The Football League Paper says...

Saturday 3pm has gone, but it’s not all bad

APART from those managers who stay on the Premier League merry-go-round, things do change in football. Traditionalists would no doubt have preferred a full programme of FA Cup second round ties yesterday at 3pm.

Instead, games take place from Friday through to Monday as the BBC and BT call the tune for the money they’ve shelled out.

Indeed, there were only nine FA Cup ties yesterday out of a total of 20. To be frank, it doesn’t do us any favours as we report on so few fixtures.

But, on balance, we understand the situation and can see the benefits, too. There are nine FA Cup ties tomorrow kicking off at 2pm and BBC One will show the goals on their Final Score programme as they go in.

While smaller clubs may have been swallowed up among all the other football taking place yesterday, here they have a chance to show themselves off in front of a national TV audience – and the more goals they score, the more publicity they’ll get!

They also pocket a £12,500 broadcast fee, which will no doubt come in useful.

Yet there is one thing we do find a bit strange about the FA Cup television fees.

The pay-outs to clubs for live replay coverage are only half of those for a first meeting.

For example, clubs who feature in a live second round game pocket £72,000, but those in a replay pick up just £36,000.

But what is the difference? It is still the same round of the competition. The game is still 90 minutes (in fact, a replay may have extra-time and penalties, meaning it could provide better value for money).

While initial ties are on Fridays to Mondays, replays are usually on Tuesdays or Wednesdays. But what difference does that make? Maybe it’s something to look at so that everyone gets a fair crack of the whip.