Leave The FA Cup Alone!

And still it goes on. The desire to ruin the greatest club cup competition anywhere in football. Turn into something that does not really matter and has no kudos! All down to the Premier League small-minded, narrow-minded and introverted clubs.

There were nearly 750 football clubs that entered the FA Cup for this season. Of that number all but 20 were outside of the Premier League but it is the will of the 20 and not the approximately 730 that counts. Football really has gone to the dogs since the Premier League was formed. Why so many? Simply because of the magic of the FA Cup. The ability to take on the big boys. Attend the big grounds, earn some much needed revenue. The wonderful feeling of watching the third round draw and knowing that a minnow, the smallest and lowest placed team left in the competition could draw the biggest and best and compete with the on an even footing.

So what am I ranting about, getting me hair off about? The totally unnecessary reforms that are being suggested so that the poor old multi-millionaire footballers that play in the Premier League don't get too tired by having to play too many games. It is sickening! Do they not realise that the FA Cup has been in existence since 1871-72? That is 145 years. The Premier League since just 1992. Do they not realise they should be giving it the respect it deserves?

We have heard of proposals relating to the seeding of teams, making the competition a mid-week competition with no replays when a draw occurs. This along with other suggestions about lower league teams playing at home when drawn against higher league teams. Why? What is the point?

I will tell you what I believe the point to be. Simply because Premier League teams do not want to play two games a week. The poor over-paid "stars" get tired. If they have the honour, at least it used to be an honour, of being selected for the English national team, those few English players that actually play in the English Premier League, they may be too tired to play properly in the summertime international competitions because of the previous winter's exertions. Bless them! How do they cope? There is no other reason. Sadly, it would appear that the Football Association have now fallen for this nonsense and are willing to change the rules of their cup competition.

So what about the rag-bag 730 teams that do not compete in the Premier league? Well they really don't matter. The fact that a good cup run brings in hugely needed finance is irrelevant. The fact that for a lower league team to get a tie at a Premiership ground, either via the draw or by earning a replay, can have huge financial benefits along with exposure to the wider footballing audience doesn't matter. In essence, football outside of the Premier League no longer matters to either the Premier League itself or the Football Association.

The Premier League has done little or nothing for football in this country since it's inception and with these changes will help to force non-Premiership football into further decline. Decline you may say with some surprise? Absolutely, decline. It has been declining in importance since the day the Premier League was formed.

I fear for football in this country and the ordinary football supporter should too. Unless of course they feel that the heart of football is he Premier League!

3 Up 3 Down From The Football League?

There has been much talk about the present situation regarding relegation from the fourth tier of the footballing pyramid, The Football League Division 2 and promotion into The Football League from the 5th tier of English football The Vanarama National League.

At the moment only two teams are relegated from League Division Two allowing two teams to be promoted from The National League. This does not compare favourably with the promotion and relegation numbers above this level:

• 3 teams relegated from The Premier League.
• 3 teams promoted from The Championship and 3 relegated.
• 3 teams promoted from League Division 1 with 4 relegated.
• 4 teams promoted from League Division 2 with 2 relegated.

The feeling is that this is an unfair situation and that there is a case for 3 teams to be relegated from Division 2 and 3 teams promoted from The National League. This may well be true but who is making the case for a change? Is the feeling of unfairness enough? How strong is the feeling among The National League clubs that there needs to be change? Has there been any sort of concerted effort from The National League itself, it's member clubs or the fans of those clubs to try and achieve a change? Has there been a case made along the lines of the closeness in standard between Division 2 and the National League? Is that actually the case? In my view, with very few exceptions, there are very few clubs that would be able to hold their own in the Football League. As far as I can see there has been no real effort to achieve change. So, it would appear, much talk but little action? Or is that unfair?

If there was to be real concerted action, what would be the chances of succeeding in achieving the change? I would suggest very little. There is no representation from The National League on the Football League and it is the clubs that make up the Football League that would make any decision. Why on earth would any club in the Football League want to make it more likely that they could be relegated out of the Football League? What case could be put to them that would make them want to vote in that way? It took many years, probably decades, to move away from the old "Seeking re-election" balloting system to automatic promotion and relegation for one team only. Nearly another two decades to move to a two up and two down system. So it is not looking good on that score.

In addition to the natural resistance to any change we should keep in mind that the "parachute payment" received by clubs falling through the trapdoor into "non-league football" has just been hugely increased by The Football League. Financially, those clubs would be big-hitters in the world of non-league football and we all know just how money talks in football! 

So it would seem to me that The Football League clubs, far from being of a mind to make it more likely that any of them would be relegated, have tried to ensure that any club that is unfortunate enough to be relegated have a much better chance of gaining promotion back into the Football League! Does that look like a group that is willing to listen to change? 

There may be much talk amongst the non-league clubs that the present system is unfair and needs changing but in my view there is a million miles to travel to change the system and there appears very little wish amongst the league clubs to see it changed. 

Those clubs now languishing in the National League are just going to have to get on with it and any club with pretensions of achieving promotion need to do so quickly because as hard as it is now to make it to the promised land of League football it is only going to get harder!

Good luck all.