The FA Cup F**k Up?

Well, that's the semis done then - and it's going to be Everton v Chelsea in next month's final.

To call this a classic weekend of FA Cup football would be a lie, and if anything it's done nothing for what is still viewed as many as the greatest cup competition in the world.

Has to be said though, that it's not the competition it once was. There's a massive list of reasons why, so let's look at some of them.

* Football is all about money these days. It's a great bug bear of this particular poster that the third round draw has become a big day for a completely different reason. It's not even that long ago that a team - like my Gillingham - would get to the third round and be desperate to get one of the big boys AT HOME. The mentality then was "we'll have a crack at them, let's try and cause an upset". The dream was always to get Manchester United at home. Now though, it's all about money. The dream draw for every lower league team now is Manchester United away. So what if you'll get pummelled 7-0 at Old Trafford in front of 70,000 United fans, you get half of the gate receipts and that's more important. Even this season when we drew Aston Villa at home, we were pleased - and the TV money helped - but in the back of the mind remained the desire to play at Villa Park and get even more cash.

* It's not as important as it once was. Look again at that United side. If they do get past Arsenal to the Champions League final in Rome, how many of them will start? You can count on one hand. It's funny, last year United were gutted to miss out on the FA Cup after going out in the quarters to Portsmouth. This year, they've got to the semis, rested most of their players and paid the price. The sad thing is though, come FA Cup final weekend, United won't be too upset if they've managed to console themselves with the Premier League and the Champions League again... Years ago though, the FA Cup was the big one - the final was the day which everyone looked forward to. Which brings me to my next point...

* Semi-finals at Wembley. Awful, horrific idea. Yes, you spent so much on Wembley that you need to get the cash back by using it as often as possible, but for the love of God keep some things sacred. Those of a certain age will remember the finals of 1987 and 1988, which were won by Coventry and Wimbledon. Even the final of 1992 can be used as an example, with Sunderland runners up. That was THE day. My endearing memories of early FA Cup finals are hearing of journeymen players playing at Wembley for the first time, how special it was to be there. But there's none of that now, as they've already been there a month earlier. And as for the fans, well, think about it. I've been to the new Wembley twice and getting there is fine. The stadium itself is magnificent. Getting out of it is an absolute pigging nightmare. It's about an hour or so after Everton beat United now, and I bet there are fans of both clubs still trying to get into the tube stations. It's that congested. And, of course, there's the fact that fans from Everton and Manchester United have had to get down to London on a Sunday afternoon for the game in the first place. Play it at Villa Park, play it at Anfield, play it at the City of Manchester. But think of the fans and don't make them all trek down to London on a Sunday.

There's loads of other reasons as well, but they don't all need going in to. All I'm saying is that we need to go back to the days when walking up those steps to get hold of that FA Cup trophy on a sunny day in May was the highlight of the season and of careers. Because right now, it's almost a privelege that the top players can seemingly do without.

* Post by BFF member Jon.