Of the dozen or so clubs active in Blackburn during the era, Rovers were the most dominant and successful. 1882 was an eventful year for Rovers. The moved to a new ground at Leamington Street and spent £500 renovating it for spectators. The town was gripped by FA Cup fever when Rovers put together a strong run in the competition, reaching the final against Old Etonians, They were defeated, but returned to Blackburn as heroes because they were the first club from the town to get that far in the cup, and they were compensated by winning the Lancashire Senior Cup. Rovers however, had their sights set on the FA Cup, but were eliminated early in their 1883 attempt. The pain was intensified when they had to watch their local rivals Blackburn Olympic bring the FA Cup trophy back to Blackburn for the first time. This gave Rovers all the encouragement they needed.

 

They fired up in the following season, and defeated Southport, South Shields, Padiham, Stavely, Upton Park and Notts County on their way to the 1884 FA Cup final, conceding just one goal in the process. They faced Scottish club Queens Park, and confusion erupted during the game because Scotland and England had different interpretations of the offside rule. Despite this, Rovers finally claimed the FA Cup thanks to goals from Brown and Forrest. An unhappy Queens Park claimed they were robbed, and they were not pacified the following year when Rovers defeated them in the final again, 2-0. They completed an FA Cup hat trick in 1886 beating West Bromwich. In commemoration of this achievement, Rovers became the recipients of a silver shield from the Football Association. During this time, professionalism was brought about and the clubs success was brought to a sudden end when they were dismissed in the second round of the 1887 FA Cup. They managed to reach the semi-finals in 1888, but by then it was evident that the team was no longer what they were.

​

Achievements: Longest undefeated FA Cup run -24 games including 3 consecutive FA Cup winners x3 consecutively. Still an FA Cup record. FA Cup semi finalists x1.

Star player – Jimmy Forrest, POB: Blackburn, England DOB: 24 June 1864. Forrest’s career spanned the entire transition from amateur to professional football in the late 19th century. He waved goodbye to his job as a tape sizer in the cotton industry to join Blackburn Rovers as a professional footballer in 1883. At 19, he received his first call up to the England national team, making his debut against Wales. At 19 years 277 days old, Forrest became the youngest FA Cup goal scorer ever, a record which stayed in place for 75 years. He became the first professional player to play for England, although under a compromise to be allowed to play, he had to go without his £1 weekly income from the Rovers for that week. In 1891, Forrest became the third player to win five FA Cup finals. After 12 eventful seasons, he moved to Darwen and then retired from football to run two pubs. He eventually returned to Rovers as club director. Forrest died in 1925 aged 61.