Tony Cascarino's football lesson No 11:How to win the FA Cup

My advice to Cardiff City and Portsmouth’s players: if you want detailed memories of the FA Cup Final, buy the DVD. Too many players get caught up in the occasion and blow it. Take the atmosphere in at the final whistle when you’ve won. It’s so easy to let your mind wander.

I’ve known players who constantly look around even during the match, soaking up the atmosphere – “have you seen that banner?” But you can get caught up in it and lose your head – Paul Gascoigne’s reckless tackle in the 1991 Final that saw him hospitalised, for example.

You need to be focused and concentrated, to treat it like any other game. Having experienced losing the 1994 FA Cup Final 4-0 to Manchester United as a Chelsea player, trust me, it is horrible. You don’t want to leave the pitch with regrets.

You only seem to see players with cramp in big games like the Final, and that’s because of all the nervous energy, which really takes it out of you. So maximise your energy levels. Pre-match, save everything for the big game. Just tick over in the last couple of training sessions so you don’t risk injury. Take it easy; if you’re not fit by this stage of the season you never will be. Don’t worry about tactics – that’s the manager’s job.

The build-up can become a media circus so you need to be sensible and not do too much press. Don’t get drained - talk all you like when you’re a winner.

Most teams tend to go away for a few days beforehand but I don’t think it’s a great idea. They’re better off sticking to their normal routine. Players get bored out of their minds if they’re cooped up in a hotel. Why meddle with a routine that’s worked in each of the previous rounds?

Silly, irrelevant things can distract and drain players. Get all the tickets for family and friends sorted out early, for example. You don’t want to be taking phone calls on Saturday morning from relatives asking you where you’ve left their tickets, or which hotel they’re in.

Cardiff and Portsmouth know what Wembley’s like, having played there in the semi-finals. Even so, it can feel different in the Final. It’s worth taking a walk around the pitch and taking it all in but you don’t need to stay out there for too long, especially if the weather's warm and sunny. It takes mental strength, but block out all the distractions if you don’t want to go home under a cloud.