The 1944 Football League War Cup South Final was the final of the southern section of Football League War Cup, an unofficial cup competition held in England during the Second World War as a replacement for the suspended FA Cup. The match took place at Wembley Stadium on 15 April 1944 and was won by Charlton Athletic, who beat Chelsea 3–1. Charlton later contested a play-off against the winners of the equivalent North final, Aston Villa.
Match summary Chelsea took an early lead with a penalty from Joe Payne. Charlton equalised through Charlie Revell and took the lead on 36 minutes when a defensive mix-up enabled Don Welsh to score. Revell scored Charlton's third a minute later to put the game beyond Chelsea's reach. Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of the Allied forces, presented the cup to victorious captain Welsh. The match produced a record gate of £26,000, of which £12,000 was recouped by the Government in Entertainment Tax.
Match details
1 Vic Woodley2 George Hardwick3 Eric Westwood4 William Russell5 John Harris6 Dick Foss7 Llew Ashcroft8 Jimmy Bowie9 Joe Payne10 Willie Fagan11 Charlie MittenManager: Billy Birrell 1 Sam Bartram2 John Shreeve3 Joe Jobling4 George Smith5 Jackie Oakes6 Allenby Chilton7 George Robinson8 Sailor Brown9 Charlie Revell10 Don Welsh11 Chris DuffyManager: Jimmy Seed
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