FA CUP: EFL DIRECTORS CALL OUT DECISION TO SCRAP REPLAYS

Multiple directors of EFL clubs have called out the decision to scrap FA Cup Replays.

After consultation with the Premier League, the FA has taken the decision to remove FA Cup Replays from the First Round Proper onwards, starting next season.

It has been met by backlash from many corners of English football: SkyBet League Two side Tranmere Rovers published an official club statement challenging the decision, and a number of EFL club directors took to social media to show their disgruntlement.

“Nonsense” FA Cup Replay decision:

Writing on Twitter/X, Peterborough United chairman Darragh MacAnthony called on every football fan outside of what he called the “big dogs” to write to FA Cup title sponsor Emirates over the decision.

MacAnthony branded the decision “nonsense”, calling for a rethink and consultation with other clubs that enter the competition. This comes as only the FA and Premier League were consulted on the eventual announcement.

“About the money and the power”:

Lincoln City chairman Clive Nates joined Imps head coach Michael Skubala, who called the decision “disappointing”, saying the FA and Premier League had “destroyed” many of the reasons he fell in love with English football.

On Twitter/X, South African Nates wrote: “It’s now only about the money and the power of those at the top of the pyramid.”

Lincoln have had particular success in FA Cup replays, including in the famous 2016/17 run that saw them become the first non-league side to reach the quarter-finals in over a century. A Nathan Arnold strike gave them a win at Ipswich Town in a replay during that run.

Lucrative replays no more:

Similarly to Peterborough’s MacAnthony, Leyton Orient director Marshall Taylor described the decision as “nonsense” on his Twitter/X account. He sarcastically took aim at some of the positive language used in the FA’s press release announcing the controversial decision.

Andy Holt, chairman of League Two outfit Accrington Stanley, took aim at Premier League chief executive Richard Masters in one of a number of tweets on his account. He claimed the country’s top tier was “buying the game” to suit their own needs over those of lower-league clubs.

Holt got to the crux of many complaints over the decision, pinning down the argument that scrapping replays could be robbing clubs in the lower reaches from a potentially lucrative source of income.

FA: “Agreement which will strength the Emirates FA Cup.”

In the announcement, the FA said: “The FA and the Premier League have reached a new agreement which will strengthen the Emirates FA Cup format with new and exclusive calendar windows.”

The removal of replays from the First Round Proper onwards came alongside a reshuffling of the competition’s schedule.

The decision to remove FA Cup replays has proved controversial, not only with fans, but with the important figures at the top of multiple clubs up and down the English Football League.

2024-04-18T18:16:47Z dg43tfdfdgfd