NLP says... Cup needs support from ground up...

Last year was a very special year for the FA Cup, with the four teams contesting the semi-finals having finished in the top five of the English top-flight. Only once since the Premier League, or Premiership, kicked into action in 1992 has the last four been represented with such strength and quality (in 2008-09). The cup was alive and it seemed to mean something to the world’s biggest and richest clubs… Or so we were told.

The truth of the matter is – and this really isn’t breaking news – all four of those clubs, Manchester City, Tottenham, Chelsea and most certainly the eventual winners, Arsenal, would have swapped that victory walk up those famous steps in northwest London for a top-four finish that opens the gate for Champions League football. They reached the last four through the sheer strength and depth they could call on, stripping back their playing resources and showing the competition little respect in the early rounds as they breezed past much-lesser opponents. I don’t blame them for this, but let’s stop dressing it up; the FA Cup, while no doubt being a competition the biggest clubs still ‘want’ to win, is little more than a back-up plan for managers – like Arsene Wenger – to fall back on should the primary goal of top-class European football not be attained. Even then, for the most demanding of clubs, winning it will not be enough to save a manager his job.

CASH BOOST

Despite this, last season really was a very special year for the FA Cup, and the biggest success story came from Non-League football with Lincoln City reaching the quarter-finals. They talk about romance in the cup, and there was plenty of that as Danny Cowley’s side became the first Non-League club in 103 years to reach the last eight.

For their efforts, and ignoring the TV revenue that was pulled in, they also picked up £395,000 for the six games they won. In the grand scheme of the FA’s current pay structure and a pay pot that tips £15 million – this is probably about right, but the issue needs addressing in the earliest rounds. So let’s shave a bit off the top and pile a bit more into the bottom. What difference does £1.8 million, the money picked up by the eventual winners, make anyway. The FA would be doing a lot more for the game should they bump up the prize money in the first and second Preliminary rounds, which is currently just £1,500 and £1,925 respectively.

Forget the TV cash bonuses that ‘may’ come into it should smaller clubs proceed past the first round – give grassroots football the money it deserves. The FA have suggested they are going to address this, but actions speak louder than words and more cash is needed from the ground up. The £1.8 million that goes to the winner, most certainly a top-flight club and more than likely a top-four contender, will be nothing but loose change. In fact, it probably won’t even come close to covering the compensation package for the sacked manager who has the temerity to win the bloody thing!