It is eight years since we played them in any competition, that also in the FA Cup 3rd round when Adrian Heath’s team went down 1-0 at Anfield to a Stan Collymore goal. Two years earlier they had been visitors to the Turf for a 4th round tie that ended goalless before Jimmy Mullen came close to losing his house in a 3-0 replay defeat.
This will be the tenth occasion we have met in the FA Cup. We won through in the first three, including the 1914 final and the 1947 semi-final but
Currently seventh in the Premiership they drew 1-1 at Aston Villa yesterday with Harry Kewell grabbing his first goal of the season to open the scoring with Villa equalising just before half time.
The tie will be played on Saturday 8th January 2005 although that could be moved should it attract the attentions of either the BBC or Sky for live coverage. The fee is reduced now for the earlier rounds but would still fetch us an extra £150,000 should the match be selected.
The full draw is:
Arsenal v
Manchester United v
Plymouth Argyle v Everton
Sunderland v
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Millwall
Yeading v Newcastle United
Tottenham Hotspur v
Reading v
Hartlepool United v Boston United
Franchise v Peterborough United
Oldham Athletic v KKMC
Charlton Athletic v
West Ham United v
Sheffield United v Aston Villa
Preston North End v West Bromwich Albion
Rotherham United v
Burnley v
Bournemouth v
Queens Park Rangers v