Semi Final

[roversWASmylife]

If anyone has a copy of the L.E.T from last night.

On the back page in the sports section, turn into where Jason Whalley does his piece of writing.

On that page there in the bottom left corner, there's a bit where it's advertising rooms for the weekend of the semi's for around £85 if I remember, with a contact number.

[thenodrog]

After saying that I'll be there (I've calmed down a bit since this afternoon ) but I'll still be angry if it's a noon kick-off.

At least we'll get home in time for a pint or two in celebration.

[Hughesy]

If anyone has a copy of the L.E.T from last night.

On the back page in the sports section, turn into where Jason Whalley does his piece of writing.

On that page there in the bottom left corner, there's a bit where it's advertising rooms for the weekend of the semi's for around £85 if I remember, with a contact number.

yeah i saw that last night. Its for the travel down and also the accomodation. Not a bad deal.

[MarkB]

Has anybody any idea when they are going to announce whether the game is Saturday or Sunday?

I need to book accomodation so the sooner I know the better.

Cheers Chaps

[Tony Diamond Inc]

Gav, I admire your dedication to Rovers you are a true supporter, and there are many more like you ( I like to put myself in that bracket). However it is still possible to kick out at the FA for this outrageous two fingered salute to the fans... again.

It is not an issue of how much you support your team. It is about the footballing authorities who want to squeeze as much as possible out of the long suffering fans, hence the decline in attendances.

The whole thing stinks and I believe the FA have lost even more credibility over this.

And by the way, yes I will be there!

[stuwilky]

Has anybody any idea when they are going to announce whether the game is Saturday or Sunday?

I need to book accomodation so the sooner I know the better.

Cheers Chaps

There is a meetng on Thursday apparently to decide. So we will either know late thursday or, more likely, Friday. Accomodation is filling fast though. Partly because a lot of people are hoplding rooms for two or three nights until we find out.

[Gav]

You're continual slagging of the "new" fans does nothing to promote the support at Rovers. And you'll be the first to post on here when we get low crowds. Why are you so bitter?

You'll struggle to find me 'slagging off' our new supporters in recent times Scotty apart from the above.

My views on the subject are well documented and i can't be bothered going in to it again.

Pre and Post

[Duff's Minder]

from what I know we are 95% likely to be playing on the Saturday. What isn't certain is whether it will be lunch-time or early evening kick off. My brother is involved in the decision and I will post on here as soon as he tells me what the decision is. However I've tried booking hotels already and most of the good places are full - had to book a room about 30 minutes away near Newport.

[SAS]

no doubt in the coming week, various sports event agencies will be offering packages like they did last time

[stuwilky]

from what I know we are 95% likely to be playing on the Saturday. What isn't certain is whether it will be lunch-time or early evening kick off. My brother is involved in the decision and I will post on here as soon as he tells me what the decision is. However I've tried booking hotels already and most of the good places are full - had to book a room about 30 minutes away near Newport.

Im out at Newport as well. Got a feeling some rooms will be unbooked when they confirm the dates and times though.

Im waiting on a friend who works at the Mill Stad to come back to me, apparently they have some kind of meeting today, in advance of the clubs meeting tomorrow.

[CAPT KAYOS]

from what I know we are 95% likely to be playing on the Saturday. What isn't certain is whether it will be lunch-time or early evening kick off. My brother is involved in the decision and I will post on here as soon as he tells me what the decision is. However I've tried booking hotels already and most of the good places are full - had to book a room about 30 minutes away near Newport.

Im out at Newport as well.

Duff/Stu

Cardifff is very easily accessible from Newport and is on the trainline and trains run regular - going in is not a problem - just the getting back after if anything like when we played Spurs.

The nightmare scenario is if both games are on the Saturday - what do they expect - MU and Newcastle fans to wait whilst ourselves and Arsenal fans go into Cardiff first? .... yeah right!

GAV - Feel your comments are a bit out of hand here - and as what other have said- it might be a one off but we have as much right to complain as anybody else and there is no better time to do it IMO.

[stuwilky]

Cheap hotel alert in Bridgend!!!

Both games wont be on the same day, I dont think even the Welsh are that stupid.

[bob]

Sorry if it's been mentioned before but Hotels in Cardiff are like rocking horse S**t at the moment, got my hotels booked Sunday night but I was lucky someone had just cancelled and so I booked for both nights, I will see the day the game is on before deciding if to stay two nights or one and suspect lots of others have done the same so it may not be a bad idea to wait until then sure some fans will cancel and swap days around when the actual days are announced. You can cancel most hotels a day before so it’s worth booking even if you’re not sure on your arrangements, also keep calling places back Travel Inns etc are always getting cancellations. Newport has some vacancies left and is about a £20 cab ride away from Cardiff centre, also most of the out of town places near the M4 are on the train line or about a £10 for a cab into the centre. I have found some good hotel web sites so if anyone is struggling I will pass them on if PM me. Happy hunting!!

[Paul]

also keep calling places back Travel Inns etc are always getting cancellations.

Anyone wanting to use Travelinn or Travelodge these links will tell you all local availability. Make an enquiry for the date and then ask for alternatives:

http://www.premiertravelinn.com/pti/home.do

http://www.travelodge.co.uk/

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

For the Worthy Cup match I stopped off at a nice hotel in Ross-On-Wye - even met some nice Rovers fans who were staying in the same hotel.

Try looking further afield - anywhere from Ross-On-Wye southwards makes the onward journey more palatable.

[Kennys Magic Hat]

Andy Gray

"Arsenal will come across another team who play 4-5-1 after disposing of Bolton in the quarter-finals but although it's a similar task against Blackburn, it's a much easier one. They don't have to go to Ewood Park and Blackburn and nowhere near as good as Bolton.

I would think that the Gunners will feel extremely confident going into that game - unless they play very, very badly, they will book a place in the FA Cup final once again."

What a load of @#/?, we play much better football than Bolton and we have a stronger defence and if Arsenal turn up at Cardiff with that attitude we will wipe the floor with them.

What he's basically saying in this article is that the 'big three' are allowed to do what they want but if small 'crap' teams like us want to do the same then its spoiling the game. We play good football, we outplayed Chelsea and Everton and we play one up front at the moment because we don't have two strikers in form!

Bring Arsenal on, the more crap that comes out like this, the more our players are going to be fired up and the more I'm confident of dumping the Gooners out of the Cup. COME ON YOU BLUES!!

[Paul]

Lots of people are asking me how I think we'll do, mostly Mancs, and I'm responding I feel we can beat Arsenal in the semi. If they do start to feel confident this can only help our cause.

[CAPT KAYOS]

Lots of people are asking me how I think we'll do, mostly Mancs, and I'm responding I feel we can beat Arsenal in the semi. If they do start to feel confident this can only help our cause.

Same could be said about us also Paul

Would appear the players feel confident and Hughes as come out with a 'ready for anything' sort of statement - our ticket is still in the tombola so we have a chance.

Most Rovers fans appear to feel confident we can beat Arsenal and before the draw they where who I wanted as I felt it was our best chance of getting tot he final - don't know why but now I'm not so sure.

Anyway, we are there and regardless of what day/time/planet we play on we still have as good a chance as Arsenal in 90mins or more.

[Paul]

Agree Capt K but I feel our lads are more likely to know their place. Rovers will accept the under-dog status, be confident they have a chance but know they have to fight like hell, etc. whereas the Arsenal boys could get lulled into the "just turn up on the day" attitude. the more the media pump up Arsenal and have a down on us the better.

[Flopsy]

I remember another team from London doing that against us a few seasons ago

[Anti Euro Smiths Fan]

Well I also got an e-mail from the FA - and surprise surprise it was exactly the same - word for word as Flopsy's and Captain Kayos's. So much for the personal response...

The key phrase in the e-mail is:

"It's an unavoidable fact that as the major funding body in football we have a responsibility to the long term future of the game, this future needs funding."

A tacit admission from the FA that they've chosen Cardiff for their own selfish reasons - to earn more revenue for themselves.

Jonathan Arana, the Senior Customer Relations Manager at the FA, who replied to the e-mail appears to be suggesting that the fans themselves have been asking for semi-finals to be held at Cardiff.

Mr Arana might be well suited to a job as a Government spin doctor. He could continue spinning the line that WMD had always been there in Iraq...

From the 2005-06 season, Wembley will host semi-finals on a permanent basis - thus further ruining the tradition of the FA Cup.

The FA will no doubt point to the fact that in the early 1990's, Wembley also hosted semi-finals - and will try to spin the line that this is what supporters actually want.

I'm sure if the FA actually conducted a thorough poll of supporters, a majority would not be in favour of permanent Wembley semi-finals.

We could end up with more ridiculous situations in future where for example, Newcastle and Middlesbrough play each other in one semi at Wembley, while two other northern teams are forced to also travel down to Wembley for the other semi.

Due to the FA's arrogance and greed, it's the fans that suffer. And in order to help pay for the £757 million cost of the new Wembley, the seats need selling at top dollar to help pay the debt. Hence a large section of the stadium will be set aside for the prawn sandwich brigade.

I understand that corporate seats will account for over 18,000 of the 90,000 seat capacity.

Corporate boxes are available on three, five or seven-year contracts with prices ranging from £60,000 to a frightening £270,000 a year.

Football still the working man's game?

B*llox. It's been ruined by greed.

[joey_big_nose]

If they come out all guns blazing that will suit us. Reid, Pedersen and Thompson can hurt teams on the break if they have a bit of space. If Emertonand Stead fnd some form tht will help.

What is important is who is coming back for Arsenal. If Gilberto and Campbell play we will have a much harder task.

Realistically we will be massive underdogs but I would certainly say that outside of the top three we will offer as much of a challenge as anyone at the moment. We offer little space for Arsenal to play their football through.

The run against Arsenal, Liverpool and Man Utd in the league will give us, and the players, an idea of how we will do.

[streakyb]

......

"It's an unavoidable fact that as the major funding body in football we have a responsibility to the long term future of the game, this future needs funding."

A tacit admission from the FA that they've chosen Cardiff for their own selfish reasons - to earn more revenue for themselves

.........

B*llox. It's been ruined by greed.

I agree that the semis should not be at Cardiff but one point has to be made, thats where the money is going.

With the premiership the money goes back to the clubs, the better you do in it, the more you get. This is greed and will make the big club better and richer to the long term detriment of football.

There is a difference with the FA cup.

The FA is a not for profit organisation. All money they make goes back into the sport at all levels. The more money they make, the more they can put into the sport. Therefore The Fa making more money for themselves actually mean making more money for fooball in this country.

The main issue is that The FA fuc$ed up over Wembley and suddenly realised they needed to increase revenue so that they can pay their debts and still put money into grass roots.

Wembely was not a football decision, it was political one. I am sure the current government made it clear they would not be happy if the national stadium was not in London. Whereas most fans would have preffered it more central and I doubt the clubs really cared where it was.

afterthought

The FA also have to pay that that useless overpaid pillock of an England manager who makes the pi$$ about with the FA Cup and loves playing stupid pointless friendlies. Does anyone really give a damn about England.

Edited March 16, 2005 by streakyb

[Ricky]

For the Worthy Cup match I stopped off at a nice hotel in Ross-On-Wye - even met some nice Rovers fans who were staying in the same hotel.

Try looking further afield - anywhere from Ross-On-Wye southwards makes the onward journey more palatable.

I keep singing the praises of Hereford. Its on the train route down, would be nice to see the city (yes it is a city!!) full of blue and white.

[John Howarth]

It's the tickets for the match that I'm worried about. How much am I looking at do you guys reckon?

My information is that the tickets will be in a 3-tier price band of £25, £35 or £45