FA Cup Semi Finals at neutral grounds - yay or nay?
- Thread starter Gimpymoo
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That's how I always remember it, I think playing at Wembley takes the special out of it for the two final teams.
The other thing I'd like to see them do is pick a ground halfway between the two clubs.
I also dislike how teams 3 to 6 can then fight it out to see who is promoted - team 3 deserves it.
The other thing I'd like to see them do is pick a ground halfway between the two clubs.
I also dislike how teams 3 to 6 can then fight it out to see who is promoted - team 3 deserves it.
I though they were normally played at a neutral ground anyway, have the rules changed recently?
If Wembley isn't considered neutral for London teams, the issue is that there aren't many big grounds outside London, you've got like OT but you don't really want MU, MC or Liverpool playing there.
Villa Park made sense back in the day because crowds were smaller and relative to the time it had a big capacity, something like 43k and most of the big grounds today like Arsenal, West Ham, Spurs, Man United, Man City etc hadn't built/expanded their new grounds yet.
If Wembley isn't considered neutral for London teams, the issue is that there aren't many big grounds outside London, you've got like OT but you don't really want MU, MC or Liverpool playing there.
Villa Park made sense back in the day because crowds were smaller and relative to the time it had a big capacity, something like 43k and most of the big grounds today like Arsenal, West Ham, Spurs, Man United, Man City etc hadn't built/expanded their new grounds yet.
**** hole? Green eyed monster there.
Didn’t make it to Leeds for the 1980 FA cup semi final replay against Everton, when Frank Lampard senior scored the winner, but had an easy ride to Wembley for the final, 78 bus from Tower Bridge Rd to Aldgate, Metropolitan Line Aldgate to Wembley Park, short walk to the stadium to see Brooking beat Arsenal.
London looked alright to me, but then it always does
When the new Wembley opened the FA changed it so the semis were also played there for the extra income to pay off the stadium faster.
London looked alright to me, but then it always does
As a "Northerner" in the Midlands, I had to say that
I like visiting London when I get the chance, always goto East Ham for some Pie, Mash and Liquor.
Does bug me though when you talk to someone NOT from the UK and you tell them where you live and they go "Oh yeah, near London" - LOL
Everywhere is a suburb of London apparently.
As a "Northerner" in the Midlands, I had to say that
I like visiting London when I get the chance, always goto East Ham for some Pie, Mash and Liquor.
Does bug me though when you talk to someone NOT from the UK and you tell them where you live and they go "Oh yeah, near London" - LOL
Everywhere is a suburb of London apparently.
Forget about it, as a Northerner, Midlander or whatever you sound okay to me.
I’m not a pie and mash connoisseur, I didn’t mind the mash and could suffer the pies but I didn’t like the look of that green liquor stuff.
My wife, (from Peckham), loves pie and mash, and eventually got me to try it by making her own, liquor that is.
East Ham has been a bit of a “There be dragons” area for some 30 or 40 years now, and according to my wife the best pies and mash to be had are at Manzes, Tower Bridge Road, Bermondsey, failing that Arments, Westmoreland Road, Walworth, just off Walworth Road, or Manzes, (again), Peckham High Street, Peckham.
Manzes Peckham gets the dubious accolade of being the place where my Millwall loving in-laws meet before walking down to the Old Kent Road on their way to The Den when Millwall are at home.
They no doubt sit in Manzes putting me down for supporting their arch enemy, West Ham.
Yes, the irony wasn’t lost on me, although to be fair I haven’t been there since the 70s/80s, when I was running oil tankers into Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station, and sometimes stayed in Nottingham for a drink.
I thought it started after the time that one of the Semi's was Spurs v Arsenal and they were supposed to go to a ground up north, they both complained and the FA were like OK, you can play at wembley, and from then on all the other teams started bitching saying it's not fair we want to play our semi's at Wembley too. ??????
Having lived in both extensively, they are on the whole, entirely correct.
Calling any major city a **** hole is a bit of a non statement though. Any city will have run down/older/poorer areas. I know it's bantz n' all but London is not a **** hole everywhere is it. Nottingham has parts that are rough AF too. People call my home town a **** hole because they refer to the town centre which is in major need of refurbishment and straight out of the 70s/80s.
Aye. On the whole though, Nottingham is quite a pretty and easy going place to live and avoiding the rough AF places is **** ton easier than it is in most (and I mean most of) London. I lived all over it for about 10 years. No matter where you are, you're always right down the road from a proper ****hole. There's just too many people and not enough air.
Each to his own, I’ve been all over U.K. and London is the only place that I’d live.
It’s simple really, love it or leave it.