The FA Cup 3rd round is what makes a football fan get out of bed on a January morning. Every emotion running through their body; joy, sadness, elation, heartbreak. They dream of the wild celebrations come 4.45pm, and of the next round. Each round is closer to Wembley. Recent seasons have seen many an underdog. Crawley away at Manchester United, Havant & Waterlooville's trip to Anfield, and Chasetown's fairytale tie against Cardiff. So, yes, all of these ties ended in defeat for the underdogs, but this year's FA Cup has thrown up a few surprises.
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| Mike Jones battles for the ball |
My beloved Crawley Town may no longer be non-league but the FA Cup is still a competition forever implanted in the minds of the supporters. After the cup runs of 2010/11 and 2011/12, Reds' fans dreamed of another memorable adventure in the famous competiton. After victories against Metropolitan Police and Chelmsford City, the 3rd round descended on the Broadfield. The Reds drew Premier League basement side Reading at home and a sell out crowd saw a ruthless Reading side overcome the League One side. As the crowd were still piling in Nicky Adams' wonder strike hit the back of Federici's net after 14 seconds, straight from kick-off. The Bruce Winfield Stand erupted into total delirium and fans started to believe an upset was on the cards. Crawley had previously bowed out of a cup competition to top flight opposition on three occasions; Man Utd, Stoke and Swansea. Could it be fourth time lucky? Reds dominated the opening period, coming close to a second, but with their first notable chance of the game Reading scored through Adam Le Fondre's, or Alf as he is affectionately known, close range strike. The equaliser galvanised the Berkshire outfit and they began to dominate. Good defending, however, kept the Royals at bay. Eventually, Reading put paid to the pressure after 44 minutes and an almost identical goal was scored after Gareth McCleary crossed to Noel Hunt. The half time mood was subdued, yet there was still a buzz in the air and Crawley fans still believed. The second half started the way the first finished, fairly even. On 49 minutes a controversial penalty was handed to Reading after a challenge on Noel Hunt by Joe Walsh. 'Alf' stepped up to make it 3-1 to the away side, and all hope of a Premier League scalp had vanished. Nevertheless, the Reds battled on with a late spell of chances to make the scoreline more respectable. The official crowd was given 5880, a new record for the Broadfield, surpassing the previous record of 5050 v Portsmouth, and despite the defeat, they saw a good game. The 1955 Reading fans in attendance were sent home happy and will be looking forward to the 4th round draw. It wasn't to be for the Sussex side, and the FA Cup dream is over for another year. It wasn't quite the 5th round, but we all had fun, right?
So, what tricks has the FA Cup played this year? Luton Town, Macclesfield Town, and Hastings United, all sides who dreamt of a cup upset. Luton faced Wolves, Macclesfield faced Championship leaders Cardiff, and Hastings travelled up to the North East to play Middlesbrough, and all three fancied themselves to make history. With Hastings previously beating Harrogate and Bishops Stortford in previous rounds, they faced league opposition for the first time. 1100 Arrows' supporters saw the Sussex side lose 4-1, but scorer Bradley Goldberg has a memory to treasure forever. Luton and Macclesfield will now have a battle for biggest shock of the round, with both overcoming their Championship opposition 1-0 and 2-1 respectively. Alex Lawless sent the Bedfordshire side into round four infront of a sold out Kenilworth Road, and two late goals from former Hatter Matthew Barnes-Homer dumped out Cardiff. The FA Cup certainly hasn't lost it's magic.
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