1953 FA Cup final hat-trick football sells for £5,250
- Published
The football had been predicted to go for between £3,000 and £5,000
The football used in the 1953 FA Cup final has fetched £5,250 at auction.
Blackpool striker Stan Mortensen scored the only FA Cup final hat-trick at the old Wembley Stadium with the ball as his side beat Bolton Wanderers 4-3.
It was given to Mortensen at the end of the game - dubbed the Matthews final in honour of Blackpool's legendary winger, Stanley - but came to be owned by a man in Surrey who put it up for sale.
Auctioneers Hansons said the buyer was a lifelong Blackpool fan.
Blackpool 4-3 Bolton in 'Matthews Final'
Charles Hanson, who owns the auctioneers, said the winning bidder wanted to remain anonymous but would be happy to loan the leather ball to football museums.
Mr Hanson said three phone bidders were vying with online bidders to buy the football, which had a guide price of between £3,000 and £5,000.
He said it was it has been "incredible to handle a football used in the famous Matthews FA Cup final", adding it was "a bit of money for old leather".
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IT consultant Chris Crook, 57, from Dorking, who sold the football, said it was won in a raffle by a waitress at a charity dinner honouring Mortensen.
She passed it to her brother in Sutton, who in turn gave it as a thank you gift to an electrician who turned out one Christmas Day to sort out a power failure.
The game was nicknamed the Matthews final
Mr Crook said the electrician was a friend of his father-in-law "and the ball was eventually passed down to me in 2007".
Despite Mortensen's heroics, the game is known universally as the Matthews Final after his teammate, Sir Stanley Matthews.
Nicknamed the "Wizard of Dribble", Matthews had been on the losing side for Blackpool in two previous finals and many neutral fans were hoping the nation's most famous footballer would get his coveted winner's medal.
Despite Bolton going 3-1 up, Blackpool came back to win 4-3, with Matthews providing the cross for Bill Perry's winning goal.
Matthews's cup final boots were auctioned at Bonham's in Chester for £38,000 and his winner's medal sold for £220,000 in 2014.
- Attribution
- Published7 January 2015
