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Arsenal's 1979 FA Cup winners: Where are they now?

It's still referred to as the 'Five Minute Final' thanks to three goals in the final stages which...



Arsenal's 1979 FA Cup winn...
Soccer

Arsenal's 1979 FA Cup winners: Where are they now?

It's still referred to as the 'Five Minute Final' thanks to three goals in the final stages which swung the match this way and that, but the 1979 FA Cup decider between Arsenal and Manchester United still remains one of the iconic games between two of English football's traditional giants.

The Gunners had three Irish players in their starting lineup but before they do battle with United in the same competition tonight, what are that 1979 Arsenal starting XI doing now more than 35 years on?

 

Pat Jennings (GK)

The Northern Irish goalkeeper conceded twice in the 3-2 Wembley win and having left Arsenal in 1985 to re-cross the North London divide to return to his previous club Tottenham, the 69-year-old has worked as a goalkeeping coach and works in the academy.

 

Pat Rice (RB)

An Arsenal stalwart from the mid-60s to 1980, Rice joined the Gunners backroom team as a youth coach before progressing through the ranks.

He then became Arsenal's assistant manager from the moment Arsene Wenger arrived at Highbury and worked alongside the Frenchman right until 2012 when he retired and was succeeded by current No 2 Steve Bould. 

In 2013, Rice was diagnosed with cancer.

 

David O'Leary (CB)

A player who spent 20 years at Arsenal, the Ireland legend last managed in 2011 when he was in charge of Al-Ahli of the United Arab Emirates.

I spoke to the former Leeds and Aston Villa manager at last weekend's Irish Sports Awards where he looked ahead to Ireland's upcoming qualifiers:

 

Willie Young (CB) 

Like Jennings, the Scotsman joined Arsenal from Spurs. He left Arsenal in 1981 and went on to join Nottingham Forest.

The 63-year-old is not involved in football, bar the occasional interview, and runs kennels in Leicestershire.

 

Sammy Nelson (LB)

Similarly to Pat Rice, the Northern Ireland full-back's spell at Highbury spanned from the mid-60s to the 1980s and is available as a Legends tour guide at the Emirates Stadium. Before that, he also worked in insurance.

 

Brian Talbot (CM)

The Ipswich native, who spent six years at Arsenal, was involved in management from 1988 to 2008, including spells at West Bromwich Albion and Hibernian.

Most recently, he has worked as a scout for Fulham.

Liam Brady with Arsenal in 1980 ©INPHO/Allsport

Liam Brady (RM)

The Ireland, Juventus and Arsenal legend needs little introduction, seeing as he is fixture as a TV pundit.

He also tried his hand at management, but was hamstrung by the then-cash-strapped clubs he was in charge of: Celtic and Brighton.

Until last year, Brady was also Arsenal's academy director for almost 20 years, and also assisted his former Juventus boss Giovanni Trapattoni in the Ireland job from 2008 to 2010.

 

David Price (CM)

The only Arsenal player subbed off during the 1979 Cup final win, Price's career petered out after leaving Arsenal.

He went onto become a taxi driver.

 

Graham Rix (LM)

Only 21 when he won the Cup, the former midfielder left Arsenal in 1988 after 14 years. After spells in France and in Scotland, he became Chelsea's assistant manager in 1996.

However, in 1999 he was sentenced to a year in prison, having been found guilty of sex with an under-age girl.

He returned to his former job at Chelsea in 2000 and since then has remained in coaching, managing the likes of Portsmouth (2001 to 2002) and Hearts (2005 to 2006).

The 57-year-old is currently in charge of non-league AFC Porchester.

 

Alan Sunderland (CF)

The scorer of the winning goal in 1979 left for Ipswich in 1984 and finished his career at Derry City in 1987.

He now lives in Malta, where he emigrated to 20 years ago, and briefly coached a local team there in the mid-90s. 

 

Frank Stapleton

The Dubliner spent the first part of his career at Arsenal, but went on to play for the likes of Manchester United, Ajax and Derby County, as well as the Republic of Ireland.

After retiring, he was sporadically involved in management, but has returned to coaching as assistant manager to ex-Chelsea midfielder Ray Wilkins with the Jordanian national team which played at the recent AFC Asian Cup.

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