Pathetic!

And I don't just mean the result (failing to beat Bury after two goes at it is, make no mistake, a total embarrassment) - I mean the whole club's attitude to the FA Cup: manager, players and fans. Not the 800-odd who went last night: but an alarming number of posters on here.

Below, someone wrote words to the effect of, "I love a Cup run, but would much prefer three points on Saturday". I'm not getting at him specifically here: it's clearly a mindset many people share. But for God's sake: it's the FA Cup! And it's not like we've become spoiled by success in recent years: we haven't had a Cup run in either competition since 1995/6! And that, I believe, is a disgrace.

"Oh, but it was only Southampton..." Eh? You mean we only had a decent chance of reaching the fifth round, in a year when many big clubs are already out? "Staying up is our priority..." Sure: but this argument is employed every sodding season! If this time next year, we're 8th or 9th, then it'll be "we can't afford injuries, suspensions or a fixture backlog: the play-offs are our only target". Alternatively, if we're 14th or 15th, it'll be "we haven't even secured our Championship status yet - and we can't let the FA Cup get in the way of that". Or if we're in the top 2, or, a few years from now, trying to stay up in the Prem. "Concentrate on the league, concentrate on the league..."

Bollocks. Football cannot just be about money: take away our hopes and dreams, and nothing is left at all. We had a real opportunity to further build momentum, get into the 5th round, and maybe even surprise a Prem club at CR if we got there - on top of continuing to improve and move away from trouble. But instead, we played weakened sides in both ties, and got knocked out by a side 19th in the old Fourth Division.

Don't get me wrong: what Roeder has achieved so far has been amazing, with our ability to grind out results despite often not playing well extremely un-Norwich like. We all know what he inherited, and how much work there is ahead. But I am so, so pissed off with the way this competition is treated nowadays. We all complain about how predictable football is now - yet don't give a toss when the chance of glory comes. We all despair of the Big Four's dominance - but no wonder, given practically every other club seems to raise the white flag when this tournament comes around.

And no, we wouldn't have won it - in which case, why bother entering at all? I bet Millwall thought they couldn't win it in 2004, or Wycombe in 2001 - yet the Lions ended up in the final (something we've never achieved in our entire history); the Chairboys in the semis. And their fans had an absolute ball in the process - because this competition still means something, and the joke is on those who just don't seem to get it.

Posted By: thebigfeller on January 16th 2008 at 01:36:12

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