SIXTY-TWO years ago they met as opponents in one of the greatest FA Cup battles of them all.

But yesterday, the three surviving members of the 1953 final were reunited for the first time under one roof.

Doug Holden and John Wheeler, who represented Bolton Wanderers at Wembley, met with Cyril Robinson, who played for Blackpool, for a special lunch at the Macron Stadium.

Until recently it had been assumed only Mr Holden and Mr Robinson remained of the two teams that took the field.

But when Wanderers learned former wing-half Mr Wheeler was living in Burscough, his family helped organise a surprise reunion.

“It was quite a shock,” said Mr Wheeler, who played 205 times for the Whites and was Bill Ridding’s first signing at Burnden Park.

“I’m not normally someone who does this kind of thing but it has been a nice afternoon with very pleasant company.”

Mr Wheeler, now aged 87, recalled the shock of losing the game 4-3 after leading 3-1 with just 22 minutes to go at Wembley.

“Everything started to fall apart,” he said. “Suddenly we were in positions we shouldn’t be, and we couldn’t do anything about it.

"Blackpool kept pushing, with Stanley Matthews on the wing, and suddenly we had lost the game.”

Watch video of highlights from the final 

Stan Mortensen scored a hat-trick for Blackpool in the final, before Bill Perry added the winner in added time in front of 100,000 supporters.

But despite Mortensen's heroics, the game will be forever known as ‘The Matthews Final’ as it proved the swansong for the 38-year-old England legend.

“He was a very fine player,” recalled Mr Holden, one of seven full internationals in the Bolton team that day. “He did not score many goals but he created so many, as it proved on the day.”

Mr Holden returned to Wembley five years later to claim a winner’s medal with victory against Manchester United — but admits he is still a little sore even after all these years at the Blackpool defeat.

“I was only very young,” he said. “But I was penalised for a free-kick, which was eventually scored by Mortensen, and to this day I cannot tell you why it was awarded.

“People say we applauded the Blackpool team off, and of course we had great respect for them, but we were sportsmen and it hurt us a lot.”

The reunion was also attended by Tommy Banks, whose bother Ralph played in the final, and Arthur Barnard, who was also on Bolton’s books in the 1950s.