The Manchester Cup 

Football teams in the Manchester area competed annually for the Manchester Cup. Newton Heath entered the competition for the first time in 1885, losing in the Final. They won the Cup the next year, and reached the Final again in 1887. As football became more popular, Newton Heath’s success in this and other local competitions brought prestige to the Railway Company, and the men were allowed time off to train.

Saved by a dog 

In 1901, a fund-raising bazaar was organized. According to legend, it was indirectly one of the most important events in the history of Manchester United. It is said that Harry Stafford (Heathens’ full-back, captain and chief fund-raiser) had a St.Bernard dog, which was on show at the bazaar. One night it escaped. John Davies saw it and liked it. He asked Stafford if he could have it, and Stafford asked him for a contribution to the funds in exchange. This chance meeting led to the saving of Newton Heath, and the formation of Manchester United.

The Outcasts

The start of the 1909-10 season was threatened by a players’ strike. The Players’ Union had been trying to affiliate to the Federation of Trade Unions, but the football authorities were worried that the players might get involved in other unions’ strikes. The League decided that they would suspend any member of the Union, stop his wages and ban him from playing. Led by Meredith, most of the Manchester United players refused to leave the Union and were suspended. They started training independently as “The Outcasts”. On 31st August, the authorities gave in. The Union was recognized, suspensions were lifted and back-pay was allowed.

MUJAC 

In 1938, the Manchester United Junior Athletic Club was formed. Its aim was to seek out talented young players and give them the chance to develop their abilities by working with professional coaches and trainers. Scouts went all over the nation to watch local and schoolboy football matches in an attempt both to give the best a chance and, of course, to bring them to United before other teams showed an interest.

Did you know ? 

• Two pairs of brothers have helped United win an FA Cup Final. Brian and Jimmy Greenhoff in 1977, and Phil and Gary Neville in 1996. On both occasions the opposition was Liverpool. 
   

• When United thrashed Arsenal 6-2 at Highbury, Lee Sharpe scored a hat-trick and doubled his tally of goals for the club. It had taken him 61 games to score his first three goals. 
   

• The preparations for the 1991 Cup Winners’ Cup Final were fraught with problems. First the kit was left behind, then Les Sealey forgot his passport, and finally Andrei Kanchelskis was held at customs until a valid visa could be issued by the Russian Embassy. 
   

• Matt Busby was appointed manager of the Scottish national side in January 1958, and he would have been in charge for the World Cup in Sweden had it not been for the Munich tragedy. 
   

• On his debut at Portsmouth, in December 1987, Steve Bruce gave away a penalty, was booked, and broke his nose. 
   

• Matt Busby won only one full Scottish cap, against Wales during the Home Internationals of 1934. He captained Scotland in the unofficial internationals between 1939 and 1945. 
   

• Only three men have steered United to the League Championship, the most coveted prize in domestic football - Ernest Mangnall, Sir Matt Busby, and Sir Alex Ferguson. 
   

• A true cockney Red, David Beckham once turned up to a trial at Tottenham in a Manchester United kit. 
   

• In 1970, George Best scored six goals in an 8-2 win against Northampton Town in the fifth round of the FA Cup. His best scoring season for United was 1967-68, when he scored 28 League goals. 
   

• In 1964, George Best opened the first of his half-a-dozen clothes boutiques, in Sale, Cheshire. He also owned a travel agency, a bar and two nightclubs. 
   

• Martin Buchan became the first player since World War Two to captain both English and Scottish Cup-winning sides. 
   

• Martin Buchan scored on just four occasions in his 455 United games - a goal every 111 games. 
   

• In the games Eric Cantona played for United, they won 66%, drew 23%, and lost 11%. 
   

• Eric Cantona scored 17 of the 19 penalties that he took for United. 
   

• Eric Cantona scored 80 League and Cup goals for United: 56 with his right foot, 10 with his left, and 14 with his head. 
   

• Eric Cantona won 45 caps for France and scored 19 goals, including one on his debut in 1987. 
   

• In all competitions for United, Bobby Charlton played 752 games, and scored 247 goals. 
   

• Bobby Charlton played his last United game against Verona in the Anglo-Italian tournament at the end of season 1972-73, scoring two goals. 
   

• Allenby Chilton made his debut for United on 2nd September, 1939, just one day before Britain declared war on Germany. 
   

• Pat Crerand once said that he wouldn’t leave Parkhead for anywhere in the world, even if he was offered £10,000. Two years later he moved to United. 
   

• When Pat Crerand was sent off at Ferencvaros in June 1965, it was United’s 10th sending off in 20 months, including reserve games. 
   

• Duncan Edwards once got into trouble with the Manchester Police - for riding  his bike with no lights. Matt Busby gave him a telling-off, too, for letting the side down. 
   

• Bill Foulkes is the second-oldest post World War Two player to play for United. When he played at home to Southampton on 16th August, 1969, he was 37 years and 222 days old. 
   

• Ryan Giggs scored United’s quickest-ever goal, after just 15 seconds against Southampton in November 1995. 
   

• In 1966, David Herd got an unusual hat-trick for United, when he scored past three different goalkeepers in a 5-0 demolition of Sunderland. 
   

• Mark Hughes scored United’s first-ever goal in the Premier League. (v. Sheffield United August 1992)
   

• In 1994, Mark Hughes became the first-ever player to score at Wembley in four different club matches in one season: the Charity Shield, the League Cup Final, the FA Cup semi-final, and the FA Cup Final. 
   

• Between 1991 and 1996, Roy Keane played in four FA Cup Finals; three for United and one for Nottingham Forest. 
   

• Billy Meredith’s trademark was that he played with a toothpick sticking out of his mouth. He said it helped him to concentrate. 
   

• On 25th February, 1905, Charlie Roberts became the first-ever Manchester United player to be capped for England. 
   

• During his playing career, Bryan Robson is thought to have broken, fractured or dislocated more than 24 bones in his body.
   

• In the 1951-52 season, Jack Rowley contributed 30 goals to help secure the League Championship. This new club record was only beaten in 1959-60 when Dennis Viollett scored 32 goals. 
   

• Alfredo di Stefano, the legendary Real Madrid forward, used only one word to describe Tommy Taylor: “Magnifico” 
   

• Journalist George Follows once described Tommy Taylor as “The smiling executioner”. 
   

• Matt Busby, aware of the extra stress that a high price can cause to a player, paid £29,999 for Tommy Taylor. Busby is said to have given the £1 to the tea-lady who looked after them during negotiations. 
   

• Tommy Taylor holds the highest goals-per-game ratio of all who have played more than 50 games for United. His 128 goals in only 189 games include 34 in 1956-57. 
   

• Noman Whiteside was the youngest-ever player to score for United, in a match against Stoke City in May 1982, aged 17 years and 7 days old. 

Europe at United 

United were unbeaten at home for 40 years since they first entered European competition in 1956-57, until, on 30th October, 1996, Elvir Bolic of Fenerbahce SK of Turkey scored in a 1-0 win over United.

United’s very first European opposition at Old Trafford were Red Star Belgrade of Yugoslavia, in a friendly match as part of the Festival of Britain, on 12th May 1951. The match ended 1-1.