The 1912–13 FA Cup was the 42nd season of the world's oldest association football competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup (more usually known as the FA Cup). Aston Villa won the competition for the fifth time, beating Sunderland 1–0 in the final at Crystal Palace, London. Villa's triumph ended a series of new FA Cup winners which had occurred since 1909.
Calendar
The format of the FA Cup for the season had two preliminary rounds, five qualifying rounds, four proper rounds, and the semi-finals and final.[1]
37 of the 40 clubs from the First and Second Divisions joined 12 clubs who came through the qualifying rounds. Glossop, Lincoln City and Stockport County from the Second Division were entered at the fourth qualifying round, with Lincoln going out in the fifth qualifying round and the other two progressing to the competition proper along with ten non-League teams.
The 32 matches were played on various dates between Saturday 11 January and Saturday 18 January 1913, with nine replays and a second replay being played on various dates between Wednesday 15 January and Wednesday 22 January.
15 of the 16 second-round matches were played on Saturday 1 February 1913. Four matches were drawn, with the replays taking place in the following midweek . One of these went to a second replay the following week.[2]
The four fourth-round (quarter-final) matches were played on 8 March 1913. There was one replay, the Tyne-Wear derby between Newcastle United and Sunderland, played on 12 March. This went to a second replay, which Sunderland won.[3]
The semi-finals were played on 29 March 1913. The Burnley–Sunderland match went to a replay, which Sunderland won, going on to meet Aston Villa in the final.[3]
The final was contested by Aston Villa and Sunderland on 19 April 1913 at London's Crystal Palace. Aston Villa won 1–0, with a goal by Tommy Barber assisted by a crossed ball from Charlie Wallace. Wallace had earlier missed a penalty, something that would not occur again in FA Cup Final, until the 1988 final between Wimbledon and Liverpool.