When FA Cup third-round ties could be settled with three replays in a week

The FA Cup has scrapped another set of replays this season. Thirty years ago, clubs kept playing until they found a winner

By Steven Pye for That 1980s Sports Blog

It was a good day to bury bad news. As all and sundry debated José Mourinho’s time at Manchester United, the FA announced that there will be no FA Cup fifth-round replays from this season onwards. I’m not sure there is any more space for the organising body to hammer another nail into the coffin of the famous old competition. Bit by bit, all of the elements that made the FA Cup what is was have been chipped away.

Surely it is only a matter of time before replays are scrapped completely, robbing us of some of the drama of years gone by. Imagine no Villa Park replay in 1999 and that’s coming from an Arsenal fan.

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