, The Football League in the FA Cup – how have we done in the oldest competition in football?

The Football League in the FA Cup – how have we done in the oldest competition in football?

The 2014/15 FA Cup campaign comes to its conclusion at Wembley today, with Arsenal facing Aston Villa in front of near 90,000 spectators. Once again it will be two Premier League sides who face each other in the final, Reading were the last remaining Football League side in the competition, losing in the semi-final to Arsenal in extra-time.

This season has not been the only season where Football League teams have nearly gone the full distance since the Premier League was established in 1992. Reading, Sheffield United and Wigan Athletic are the most recent Football League sides to make the semi-final; but unfortunately none could make it that one stage further.

In fact, since the formation of the Premier League there has not been a winner of the cup from outside of England’s top tier. The two closest sides to achieving this were Millwall and Cardiff City. Millwall made it to the final in the 2003/04 competition, losing to Manchester United 3-0 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. in 2007/08, Cardiff City made it to the second final at the new Wembley Stadium, their FA Cup dream was stopped by Portsmouth as they lost 1-0.

The semi-final of the competition has proved to be a level which has seen more Football League sides make an appearance. A total of 14 Football League sides have played at the Semi-Final stage, but of that number, only 2 have successfully made it that one step further. Out of the 14, 3 teams have come from England’s 3rd tier, none have made it to the semi-final from a lower stage since 1992.

Chesterfield were the first to do this in 1997, a 3-3 draw against Middlesbrough at Old Trafford saw the Spireites take them to a replay at Hillsborough, but this is where they would lose 3-0. The next was Wycombe Wanderers in 2001. They would face Liverpool at Villa Park and despite their best efforts against one of England’s bigger names, they missed out on a trip to the final after a 2-1 loss. Sheffield United were the other team to complete this trio with their cup run in 2014. They faced Hull City at Wembley and lost 5-3 in a thrilling encounter.

Despite a Football League side not winning the trophy, there has been a number of games which saw big upsets.

The first of these would be Shrewsbury Town 2-1 Everton in 2003. 80 places separated the two sides going into the clash at the Gay Meadow, and despite being at the bottom end of the Football League and seeing relegation that year, Kevin Ratcliffe would mastermind the victory and two goals from captain Nigel Jemson would seal it.

The next would be the 2009/10 3rd Round clash which finished Manchester United 0-1 Leeds United. 10 years previous to this fixture these two sides were competing at the top end of the Premier League but Leeds went into the fixture as a League One side. An early goal from Jermaine Beckford would see Simon Grayson’s men walk away from Old Trafford victorious, and Manchester United’s first exit at the 3rd Round of the competition in 21 years.

There have also been more recent upsets, and none are more recent that Chelsea 2-4 Bradford City this season. Despite going 2 goals down at Stamford Bridge, Bradford would complete an amazing second half comeback to beat the team that would go onto win the Premier League. Bradford were 49 places below Chelsea going into this fixture, and the result would see them reach the 5th Round of the competition for the first time in 18 years.

Chelsea were at the wrong end of another upset, this time it finished Barnsley 1-0 Chelsea in 2008. Kayode Odejayi’s strike in the second half won the tie for the Tykes and gave them a place in the semi-finals. Avram Grant’s men would go onto finish 2nd in the Premier League that season, but Simon Davey would mastermind the victory that prevented Chelsea from any success that season.

Another game worth mentioning would be Leicester City 1-2 Wycombe Wanderers. Lawrie Sanchez masterminded Wycombe’s route to the semi-final, and a second half strike from Paul McCarthy gave them the lead. Despite Muzzy Izzet scoring an equaliser for the Premier League side, Wycombe’s Roy Essandoh, who signed a two-week contract so he could play in this fixture, secured the victory and would live in the memories of all Wycombe supporters, despite coming from an unknown background.

So we haven’t been able to do it just yet, but who knows, maybe next season will be the year that one of our Football League sides upsets the odds and lifts the famous trophy at Wembley.

Previous Article

Harris Won't Sell Young Assets

Next Article
, FEATURE: 5 Academy Players Blues Could See Feature Next Season

FEATURE: 5 Academy Players Blues Could See Feature Next Season

Related Posts