The first time Fulham entered the FA Cup was in 1896. They were then a London League side and were drawn at Swanscombe in the Second Qualifying Round. The Cottagers lost 0-5.
It was not for another seven seasons, however, until 1903-04 when they were in the First Division of the Southern League, that Fulham passed through all the preliminary qualifying rounds to make their debut in the First Round.
By the time they came up against Arsenal at Woolwich in February 1904, the Cottagers had already won seven FA Cup-ties that season. The eighth was one too many. Arsenal, managed by Harry Bradshaw who was soon to take over at the Cottage, won 1-0 in front of a crowd of 15,000.
Despite their non-League status, Fulham did make a bit of a splash in the FA Cup the following season. In the seventh Qualifying Round, they disposed of Manchester United, then on the verge of becoming a significant footballing power.
The tie went to three matches, Fulham finally winning by a Bobby Graham goal at Villa Park. This was Fulham's first real appearance on a national stage, outside London. It took another three games to dispose of fellow Southern Leaguers Reading and when First Division Nottingham Forest were toppled 1-0 in west London, the Cottagers found themselves in the last eight and pitted against the mighty Aston Villa.
The 47,000 crowd at Villa Park was the biggest for any Fulham match up to that time, but the occasion was too big for the underdogs. They played well below their best and Villa romped home 5-0 winners and went on to beat Newcastle in the Final.