Scott Russell is a Hereford supporter who is currently Head of Academy Goalkeeping at Lincoln City. In his slightly younger days he played for both the youth and reserve teams at Edgar Street.
Scott feels passionately about the FA Cup and is very against the idea of scrapping replays as recently suggested.
He has sent the following letter to the FA.
When will you stop
pandering to the top flight clubs wishes & start actually
considering lower/non league teams. This is one of the most famous cup
completions in the world, why cheapen it for a top flight team when they
have squads of 40+ players to choose from for a tie, if they don't
field a strong team then they are the fools. I know amateur squads of 18
will all be fighting for a starting 11 spot with the dream to play in
the FA Cup & do it for free too! You keep talking about grass routes
football & how important it is... A good FA Cup run & replays
can make a teams season & pay off debts, or simply give the tea lady
a little £20 thank you for her hard work volunteering & making sure
the 20 regular fans & both teams & officials get a hot/cold
drink & sandwiches before, during & after a game.
You only have
to look at Exeter, Cambridge, Stevenage, Chasetown & Didcot Town in
recent seasons to see the money from FA Cup ties have helped them
financially. For many teams to get a replay its a big pay day... So as
you get into your brand new Bentley & drive to your 5 bedroom house
in a nice & expensive part of London, think about Gary the boiler
engineer, as now he's finished his cup match he has to go to work
straight after the game and leaves in his old but trusted Vauxhall
Corsa, before going home to his 2 bedroom rented apartment. But he's
delighted as he's been given a £20 winning bonus cause it was an FA Cup
game, the fish & chips are on him!
It's the case yet again of the rich teams getting richer & the
poor teams going bust! In your FA's Development Plan there's a section
called 'grow the game' you might want to change it to 'kill the game'
I love the professional game & I also love the
semi-professional & amateur level game, so FA please remember
football is a sport first & foremost & a business second,
without lower league teams, without the fans football in the country is
nothing, you therefore might as well ship all the top flight fixtures
over to America, China or wherever in a franchise as it won't be a sport
supported or followed by 'real fans' instead it will be for the 'global
plastic fans' who will happily wear their 50/50 scarves to matches.
I remember as a kid I watched Hereford Utd hold Martin O'Neill's
Leicester City to a draw at Edgar Street only to then take them to extra
time in the replay at Filbert Street before Izzet finally made it 2-1
on the night to the home team, but it was a quality midweek match &
the lads played out of their skin to match a full strength Premier team
in 2 matches. It also helped Graham Turner Manager/Chairman pay off
debts for the club! GREAT MEMORIES!
Yes change is sometimes good for sport but this idea is, saying it
politely, STUPID! Whoever came up with this proposal needs their head
tested.
Regards
Someone who loves football but is beginning to fall out of love with the FA.