FA cup 2016-17

[yuppie]

what a pillock joey barton is

stamps on a lincoln players foot then falls over when he wasn't even touched holding his face to try and get the guy sent off

He should have had at least three yellow cards so far, plus Burnley's Tarkowski has got away with murder since half time.

Just seen the Barton incident, really got to laugh at that. Does the man have any redeeming features?

Hopefully the FA take a dim view on his conduct and give him an appropriate ban.

[Gingerfinch]

Just seen the Lincoln result. Well done to them, but I really hope Dyche didn't put a weakened team out, considering their league position?

[Aidan11]

I think I heard the last time there was a non-league quarter finalist was 1914.

[st_brendy]

Just seen the Lincoln result. Well done to them, but I really hope Dyche didn't put a weakened team out, considering their league position?

Of the XI who played against Chelsea last weekend, five started yesterday and a sixth came off the bench after just 20 minutes. And the two subs who came on against Chelsea also started yesterday.

Really, Burnley's only changes were to their backline. Three of the four who started against Chelsea sat out yesterday on the bench.

[budgetmeansbudget]

And you honestly couldn't tell who was the Premier League side.

I don't care whether Premier League/Championship sides put out weakened teams, what do you expect when the prize money for winning is barely more than a million quid.

The FA Cup holds little magic for me bar the mild enjoyment with results like yesterday. It was only held in high esteem back in the seventies because the final was the only live game on the box each season.

Sooner we are back to the bread and butter next week the better!

[Gingerfinch]

A lot of fans still love the cup, though Budget. Oh well, fifteenth place is where it's at!

[st_brendy]

Same thing was suggested by one of the journalists on Sunday Supplement this morning. Managers could play their best XI every FA Cup game, but it wouldn't actually make a jot of difference to fans. Now that fans have such easy TV access to league games and European games, the FA Cup - and England games, for that matter - just isn't attractive as it once was. (And had such wide access been available back then, the FA Cup wouldn't have been attractive then either).

Weekends of no league matches are just an annoyance these days.

I just the likes of BT would stop spouting the same rubbish like they did yesterday in saying that Lincoln's achievements might rekindle the "magic". That isn't me dismissing their achievement whatsoever. Simply that they said the same thing when Bradford knocked Chelsea out. Or when Leeds knocked Utd out. Or when Barnsley knocked Liverpool and Chelsea out. Or when Wigan beat City in the final. Or when Oldham (I think) knocked Liverpool out. Or any number of other examples. All great achievements, but not one of them rekindled this supposed magic. A non-league club making the QFs in an extreme of course, but it's not like the last 20 years haven't had any cup upsets.

Personally, I care about both cup competitions from the last 16 onwards (if you get a nice draw in that round - other wise it's from the QFs). That's the first time I think you can start to feel the trophy and Wembley. Before that, you're just too far away to give a damm about them.

[budgetmeansbudget]

A lot of fans still love the cup, though Budget. Oh well, fifteenth place is where it's at!

When we were at the foot of the fourth tier the league was all that mattered for me.

If we got to a semi final of a cup competition I might raise my right eyebrow!

[Alviro Patterson]

I don't buy the theory of clubs making wholesale changes for a cup competition so they can prioritise retaining or achieving Premier League status. Since Garry Monk tried that trick against Sutton United, Leeds United's recent league form has suffered.

Using similar logic, Lincoln City could have done the same. A team who are playing 46 league matches (on heavier pitches), still in the FA Trophy and looking promising for promotion to the Football League. At the end of the day, winning breeds winning and if mid to lower Premier League sides took domestic competition seriously, their league form stands a better chance of improving. Winning the FA (or League) Cup provides an indirect route for Champions League Football via winning the Europa League, which in theory takes fewer games to achieve than a 38 match Premier League season.

[budgetmeansbudget]

Same goes for us, since we fielded 11 reserve team players and went out to Millwall early January, our form in the League has been poor. Still its one way of discovering if some of the squad players are good enough to force themselves into the first team, and Eddie Howe has consistently changed pretty much the whole team in the cup competitions for the past four seasons. Its what he feels comfortable with, the reserves in most cases should be good enough to come through, and if they don't then that's one less competition to have to worry about.

[Gingerfinch]

As a Wycombe fan, nothing has come close to our 2001 FA Cup run. Some wonderful memories.

[budgetmeansbudget]

As a Wycombe fan, nothing has come close to our 2001 FA Cup run. Some wonderful memories.

Winning the FA Cup wouldn't beat the memories of our 2014/15 season or even surviving the drop to non league in 2008/09.

[mikesiva]

Kane gets his hat trick.

[Aidan11]

Just realised the QF draw is later today and not tomorrow as it was for previous draws.

[Gingerfinch]

As a Wycombe fan, nothing has come close to our 2001 FA Cup run. Some wonderful memories.

Winning the FA Cup wouldn't beat the memories of our 2014/15 season or even surviving the drop to non league in 2008/09.

I'm guessing it would be better than finishing 16th?