What a week so far. Has anyone been to London and back in a day recently for work? Has anyone done Paddington to Angel on the tube in twenty mins due to a mad rush only to find the meeting you were meant to go too hadn’t started till ten thirty instead of ten? Has anyone gone to get a sandwich on a train which is just leaving Paddington, you’re looking forward to a relaxing training journey after a stressful day only to get back to your seat 45 minutes later when the train stops at Reading due to the huge numbers of people on the train?
That, Ladies and Gents, was my Tuesday. I was contemplating, around four o’clock time when I left my meeting, going to the Crystal Palace match but I don’t think I would have managed to get to Croydon, then get to Paddington then back to Wales in a few hours when I had been up before six earlier in the day. Bit of a stretch really.
I caught up with Tuesday’s action the following morning and saw that my potential game finished 2-1 to Palace at Selhurst Park thanks to goals from Christian Benteke who cancelled out a James Henry strike for the visitors. This wasn’t the story of the night though which took us from Lincoln to Wimbledon for FA Cup drama. Not on the train obviously, that would make my London football visit idea a breeze compared to that journey!
First to Kingmeadow and the tie between Wimbledon and Sutton United which ended 0-0 in the first game. It was a fantastic game which saw the Dons take the lead before a strong second half performance from the non-league side ensured the score ended in a 3-1 victory for the away side. I’m only guessing that Sutton are a non-league side as I really don’t know what league they play in to be honest!
Sutton United’s previous big upset in the FA Cup was against Coventry City over 30 years, this was just after Coventry had actually won the cup the previous year. Coventry fans reading this now are depressed enough at the clubs demise without being reminded of the fact that they were so good years ago, they were labelled a ‘Giant’ in a FA Cup tie.
Furthermore, the guy who scored for Wimbledon has the same name as me although I feel my Elliot is the more correct spelling of the name in comparison to his which is Elliott. If you had a name like mine, you would understand what I’m on about. People called Jonathan, David and Ethan are few I could think off for so many name that are available.
The other big shock from the replayed games on Tuesday came at Sincil Bank who paid tribute to Graham Taylor. Taylor managed Lincoln in the 1970’s. Arnold scored the goal for the National League Side to knock out the Championship team. I would love to have been a fly in the wall when Mick McCarthy came into the dressing room. I bet the walls were shaking let alone the players!
I thought about inserting a joke in this section about a few Ipswich players having gone missing since the end of the game. However, judging by the fans forum after the game, a couple of players have gone missing way before this game to warrant that joke being relevant. No jokes in the other games on Tuesday as pretty much everyone else who expected to go through did. You can’t really call Blackpool beating Barnsley a ‘Giant’ killing, let’s be fair!
In the other Cup ties played on Wednesday evening, the inevitable happened in the replayed third round games which saw the Plymouth dream die thanks to Lucas Leiva’s goal for Liverpool. What a terrible way to go out of the Cup, losing to his first goal in what must be a decade. Newcastle eased past Birmingham while Norwich City fans will be doing the “Arsenal fan” and overreacting to the team’s defeat on every radio phone in and online forum after the defeat against Southampton.
Nevertheless, it’s always good to see the cup still alive. And other Elliot’s, or should I say Elliott’s, are doing well no matter what way their name is spelt. A quick mention to remind you all to follow Tales on Facebook and Twitter for a different view on the beautiful game. I am on both platforms so a follow on both of these would be great so I can interact with, er, all my readers.
Have a good end to the week folks and remember, if you’re on a train and want a sandwich just wait. A seat is worth the pain.