Loris Karius can re-create Newcastle United history in cup final

Loris Karius can re-create Newcastle United history when he makes his club debut in League Cup final against Man United as Magpies boss Eddie Howe looks to learn from Bill Bradley’s goalkeeping heroics 99 years ago

  • Eddie Howe will have to rely on his reserve goalkeeper Loris Karius on Sunday
  • Newcastle’s goalkeeping team faces huge issues ahead of League Cup final
  • But Howe can draw on Newcastle’s past goalkeeper troubles from 99 years ago 

Eddie Howe might feel like he has 99 problems amid Newcastle’s goalkeeping crisis, but 99 years ago his predecessors, a selection committee, had exactly the same issue – and duly won the Cup with their emergency keeper as man-of-the-match.

In an echo of events of nearly a century ago, the Magpies will be without first choice Nick Pope for tomorrow’s Carabao Cup final against Manchester United. 

He is suspended and Loris Karius, in what will be his Newcastle debut, is set to make his first appearance in two years.

Back in 1924, and ahead of the FA Cup final with Aston Villa, Sandy Mutch suffered what would prove a career-ending knee injury, ironically in a league fixture against Villa. 

He had been one of only two senior players included for the 6-1 defeat just five days before the final.

Eddie Howe faces a huge goalkeeper crisis with fourth-choice Loris Karius set to start in goal for the League Cup final


Karius (left) will be hoping to draw inspiration from Gateshead-born Bill Bradley (right) who was a surprise call-up for Newcastle and stole the show in their 1924 FA Cup final win over Aston Villa

That meant a call-up for Gateshead-born Bill Bradley, who had not played for the first-team in three months. 

At the same time as Mutch was injuring his knee in a collision with a forward, Bradley was turning out for the reserves in a defeat by South Shields in the final of the Newcastle Infirmary Cup. 

The 31-year-old joined up with the squad at their Harrow base and was only told he was playing on the morning of the final after Mutch failed to recover.

It was Newcastle’s first appearance at Wembley – finals were played there from 1923 – and thanks to goals from Neil Harris and Stan Seymour they had their second FA Cup following a 2-0 victory. Seymour was later manager when they won the Cup in 1951 and 1952.

But the star of this final was Bradley. The Evening Chronicle ran the headline ’Brilliant Bradley’ and called him the ‘hero of the match’. 

They wrote: ‘Bradley played the game of his life, and his masterly display went a long way towards the success.’

Karius’ last cup final came in Liverpool’s 2018 Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid 

Now he will play as fourth choice for Howe’s Newcastle in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday

There is a picture of the smiling keeper before the game, jet-black hair and handsome, shaking hands with the Duke of York, later King George VI. 

Bradley, however, was king for the day. The Daily Mail report by Frank Thorogood makes six mentions of his saves.

Bradley, who had served as a gunner during the First World War, played for Newcastle until 1927 and later retired to Tyneside, where he ran a newsagents.

Howe can only hope that Karius is making similar headlines come Monday.


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