[Archived] Who Allowed The F.A. Cup To Die

[stuwilky]

Pederson - Im amused that people who listened on the radio are observing that he shut up his critics?  How?  Yes he scored, but what else did he do?  In the first half he was distinctly average, and in the second half he went missing, I even thought he had been subbed.

But don't you think he did enough to justify more involvement in the first team in the future. And when I say involvement, I don't mean definite starts but perhaps sub appearances.

yeah disappearing into oblivion for more than half the game was very impressive. Not sure id like to see it again though.

He got muscled off the ball lots as well.

[Flopsy]

true, but at least he shaved

Nah subs appeaarances for the mo - howeverat last a player who can take a corner

[rover6]

Pederson - Im amused that people who listened on the radio are observing that he shut up his critics?  How?  Yes he scored, but what else did he do?  In the first half he was distinctly average, and in the second half he went missing, I even thought he had been subbed.

But don't you think he did enough to justify more involvement in the first team in the future. And when I say involvement, I don't mean definite starts but perhaps sub appearances.

yeah disappearing into oblivion for more than half the game was very impressive. Not sure id like to see it again though.

He got muscled off the ball lots as well.

Very intelligent. A young player comes in to start a game for the first time 3 months, scores a goal in an OK performance and you don't want to see him in a Rovers shirt again.

In which case, you must dread the sight of that Brett Emerton. The guy was very disappointing for most of last season. And that Steven Reid, getting sent off on his debut and looked like a non-league player whenever his injuries allowed him to play last year - both should have been sold immediately because if they don't play like Zinedine Zidane immediately they must be rubbish.

[broadsword]

Did you actually see him play then, rover6? I'm just puzzled because you seem to be speaking with such authority.

If he was muscled off the ball by Cardiff players then clearly he is still off the mark with his conditioning. You cannot regularly expect to make even the bench if your conditioning is not up to scratch.

Apparently Emerton was ill yesterday, which is why Pedersen got his chance.

[SouthAussieRover]

Pederson - Im amused that people who listened on the radio are observing that he shut up his critics?  How?  Yes he scored, but what else did he do?  In the first half he was distinctly average, and in the second half he went missing, I even thought he had been subbed.

But don't you think he did enough to justify more involvement in the first team in the future. And when I say involvement, I don't mean definite starts but perhaps sub appearances.

yeah disappearing into oblivion for more than half the game was very impressive. Not sure id like to see it again though.

He got muscled off the ball lots as well.

Very intelligent. A young player comes in to start a game for the first time 3 months, scores a goal in an OK performance and you don't want to see him in a Rovers shirt again.

In which case, you must dread the sight of that Brett Emerton. The guy was very disappointing for most of last season. And that Steven Reid, getting sent off on his debut and looked like a non-league player whenever his injuries allowed him to play last year - both should have been sold immediately because if they don't play like Zinedine Zidane immediately they must be rubbish.

Sorry Rover6 but please shut the (Please don't use that word again) up.

You give the likes of us who never go to a game a bad name.

[stuwilky]

Pederson - Im amused that people who listened on the radio are observing that he shut up his critics?  How?  Yes he scored, but what else did he do?  In the first half he was distinctly average, and in the second half he went missing, I even thought he had been subbed.

But don't you think he did enough to justify more involvement in the first team in the future. And when I say involvement, I don't mean definite starts but perhaps sub appearances.

yeah disappearing into oblivion for more than half the game was very impressive. Not sure id like to see it again though.

He got muscled off the ball lots as well.

Very intelligent. A young player comes in to start a game for the first time 3 months, scores a goal in an OK performance and you don't want to see him in a Rovers shirt again.

In which case, you must dread the sight of that Brett Emerton. The guy was very disappointing for most of last season. And that Steven Reid, getting sent off on his debut and looked like a non-league player whenever his injuries allowed him to play last year - both should have been sold immediately because if they don't play like Zinedine Zidane immediately they must be rubbish.

Nowt like paraphrasing.

My point Rover6, is that I actually watched him, and I watched him with some interest knowing that you will have been on here posting your usual drivel about how superb he is, and how he must be played and is the answer to all our problems. Despite having NEVER WATCHED HIM.

I have wanted to see Pederson as well, there was obviously something about this kid for us to buy him.

Having wacthed him play (you might want to try that before you continue your ridiculous tirades) I think he is an average player - I believe that he offered no other options to Steven Reid, with the exeption that MGP actually takes a decent corner. He was very easy to get off the ball, very lightweight and the Cardiff defence made short work of most of his runs. There is no doubt the boy has technical ability, but I am still firmly of the opinion that he is not physically robust enough. I can see him coming on after 70 minutes and using his skill to attack tired defences and perhaps winning freekicks.

[Anti Euro Smiths Fan]

Friedal - whoops, should have saved it

In a fortnight's time, the man nicknamed "slow hand" - Eric Clapton, will be visiting the city of Cardiff for a Tsunami benefit concert.

Some might suggest that slow hands from Friedel played a part in Cardiff's equaliser, but I didn't think that Brad was entirely to blame for the goal.

Perhaps more worrying though was the slow feet in evidence from Mr Matteo, who had a poor game. A bad mistake from Dominic in the first half, when he passed the ball straight to a Cardiff player, could have cost us a goal.

Their equaliser came about 15 minutes later, when the ball bounced off the crossbar on to Friedel and into the net.

And you think we're looking forward to it!

expect a 7,000 gate, at most!

Mr Williams, if you happen to be reading this, I hope that you'll be able to reconsider the pricing policy for this replay.

I fear that otherwise it might be an embarrassingly low gate. Like the Bournemouth debacle earlier in the season, this may give the impression to Mark Hughes and his staff that the Blackburn public are not enthusiastic about cup competitions.

I don't see the sense in charging high prices for this game and having a ground more than two-thirds empty.

Sheff Utd -Villa gets live coverage and TWO sets of highlights. Disgraceful coverage.

I thought the Match Of The Day coverage was poor last night, Paul.

Firstly there seem to be a number of inexperienced commentators for the matches. The guy commentating on Man Utd/Exeter game, Martin Fisher, seemed completely out of his depth.

For me this illustrates again the folly of the BBC hierarchy in not keeping hold of their more experienced commentators like Barry Davies, whose voice at least conveys some authority and gravitas.

As for Mark Bright, commentating on the Villa game, perhaps the least said the better. Together with his pal Ian Wright, the pair of them are a joke.

Gavin Peacock was one of the studio pundits last night. He's hardly had the most illustrious of careers - not good enough to win any caps at International level.

A woman's voice was heard last night describing some of the goals as they went in. I'm not being sexist in any way - I'm happy for females to be involved in football, but this particular lady had an irritating voice that distracted attention away from the goals.

Surely the BBC could do better.

The magic of the FA Cup has been further damaged in the game between Yeading and Newcastle which kicked-off about 20 minutes ago.

Yeading started off making all the right noises, insisting that they would play the game at their own home ground.

I didn't believe them. I knew that they would cave in, and that's exactly what happened when they realised the extra money that could be made by holding the game at Loftus Road.

Don't believe all the bullsh*t about "safety reasons" - Yeading's ground was perfectly capable of hosting this tie with a proper police presence, which could be afforded because the BBC are paying them £300,000 to show the match.

Yeading's decision to host the game at Loftus Road is entirely down to the extra revenue available in gate receipts.

It's yet another kick in the teeth for the FA Cup.

[Scotty]

We started the game well and scored with our first meaningful attack, MGP taking the goal superbly. A few minutes later Dickov was put clear to put us two up but he shot straight at their keeper. I'm not sure I've ever seen him score a one-on-one like that - he can't finish when he has time to think about it.

Cardiff slowly came back into it and eventually got the equaliser they deserved - Friedel should have saved it though imo. It was all Cardiff then and only some last-ditch, illegal defending kept them out until half-time.

The second-half was a non-event. Both teams created little and cancelled each other out. We finished the stronger, had a "goal" ruled out for a foul, hit the bar directly from an MGP corner, but didn't really do enough to deserve the win.

Plus points: MGP took his goal very well - a cool finish. Mokoena looked classy. He used the ball well and wasn't frightened to put his foot in - he looks promising. Our defence played well, again, and although Matteo has got plenty of stick for his distribution he still defended well.

Minus points: Stead and Dickov were poor. MGP disappeared in the second half and should have been subbed. Ferguson was subbed in the first-half - was he injured? Friedel should have saved the goal but had little else to do.

All in all it was a solid display and we continued to look hard to beat, but we still lack creativity and the necessary guile to break teams down. A draw was a fair result and I expect it to be just as difficult in the replay.

[Eddie]

I don't really mind Yeading holding it away from their homeground to get more fans. First of all it gives all of their fans the opportunity to see the biggest game of their lives possibly, while also in the modern game where lower league comes are struggling to keep their heads above the financial water I don't see anything wrong with them making more money in that way.

[Scotty]

But don't you think he did enough to justify more involvement in the first team in the future. And when I say involvement, I don't mean definite starts but perhaps sub appearances.

He did nothing yesterday to show me that he's capable of replacing either Thompson or Emerton yet.

Edited January 9, 2005 by Scotty

[oozy]

MGP did well in the first half but was anonymous in the second. He has not done enough to warrant a place in the team instead of Thommo Emerton or Ried. He is good enough going forward, but he needs to improve on his tracking back (which is maybe why Matteo looked so awful. Granted Matteo hasn't lit up Ewood, but in our recent run he has looked half-decent and the sats don't lie(3 clean sheets in 4).

However, considering the coolness with which MGP took his finish, our current striking problems, and the fact that he is rather light-weight for the defensive duties of a wide man, i propose that Hughes should use him as a second striker.

He has always had a good goals to games ratio and has played there before

Team v Pompey:

Friedel

Ried Todd Nelson NEJ

Thommo Flitty Bazza Emerton

MGP

Dickov

Subs:Enckleman, Mcevely, Mokoena, Tugay, Stead/Bothroyd

[roversWASmylife]

A draw in the end I thought was probably a fair result.

We started both halfs fairly well and created enough chances to win but we only took one of them.

MGP took his goal well, other than that he never was in the game again apart from hitting the bar from a corner.

He struggled physically, maybe that's something he could work on like they did with Johansson.

Cardiff were always going to put us under pressure at some point, but we could have been at least 2-0 up before Cardiff equalised before half time.

Not many times I've said it but Friedel was at fault.

Second half we did ok but never put Cardiff under constant pressure.

Dickov fouled the keeper for Thompson's goal, Dunn blew before Thommo put it in the net.

At least we didn't lose and we're still in the FA Cup compared to other Premier League teams, fingers crossed we should have the quality in us to beat them at Ewood.

[stuwilky]

Forgot to mention barry island though in my above report.

[92er]

Yeading weren't allowed to play their game at home.

[Manchester Blue]

Not true, both the Police and the FA ok'd the game but then Yeading hired a firm of safety advisers who stated that segregation could not be guaranteed. So Yeading played at a half empty Loftus Road instead.

[92er]

Looking back in history, I see Rovers lost to Cardiff in the 1925 semi-final.But in 1958 beat them 2-1 in a replay.If I'm right, this was before floodlights and some Schools,including Junior ones,let pupils attend the game.How times change.

[Pugger]

Pugger, what is your opinion of having to fork out £24 for the replay?...how many will travel on the night from Cardiff.

Well I'm having trouble undrstanding how they can charge so much for a match which can hardly be considered a galmour tie for Blackburn supporters. As for us we get loads of complaints about our pricing policy £16 to sit or stand in the areas which were to the right of where your supporters were situated and £23 for middle blocks of the grandstand. So I assume the £24 is going to go down like a lead weight. At that price and giving its a midweek I'd say you'll see 500 cardiff supporters tops.

[rover6]

Nowt like paraphrasing.

My point Rover6, is that I actually watched him, and I watched him with some interest knowing that you will have been on here posting your usual drivel about how superb he is, and how he must be played and is the answer to all our problems.  Despite having NEVER WATCHED HIM.

I can see him coming on after 70 minutes and using his skill to attack tired defences and perhaps winning freekicks.

Nowt like making stuff up.

I think you might be confusing me with Cuidado. I was not hailing him as the Messiah and I have not said that he should be starting games. What I have said is that he should have had more than the meagre sub appearances he's had. In fact, apart from the Bournemouth match, he hasn't had any.

There's is no doubt that Emerton and Thommo should start the next games if fit.

And sorry if I misinterpreted you because from what you initially posted, I got the impression you didn't want to see MGP in a Rovers shirt again. I'll repeat it until I'm senseless, Thierry Henry made a habit of hitting the ad hoardings in his first season. He needed patience from the fans and so will MGP.

Edited January 9, 2005 by rover6

[AxesFirstTouch]

Nowt like paraphrasing.

My point Rover6, is that I actually watched him, and I watched him with some interest knowing that you will have been on here posting your usual drivel about how superb he is, and how he must be played and is the answer to all our problems.  Despite having NEVER WATCHED HIM.

I can see him coming on after 70 minutes and using his skill to attack tired defences and perhaps winning freekicks.

Nowt like making stuff up.

I think you might be confusing me with Cuidado. I was not hailing him as the Messiah and I have not said that he should be starting games. What I have said is that he should have had more than the meagre sub appearances he's had. In fact, apart from the Bournemouth match, he hasn't had any.

There's is no doubt that Emerton and Thommo should start the next games if fit.

And sorry if I misinterpreted you because from what you initially posted, I got the impression you didn't want to see MGP in a Rovers shirt again. I'll repeat it until I'm senseless, Thierry Henry made a habit of hitting the ad hoardings in his first season. He needed patience from the fans and so will MGP.

Stuwilky speaks sense, yet you have managed nearly 2000 posts of sheer armchair nonsense judged on reading other fans posts who have actually seen all these players who get you hard.

Edited January 9, 2005 by wakefieldrawks

[rover6]

Stuwilky speaks sense, yet you have managed nearly 2000 posts of sheer armchair nonsense judged on reading other fans posts who have actually seen all these players who get you hard.

Don't bring my armchair into this, it's never done anything to you.

[Tony Diamond Inc]

I'm with Rover6 on this one, MGP needs REAL games to improve/adapt. These could come in the form of 15/20 at the end of games - simple!

[DaveyB]

The magic of the FA Cup has been further damaged in the game between Yeading and Newcastle which kicked-off about 20 minutes ago.

Yeading started off making all the right noises, insisting that they would play the game at their own home ground.

I didn't believe them. I knew that they would cave in, and that's exactly what happened when they realised the extra money that could be made by holding the game at Loftus Road.

Don't believe all the bullsh*t about "safety reasons" - Yeading's ground was perfectly capable of hosting this tie with a proper police presence, which could be afforded because the BBC are paying them £300,000 to show the match.

Yeading's decision to host the game at Loftus Road is entirely down to the extra revenue available in gate receipts.

It's yet another kick in the teeth for the FA Cup.

It said on Radio Five that it had actually cost Yeading some of their income from this tie to stage the game at Loftus Road. The chairman claimed that the £300,000 they have made could have been £500,000 had they not had to pay QPR for use of the ground plus pay for extra police as it was a bigger ground.

Don't know how true that it is before you shoot the messanger, however, if they really were just in it for the money why not switch the game to St. James'? The Yeading fans would have travelled, as it's their biggest game ever, and more Geordies would have been there, as they pretty much turn out whatever, so they could have had a gate of 35 - 40,000 which would have considerably increased their income.

Personally I feel that this year's 3rd round has returned some of the magic of the cup. There were a number of upsets and some real dream ties for the smaller clubs like Yeading and Exeter. All the lower league teams did themselves justice as well (apart from Leeds maybe!) - no hammerings handed out by the premiership big boys, and there were some special moments for those small clubs as well. Exeter's players will never forget their trip to Old Trafford and for Scunthorpe to take the lead at Stamford Bridge they must have been on cloud 9 even if just for a short time.

It continued today as well with Yeading holding Newcastle for 45 mins and Stoke having a half-time lead at Highbury.

I think yesterday also served to prove to RFW that he can't afford to play his reserve team in the FA Cup anymore, even against non-league teams - so all in all a good day for the old cup!

[colin]

Just a quick word for MOTD.

Yes our coverage was rubbush, as usual, but so was the coverage of many other games. Normally they have to cover 7/8/9 games. On Saturday they had to do a lot more. Hence the loads of "snapshots" at the end.

[stuwilky]

Don't know how true that it is before you shoot the messanger, however, if they really were just in it for the money why not switch the game to St. James'? The Yeading fans would have travelled, as it's their biggest game ever, and more Geordies would have been there, as they pretty much turn out whatever, so they could have had a gate of 35 - 40,000 which would have considerably increased their income.

Cos they arent allowed to do that anymore.

But I agree entirely with the rest of the post. This year has brough back some of the sparkle. Just a shame to see some of these guys go out after all their hard work so far.

[CAPT KAYOS]

and more Geordies would have been there, as they pretty much turn out whatever

Yet again the Myth rises.

Didn't appear to be many Geordies there yesterday.