Villa Park has played host to countless memorable moments down the years – an historic stadium with a special atmosphere which we’re proud to call home.
As we celebrate our 150th anniversary season, we’ve taken a look back through the archives to reminisce about 10 of Aston Villa’s most iconic matches in B6.
There were so many to choose from that we could have included 150 moments, including record-breaking attendances, magic memories against local rivals, cup semi-final triumphs and glorious European nights against the likes of Barcelona and Inter Milan.
And who could forget our record Premier League 7-1 victory over Wimbledon in 1995 or our emphatic 7-2 triumph over Liverpool in 2020.
But we’ve attempted the impossible task below. Which iconic Villa Park moments would make your list…?
April 17, 1897: Villa 3 Blackburn Rovers 0
A week earlier, Villa had become English football’s second double winners, lifting the FA Cup for the third time on the same day they were mathematically assured of a third Football League title.
It was a perfect way to start life at Villa Park – then known as Aston Lower Grounds – even if torrential rain restricted the attendance in the first match at our new home. Only around 14,000 saw John Campbell score the first goal here before John Cowan added a second. An emphatic win was completed by an own goal.
October 5, 1912: Villa 10 Sheffield Wednesday 0
Harry Hampton, the club’s record League scorer, created a piece of club history as the first Villa player to score five goals in a single game.
Only four others have since achieved the feat, with Harold Halse doing it only two weeks later when he scored all our goals in a 5-1 victory over Derby County. Our other five-goal stars are Len Capewell (in a 10-0 win against Burnley in1925), George Brown (8-3 at Leicester in 1932) and Gerry Hitchens in an 11-1 Second Division romp against Charlton Athletic in 1959.
January 10, 1948: Villa 4 Manchester United 6
Villa lost this third-round FA Cup tie – but it was a glorious failure. In one of the finest games ever staged at Villa Park, George Edwards opened the scoring in the first minute, only for United to lead 5-1 at half-time.
But the home side stormed back with goals from Edwards, Leslie Smith and a Dickie Dorsett penalty to trail only 5-4 by the 81st minute. Trevor Ford almost equalised with a shot which hit the bar before Stan Pearson broke claret and blue hearts by netting United’s sixth.
December 23, 1970: Villa 2 Manchester United 1
Villa were a Third Division club; United’s line-up included football legends George Best, Bobby Charlton and Denis Law.
But Vic Crowe’s side forced a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford in the first leg of a League Cup semi-final, and two days before Christmas they won the return match 2-1 with headers from Andy Lochhead and Pat McMahon after Brian Kidd had put United ahead. It was a festive feast to top them all!
December 17, 1976: Villa 5 Liverpool 1
In arguably the best 45 minutes in the club’s history, Villa destroyed defending champions Liverpool to lead 5-1 at half-time.
Ron Saunders’ team were irrepressible as they mesmerised the Merseysiders. Andy Gray scored twice, so did John Deehan, and Brian Little was also on target. And to underline what a magnificent achievement it was, Liverpool retained the title. The Reds, of course, were also champions when we beat them 7-2 in October 2020 with the help of an Ollie Watkins hat-trick.
April 25, 1981: Villa 3 Middlesbrough 0
Villa’s players were nervous on the eve of their final home match, aware that Middlesbrough were something of a bogey team. Peter Withe put them at ease by telling them he always scored against Boro.
It was a white lie, but it had the desired effect. Withe’s angled header, his 20th league goal of the season, doubled the advantage after Gary Shaw had given Villa an interval lead. Allan Evans added number three – and a week later we were champions.
April 7, 1982: Villa 1 Anderlecht 0
There was still over an hour to play – never mind another 90 minutes in the second leg of the semi-final in Brussels – but Tony Morley’s 28th-minute goal would carry Villa to the European Cup final.
It was a thing of beauty, too. After linking fluently with Gary Williams and Gary Shaw, Gordon Cowans delivered one of his trademark incisive passes. Morley controlled the ball with his right foot before advancing to the edge of the penalty area and stroking a sublime left-footed shot into the far corner.
May 7, 1994: Villa 2 Liverpool 1
It was the day we said farewell to the Holte End as the largest behind-the-goal football terrace in Europe. The Birmingham Mail even produced a certificate for every one of the 19,210 supporters who passed through the Holte’s turnstiles that afternoon.
Fittingly, all the goals were scored at that end. Robbie Fowler gave the visitors a first-half lead, but Dwight Yorke equalised after 65 minutes and then hit the winner nine minutes from the end. What a send-off for our famous terrace!
January 20, 2010: Villa 6 Blackburn Rovers 4
Villa had won the first leg 1-0 at Ewood Park but when Rovers went two-up by the 26th minute in the return match at Villa Park, our hopes of reaching the League Cup final looked bleak.
But goals from Stephen Warnock, James Milner (penalty), Steven Nzonzi (own goal), Gabby Agbonlahor and Emile Heskey established a 5-2 lead on the night before Rovers pulled back to 5-4. Ashley Young’s curling low shot finally ensured Martin O’Neill’s men were heading to Wembley!
October 2, 2024: Villa 1 Bayern Munich 0
It was special enough that Villa had qualified for the UEFA Champions League, let alone facing the team we had beaten in the 1982 European Cup final.
And when Jhon Durán scored the winner with a sublime lob from 30 yards, we were all in dreamland. Just like Peter Withe in Rotterdam 42 years earlier, our No.9 had scored the only goal in a 1-0 win against the German giants. We can all remember it now…
