Portsmouth meet Cardiff City at Wembley on Saturday in a final the FA Cup has been crying out for, even if the absence of familiar names may prove the competition’s lack of appeal for the big clubs. It is the first time since 1991 that none of the current ”big four” have contested the final.
Cardiff City booked a place in the FA Cup final for the first time in 81 years as Joe Ledley’s goal clinched a 1-0 semifinal win over Barnsley on Sunday. Cardiff-born Ledley’s first-half volley at Wembley was enough to set up a final clash against Portsmouth on May 17.
Cardiff City booked a place in the FA Cup final for the first time in 81 years as Joe Ledley’s goal clinched a 1-0 semifinal win over Barnsley on Sunday. Ledley’s first-half volley at Wembley was enough to set up a final clash against Portsmouth on May 17 and make Cardiff the first Championship club to reach English football’s domestic showpiece since Millwall in 2004.
Opportunities to reach an FA Cup final do not come around often, especially for the likes of Portsmouth, West Bromwich Albion, Cardiff City and Barnsley, who will be battling out this weekend’s semifinals at Wembley. It is the first time since 1908 that only one team from the top flight have reached the semifinals.
Cardiff extended the run of FA Cup upsets on Sunday with a 2-0 win over Middlesbrough, putting the Welsh team in the semifinals of the English competition for the first time since it won in 1927. Peter Whittingham and Roger Johnson scored at Riverside Stadium for Cardiff, the only team from outside England to have won the trophy.
The FA Cup will boast one Premier League side in the last four after Cardiff City continued a weekend of shocks by beating Middlesbrough 2-0 on Sunday. First-half goals from Peter Whittingham and Roger Johnson handed the Championship (second division) side a deserved win at the Riverside.