Match of the Weekend - Notts County 1 Manchester City 1
I've gone for this just ahead of the admirable Cup exploits of Crawley Town, Leyton Orient and Brighton as this game summed up what is so brilliant about the FA Cup. A lower league minnow up against the richest club in the world and it was so close to being the perfect FA Cup matchday; with one of the biggest upsets in recent history. City were never brilliant but Notts County were; hustling and harrying their more illustrious opponents at every opportunity with the County fans creating an epic atmosphere at Meadow Lane. And of course, the underdogs went ahead through Neal Bishop's header and the dream headlines were written; only for Edin Dzeko's well-worked equaliser to earn the Premier League side a replay that they barely deserved. But it was a passionate Cup tie; fought to the very last by a brave County side, mistakes and moments of pure luck in equal measure and the big boys had their feathers ruffled. And that's what the FA Cup's all about.
Hero Of The Weekend - Matt Tubbs
The man who has put a non-league side into the Fifth Round of the FA Cup is this week's hero, scoring the only goal to see Crawley Town triumph over Torquay United. It was a well-taken goal and saw the first non-league side through to the last 16 for the first time in 17 years. The former Bournemouth and Bolton Wanderers striker even had time to miss a penalty, but the forward now has 24 goals in 25 games this season. And the big prize for his actions; a trip to Old Trafford to face Manchester United.
Villain Of The Weekend - Michael Dawson
Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp was probably eyeing up the FA Cup as a competition his side could challenge for. And a fourth-round tie at Fulham could have been tricky, but Spurs were definitely favourites. But after just fourteen minutes, they were two-nil down and thanks to Michael Dawson, a man down after a desperate challenge. The Cottagers were then three-nil up after twenty-three minutes and cruising on their way onto eventually winning the game four-nil. But if it wasn't for a slow Spurs start and a stupid moment from Dawson, Harry could still be dreaming of a return to Wembley.
Pause For Thought - Guess The FA Cup Winner?
Manchester United and Arsenal struggled through against lower league sides, Manchester City and Chelsea both have replays to contend with and the likes of Liverpool, Tottenham and Blackburn are now out; the FA Cup has lived up to its reputation and it's hard to pick a winner at the moment. Of course, the nous of United and Chelsea puts them as favourites, but it would be great to see an underdog bursting through; if only to see the Big Two not face each other in another Wembley bore. I'm going to go for Manchester City; Dzeko, Tevez and Balotelli are a fine strikeforce and Mancini seems to be running an almost stable club at the moment. Plus it will be good to see City break the barrier and win a trophy, because it's only a matter of time. For now anyway, I'm going to enjoy the Fifth Round. Leyton Orient versus Arsenal, Manchester United versus Crawley Town? Quality.
And here's Hero of the Weekend Matt Tubbs in action for Crawley Town in their victory over Torquay.
NWR
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