FA Cup winner’s medal in auction
2:10pm Friday 5th February 2010 in News
IT is one of the most famous moments in football history – a policeman on a white horse, keeping back vast crowds on the pitch at Wembley before the 1923 FA Cup Final.
It was the first match to be held at the newly-built Wembley and it later became known as the White Horse Final.
Bolton Wanderers went on to beat West Ham 2-0 with goals from David Jack and Jack Smith.
Now, a Wanderers’ FA Cup winner’s medal from the match is to be auctioned — and it could fetch £10,000.
The gold medal belonged to Whites defender Jimmy Seddon, one of only five players to feature in all three of Wanderers’ FA Cup victories in the 1920s.
A spokesman for auctioneer Bonhams said there was likely to be strong interest in the rare memorabilia, which goes on sale in Chester on February 24.
He said: “We are delighted to offer this gold medal awarded to Jimmy Seddon.
“The medal is valued at £8,000 to £10,000. It marks a match that was so popular that mounted policemen had to clear the vast crowds.”
King George V presented Seddon with the medal in front of an estimated 200,000 people.
Seddon, a centre-half player, played for Wanderers between 1913 and 1932 and won six caps for England.
He served during the First World War and later went on to captain Bolton in the 1929 FA Cup Final, in which his team beat Portsmouth 2-0.
The white horse, known as Billie, was one of several police horses used at the 1923 final.
Its white colour made it stand out in the photographs and film footage, and it is celebrated at the new Wembley Stadium with the White Horse Bridge.
The forthcoming Bonhams auction also includes one item which Wanderers fans may not be so keen to buy.
It is the pair of Stanley Matthews’ boots, which he used in the 1953 Blackpool v Bolton cup final. The Trotters lost 4-3 in them game, dubbed the Matthews Final, after leading 3-1. The boots are valued at £8,000.
