The Sporting Day: The FA Cup

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The Sporting Day:
The FA Cup

It is the oldest and most prestigious football competition in the world and embodies all the charm and purity that has made football the world game. Final day is the most important day in English football and with the dominance of ultra-rich mega clubs like Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal in the Premiership, the FA Cup has become the one achievable goal for teams across the country. From the preliminary rounds in August, through to the May final, games are played with varying degrees of fanfare but all with the same do-or-die importance. One loss and you are out. This is knockout football, where any team on any given day can beat another with a single goal or a single penalty or a single slice of luck that will be recorded in the annals for now and forever.

The two grand elements of the FA Cup are inclusiveness and randomness. The FA Cup is not only open to Premiership teams and other league clubs but any outfit deemed to play in a strong enough league that has a stadium that meets certain requirements. In this FA Cup, the 2006-07 version, 687 teams entered in pursuit of a dream. From the high flyers of Chelsea and Manchester United to quaintly named outfits like Daisy Hill FC and Felixstowe & Walton United, all compete. And all compete on an essentially level playing field with no seedings and a draw that is nearly-completely random. Aside from some higher level teams receiving byes through to the second and third rounds, avoiding qualifying, any two teams can be matched against each other.

This has led to some major upsets. And monster early season clashes.

In 2003, league team Huddersfield were knocked out in round one by semi-pro outfit Accrington Stanley. Man U were knocked out by Barnsley in 1997-98, at the peak of their powers. Birmingham City were eliminated by an unknown team called the Kidderminster Harriers. In 1983-84, the almighty Liverpool were out by Brighton and Hove Albion. The tales of giant-killing are plentiful and each season brings up a story of David and Goliath proportions and grandeur.

Of equal interest are the massive early round clashes that pit two giants against each other early in the tournament, when managers want to play second XI’s and cruise through with little trouble and less chance of injury. This season, a monster has been drawn. In round three, the first to involve Premiership teams, the powerhouses of Arsenal and Liverpool will play each other. This is a match-up that holds the same weight as Barnet and Colechester, Southend and Barnsley and Watford and Stockport in the greater FA Cup scheme.

The brilliant egalitarianism of the FA Cup is no better displayed than by yesterdays draw for round three of the time-honoured tournament.

It would take a game man to pick a winner this far out. Too much can happen, too much of the bad rub can come up. But that is the joy of the FA Cup, the elements which make it pure to the zenith. And the punting opportunities will be plentiful for those with a sound knowledge of the game and a good sense of value. Scan the markets and the edge is yours. But one needs to beware…beware of the giantkiller.