Steve Coppell and the FA Cup

[weybridgewanderer]

teh reason they don't have weeks scheduled is because so few of them make it beyond january

that would not change much if the 3rd round was still played in january as suggested above and they still knock each other out in rounds 1 and 2 in november

[Wycombe Royal]

teh reason they don't have weeks scheduled is because so few of them make it beyond january

that would not change much if the 3rd round was still played in january as suggested above and they still knock each other out in rounds 1 and 2 in november

So beacuse it fits in with the Premiership clubs it's OK. It is the sort of crazy idea that Sepp Blatter would love.

So where would you fit in these extra 4 or 5 matches? More evening games when attendances are quite often lower? The fixture congestion is bad enough already without cramming the lower league games in to an even shorter timeframe.

But hey, we're a big Premiership club now so we don't have to think about the minnows down the leagues.

[weybridgewanderer]

the point I am trying to make is you wouldn't need to get any extra games squeezed in for them because so few of them are left in the tournament by that stage anyway

if only 3 lower league teams are left in the tournament by the 5th game how does that equate to 4 or 5 extra games needed scheduled in the league?

[Wycombe Royal]

the point I am trying to make is you wouldn't need to get any extra games squeezed in for them because so few of them are left in the tournament by that stage anyway

if only 3 lower league teams are left in the tournament by the 5th game how does that equate to 4 or 5 extra games needed scheduled in the league?

The initial suggestion is to finish the season by the 2nd week of April. There are 4 or 5 matches for each team scheduled in the lower leagues to be played after that time.

If you don't need to fit them in somewhere else what would you plan to do with them?

[weybridgewanderer]

then don't finish league 1 and league 2 early

they never make it that far so they can still play their league commitments

[Platypuss]

then don't finish league 1 and league 2 early

they never make it that far so they can still play their league commitments

Wouldn't Championship teams also be affected if R4 is put back to April?

[Wycombe Royal]

then don't finish league 1 and league 2 early

they never make it that far so they can still play their league commitments

So no leauge 1 or league 2 clubs reach the fourth round?

(Basically you just didn't read the previous posts properly and have attempted to cover it up )

[Great Knolly]

The initial suggestion is to finish the season by the 2nd week of April. There are 4 or 5 matches for each team scheduled in the lower leagues to be played after that time.

...an initial suggestion in the depths of an obscure Fans Forum. Not written in stone. Some tinkering could be done to fit in a competition like this if the will was there. You might decide to just have the last 3 rounds as an after season competition. Anything to allow the top clubs to give it more commitment.

The motivation for this idea is to give some credibilty back to the FA Cup by giving all clubs fewer excuses to not give their best. I think it would create a lot of excitement. Among other things there'd be an FA Cup draw every few days !

[weybridgewanderer]

then don't finish league 1 and league 2 early

they never make it that far so they can still play their league commitments

So no leauge 1 or league 2 clubs reach the fourth round?

(Basically you just didn't read the previous posts properly and have attempted to cover it up )

the few that did qualify could re arrange a couple of midweek games as they have to do at present as scheduled fixtures need to be freed up for FA Cup games

[Platypuss]

What about the Championship teams that don't have set-aside slots for the FA Cup after R4?

[Wycombe Royal]

then don't finish league 1 and league 2 early

they never make it that far so they can still play their league commitments

So no leauge 1 or league 2 clubs reach the fourth round?

(Basically you just didn't read the previous posts properly and have attempted to cover it up )

the few that did qualify could re arrange a couple of midweek games as they have to do at present as scheduled fixtures need to be freed up for FA Cup games

So now you are suggesting that some teams who are still in the cup could finsih their seasons early whilst the rest who have been knocked out can leave their league programme as it is.

Are you sure you aren't Sepp Blatter?

[weybridgewanderer]

what do the teams that qualify beyong R4 do at the moment? Not play their FA cup game coz they have a league game? Or reschedule their league game for a mid week

Why can the same approach not be taken here?

[Wycombe Royal]

what do the teams that qualify beyong R4 do at the moment? Not play their FA cup game coz they have a league game? Or reschedule their league game for a mid week

Why can the same approach not be taken here?

We are talking about a totally different approach whereby the season would finish early - that seems to be a point you have missed. Therefore ALL the matches would have to be played earlier in order to leave the rest of April free for the cup competition.

[weybridgewanderer]

then don't finish league 1 and league 2 early

they never make it that far so they can still play their league commitments

So no leauge 1 or league 2 clubs reach the fourth round?

(Basically you just didn't read the previous posts properly and have attempted to cover it up )

the few that did qualify could re arrange a couple of midweek games as they have to do at present as scheduled fixtures need to be freed up for FA Cup games

So now you are suggesting that some teams who are still in the cup could finsih their seasons early whilst the rest who have been knocked out can leave their league programme as it is.

Are you sure you aren't Sepp Blatter?

well that all depends if their last league fixture is before or after the "semi final" of this style FA Cup

don't just poo poo the idea because its not how its done today

I think its an interesting idea worth exploring

[Wycombe Royal]

well that all depends if their last league fixture is before or after the "semi final" of this style FA Cup

Based on the idea proposed earlier in this topic it would be before as the cup would only have been played up to the 3rd round.

Why don't you just go back and read through this topic so that you understand where I am coming from.

It is a non starter and will NEVER happen in any format even closely related to what has been suggested.

Next there will be a suggestion of an end of season play-off between the top 8 to determine the league champions. Oh...........

[Great Knolly]

You wouldn't need much or any of April. This season the FA Cup is on 19th May. The competition could be played...


Sat/Sun 28th Apr - 4th round
Sat/Sun 5th May - last 16
Wed --- 9th May - qtr finals
Sun ---13th May - semis
Sat --- 19th May - Final

Make it a 4 round comp and it can be May only.

Obviously there are loads of holes that can be picked in the idea, but I still
reckon it's doable if the will was there.

[Platypuss]

You wouldn't need much or any of April. This season the FA Cup is on 19th May. The competition could be played...


Sat/Sun 28th Apr - 4th round
Sat/Sun 5th May - last 16
Wed --- 9th May - qtr finals
Sun ---13th May - semis
Sat --- 19th May - Final

Make it a 4 round comp and it can be May only.

Obviously there are loads of holes that can be picked in the idea, but I still
reckon it's doable if the will was there.

When do the playoffs get played?

[Wycombe Royal]

You wouldn't need much or any of April. This season the FA Cup is on 19th May. The competition could be played...


Sat/Sun 28th Apr - 4th round
Sat/Sun 5th May - last 16
Wed --- 9th May - qtr finals
Sun ---13th May - semis
Sat --- 19th May - Final

Make it a 4 round comp and it can be May only.

Obviously there are loads of holes that can be picked in the idea, but I still
reckon it's doable if the will was there.

When do the playoffs get played?

But only the Premiership is taken into consideration so they don't matter.

[readingbedding]

You wouldn't need much or any of April. This season the FA Cup is on 19th May. The competition could be played...


Sat/Sun 28th Apr - 4th round
Sat/Sun 5th May - last 16
Wed --- 9th May - qtr finals
Sun ---13th May - semis
Sat --- 19th May - Final

Make it a 4 round comp and it can be May only.

Obviously there are loads of holes that can be picked in the idea, but I still
reckon it's doable if the will was there.

When do the playoffs get played?

But only the Premiership is taken into consideration so they don't matter.

You could condense the play-offs to be played during the half times of the semi-final and final of the FA Cup.

[Stranded]

You wouldn't need much or any of April. This season the FA Cup is on 19th May. The competition could be played...


Sat/Sun 28th Apr - 4th round
Sat/Sun 5th May - last 16
Wed --- 9th May - qtr finals
Sun ---13th May - semis
Sat --- 19th May - Final

Make it a 4 round comp and it can be May only.

Obviously there are loads of holes that can be picked in the idea, but I still
reckon it's doable if the will was there.

When do the playoffs get played?

But only the Premiership is taken into consideration so they don't matter.

What about replays or would you scrap those and have one off games finished on the day?