1999 FA Cup Final three league games all season. They had also qualified for the 1999 UEFA Champions League Final against Bayern Munich, due to be played four days later on 26 May, and were unbeaten in their previous 31 matches in all competitions. By contrast, Newcastle United had finished 13th out of the 20 teams in the Premier League, and had been knocked out of the Cup Winners' Cup in the first round and the League Cup in the fourth round. It was Newcastle's second consecutive appearance in the FA Cup Final – having lost 2–0 to Arsenal in 1998 – and their
1999 FAI Cup Final manager. On the second of the three games, he said during an interview with the "Sunday Independent" in 2012: ""It was like groundhog day. It was up to Dublin, play Bray, back home, up to Dublin again. Three times we came up to Dublin, and we left it behind us, especially the second day, when we were a goal up and 30 seconds left. Then we conceded a penalty, our 'keeper saved it, but they [Bray] got to the rebound first". 1999 FAI Cup Final The 1999 FAI Cup Final was the deciding match of the 1998–99 FAI Cup. Bray