FA Cup 2012 Season

[Banjo]

Sorry, no revenge for you Banjo..


Brum offered a fair account for most of the contest & battled to the end despite rather running out of steam.
They can now concentrate on plan 1 - exit from The Championship.

No need to be sorry Bob ... I've lived with it for over half a century now . They just ain't good enough and never have been! No wonder most Midlanders support Villa!

It always seems to be a bad time to play a team on the rebound when the manager has been sacked particularly if it is a formidable team like Chelsea.

Ohhhh well .... there is the possibilty of promotion, but from what I saw last night BCFC certainly ain't Premier League material at the moment ... however Doyle saving penalties from Mata in each game was pleasing ... and Torres not scoring plus getting booked was gratifying! =D> The goal from Meireles was an absolute cracker =D>.

[BobHelm]

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Spurs for the Cup??
There are certainly worse bets out there.
Stevenage took a very early lead in this one from the spot. It didn't put the home side off their stride though & by half time they were level. A couple in the second half, the first from the spot as well, eased any nerves as defeats by Man U & The Gunners may have placed in the group.
The score makes it look like a comfortable result but this was no one sided affair & Stevenage contributed greatly to what was an entertaining game. In football though the difference is often the class of 1 man in front of goal when the chance does come. That man last night was Jermain Defoe & if he had turned out for the visitors instead then Spurs could easily be out of the Cup this morning.
As it is they will progress to a home tie against Bolton & a fair amount of certainty that they should win that & progress to the semi finals!!

[BobHelm]

I guess that the home sides are probably favourites in all 4 weekend ties.

Everton still struggle to score but are a very difficult side to beat at this part of the season. Sunderland have done remarkably well in the League under the new manager, but they are a little more 'gung ho' than the home side & that could prove their undoing - or their reason for a win...

Spurs are having a rough time of it of late, but probably not as rough a time as Bolton fans have endured all this season!!
To lose this game would be a real body blow for Spurs & just about prove that after all their heroics they have failed to complete the task. They have shown that they can just about match anyone with silky skills & certainly have the personnel to win this competition...do they have the bottle is the question??
I not sure what winning or losing will do for Bolton. If they do not get some results in the League then it is Championship football next season for certain. Is this an unwelcome distraction, or a chance to generate some belief in the side?? Answers on a post card, care of UdonMap....

[BobHelm]

FULL-TIME Everton 1-1 Sunderland

Well first game over & no farther forward...
It looked like this was going to be a Sunderland day as they came, dominated & scored early. But before half time Everton had equalised & from then on looked the side most likely to win it. Sunderland operated on the break, but there were few of those in the second half & pretty early on it looked like Sunderland were more than happy with taking the game back to the North East.
Everton just about deserved a win but it was a close run thing all the way through.
Not sure who will start favourite at the replay, as both sides will probably change tactics with venue..
I don't think either of these teams will strike fear in the remaining 6 sides but they both proved again that they are difficult to beat!!

[magpie73]

fabrice muamda collapsed on the 41st minute of the game it was abandoned he was given cpr on the pitch reports from the bbc is that he's fighting for his life hope he pulls through

[magpie73]

sorry spelt the man's name wrong should be fabrice muamba plays for bolton he's only a young kid 23 year's old originally from the congo africa as political refugee c'mon fabrice

[magpie73]

just come on the news fabrice muamba is in a stable condition in hospital

[BobHelm]

Indeed, rather puts the game into perspective.
Heart attack by all accounts.
I wish him a full & speedy recovery.

[BobHelm]

Chelsa 5-2 Leicester

Well a side is finally through to the next round.
Almost more of a surprise is that Torres finally managed to get on the score sheet, who knows, a goal in the Premiership next...

A bit all too easy really for Chelsea. Not sure if they will be favourites for the Cup now, but they are certainly through & looking a bit more like a side that could win it. In all honesty though they did have the lowest opposition remaining in the competition, so not exactly time for roses & bubbly yet.
When it gets down to the other 3 semi finalists they will not be quite so happy at drawing Chelsea as they would have been a month ago though, that is for certain!!

[BobHelm]

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Stuart Downing finally did something for Pool to justify his move from Villa.
It was enough to send them through to the semi finals in a tough fought game.
The referee had a bit too much to say in the game & booked 6 players in what was a combative, but not dirty, game.
Home advantage & the the skills of Suarez were probably just about enough to swing the match in Pools favour.

It is now probably a North against South final at Wembley after the semi final draw, unless Bolton can pull a real rabbit out of the hat & defeat both Spurs & Chelsea. That always makes for an interesting match up for the neutral & possibly not quite so frenetic & anti-climatic as Derby finals sometimes are..

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[mathusalah80]

Yes Bob, I agree that the upcoming FA Cup final, featuring Spurs v Everton, should prove a fascinating battle of tactics between two very wily managers.
Also, unless he has decided to continue waiting indefinitely until Ferguson retires, David Moyes will doubtless welcome the opportunity of studying the strengths and weaknesses of the Spurs players in preparation for taking over from Harry next season!!

[BobHelm]

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The replays take place tonight, but with Spurs still at home as that match was abandoned.
There will still be a huge amount of emotion in the Bolton dressing room, but I think that they had their victory inspired by that at the weekend. I will be surprised if Spurs do not progress.
The other game is a far more difficult game to predict. Sunderland were happy to hang on at the end in the first tie, but are now at home. They do have a large number of central defensive injury problems though.
Both these sides would love to continue in a Cup run & have little else to worry about or play for.
I expect another very close encounter that may well need extra time to sort out a winner.

[BobHelm]

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The replays rather ended up with the results that I had expected prior to them being necessary.

Spurs dominated the game in the first half but found Bolton keeper Bogdan in sparkling form. He needed to be as the home side managed 11 first half attempts on goal without a Bolton reply.
Spurs completed a couple of chances in the second half & looked like easily running out the game before Davies managed to find the net just before the end. However rather than spark a revival it just encouraged Spurs to add a final goal as time ran out.
Interesting Wembley clash against Chelsea awaits.

The Toffees rather deserved their win against the Black Cats as well. Bit of a strange second half own goal sealed the win & probably slightly flattered the visitors but the home side did not exactly heap on the opportunities at the other end. Everton will now face neighbours Pool in what should be a great semi final clash at Wembley.
They could even be slight favourites given both sides current form in the league.

[BobHelm]

The battle as to who will represent Liverpool & London in the FA Cup Final is decided over this weekend.
For the first time in years this is a real contest to look forward to with some relish & I really hope that the two semi finals & the final both live up to what I am expecting from them. For once I have no particular dog in the fight & can hopefully just look forward to watching some great football.
Both games are really too close to call.
Pool have a huge amount of history behind them that suggests that they will overcome Everton, but the Blue half of the city have looked like a team going somewhere since the turn of the year, while Pool, cup exploits apart have rather looked a shambles.
The same is very much true in the other game as well. Up until two months ago I would have backed Spurs to comprehensively beaten a shambles that was turning out for Chelsea. Perhaps even more than the North West clash both the London sides had real ambition about what might be achieved this year, ambition that is now restricted to the FA Cup for Spurs &, realistically, probably for Chelsea as well.

Good luck to all 4 sides & may the best footballing side win. I hope that the officials have little impact on the result & also all have a game that they can look back on with pride.

[stattointhailand]

Agree 100% with your last para Bob. Perhaps all the players and officials should be told about this guy before kick-off.

A player-manager in Northern Ireland has won admirers for a remarkable act of sportsmanship that could cost his side their place in the Premiership.

Dungannon Swifts boss Darren Murphy deliberately missed a controversial penalty in a crucial match against Ballymena United that they went on to lose 4-2.

When the game was still goalless, Ballymena defender Chris Rodgers went down injured inside the penalty area, but play continued.

The referee eventually spotted the Rodgers lying motionless and shouted 'stop the play' while the ball was in the air.

Because had not blown his whistle, the players were obliged to put the ball out for a throw, but Ballymena's Gavin Taggart caught the ball instead, and the ref had no option but to award a penalty.

As tempers threatened to boil over, Murphy simply rolled the penalty slowly to the goalkeeper.

It was reminiscent of the famous amateur side Corinthian Casuals, who refused to score penalties because they deemed them incompatible with the spirit of the game.

Murphy's gesture has been widely praised, but the result leaves Dungannon deep in relegation trouble, 11th in the 12-team Northern Irish Premiership.

"I have no regrets over doing what I did," he said.

"I spoke to Rodney McAree on the sidelines after we were awarded the penalty and we agreed we should knock the ball back to the keeper.

"Ballymena's player was knocked out and was in trouble, so the game should have been stopped.

"It wouldn't have been right for us to score from the penalty.

"If the same situation arose on the final day of the season I would do exactly the same thing.

"Even if it meant Dungannon being relegated we would do the right thing again."

[BobHelm]

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I only really saw the first half of the game. At half time I went out & was confronted with the second half interspersed with scenes of a former Prime Minister of Thailand giving a live rendition of 'My Way' & 'Let it be' direct from Laos. That so disturbed me that I almost lost the will to live, let alone watch any more television..
After all if the owner of Pool deemed it unnecessary that he attended the game I really couldn't see why I should put in any effort either.

I thought that Everton were good value for their half time lead & was slightly disappointed that they then went on to lose the game. Rather ironic that the second worse signing of the football year scored the winner. If Chelsea actually progress to the final it will, no doubt, be a toss up as to if he, or the worst waste of money actually wins it for their side & so, no doubt, has fans believing that either was a good deal..
Feast of football it was not & while maybe exciting at times the errors rather outshone the skill on display..

[mathusalah80]

Everton 1 Liverpool 2. What an awful anti climax. A disappointing game in every department. Frankly, it unfolded as you would expect in an end of season game between two middle of the table teams, with nothing at stake. A goal to each side, both as a result of schoolboy defensive errors, served only to confirm the impression.
Only in the closing minutes, did some spark, and some brief moments of skill and entertainment, lighten the footballing gloom with the , almost 'on cue' entrance on stage of the irrepressible, sometimes irritating but never boring Bellamy.
It took him a whole thrity seconds to take possession of the ball, delicately(joking1) resist a challenge, remonstrate with both the linesman & referee regarding their incompetence, and then send into the goal an immaculately delivered corner kick, which shuld have been rewarded better by his Liverpool team mates. Refusing to be disheartened, and possibly seeing the linesman on the other side as a softer target for his personal brand of verbosity, Bellamy wandered over to the other side of the pitch. With only his second time on the ball Bellamy once again delivered the perfect cross into the Everton goalmouth and, with Carroll finally realizing the intended purpose of his presence on the pitch, Liverpool will once agai be returning to Wembley in three weks. On this showing Dalglish might do well to consider not only taking Bellamy along for the ride, but even giving him a start!

Spurs v Chelsea. Like you Bob, two/three weeks go, I considered Spurs favourites for the Cup, irrrespective of their final opponents. Even esterday, all things considered, I still considered they were in with a shout. But, after last night's team selection news, I think it is going to take a quite remarkable turn around in form, and the Gods to smile kindly upon them, to emerge as victors against Chelse.
Arising from a long injury list, the two central defenders for Spurs have been named as Nelson & Gallas. Both are intyo their thirties; Nelson has played hardly at all this season and is not exactly fleet of foot. Gallas HAS BEEN a top defender but now is clearly on the decline and his recent form has been unconvincing. There is also the suspicion he has not fully recovered from his recent injury and that his selection owes more to necessity than to it being on merit. Coupled with the worrying defensive frailties of Esso at left back in recent matches, I really see no hope of the Spurs defence holding out against the fire power of Chelsea. So, sadly for me, I forecast a Liverpool v Chelsea final.

[Zidane]

Agree with the comments about Bellamy......how Dalglish can leave him and Kuyt on the bench and play the likes of Carroll and Downing,I just dont know !
OK,Carroll won the game but he had two shocking misses in the second half before that,particularily that header he put wide just after the break.
I think Chelsea will have one eye on the Barcelona game on Wednesday,despite what Di Matteo says,and that will lead to the Spurs gaining a 3-2 win in an entertaining game.....unlike last nights affair.

[mathusalah80]

I wrote: ...I really see no hope of the Spurs defence holding out against the fire power of Chelsea....
But that was what I would call a somewhat excessive and unkind confirmation of what I had in mind. After all, the clubs are neighbours!

Zidine wrote:I think Chelsea will have one eye on the Barcelona game on Wednesday, despite what Di Matteo says, and that will lead to the Spurs gaining a 3-2 win in an entertaining game

Hey Zidine, two out of three, is not bad. It WAS an entertaining game, provided you are not a Spurs player or supporter; Spurs DIDN'T win, and YES, all the Chelsea players did play with one eye (each!) on the Barcelona game ---what other excuse could they possibly offer for only scoring, (officially that is!), five goals!!

On the subject of Liverpool ,Zidine, one of, but certainly not the only, The qualities both Bellamy & Kuyt bring is that instead of just three players, (Carragher, Suarez & Gerrard) playing their hearts out for ninety, that increases to five. So alsoas their respectiove records showing them capable of scoring that special goal. These are qualities which I think will be very much in demand against a resurging Chelsea. Never been much of an admirer of Downing, (just a good hardworking EPL player),but I still retain some belief that Carroll could yet mature into a striker of quality. Perhaps the big stage of a Cup Final might just provide the spark he needs?

[stattointhailand]

Mat, I have to agree with your last comment (re Andy C), and I think he ought to be included in the list of those playing "their hearts out for 90m".
Yes he is nieve, Yes he is young, Yes he misses lots of chances (many of which come after lung busting runs from his own penalty area where he had just defended a corner/free kick), but he still gets on the end of crosses, he still gets out wide to try to create an oppening, and he still makes himself available. On two seperate occations recently I watched in amazement as the ball was "hoofed" up field, AC got the flick on in front of the defender, only to see the lino's flag raised as the (supposedly) wonderful Suarez wandered back from his offside position.