London v Sheffield (1866)

Chesterman agreed that the match would be played under the 1866 revision of the FA's Laws of the Game,[5][6] which had been adopted less than six weeks earlier.

This set of rules introduced the "touch down" (similar to a try in present-day rugby) as a tie-breaker for games where each side scored an equal number of goals.

Other notable features of the laws included:[5] Sheffield FC held a training match one week prior to the game to "practice the Rules of the Football Association".

[4] Sheffield won the toss, and chose the western end of the ground in order to take advantage of the wind.

After a further period of play (ranging from a "few minutes" to "half an hour" in the reports), Barnes scored a touch down for London.

After good play from Martin, Charles Alcock then kicked a goal for London, but it was disallowed by the umpire for offside.

[26] At the Sheffield FC annual general meeting in September 1866, the club's loss was described as "the most severe defeat it has ever been your misfortune to encounter, but it is to be hoped that you will return the compliment this season".