Updated 9:36am 8 May 2012

FA Cup Final 1966: Everton off the ropes to KO the Owls

Mike Trebilcock's equaliser against Sheffield Wednesday in the 1966 FA Cup final

It had all started so differently though as within five minutes, Everton conceded for the first time during their entire Cup run this season when a shot by Wednesday’s Jim McCalliog was deflected off England international left-back Ray Wilson beyond Gordon West.

Everton’s hard luck story continued as Alex Young had the ball in the back of the Wednesday net only for his effort to be ruled out for offside and then the Scottish centre-forward seemed to be up-ended by Owls’ custodian Ron Springett only for referee Jack Taylor to wave play on.

Despite these forays into the Wednesday box, Everton were very much second best before the interval with the underdogs from Yorkshire’s steel city well worth their lead.

That advantage was doubled 12 minutes after the re-start when David Ford netted from a rebound after West had parried a fierce shot by John Fantham and BBC commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme declared: “That’s it – Wednesday’s Cup.”

But how wrong he was as a spectacular three-goal burst in an amazing 15-minute period saw Everton turn this game on its head.

Within 120 seconds of Wednesday netting their second, Everton pulled a goal back through Trebilcock, who fired home a loose ball from 12 yards out after a Derek Temple header had been blocked.

A further five minutes later, the Goodison Park outfit were on level terms as Trebilcock struck again, this time crashing in from the edge of the box after Sam Ellis had only half-cleared an Alex Scott free-kick.

The goal prompted a mini pitch invasion from some over-enthusiastic Evertonians were one supporter – believed to be a certain Eddie Cavanagh, a well-known ‘character’ racing almost the entire length of the field, slipping out of his jacket to evade one policeman before eventually being ‘rugby tackled’ by a younger officer.

Yorkshiremen are not known for giving away generous gifts but fortunately for Everton, Wednesday wing-half Gerry Young hails from Jarrow in County Durham.

With 17 minutes remaining, Young failed to control a long ball by Colin Harvey and Temple raced through to fire past Springett for the sucker punch that floored Wednesday.

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