Welsh Premier Fans Give Us Their Views
Cup Comeback?
By Chris O'Brien
April 21 2004
Cardiff City's proposed return to the Welsh Cup has prompted a lot of discussion from supporters across the principality. Fans of Welsh Premier clubs have given us their moves on the possible comeback of the 'exile' clubs to the 126-year-old competition.
Since media reports claiming that the FAW were undergoing talks with chairman of the 6 Welsh-based English pyramid clubs about re-joining the Welsh Cup were released, fans from all corners of Wales have been giving their opinions on whether or not they should be allowed in, and whether European qualification should be allowed should one either Cardiff City, Swansea City, Wrexham, Newport County, Merthyr Tydfil or Colwyn Bay win the competition.
The general consensus from Cardiff fans is that re-joining the Welsh Cup would be a great move for the club, particularly with the obvious carrot of European qualification for the winners. The FAW Premier Cup has never captured the imagination of Bluebird supporters like the old Welsh Cup did, and competitive games against rivals such as Swansea City is a mouth-watering prospect!
However, the very City-biased local media in South Wales fails to give any mention to how this will affect the League of Wales clubs and their supporters. Bluebird to the Bone was lucky enough to catch-up with several supporters of the Welsh Premier clubs and the league in general to ask there thoughts on the proposals. The views make interesting reading, with views divided particularly on European qualification. The following comments are from true supporters of Wales' national league, and are not linked to the editor. If you would like to respond to them, please discuss them on the messageboard.
Don't want then
back. They made a choice. So did we.
I saw both legs of Cardiff getting tonked by Standard Liege (8-3 on aggregate),
and watched Swansea's 8-0 stuffing by Monaco on the box. I remember well the
'exiles' in Europe. They were rubbish, with only a couple of exceptional years.
Are they not allowed to qualify via England? Who said? And who's going to stop
them if they do? Perhaps they should prove they can do it and then come back and
complain about 'restraint of trade'."
My Little Yellow Dragon
Barry Town fan
I can understand why Cardiff City, Swansea City and Wrexham play in the English pyramid for obvious reasons. I would love to see the three back in the Welsh Cup and I wouldn't begrudge you a European Spot if you win.
As for Merthyr and
Newport, if you are so proud to be Welsh what the hell are you doing playing
your football in England? And from what I hear SKY will give every Club in the
Welsh Premier League £100,000 each to upgrade our grounds we will also get a
half an hour slot on a every Friday night. Next thing we will hear is you lot
will want to come back. Well sod you I say! You just stick to your Mickey Mouse
leagues what ever they are. While we get all the TV Coverage National Radio
Coverage World Soccer Magazine play in the Champions League and Uefa Cups. Your
welcome come to and play in the Welsh Cup but entry into Europe if you win NO
WAY.
Dragon1
How
can the exiles bang-on about being proud to be Welsh and then play in England?
That sheep-testicle eater at Cardiff doesn't know what he is on about. Cardiff
are in a no win situation as far as Europe is concerned because even if they won
the English premiership they wouldn't be allowed to enter the champions league
because they are affiliated to the Welsh FA and could not take an English FA
European place.
Us Welsh Premier League teams are proud to be Welsh and pulled out of the
English pyramid to prove it!
Newtonian
Newtown fan
Cardiff against
Caersws at Ninian Park? What's that?? A gift to Cardiff to get into Europe with
money that Welsh Premier teams could well do with - not the la-di-dah
millionaires of Cardiff City. Listen, they get more than enough there, they're
doing alright. We make f*ck all. Losing out to a lucrative European spot to an
English based team is a non-starter!
So what if a Welsh Premier League team will get a cut of the attendance fee.
Whoop-di-do! We need to live by our own means, and compete in Europe. Not say to
the big English clubs 'please can we come second in the Welsh Cup Final so we
get a cut of the gate'!!
Can you imagine a derby-day Swansea v Cardiff Welsh Cup Final? What on earth
would be the point of that? How on earth would that benefit Welsh clubs?
Dwight Fry
Barry Town fan
It all revolves
around the facts of the situation, and there are 2 conflicting accounts above.
Fact 1 - Cardiff, Wrexham etc. cannot be barred from Europe through both the
Welsh and English routes as it is obviously contrary to natural justice.
Fact 2 - Are they not allowed to represent England in the UEFA if they - could
happen - won the English League Cup? Yes, says one person because they are in an
English league. No, says the other because they are affiliated to the Welsh F.A.
not the English F.A.
Finding out which is the case is crucial to the whole debate. There seems to be
a lot of confusion, and confirmation of either point should be given by Uefa. If
they could represent England, then no argument because they could not represent
Wales and so there's no point in their competing. If however, they are not
allowed to represent England, then they have a very strong case for inclusion in
the Welsh Cup.
Would we want them ? Personally, yes - I would want the full-time 3 (and can
sympathise with Newport, possibly Merthyr and would have to put up with O.A.P
Colwyn Bay) What use would a Swansea v. Cardiff final be to WP clubs?
It means that Welsh Premier clubs would have played them in the 3 previous
rounds, would have gained financially and in experience and develop to a
position where they could - like Rhyl - beat them.
If they won the cup, were able to represent Wales in the UEFA, and did slightly
better than the WP clubs in the cup then we might in subsequent years all get a
bye 'til the Second Qualifying round. More money and not having to play in July.
Ioio
Well I want Cardiff
et al back in the Welsh Cup, but no way can they qualify for Europe
through it. If the final was say Swansea v Cardiff, then third place in the
League of Wales should get Uefa cup and 4th Intertoto like this season. Anyway
this used to happen if a team such as Hereford or Shrewsbury got to the final, I
would be more than happy for all these teams to be involved.
The welsh cup would improve and increase in sponsorship/ prize money. I believe
its what the BBC should have done instead of creating the woeful invitation FAW
Premier rubbish. It would increase the profile of the Welsh Cup, which has been
going since 1877 and improve attendances.
Daniel
Bangor City fan