton (Barry Venison), Steve Nicol, Ronnie Whelan (c), Alan Hansen, Peter Beardsley, John Aldridge (Ian Rush), Ray Houghton, John Barnes, Steve McMahon
Everton : Neville Southall, Neil McDonald, Pat Van Den Hauwe, Kevin Ratcliffe (c), Dave Watson, Paul Bracewell (Stuart McCall), Pat Nevin, Trevor Steven, Graeme Sharp, Tony Cottee, Kevin Sheedy (Ian Wilson)
The 1989 FA Cup Final was a Merseyside derby between Liverpool and Everton at Wembley. Liverpool won 3–2 after extra time, with goals from John Aldridge and Ian Rush (2). Stuart McCall scored both Everton goals. The final was played only five weeks after the Hillsborough Disaster, in which 96 Liverpool fans were killed in a crush, and just before kick-off there was a minute’s silence and the teams wore black armbands as a sign of respect. Gerry Marsden, lead singer of Gerry & The Pacemakers led the crowd in a rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone.
The match itself was one of Wembley’s most dramatic. Few could have foreseen the drama to come after Liverpool had taken the lead after 4 minutes through John Aldridge (atoning for his penalty miss in the Final the year before), and holding on to that lead until one minute from full time. Then on 90 minutes, Everton substitute Stuart McCall poked the ball home, and a pitch invasion by Everton fans ensued.
It was the last kick of the 90 minutes and the match went into extra time. On 95 minutes, substitute Ian Rush, so often the thorn in Everton’s side, scored with a half volley on the turn and Liverpool led 2-1. They were pegged back yet again just five minutes later when Stuart McCall scored his second, chesting and volleying a spectacular goal past Bruce Grobelaar and into the corner of the net. However, Rush had not finished and just as in 1986 when he scored twice to help the Reds beat the Toffees 3-2 in the first Merseyside derby Final, he got his second, with a deft header from a floated John Barnes cross.
