The 1984 Associate Members' Cup final was the final of the inaugural Associate Members' Cup. The match was held at Boothferry Park in Hull on 24 May 1984 and had an attendance of 6,544. It was contested by Hull City and Bournemouth.

Bournemouth won the match 2–1, with Paul Morrell scoring the winning goal.

Background After the Anglo-Scottish Cup was discontinued in 1981, the Football League created the Group Cup for the 1981–82 season to help fill the void left in the calendar. It was renamed the Football League Trophy for the following campaign, before a full rebrand and restructuring led to the Associate Members' Cup being introduced for the 1983–84 season. The format had been changed to a knock-out competition solely for clubs from the Third Division and Fourth Division. Previously, it had been an invitational 32-team tournament with a group stage and knock-out competition, with clubs from all four divisions competing.

When it came to the debut of the 1983–84 Associate Members' Cup, Hull City and Bournemouth were its eventual finalists. Hull had beaten York City, Bury, Preston North End, Sheffield United, and Tranmere Rovers en route to the final two. Meanwhile, Bournemouth had faced Aldershot, Millwall, Wrexham, Bristol Rovers, and Millwall again prior to their meeting with Hull.

As with nearly all Football League competitions, Wembley Stadium was originally meant to stage the final. However, due to the recent Horse of the Year Show the pitch had become unplayable. Instead, it was moved to Boothferry Park, the home of Hull City.

Match details

GK 1 Tony Norman RB 2 Bobby McNeil CB 5 Peter Skipper CB 6 Stan McEwan LB 3 Gary Swann RM 7 Brian Marwood CM 4 Dale Roberts CM 8 Steve McClaren LM 11 Garreth Roberts (c) CF 9 Billy Whitehurst CF 10 Alan TaylorSubstitutes: LM 12 Billy Askew CM 13 Andy Flounders Manager: Chris Chilton (interim manager)

GK 1 Ian Leigh RB 2 Mark Nightingale CB 5 Roger Brown CB 6 Phil Brignull LB 3 Chris Sulley RM 7 Sean O'Driscoll CM 4 John Beck CM 8 Robbie Savage LM 10 Paul Morrell (c) CF 9 Milton Graham CF 11 Ian ThompsonSubstitutes: CM 12 Chris Shaw CM 13 Keith WilliamsManager: Harry Redknapp

MATCH RULES 90 minutes. 30 minutes of extra-time if necessary. Penalty shoot-out if scores still level. Two named substitutes Maximum of two substitutions.

References

External links Official website Associate Members' Cup – 1983/84