Before City and United meet in an FA Cup final for the first time we pick out some of their fixtures that meant the most
The first league meeting between the two clubs. City – who state 1894 as their founding year on their badge but can trace their roots back to St Marks’ Church (founded 1880) and Ardwick AFC (founded 1887) – were defeated by Newton Heath, who would be rebranded as Manchester United in 1902 (although the names Manchester Central and Manchester Celtic were considered). Ardwick AFC had played Newton Heath before, in 1889, in a friendly to raise money after an explosion caused by the use of naked flames at the nearby Hyde Road coalmine resulted in the death of 23 miners. This was a good example of the convivial and supportive feeling between the clubs, which would continue well into the 20th century. By the end of it, things would be a little different.
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