24th March 1996

[PeterWithesShin]

Police said after the game that they hadn't seen two sets of more drunken football fans. There was a lot of trouble - no suprise with Leeds I guess.

Great performance having sais that.

Was there? Apart from all the bottle throwing at the Green Man? pub it was pretty quiet I thought. Far worse against the Mancs.

[Pat McMahon]

I came back from Paris for the weekend and stayed in London from the Friday eve - never saw a spot of trouble at all. I went with a Leeds mate as well who had to put up with me singing all the way back to our mate's house after the game.

Leeds fans on the way back to Wembley tube were as good as gold and were more upset with Wilkinson than bothered about us. Man U in 1994 seemed much lairier.

[shauntealeswife]

Me and my Dad ended up getting onto a Tube carriage rammed with racist Leeds fans who were booting a ball around the carriage the whole way up to Wembley.  Made it all the sweeter when we stuffed them.

When I think of Villa, honestly it's this team that I think of...  Great time.

[devilla]

17 years, that's scary. I too remember it like it was yesterday. Wonderful day and I don't remember seeing any trouble.

Savo's goal especially lives in my memory.

[Nev]

Among the highlights:

Getting clattered in Solihull on the Friday night and having to be dragged out of bed for the train down to London the next morning, proceeding to carry on drinking for the rest of the weekend without eating apart from a stale pasty on the Sunday lunchtime. Rolling around central London on Saturday afternoon and drinking in that huge pub outside Liverpool St Station (I've seen a picture but have little recollection). Arriving  outside Wembley in the aftermath of the Green Man fun and games, watching Savo score the greatest goal ever seen at Wembley and finishing the night in the hotel lobby with a load of Scandinavian girls doing aerobics.

[Damo70]

Possibly not of one the highlights, but didn't two very good aquaintances of ours have a falling out regarding Savo and proceeded to not speak to each other for eleven years afterwards?

[Nev]

Possibly not of one the highlights, but didn't two very good aquaintances of ours have a falling out regarding Savo and proceeded to not speak to each other for eleven years afterwards?

Close but not quite.

It all stemmed from an argument outside Filbert St regarding the merits of Big Ron towards the tail end of his "stint in the hot seat", one for, one agin.

Anyway, it just so happened that both were sat near each other at the final, the Big Ron defender still banging on about our ex-manager and carrying a Pannini sticker featuring "the big fella" in his pocket like some love-lorn teenager. "Anti-Ron" had the last laugh though, as his opposite number was in the shithouse when Savo scored and took some merciless stick for the rest of the game.

[dave.woodhall]

The only time in my life when we behaved like we belonged on the big stage and regarded winning as a matter of routine rather than an unexpected surprise.

[TopDeck113]

One of the great days.  Like others have said, we bossed that final in a way that would be expected of the usual suspects, but never of the Villa.  Pity that it was yet another false dawn. 

Only thing that spoilt the day was having to change an off-side puncture in an unlit section of the M1 on the way home.   Hairy!

[Mortimer's Bear]

The only time in my life when we behaved like we belonged on the big stage and regarded winning as a matter of routine rather than an unexpected surprise.

A complete contrast to our victory 2 years previous.

[The Man With A Stick]

My most vivid memory of that day was looking out of the coach window at the traffic lights, shortly after leaving Wembley, to see the Leeds team bus right next to us.  We game them some stick for a few minutes, poor old Gary McAllister couldn't even look at us.

[dave.woodhall]

The only time in my life when we behaved like we belonged on the big stage and regarded winning as a matter of routine rather than an unexpected surprise.

A complete contrast to our victory 2 years previous.

The way we treated, and still treat, 1994 was embarrassing.

[Pat McMahon]

The only time in my life when we behaved like we belonged on the big stage and regarded winning as a matter of routine rather than an unexpected surprise.

A complete contrast to our victory 2 years previous.

The way we treated, and still treat, 1994 was embarrassing.

I dunno Dave - it was our first Wembley final for 17 years, and we have only ever won 4 finals on the hallowed turf.

[Darlo Dave]

I vividly remember 4 Leeds fans waiting outside our end at the end of the game. I tried to shepherd my younger brother away from them, expecting the worst, and it turned out they were shaking everyone's hands congratulating us! Fair play to them, I'd have not done that, if rolls were reversed.

[PeterWithesShin]

I vividly remember 4 Leeds fans waiting outside our end at the end of the game. I tried to shepherd my younger brother away from them, expecting the worst, and it turned out they were shaking everyone's hands congratulating us! Fair play to them, I'd have not done that, if rolls were reversed.

I saw a number of Leeds fans doing that.

I also felt really sorry for one lot. On the way home our coach went past a minbus of them broken down on the motorway. Last thing you'd want after that result.