Yesterday we looked at the first two FA Cup meetings between Bristol Rovers and Ipswich Town, who meet in the Third Round of this season’s competition on Sunday.
The sides were drawn together again 1978/79 and again it was a Fifth Round Tie. Rovers had progressed to that stage of the competition by beating Swansea city 1-0 at The Vetch and Charlton by the same score at Eastville.
Almost a year to the day they bowed out of the previous season’s competition, Rovers were hammered at Portman Road on 26th February 1979.
The score was 6-1 to the home side and a Portman Road crowd of 23,321 must have been wondering if Ipswich could go all the way and win the Cup again after their stunning goalfest.
Rovers boss Bobby Campbell apologised to the 2,000 Rovers supporters who made the trip to Portman Road following what was described as a humiliating defeat and said; ‘Our performance for the first half an hour was the worst I have experienced since I became manager.’
With Arnold Muhren pulling the strings in midfield, Rovers were three down inside 33 minutes as the home side tore them apart with Alan Brazil helping himself to goals in the 8th and 33rd minutes, either side of a Mills goal in the 27th minute.
Muhren made it 4-0 just before half time, David Geddis added a fifth with nine minutes remaining and although Steve White scored a consolation for Rovers two minutes later, Mariner completed the rout when he netted goal number six on the stroke of full time.
It was back to Eastville for the next instalment of the FA Cup history between these two sides and on 5th January 1985 Ipswich were 2-1 winners in a Third Round tie in front of a crowd of 12,257.
Third Division Rovers had beaten Kings Lynn at Eastville in Round One and recorded a famous 3-1 win against Bristol City in Round Two at Ashton Gate.
They put up a great fight against Ipswich, though they fell behind to an outstanding Jason Dozzell goal, struck from the edge of the area, on 21 minutes. They equalised seven minutes into the second half through Ian Holloway’s magnificent volley from a Brian Williams cross.
That’s how it stayed, until the final minute of the game but, with everyone looking ahead to a Portman Road replay,
Ipswich teenager Mark Brennan scored with a 40 yard effort that struck the crossbar, dropped and hit goalkeeper Ray Cashley and went in.
There were mixed views about the goal. Rovers boss David Williams said; ‘Any time a goalkeeper gets beaten from that distance you have to be disappointed.’
His counterpart, Ipswich boss Bobby Ferguson said; ‘It was a hell of a strike and would have beaten any keeper. 
There wasn’t much that Cashley could have done about it.’
Tomorrow we’ll look at games five and six.