Why So Many Empty Seats For Cup Competitions?

Coventry City hasn’t been in the Premiership since the 2000-2001 season, when they were relegated after finishing 19th with 34 points. The Sky Blues have spent every season since then in the Championship, so close to England’s top flight, but yet so far. They’re a proud club — they’ve been in existence since the early 1880’s, they were a founding member of the Premier League, and have won the FA Cup.

Before that dismal ‘00-’01 campaign, Coventry had spent the previous 34 seasons in the First Division/Premiership. Their fans had been used to seeing the best opposition in the world on a week-in, week-out basis, so the drop to the Championship couldn’t have been easy. They’ve come nowhere near promotion since then; in fact, they’ve nearly been relegated to League One on a couple different occasions.

The Carling Cup Second Round started today, with Coventry welcoming Newcastle to the Ricoh Arena. Newcastle is a popular team in England and despite their lack of success in recent years, they’re by no means a bad side. One would think that a chance to upset a Premiership team in a one-off game in a cup competition would be a draw for Coventry fans. One would think the crowd would really be up for this game, even if it’s just to see a team they don’t get to see anymore because the two clubs aren’t in the same league. It came as a bit of a surprise, then, when I turned on the game and saw a half-filled stadium with a crowd quieter than the ones at some of my high school games, at least until Coventry equalized right at the death through a long throw-in into the box (Newcastle eventually won 3-2).

This is the problem with both the FA Cup and the Carling Cup, though. For some reason, and I’m wondering what it is, matches in these competitions don’t ever seem to sell out unless it’s the quarterfinal stage or beyond. It doesn’t matter who the opponent is; a “Big Four” team could come to town and there still probably won’t be a full crowd.

I don’t understand this, and I’m hoping you can help me out. These are cup games. They have more individual meaning than most any game in a 38-match (Premiership) or 46-match (lower leagues) schedule. In the Carling Cup, one team will advance and the knock the other out on that given day. In the FA Cup, the same could happen unless the game ends up in a draw, in which case the tie is decided in the return leg. Victories propel a side one step closer to a trophy. If a Premiership team goes to one of those lower league sides, that’s the best, most talented opponent they’ll see all season. The Carling Cup winner and usually both the FA Cup winner and runner-up receive a berth in the UEFA Cup, which is no small consolation prize for many teams. The domestic cups provide another chance to win a trophy, and it’s hard to argue with that.

It doesn’t make sense to me. Is it because the games are played on weeknights? It’s not like they go on late into the night, meaning people can still get home at a decent hour and be ready for work the next day. It’s my understanding that ticket prices are lower for cup games and at lower-league clubs, so that can’t have much to do with it.

Why do I see so many empty seats like I did today?

Portsmouth Wins FA Cup

Nwankwo Kanu tapped home a cross parried away by Cardiff goalkeeper Peter Enckelman in the 37th minute, the Bluebirds' Glenn Loovens had a goal taken away for a handball right before the first half ended, and Portsmouth was able to hang on for a 1-0 victory today in the FA Cup final in front of a crowd of 89,874 at Wembley.

The win ensures that Portsmouth will be playing in the UEFA Cup next season, as they'll join Everton, Manchester City, and possibly Aston Villa if the Birmingham-based club makes it out of this summer's Intertoto Cup. Harry Redknapp, who did a great job this year on the South Coast, won his first real trophy in the top flight. He had Portsmouth on track to qualify automatically for the UEFA Cup for a large part of the season, but after his team reached the final of this competition, they took their foot off the pedal in the league and played solely to win this game.

The win also gives Portsmouth a chance to win another trophy next season. They'll meet Manchester United, the Premiership champions, in the Community Shield on August 10, a week before the 2008-2009 league season officially kicks off. Remember, Portsmouth knocked United out of the FA Cup this year at Old Trafford and held them to a draw at Fratton Park as well, so you can bet that there will be no fear from 'Arry's boys.

It was great to see two teams from outside the "Big Four" contest this game for a meaningful trophy. Cardiff is a Coca-Cola Championship side who was playing with house money for a UEFA Cup spot, and Portsmouth had to have this game to play in Europe next year. Both squads battled it out for 90 minutes and left it all on the field, and I don't think we would've seen that if two "Big Four" teams had reached the final. They don't care much about the cup competitions anymore, but everyone else does because they know it's their only real chance to win something.

Interestingly enough, though, I think because no "Big Four" teams were involved, the build-up and pomp surrounding this game from a national perspective wasn't there like it usually is. I just got a sense that this was sort of a throwaway game for the national media, and if that's the case, it obviously doesn't do justice to Portsmouth and Cardiff and that's a shame. It seems like there is always talk about how we don't want the "Big Four" to win everything, but when non-"Big Four" teams aren't playing, we seem to not care.

Don't take anything away from Portsmouth, and even Cardiff, for doing what they did. Just because neither team has an international reputation doesn't make their respective accomplishments any less significant. As I already said, Portsmouth knocked out the league champions at their place in their run the final and Cardiff are a Welsh-based team playing in England's second tier. Full credit to both teams, and particularly Portsmouth, for an entertaining match today.

Cardiff City Granted European "Approval"...

...if the Bluebirds win the FA Cup final on May 17. The FA's professional game board has given their go-ahead, and now the main FA board and UEFA, which had already discussed giving Cardiff a wild card berth into the UEFA Cup, will make the final decision next week.

Remember, all of this talk will go for naught if Cardiff doesn't beat Portsmouth at Wembley, and let's make no mistake about it, the Premier League side is the clear favorite.

We've seen crazier things happen (Barnsley, cough cough) though, and I've been pushing for Cardiff to get into Europe's second-tier club competition ever since the possibility became realistic. There was debate about whether or not they'd be allowed to do so, as current FA rules don't permit Welsh teams to represent England in Europe, but that was such a red-tape issue that it was a disgrace to the game.

I don't think there's any question that if Cardiff does win the FA Cup final, they'll have played their way into the UEFA Cup and fully deserve to be there. As I said in my last post about this subject, there are other cases of teams based outside of the geographic boundaries of whatever domestic league they play in while still representing that other country in Europe. In the case of FC Vaduz, a team that plays in the Swiss Challenge League, they represent Liechtenstein in Europe as they're from that country and win their league cup almost every year.

If there's precedent, which there is, you can't legitimately argue that it shouldn't be allowed to happen in this specific instance.

FA Cup Semifinal Draw

A record 731 teams set out for eternal glory in winning the 2007-2008 edition of the FA Cup and after matches since August 18 of last year, we're down to the last four remaining clubs: Portsmouth, Barnsley, West Bromwich Albion, and Cardiff City.

Bryan Robson conducted the draw for the semifinals this afternoon, with both matches to be played at Wembley during the first weekend of April:

April 5: Barnsley vs. Cardiff City
April 6: West Bromwich Albion vs. Portsmouth

A betting man would likely take Portsmouth to win this competition, something they've done only once in their long history (in 1939). However, West Brom, Pompey's opponent, just thrashed Bristol Rovers, who were the cinderella story in this year's FA Cup, 5-1 on the road.

Many people, including Chelsea captain John Terry apparently, want Barnsley to go on and win though and I have to say, after beating Liverpool and Chelsea in consecutive rounds, Barnsley certainly would deserve it. The Tykes could be due for a letdown against Cardiff after those two massive victories, so that will be an interesting game to watch.

Nightmare Saturday for Chelsea, UEFA Cup Spot Contenders

What a day.

For Liverpool, who are now just two points behind Chelsea for third place in the Premiership, although Chelsea have two games in hand, today couldn't be any better. Led by Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard, who have been carrying the team all year, the Reds strolled to a 3-0 win over Newcastle.

For Reading, who picked up a much-needed 2-0 victory over Manchester City and escaped the relegation zone in the process, today couldn't be any better either. The Royals now sit in 13th place in the league, which is a bit deceiving due to the small points gap between themselves and 18th place Bolton, but it's clearly a better position to be in then the one in which they came into today's match.

For a few other teams, however, today was a day they'd love to forget.

We'll start with Chelsea, who crashed out of the FA Cup in shocking fashion at now multiple giant-killers Barnsley. The FA Cup represented the last real chance for silverware for the West London club, because they're not going to win the Premiership and in my opinion are the fourth most likely team in England to win the Champions League, not even factoring in the rest of the continent. I'm not saying a third place finish in the league and deep cup/tournament runs wouldn't be respectable, but that's not acceptable to Mr. Abramovich. Avram Grant could very well be replaced in the role of manager this summer..

As refreshing as it was to see Barnsley, a lower-league side, knock off Chelsea and advance to the FA Cup Semifinals, teams like Aston Villa, Everton, Portsmouth, Manchester City, and Blackburn have to be disgusted with the way these cup competitions have gone this year. With Spurs winning the Carling Cup and no "Big Four" teams left in the FA Cup, two UEFA Cup spots (those usually given to the league's 6th and 7th place finishers) have vanished, although Portsmouth could very well make it into the UEFA Cup through their league position anyway, even though now they have to be considered the odds-on favorite to win the FA Cup.

The fight is on for 5th place in the Premiership now, and in my estimation, three teams--Aston Villa, Pompey, and Everton--have a legitimate chance to finish up the season there. Everton, of course, are currently in 5th with a five point lead on Villa and a nine point lead on Portsmouth, so it would take a poor run of games for Everton for either of those other two clubs to take that spot.

I already mentioned Liverpool's victory over Newcastle. Newcastle and losing badly seems to just go together very nicely these days..

Who Needs Aliadière When You Have Paddy Kenny??

Obviously not Middlesbrough, who advanced to the quarterfinals of the FA Cup yesterday thanks to an own-goal from Sheffield United goalkeeper Paddy Kenny in extra-time.

It was a harsh ending for Kenny, who had played a very good game in net for the Blades.

FA Cup Quarterfinal Draw

The draw for the quarterfinal round of the world's oldest soccer competition was conducted today in Soho Square. From a record 731 teams that entered the 2007-2008 edition of the FA Cup, we're down to the last 8/9 and for a neutral fan like myself, this draw shaped up very nicely. All four ties will be played on the weekend of March 8.

Everyone's sentimental pick to win this tournament now has to be League One's Bristol Rovers, the lowest-placed team left standing. The newly-promoted Pirates will have every chance to advance to the semifinals as they'll host West Bromwich Albion, who just spanked fellow Coca-Cola Championship side Coventry City 5-0 on the road. Fortunately for Bristol Rovers, that game was a bit of an anomaly as W.B.A. have a losing record (6-2-8) this season away from home. With that said, Rovers' home record hasn't exactly been outstanding so far this year either (5-6-3) but there should be a sellout, raucous crowd at Memorial Stadium to give them an extra boost.

The other lower-profile, lower-league team who has reached this stage is Barnsley, and they are coming off a huge 2-1 upset victory at Anfield on Saturday. The Tykes drew a home game in this round so that works in their favor, but they'll have the distinct displeasure of hosting Chelsea, who are the defending FA Cup champions. Barnsley have been very good on home turf this season (9-5-2) and have obviously just proven that they are capable of beating a Premiership power. I don't particularly like their chances of knocking off Chelsea in this game, but I wouldn't be surprised if they were able to force a replay at Stamford Bridge either and take their chances there.

In the other two quarterfinal, or 6th Round as the FA likes to call it, ties, we'll see an all-Premiership battle as Manchester United will welcome road warriors Portsmouth to Old Trafford, and then the winner of the Middlesbrough-Sheffield United replay will host Cardiff City.

Complete Quarterfinal Draw:

Barnsley vs. Chelsea
Bristol Rovers vs. West Bromwich Albion
Middlesbrough/Sheffield United vs. West Bromwich Albion
Manchester United vs. Portsmouth

Note: Premiership teams are in bold

FA Cup 5th Round Recap

Seven out of the eight FA Cup 5th Round ties were settled this weekend, with only the Middlesbrough-Sheffield United pairing in need of a replay. That match will come at the Riverside on the 26th, but both teams will be in the hat for tomorrow's quarterfinal draw.

Two surprise teams will be joining the aforementioned sides and the other five winners in that draw.

Barnsley, currently sitting in 14th place out of 24 in the Coca-Cola Championship, shocked Liverpool at Anfield by coming away with a 2-1 victory, a match which I covered in my last post.

The lowest-placed team left in this tournament, Bristol Rovers, hosted Southampton and won 1-0 on an 84th minute free kick from Richard Lambert. The Pirates are in 13th place out of 24 in League One right now and were only promoted to England's third-tier league last May after defeating Shrewsbury Town 3-1 in the League Two Playoff. This is a team who has now defeated at least one team in every division of the Football League in this year's FA Cup. They're riding the wave of success and have become the sentimental favorites to win this competition.

Portsmouth were fortunate to escape Preston with a 1-0 win as it took a 93rd minute own-goal to save the South Coast side from a home replay. David James showed why he's been selected as England's number one goalkeeper with a PK save on the hour mark. The most compelling storyline of the game didn't even come to fruition; David Nugent wasn't fit enough to play for Pompey in what would have been a return against the club for which he starred before moving on last summer.

Manchester United sent a convicingly strong message to Arsenal in a 4-0 home victory for the Red Devils. Arsene Wenger played a nearly full-strength lineup so there can be no excuses about that, and United showed that they're a different team when Wayne Rooney is on the field. The title race is not over yet; Arsenal will have to go back to Old Trafford in April and this FA Cup match served them notice that they better come ready to play.

Elsewhere, Chelsea took care of business at home against Huddersfield Town (3-1), and Coventry City thumped West Bromwich Albion 5-0 on the road in a battle of two recent Premiership sides.

Complete FA Cup 5th Round Scores:

Bristol Rovers-1, Southampton-0
Barnsley-2, Liverpool-1
Cardiff City-2, Wolverhampton-0
West Bromwich Albion-5, Coventry City-0
Chelsea-3, Huddersfield Town-1
Manchester United-4, Arsenal-0
Sheffield United-0, Middlesbrough-0
Portsmouth-1, Preston North End-0

Note: Premiership teams are in bold

As I said earlier, the quarterfinal draw will be made tomorrow morning here on the East Coast. You can find full coverage and analysis of that on this site and at epltalk.com.

Barnsley Shocks Liverpool in FA Cup

I don't think I need to explain to you what an upset this is, so I won't.

Liverpool should've won the game. It's that simple. They had more shots, more possession, more chances, more everything. But they only scored one goal and as I've said countless times, the only stat that matters in a team sport like soccer is goals scored.

Barnsley-2, Liverpool-1.

Oh, yeah. Time to get rid of Rafa yet? Someone has to be held accountable for a home loss to a mediocre Championship side in the FA Cup, particularly since Liverpool has been walking on a thin rope in this competition so far anyway. Yes, Liverpool could very well have been looking ahead to the showdown with Inter Milan on Tuesday in the Champions League, but it's the manager's job to prepare his players and get them focused on the game at hand, not the next game, or the one after that.

Not only that, but this competition likely represented the last chance that the Reds had at silverware this year; they’ve already been knocked out in the Carling Cup, have virtually no chance of winning the Premiership, and the Champions League is nothing more than a crapshoot based on who you draw, and Inter Milan will be daunting to say the least.

To me, when you get to this stage of a tournament, you have to go with your best players no matter who the opposition is. Not starting the captain, Steven Gerrard, and only bringing him on off the bench late in the game is inexcusable. Not starting Jose Reina, one of the two or three best goalkeepers in the league, is inexcusable. Not starting Javier Mascherano, a player who you alledgedly believe to be worth $34 million US, is inexcusable.

Sometimes you get what you deserve in soccer, and sometimes you don’t. Today Liverpool fell to a team they dominated in all aspects of the game other than goals scored. Is it fair? Maybe, maybe not. Is it life? Yes. If you don’t play your best players in a given game, you can lose. Someone needs to take the fall for this.

I believe it has to be Rafa.

All Quiet on the Premiership Front

Very, very slow news day today.

Nothing much to talk about right now as it's an FA Cup weekend, and I already covered these matchups a little bit after the draw for this round was conducted. The first legs of the UEFA Cup Round of 32 ties will be finished up tomorrow as half were played today. I'll have a recap of sorts on that tomorrow night with a focus on the British teams in the competition.

I know what I'm doing tonight though, and all you American college basketball fans out there should join me in watching Maryland head down to Cameron Indoor Stadium to battle Duke. I'm also going to keep an eye on the Connecticut-Notre Dame game as the winner will solidify their status as the second best team in the Big East, and the Indiana-Wisconsin game in Bloomington. I'm curious to see whether Wisconsin can win a tough road game in a hostile environment like Assembly Hall; the Badgers still have to prove themselves to me away from home.

FA Cup 5th Round Draw Revealed

The draw for the 5th Round of the FA Cup was conducted at 8:30 Eastern Time this morning and I have to say, there are some very interesting ties that will be worth watching.

Here's the complete draw (Premiership teams are in bold, home teams are listed first):

Bristol Rovers v Southampton
Cardiff City v Wolverhampton Wanderers
Sheffield United v Middlesbrough
Liverpool v Barnsley
Manchester United v Arsenal
Preston North End v Portsmouth
Coventry City v West Bromwich Albion
Chelsea v Huddersfield Town

If you're a fan of lower-league soccer, this is a mixed bag. Huddersfield Town and Bristol Rovers (both in League One) are the lowest-ranked teams left at this stage, and while the former has no chance to advance, Bristol Rovers could very well pull off an upset. You're guaranteed to see either Cardiff or Wolves move on and either Coventry or West Brom as well. Other than that, the pickings are slim.

I don't think I'm going out any real limb in predicting that Sheffield United will beat Middlesbrough at Brammall Lane. I know they're only in 14th place right now in the Championship, but this is a team that has already beaten Bolton and Manchester City in the FA Cup this year and Middlesbrough are struggling in the Premier League and could be without Jonathan Woodgate as well. If all else fails, maybe someone at Sheffield United can steal some more money from the visiting team's locker room.

Liverpool have been lucky enough to draw lower-league sides in both of their previous FA Cup ties and the trend continues in this round as the Reds will host Barnsley, who currently occupy 16th place in the Championship.

David Nugent will make his return to Preston as his current club, Portsmouth, heads to the North West and Deepdale. Preston are really struggling this year without Nugent (22nd in the Championship) but both they and their fans will really be up for this game, particularly if Nugent is playing.

Undoubtedly, the tie of the round is Manchester United-Arsenal, although it will be interesting to see what sort of team Arsene Wenger trots out at Old Trafford. Will he go with the kids as he does in most cup games, or will he go with a more traditional side since this is a big, big matchup? We'll see.

Adding Insult to Injury

ESPNsoccernet is reporting that a significant amount of money--believed to be in the region of $3,000-$4,000 US--was stolen right out of wallets from the Manchester City dressing room at some point during the afternoon today. City occupied the visitors' changing room as they were in Sheffield to take on Sheffield United in the 4th Round of the FA Cup, a game in which they surprisingly lost 2-1.

"A number of staff and players have had a quantity of cash stolen," City spokesman Paul Tyrrell told Sky Sports News.

"I am not aware that the dressing room was locked and the police are looking in it."

Wow. If this is the case, Sheffield United has to be at fault. There's no excuse for not locking the doors to the locker room and prohibiting access to everything inside.

Then again, what were City's players and staff doing with that much money?? They were the visiting team and probably were heading back to Manchester directly after the match; I'm not sure why they were carrying any considerable amount of money in the first place.

City aren't exactly setting the world alight right now with their recent form. This is a team that has won a grand total of three matches in their last thirteen played in all competitions. They're fading in the race for fourth place in the Premiership and with today's loss are now out of both domestic cup competitions. The last thing their players and staff are thinking about at the moment is the money in their wallets, especially when it's inside a place that should be safe and off-limits to anyone but team personnel, and somehow even that is now missing.

After a trip to Derby next week, City have the displeasure of playing Manchester United, Arsenal, and Everton in their three league games in February.

Could it get any worse?

FA Cup 5th Round Draw

The draw for the fifth round of the 2007-2008 edition of the world's oldest domestic cup competition will take place tomorrow, and the eight ties are scheduled to be played on February 16 and 17.

None of the fourth round ties need replays as they all were decided this weekend. Coca-Cola League One sides Huddersfield Town and Bristol Rovers are amongst the last 16 teams in the competition, as are several Championship squads and each of the Premiership's "Big Four".

Full coverage of the draw can be found here tomorrow; check back during the morning for more updates.

False Alarm

Yossi Benayoun's natural hat trick propelled Liverpool from a 2-1 deficit to a 5-2 victory today in the 4th Round of the FA Cup.

Havant and Waterlooville jumped out to a 1-0 lead at Anfield after just eight minutes, and the Blue Square South side went back ahead 2-1 on a Martin Skrtel own goal just after the half-hour mark.

Benayoun then scored three in a row for Liverpool and Peter Crouch added an insurance tally in the 90th minute to put the game in the bag and send the Reds into the last 16 of the world's oldest and most prestigious cup competition.

Personally, I was hoping Havant and Waterlooville could pull off the stunner and win today. I wrote about how I believe changes need to be made at Liverpool just after their 2-2 draw against Aston Villa earlier in the week and to me, this is exactly the type of game that will hinder progress being made on Merseyside. Fans will look at the scoreline and say "Wow, five goals, our boys made it look easy out there" and proceed like nothing's wrong.

The reality of the situation is this. Liverpool were tied with a team full of part-timers at halftime. Yes, they ended up winning, but that's what they were supposed to do anyway and in impressive fashion. I know that the team Rafa put on the field wasn't exactly a full-strength lineup, but surely they're better than being outplayed by a team in Blue Square South for the first half?

Upset of the Century?

My goodness. Say what you like about it being the FA Cup and it not mattering much to teams in the Premier League, but we could be seeing history today if Havant and Waterlooville can nick a goal in the second half of their FA Cup 4th Round tie at Liverpool. The last time a non-league team beat a top-flight opponent was back in the 1988-1989 season when Sutton United shocked Coventry City.

As I type this, the score is 2-2 in the 48th minute and the part-timers from Blue Square South actually have led this game on two occasions. Liverpool isn't exactly playing a full-strength side but they do have Torres, Carragher, and Gerrard available off the bench and a couple of regular first-team players in Mascherano, Finnan, and Benayoun starting.

Havant and Waterlooville are making a tidy profit from this game which could cover operating costs for literally a season or two, if not longer, and if they can force a replay, that would be hugely lucrative as well.

I'll keep you posted with updates on this game.

FA Cup 4th Round Draw

The draw for the 4th Round of the FA Cup was conducted today and once again, we'll be able to look forward to some potentially entertaining ties. Once the 3rd Round replays are played on January 15 and 16, the 4th Round matchups will become set in stone.

The 4th Round is made up of the last 32 teams in the competition and its pairings will be played the weekend of January 26 and 27. I'm hoping to see a Manchester United-Tottenham affair and that would come to fruition only if Spurs can go to Reading and win in their 3rd Round replay. I'm also excited about the battle of the "mouths" as Portsmouth will welcome Plymouth Argyle to Fratton Park.

The Cinderella story of this year's 127th edition of the FA Cup, Havant & Waterlooville, got either a dream draw or a nightmare draw, depending on how you want to look at it. On one hand, if they beat Swansea City in their 3rd Round replay, they'll get a chance to slay Goliath and beat Liverpool at Anfield. The national media exposure and publicity for the Blue Square South side would be immeasureable. On the other hand, they likely wouldn't progress in the competition and their dreams of winning the whole thing would come crashing down on them. This whole dilemma would be moot, of course, if Luton Town goes to Liverpool and wins but that doesn't appear likely.

Both Oldham Athletic and Huddersfield Town have to like their chances to advance to the last 16 as the two sides will square off at Oldham, and the same can be said for Southend United and Barnsley.

Here's the complete list of 4th Round matchups, with the home team listed first:

Arsenal vs. Stoke City/Newcastle United
Coventry City vs. Walsall/Millwall
Oldham Athletic vs. Huddersfield Town
Swindon Town/Barnet vs. Fulham/Bristol Rovers
Wigan Athletic vs. Chelsea
Luton Town/Liverpool v Swansea/Havant & Waterlooville
Southend United vs. Barnsley
Southampton vs. Norwich City/Bury
Manchester United vs. Tottenham Hotspur/Reading
Portsmouth vs. Plymouth Argyle
Derby County/Sheffield Wednesday vs. Preston North End
Watford vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers
Peterborough United vs. Charlton Athletic/West Bromwich Albion
Sheffield United vs. West Ham United/Manchester City
Mansfield Town vs. Middlesbrough
Tranmere Rovers/Hereford United vs. Cardiff City

Note: Premiership teams are in bold

FA Cup Recap--3rd Round

The Third Round of England's most prestigious knockout competition, the FA Cup, made for a very exciting slate of games. We saw some lower-league sides keep their dreams alive; we saw Premiership teams overcome spirited opposition to move on to the next stage; and most importantly, we saw the true spirit and passion of the game come out.

Chasetown were the lowest ranked team to ever make it to this point in the FA Cup and after scoring first in their game against Cardiff, gave up three unanswered goals to bow out of the competition. Havant & Waterlooville are now the flag-bearers for clubs outside the Football League (Premiership, Championship, League 1, League 2) as the Hawks are currently toiling in Blue Square South.

Blackburn, Bolton, Everton, and Birmingham City were all knocked out by lower-league sides, Sunderland (Wigan) and Aston Villa (Manchester United) were eliminated by fellow Premier League teams, and Newcastle, Derby, Tottenham, Reading, West Ham, Manchester City, Fulham, and Liverpool will all need replays to further their quest to win the FA Cup.

Like I said before, we saw some great displays of the game this weekend. The quality of play wasn't always the greatest but it was made up for with the passion and desire that both teams and fans showed. The draw for the 4th Round will be made tomorrow, and you can get full coverage of that right here.

Round 3 Results:

DATE HOME SCORE OPPONENT
01/05 Chasetown 1 - 3 Cardiff City
01/05 Walsall 0 - 0 Millwall
01/05 Wolverhampton 2 - 1 Cambridge Utd.
01/05 Barnsley 2 - 1 Blackpool
01/05 Blackburn 1 - 4 Coventry City
01/05 Bolton 0 - 1 Sheffield Utd
01/05 Brighton 1 - 2 Mansfield Town
01/05 Bristol City 1 - 2 Middlesbrough
01/05 Charlton 1 - 1 West Bromwich Albion
01/05 Chelsea 1 - 0 QPR
01/05 Colchester 1 - 3 Peterborough
01/05 Everton 0 - 1 Oldham Athletic
01/05 Huddersfield Town 2 - 1 Birmingham City
01/05 Ipswich Town 0 - 1 Portsmouth
01/05 Norwich 1 - 1 Bury
01/05 Plymouth Argyle 3 - 2 Hull City
01/05 Preston North End 1 - 0 Scunthorpe
01/05 Southampton 2 - 0 Leicester City
01/05 Southend Utd. 5 - 2 Dagenham & Redbridge
01/05 Sunderland 0 - 3 Wigan
01/05 Swansea City 1 - 1 Havant and Waterloo
01/05 Swindon Town 1 - 1 Barnet
01/05 Tottenham 2 - 2 Reading
01/05 Tranmere Rovers 2 - 2 Hereford
01/05 Watford 2 - 0 Crystal Palace
01/05 West Ham 0 - 0 Manchester City
01/05 Aston Villa 0 - 2 Manchester Utd.
01/06 Burnley 0 - 2 Arsenal
01/06 Derby 2 - 2 Sheffield Wed.
01/06 Fulham 2 - 2 Bristol Rovers
01/06 Luton Town 1 - 1 Liverpool
01/06 Stoke City 0 - 0 Newcastle

Replays:

01/15 Barnet vs. Swindon Town
01/15 Bristol Rovers vs. Fulham
01/15 Bury vs. Norwich
01/15 Hereford vs. Tranmere Rovers
01/15 Millwall vs. Walsall
01/15 Sheffield Wednesday vs. Derby County
01/15 West Bromwich Albion vs. Charlton Athletic
01/15 Liverpool vs. Luton Town
01/15 Reading vs. Tottenham
01/16 Havant and Waterloo vs. Swansea City
01/16 Manchester City vs. West Ham
01/16 Newcastle vs. Stoke City

FA Cup Third Round Draw

The third round draw for England's most prestigious cup competition was released yesterday, and Premiership teams now finally get in on the act. These matchups are scheduled for the 5th and 6th of January. If a game ends in a draw, a replay will occur to determine who moves on to the 4th Round. The home team for that game would the visiting team in this match.

Note: Premiership teams are in bold, and the home team is listed first.

Preston North End vs. Scunthorpe
Port Vale/Chasetown vs. Cardiff City
Colchester vs. Peterborough
Bolton vs. Sheffield United
Blackburn vs. Coventry City
Brighton vs. Mansfield
Northampton/Walsall vs. Millwall
Charlton Athletic vs. West Bromwich Albion
Watford vs. Crystal Palace
Luton Town/Nottingham Forest vs. Liverpool
Plymouth Argyle vs. Hull City
Aston Villa vs. Manchester United
Tranmere Rovers vs. Hereford
Tottenham vs. Reading
Burnley vs. Arsenal
Bristol City vs. Middlesbrough
Fulham vs. Bristol Rovers
Huddersfield vs. Birmingham City
Horsham/Swansea City vs. Havant & Waterlooville
Sunderland vs. Wigan Athletic
Oxford United/Southend United vs. Dagenham & Redbridge
Everton vs. Oldham Athletic
Derby County vs. Sheffield Wednesday
Southampton vs. Leicester City
West Ham vs. Manchester City
Ipswich vs. Portsmouth
Wolverhampton vs. Cambridge
Barnsley vs. Blackpool
Chelsea vs. QPR
Stoke City vs. Newcastle
Swindon Town vs. Burton Albion/Barnet
Norwich vs. Bury


Chelsea, the current holders of the FA Cup, should progress to the 4th Round without much trouble. The most interesting tie of this round, by far, is Aston Villa vs. Manchester United. Both teams are capable of winning this whole competition but obviously only one will progress to the next stage.