Shifnal Town

Moments after receiving it, Celtic manager Jock Stein took it away, saying it
was for the referee. It was later discovered it had been given to club
chairman Sir Robert Kelly. Fallon had to wait until earlier this year before
having it returned, after an unnamed person donated it to the club.
In January of this year, former Ipswich Town winger Mick Lambert had his
1978 FA Cup winner’s medal, earned after appearing as a substitute in the 1
-0 win over Arsenal, stolen in a robbery. “Whether we’ll ever see it again I
don’t know,” he said. Three weeks later, he found it under his bed, while
trying to get to the plug sockets behind the headboard.
Alex MacDonald was less fortunate. Six years ago, while holidaying in
Benidorm, his winner’s medal from Rangers’ 1972 Cup-Winners Cup was
ripped from the gold chain he wore around his neck. He remained
philosophical. “I have always been of the opinion that if you get a wallet
stolen, then maybe the person that stole it needed the money more than
you did,” he said. Kirkintilloch Rangers Supporters’ Club paid UEFA £900 for
a replica, which was later presented to MacDonald at Ibrox.
Chelsea’s win over Manchester United in the 2018 FA Cup final meant Cesc
Fàbregas added something previously missing from his extensive medal
collection. Although he won the 2005 competition with Arsenal, he no longer
has the medal as his father, who looks after his memorabilia, somehow lost
it.
Southampton have only won one major trophy, thanks to Bobby Stokes’s
goal in the 1976 FA Cup final. Stokes’s medal very quickly left his sight. The
day after the final he took it to the Beehive, a pub in Paulsgrove,
Portsmouth. However, Bobby was Portsmouth-born, and the pub was his
local. So despite playing for the rivals he was able to pass his medal among
the many fellow drinkers without trouble. Later that evening, he was
photographed wearing a policeman’s hat, while the officers posed with the
Golden Boot he was presented for scoring Southampton’s most famous goal.
It’s not just medals that go missing, either. Having won the 1982 European
Cup in Rotterdam, Aston Villa then lost it at the Fox Inn in Hopwas, near
Tamworth. Colin Gibson and Gordon Cowans wanted to show it to fans.
“Gordon and I had had a few drinks,” said Gibson, “when someone turned
round and said ‘the cup’s gone, it’s been stolen’.”
Bizarrely, it was handed into a police station in Sheffield. Undeterred by the
identity of the thief remaining a mystery, the officers on shift formed two
teams for an impromptu game to see who got to lift the famous cup.
Those who have lost but are yet to find their medals can take
encouragement from auctioneers Hansons, who this year received Johnny
Hancocks’ long-lost winning 1949 FA Cup final medal for Wolves from a
private collector. Medals mark the end of a competition but can often go on
to have their own, long-running story.
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