The Magic Is Back and The Big Boys Are Heading Out

The First Round of the FA Cup began this weekend and already the smaller clubs are causing embarrassments and playing their hearts out, while the so called 'big boys' are going out.

The FA Cup always adds something different. It's got history, passion, superstition and it knocks all league standings out of the window.

At this stage in the competition, there are the non-league clubs that are lucky enough to qualify along with the teams from Leagues One and Two who are the scalps for the time being. As a fan of non-league side, Oxford United I love this stage of the cup. League 1 sides quiver with anxiety and the nerves quivver through their bones at the site of conceding a goal.

So, the stage was set for Saturday 7th November 2009, Oxford United from the Blue Square Premier versus Yeovil Town of League One. In front of a crowd of just over 6,000 Oxford matched Yeovil throughout with their hard work, tenacity and ability.

As always the Kassam Stadium crowd was behind Oxford and they found the breakthorugh. Oxford full-back, Damien Batt won the ball back, found his captain Adam Murray who wriggled away from a challenge, played the ball over the top finding Matt Green who flicked it on for Jack Midson to lob the ball over the stranded goalkeeper.

Ecstasy filled the stadium, my fist was raised high to the sky and after a great deal of last ditch defending Oxford were through to the second round. This is what the cup is all about.

Today's game, Northwich Victoria versus Charlton Athletic was just the same. Northwich,a side who havn't been in the football league in the last two centuries, taking on a side who were in the Premier League at the start of this century, was a football fans dream.

Northwich took the game by the scruff of the neck, got in the faces of Charlton, frustrated them and got their just deserves in the eighteith minute thanks to an eighteen year old student called Wayne Riley who will probably remember this day for the rest of his life.

This is what the FA Cup is all about. We all know that one of the big Premier League clubs will win it, but this cup isn't about them.

For me, it's about the players, the history, the fans, the upsets and the incredible feeling of watching your team play in such a prestigious cup competition.