The Fox and Hounds at Putney was one of hundreds of pubs giving customers a chance to win just one pair of prestigious FA cup final ticketsandhellip;..
andhellip;..and in a twist of fortune it was one of their lucky customers who yesterday was thanking their lucky stars as they collected their first ever Wembley tickets.
Louise Smith, a 33 year old research support manager from Croydon, stumbled across the Fox and Hounds on Matchpint, looking for a pub to watch her favourite team. After checking in on Matchpint, she stated her wildest dream for Crystal Palace, who has never in their history lifted the FA Cup, to win the title and that was the competition entered.
The premier league side defeated Watford 2-1 in the semi-final, and as if seeing her side get to the final for the first time in 26 years wasn’t enough, Louise later got the ecstatic news that she had been randomly picked to win the tickets.
“I was over the moon with winning,” said Louise, “my entire family support Chelsea but I still endeavour to take my dad to the game – in a Crystal Palace top just to rub it in! I am so thrilled to be actually watching the final in Wembley stadium! I’ve got my Palace top ready, it’s going to be brilliant, I still can’t believe I won!”
Pub owners Stonegate Pub Company ran the competition across their 290 UK wide sports pubs between 24th and 25th April, which saw thousands of entrants scramble for the special tickets. General Manager of the Fox and Hounds, Colin Woods, proudly presented Louise with her ticket on Monday (16th May) ahead of the game this weekend (21st May).
The Crystal Palace vs Man Utd final is set to be a close one but for Louise, being able to root for Crystal Palace, who are FA Cup finalist for only the second time ever, in Wembley stadium, is the real treat for the devoted fan.