FA Cup 1st Round – Margate v Fulham, November 16th, 1997

MARGATE 1 (Munday)
FULHAM 2 (Carpenter & Scott)

Sunday 16th November 1997
FA Cup 1st Round – Hartsdown Park, Margate
Attendance: 5,100

25 years after the club’s last appearance in the First Round Proper of the FA Cup, Margate were drawn to play then third tier club Fulham at Hartsdown Park. The Cottagers had recently been taken over by Harrods boss Mohammed Al Fayed and new managerial team Kevin Keegan and Ray Wilkins had spent heavily rebuilding the Fulham side. It was the plum draw for Margate and the tie attracted Sky’s cameras with the match being shown live by the satellite broadcaster after it was switched from Saturday to Sunday. Pre-match publicity saw Bad Manners frontman Buster Bloodvessel heavily, in every sense, involved and even resulted in an album being hastily put together by Link Music, Margate’s sponsors at the time. A capacity crowd of 5,100 saw the game, some from two temporary stands erected opposite the old main stand, and a Mark Munday penalty gave Margate an early lead. A cruel deflection saw Fulham equalise later in the first half and the Londoners won the tie with a second half goal – though Margate’s Paul Sykes had a golden chance to equalise with time running out.

MARGATE: Lee Turner, Iain O’Connell, Eliot Martin, Bill Edwards, Andy Blondrage, Tony Dixon, Lee Spiller, Mark Munday, Paul Sykes, Martin Buglione (Paul Lamb) and Paul Pilkington (David Cory)

FULHAM: Andre Arendse, Mark Blake, Robbie Herrera, Richard Carpenter, Simon Morgan, Matt Lawrence, Neil Smith, Paul Bracewell, Rob Scott, Paul Peschisolido and Paul Watson

Pre-Match Press Articles

Isle Of Thanet Gazette ‘Road To Wembley’ Articles

National Press Articles From The Day Before The Match

Match Programme And Ticket

Pre-Match Photos

Margate players and officials. Left to right – Lee Turner (partially hidden), Eliot Martin, Phil Handford (partially hidden), David Cory, Martin Buglione, Paul Sykes, Lee Spiller, Karl Emerick, Danny Wilson, Tony Dixon, Ron Hewitt (club official) and Steve Winch (reserve team manager).

Kevin Keegan and Buster Bloodvessel

Alan Kay photo showing Buster Bloodvessel on the pitch

Alan Kay photo capturing the pre-match scene

Alan Kay photo showing the temporary stands (orange seats) at Hartsdown Park

Alan Kay photo showing the moments before kick-off

Alan Kay photo of the Fulham squad warming up

Alan Kay photo showing the tv crane rising above Hartsdown Park

Supporters outside Hartsdown Park with a copy of the ‘On The Bandwagon’ fanzine being held aloft.

Crowd photo from the Hartsdown Road end

Supporters at the Hartsdown Road end

Alan Kay photo showing the teams running out

Photos From The Match

Alan Kay photo showing Mark Munday about to strike his penalty

Munday sends the Fulham keeper the wrong way

The ball nestles in the corner of the Fulham net

Martin Buglione wheels away in celebration

Iain O’Connell climbs highest to head clear

Margate supporters at the Hartsdown Road hail the entrance of the team

Margate’s players leave the pitch at the end of the game led by goalkeeper Lee Turner and Eliot Martin

Paul Pilkington and Andy Blondrage (5) battle with Fulham’s Richard Carpenter

Iain O’Connell challenges Robbie Herrera

Mark Munday and Fulham’s Matt Lawrence

Iain O’Connell rises again

Action shot from an unusual angle as Fulham attack

Lee Turner denies Fulham’s Paul Peschisolido

Streaker Becky Drewett is about to greet Mark Munday

Richard Carpenter strikes the shot that looped horribly off Bill Edwards and into the net for Fulham’s equaliser. Paul Pilkington is the Margate player

Becky Drewett attempting to avoid capture before being led away

Match Reports

Post-Match Articles