in 1998 – and their 13th appearance overall. They had a 50 percent record in their previous 12 finals. Manchester United had a better record in their 14 previous final appearances, having won on a record nine occasions; the last two, in 1994 and 1996, had been part of doubles. With victory in the 1999 final, Manchester United would become the first English club to win the Double on three occasions, and it would put them one win away from a continental treble of the league, the FA Cup and the European Cup, a feat no English team had ever managed before. The two teams had previously met 128 times in all competitions; Manchester United had won 60 times, Newcastle United 37 times, and the remaining 31 matches had finished as draws. Only two of those meetings were in the FA Cup: the first took place in the 1908–09 semi-final, when Manchester United won 1–0 at Bramall Lane in Sheffield on the way to their first FA Cup title, and the second in the Fifth Round of the 1989–90 competition, when Manchester United won 3–2 at St James' Park before going on to win their seventh FA Cup. Manchester United also came out on top in their two league meetings in the 1998–99 season, winning 2–1 at St James' Park on 13 March after playing out a goalless draw at Old Trafford on 8 November. This was the first FA Cup Final that would not be replayed in the event of a draw. Instead, the match would be decided on the day, first with a period of extra time then a penalty shoot-out if the scores were still level. Route to the final As Premier League clubs, both Manchester United and Newcastle United entered the 1998–99 FA Cup in the Third Round Proper. Newcastle were drawn at home to First Division side Crystal Palace, and Manchester United at home to fellow Premier League side Middlesbrough, whose 3–2 win at Old Trafford in the league two weeks earlier would turn out to be Manchester United's last defeat all season. Despite the team's goalkeeper, Shay Given, being sent off within the first 15 minutes and then going 1–0 down, Newcastle came from behind to beat Crystal Palace in their tie, while Manchester United also overturned Middlesbrough's 1–0 lead to win 3–1. Manchester United's victory set up a Fourth Round tie at home