Brighton secure worst FA Cup draw in living memory

The magic of the FA Cup was certainly not alive and well during the third round draw with Brighton and Hove Albion being sent to Premier League rivals Plucky Little Bournemouth.

The trip to the Vitality Stadium will take place over the weekend of Saturday 5th January, just two weeks after the Albion make the trip along the south coast in the Premier League.

In a round that could have provided Brighton with a chance to go their own way to Fleetwood Town, make a first ever trip to the Hive to face Barnet or face the beautifully named Solihull Moors, a game against a fellow top flight side who we never ever beat makes it just about the worst draw in living memory. Or since Crystal Palace/Middlesbrough/Hull/Reading (delete as appropriate).

Neither Chris Hughton or Eddie Howe will view the cup as being particularly important, with Premier League survival the be-all and end-all for this season. As a result, both managers will field reserve sides which could result in a similarly dull game to last season’s Carabao Cup second round tie which Plucky Little Bournemouth won 1-0 through a Josh King goal in extra time.

That clash was notable only for the fact that the new loyalty points system resulted in 1,300 tickets being sold to Albion supporters wanting to pick up 15 loyalty points, but only 652 fans bothering to turn up.

With this one having all the appeal of having a rusty nail drilled through one of your testicles, it seems probable that a low turn out of genuine supporters will again be on the cards.

Those who do bother to make the trip will be able to cast their eye over Jurgen Locadia presuming he hasn’t got his desired move to Germany or Spain by that point. There may also be an early indicator as to who will don the gloves in Maty Ryan’s absence with the Australia number one off playing for the Socceroos in the Asian Cup throughout January.

Perhaps the best news about the draw though is that it involves no train ticket bookings and it almost certainly won’t be anything other than a Saturday 3pm kick off, unless one of the television companies hits the glue before deciding who to pick or gets lured into the hype of a “South Coast Derby” despite the fact the two towns are nearly 100 miles apart.

Brighton and Bournemouth have met twice in the FA Cup before. The most recent meeting was a 4-2 defeat at Dean Court in 1993 which was remarkable for the fact that Andy Kennedy scored twice and that nobody drowned in the weather. There maybe hope for Locadia yet.

Prior to that, Barry Lloyd’s Albion defeated the Cherries 2-0 in the third round in January 1988 thanks to goals from Doug Rougvie and Gary Nelson which set up a mouthwatering fourth round tie with Arsenal at the Goldstone.