The warning signs were there for Arsenal before the 1988 Littlewoods Cup final. George Graham’s team were expected to maintain their grip on the trophy they had won the year before against Liverpool – especially when they beat league champions Everton home and away in the semi-finals – but Arsenal had not always coped well as favourites. Swindon (1969), Ipswich (1978), West Ham (1980) and Valencia (1980) had all defied the odds to beat Arsenal in finals; Luton were about to add their name to that list.
George Graham’s first headache came when David O’Leary suffered an achilles tendon injury. His absence would prove crucial. “For me O’Leary is the Arsenal defence,” said Luton striker Mick Harford. “He organises everything. I was delighted when I heard he wasn’t playing, because he is so important to them.” The job of replacing O’Leary fell on the young shoulders of Gus Caesar, who hardly inspired confidence after his mistake gave Watford a 1-0 win at Highbury in Arsenal’s last match before the final.
Harford, who was enjoying a fine season and had worked his way into international reckoning, promised to make Caesar’s afternoon as difficult as possible. But the task facing Luton looked immense, especially as their preparations for Wembley were also far from ideal. After making it to the League Cup final in February they lost an FA Cup semi-final to Wimbledon and then suffered a crushing 4-1 defeat to Second Division side Reading in the Full Members’ Cup final that left manager Ray Harford “embarrassed and totally ashamed”. Their league form was fine when they played on their artificial pitch but they were struggling in away matches. By the time they made it to the League Cup final, they hadn’t beaten a First Division side on grass for four months.
Injuries were also a worry for Luton. Goalkeeper Les Sealey was ruled out, leading to a rare appearance for Andy Dibble; Mal Donaghy was passed fit, despite only being rate 60-40 before the final; midfielder David Preece was making just his second appearance in six months in the final; and Ricky Hill had not played for the first-team since breaking his leg on Boxing Day.
To add to Harford’s problems, Darron McDonagh pulled up in training on the eve of the final and Mark Stein stormed out of the team hotel after learning he was only on the bench. Luckily, Mark’s older brother Brian able to calm him down. “I told him he was being a bit silly. In the end he saw I was making sense.”
The fury was not consigned to the Luton dressing room. When Arsenal midfielder Steve Williams discovered he was not even in the match-day squad, he disappeared completely. “I told him on Saturday he wasn’t playing,” said Graham after the final. “I haven’t seen him since.” He never played for the club again.
When the match previews were published on Sunday 24 April, most journalists agreed Arsenal would be victorious. “All the pointers suggest the game might be as one-sided as a bout between the Christians and the lions,” wrote Steve Curry in the Express. “This line-up has too much strength and ability for Luton,” agreed Johnny Giles.
Arsenal did not look like the favourites during the opening exchanges. Hill, Preece and 19-year-old Kingsley Black started brightly in the glorious sunshine and Luton took the lead after 13 minutes, a deft touch from Steve Foster resulting in Brian Stein ghosting in behind a static Caesar to fire beyond John Lukic. Nigel Winterburn tested Dibble from long range, but Luton were fairly comfortable throughout the first half. Luton almost doubled their lead at the start of the second half after a horrendous air shot by Caesar let Harford attack Arsenal down the wing. He crossed to Stein, whose header was saved acrobatically by Lukic.
Martin Hayes came on for Perry Groves and made an impact, equalising in the 71st minute as the whole match turned on its head. For the next 10 minutes, Arsenal were simply unplayable. Smith put Arsenal ahead just three minutes after the equaliser; a Smith header was tipped on to the bar, with Hayes somehow contriving to hit the rebound back on to the post; Hayes almost made up for his miss, only for Dibble to deny him; and the keeper also thwarted Smith when he was through on goal.
All Dibble’s heroics looked to be in vain when Donaghy was adjudged to have tripped David Rocastle in the box with just nine minutes remaining. “When the penalty came I thought we were dead and buried,” Ray Harford admitted later. Nigel Winterburn stepped forward to take the spot kick – “a curious decision,” as the great Brian Moore put it – and Dibble dived to his left to push an effort hit without conviction round the post. “I knew I had to save that penalty or things would be over for us,” said Dibble. Arsenal’s bubble was about to burst.
Just a couple of minutes later, Caesar chose an inopportune time to dally over a clearance in his own area. Luton nicked the ball back off him and, after a goalmouth scramble, Danny Wilson nipped in to score. The Arsenal defender would never live the moment down. Justified or not, his name is now forever linked to this match, his mistake seen as the reason Luton went on to win the cup.
There was still time for one final act. In the 90th minute, Ashley Grimes sent in a delicious cross with the outside of his left foot and Brian Stein sneaked in front of Tony Adams to sink the knife into the hearts of all Arsenal supporters. There was no time for a comeback. For the first time in their 102-year history, Luton had claimed a major honour.
Man of the match and Luton hero Dibble enjoyed his time in the spotlight, but he cast doubt upon his future at the club immediately, saying he needed regular first-team football. By the summer, both Dibble and Brian Stein had left the club, albeit having given fans the perfect parting gift.
For Arsenal, there were some positives to be taken from the defeat. Their performance had shown – in patches at least – that the future was bright. With a few additions and adjustments, it looked as if Graham would be able to build a side capable of competing with Liverpool. But all the glory that day was Luton’s. They celebrated with a civic reception on the Tuesday night, after which the trophy had to be returned to Littlewoods for some repairs. The cup was not the only damaged goods to come out of that final. Just ask Gus Caesar.
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