This article orignally appeared in edition 273 of The Gooner.
Those of us of a certain vintage will forever bang on about how great the FA Cup used to be, and with some justification. The competition was rightfully viewed with pride as worldwide audiences were left enthralled at the magic of the cup. Sadly, the riches of the Premier League and Champions League has left the FA Cup looking like a slightly poor relation in comparison. Well done, everyone involved.
Many of the great traditions have been lost – marathon replays, neutral club grounds used for semi-finals, the wacky 3pm kick-off time for the final – but fortunately one experiment has long since disappeared. I yearn for the days of old, but you can keep your FA Cup third-fourth play-off match.
