Portsmouth - FA Cup winners 2008

You've just got to love the title, haven't you? I could have gone for something more witty, more descriptive, but to be honest, I won't tire of seeing this for an entire summer.

However, there's just one thing that clouds my elation (besides the hangover). I've been happier.

I'll lay it on the line here: I wrote the first two paragraphs to look like I was being controversial so some people might feel outraged. I'm sorry, it was mean but also a little, tiny bit true.

To understand what I mean, I need people to understand where I'm coming from. I view this fantastic success holistically, from the 1-0 win against Ipswich all the way to the 1-0 win against Cardiff. And while watching Sol go up to lift the FA Cup and know I was there, something was missing. There was an elation missing that I'd already felt.

And that came against Manchester United. From that moment on (with Barnsley striking a huge blow to Chelsea later that day) the Cup was ours to lose. Pompey are obviously better than West Bromwich Albion, Cardiff and Barnsley (no offence intended to those teams, but if we weren't a little better equipped after five years in the Premier League, I would be very worried.)

We have a better manager at the helm, and players more used to playing in the bigger games. So therefore, and this was an opinion roundly appreciated and elevated by the rabid media who seem hell bent on increasing the pressure to the maximum whenever they can, Pompey could only lose the Cup, not win it.

There was a time when winning the FA Cup stood proudly alongside winning the League. It might still not be far behind, but you couldn't say Pompey were one of the best teams in the country as winners. You can say they did great, and the players did what was necessary in the later stages which showed the ability there, but winning more trophies than Arsenal, Liverpool and maybe Chelsea does not make us better.

So this is the point I am trying to make: the Manchester United win was the day we won the Cup. We defeated the best in the land, and earned our right to play on.

As such, the feeling on the way to Wembley both times was one of apprehension and tension, not excitement. Knowing that we were supposed to beat both West Brom and Cardiff made the thought of losing far worse than the possibility of lifting the Cup.

Were we playing a Chelsea or an Arsenal in the final, then we could have afforded the chance to dream about winning it, safe in the knowledge it was unlikely. But to HAVE to win it, else suffer the ridicule of the rest of the footballing nation for the next 50 years or so would have been beyond horrible.

But the main thing is that elation was there. Other fans would have been on Pompey's collective back had we only beaten lower league opposition on the way to the final. You can only play what's in front of you, but beating Manchester United, at their home no less, proved we deserved our place, and that's why that final whistle proved to be the grandest moment.

Both West Brom and Cardiff offered very little in attack in the two matches at the home of football. From a neutral perspective, once Pompey scored it looked very unlikely we were going to get pegged back, especially in the final 20 minutes of the...well...final.

But all this is not to take anything away from the amazing efforts of the players. If we were gifted the FA Cup, then why did Everton play pretty much a youth reserves team against Oldham? Why did Arsenal not put out a full strength squad against Manchester United in the FA Cup when they did against Tottenham in the League Cup?

We were in the final on merit. Yes, we rode our luck at times, but any team that lifts the Cup has had that at some point on the campaign. Our rear-guard was mostly flawless and sublime, and in many ways the reason we won it. Had we not lost our best striker and brought in a cup-tied one, we probably would have been more dangerous in the attack.

But we did it, we are the FA Cup winners, essentially beating 730 other teams to be here. We have broken the Big Four monopoly, so for them to not win it is as significant as us winning it.

Next season could be even better. The extra revenue aside, our title now means players who were wondering whether Pompey is the right option see they are joining a squad of trophy winners.

I could elucidate further, I could quote from Keats or Huxley to make my point. I could use every semantic or piece of lexical trickery to get my point across. But I know there will be a number of you out there who will disagree, and I welcome your comments. Football is nothing without debate, and I know there are 101 reasons why Pompey shouldn't have won the Cup. But at least this match was better than last year's final, and at least we played slightly better football than Greece when they won Euro 2004!

Thanks to everyone who has read my witterings this year, and thanks to those who have commented, both positive and negative. Play Up Pompey!!

Gareth Beavis
www.pompey-fans.com

Comments

In response to Dave "plastic midtable premiership club"

So its fine for the top 3 to spend hundreds of millions on players to win trophys? But not for a unfashionable team like Portsmouth. Have a look at how much Fulham spent last summer, Newcastle, Aston Villa. What have they won?

Bored the teams into submission, don't think so. Did not play our best football, try asking a Pompey fan if they care. Im sure you already know the answer to that.

Pompey are actually a very entertaining team to watch Premier league record for most goals in a game anyone?

Just a bitter top four fan

[Jamie]

How can you say that portsmouth DESERVED to go on? On any other day porstmouth would have been dead and buried at manchester united. But thats not what the F.A cup is about - did Barnsley deserve to beat Chelsea and Liverpool? probably not but they did it. Portsmouth won like anyother team out side the top four wins it - with passion, luck and often tactical genius. Portsmouth had all those things so re worthy winners of the F.A cup.

[Fred Flintstone]

In fairness Portsmouth hadn't even taken a point from Old Trafford for decades.

Add to that the fact that Pompey couldn't play Defoe and had sold Benjani then you could forgive the fans for thinking that they were dead in the water.

All in all it adds to the achievement.

[David]

I reckon it was the referee who won it for Pompey at Old Trafford when Distin chopped Ronaldo down and got away with no penalty.

[rob]

lets be honest here,you spent by most peoples standards obscene amounts(35million plus)on your team and your only tactic was to pack your back line and batter 5 lower league sides into submission each of which played you off the park in football terms.I thought portsmouth were shocking and a true indictment of how souless and artificial these mid-table plasticship clubs have become.

[Adam]

Old Trafford is a little further up the road Will.

Although I did make the journey up the M6 for that glorious day!!!

[Will Fred]

Yeah well done - one point though, shame you failed to sell your allocation for Old Trafford but somehow sold all your final tickets.