Need to bring the FA Cup back to life?
Merge the English and Scottish FA Cups from the First Round Proper onwards.
Clubs would still have to qualify through their own domestic cup competitions first. Once they reach the First Round Proper, all the remaining English and Scottish teams go into one draw.
Imagine the away days and rivalries. It would instantly make both competitions feel more important and bigger.
Best part of Andy Burnham's Labour Leader speech ๐
"Britain took a series of wrong turns in the 1980s"
"Political power was centralised and economic power was privatised"
"The country surrendered control of the essentials: housing, water, energy, transport, and left people exposed to higher costs"
"That in turn led to the concentration of more wealth and power in the hands of fewer people and fewer places"
"Large parts of Britain were deindustrialised without the power to set new ambitions for themselves"
"Proud British towns now a shadow of what they once were, and high streets in decline so common up and down the country"
"Over four decades political and economic power drained away out of our communities, in every region of the UK"
"If local places don't control something as basic as a bus service, how can they connect people to opportunity"
"If the sell off of council homes leaves the country chasing rents in the private sector through the benefits system and paying for temporary accommodation for thousands of families"
"How then will we find the money to invest in prevention and improve people's lives?"
"The truth is, we can't"
"And if we don't have sufficient public control over the cost of the essentials, how can we have control over inflation, public spending and the rest of the economy?"
"The right use the phrase, take back control"
"But they are the ones who gave it away in the first place"
What is remarkable about this letter is not merely the resignation itself, but the extraordinary political miscalculation that underpins it. At a moment when the Labour Party possesses one of the strongest parliamentary mandates in modern British political history, there are those within its own ranks seemingly prepared to weaken the Government from within rather than recognise the scale of the challenges inherited after fourteen years of Conservative decline.
To suggest that the Prime Minister should now prepare an โorderly transitionโ barely into government is not an act of strategic wisdom. It is an act of impatience and political self indulgence. Governments are not rebuilt overnight, economies are not repaired by rhetoric, and public services shattered over a decade do not recover within months.
The contradictions within the letter are striking. It speaks of transformational programmes, of meaningful work undertaken in Government, of efforts to tackle hatred and division, yet then abruptly pivots into a demand that the very leadership overseeing those policies should effectively step aside. One cannot simultaneously claim to believe in collective responsibility whilst publicly detonating confidence in the administration one serves within.
Most damaging of all is the timing. At a period where the political right, Reform, hostile media networks, and increasingly aggressive populist movements are seeking to fracture progressive politics across Britain, internal grandstanding of this nature only serves their interests. The electorate does not reward parties that appear consumed by internal ego and permanent instability. History has shown this repeatedly.
The public delivered Labour a mandate to govern, not to descend into another era of factional warfare and theatrical resignations. The country requires seriousness, endurance, and discipline. Those who cannot uphold collective responsibility during difficult periods perhaps misunderstand entirely what government is supposed to demand of them.
Hammer Nail Head
Well Done @MrStephenHowson
A lot of United fans & rival fans donโt understand
Educate yourself guys if you donโt know already
GLAZERSOUT ๐ฐ
ALESSANDRO DEL PIERO: "After the match ended and we won the World Cup, I left my teammates to celebrate with the precious trophy and went to see my club friend, Trezeguet. There were signs of sadness on his face. I tried to remind him that he was the one who gave his country the European Cup in 2000, and that these things happen in football. I comforted him a little, and then I headed to the French team's locker room to find my old friend Zidane. We shared an indescribable friendship. I went to console him and wish him better luck, especially after his departure in that manner.
In the tunnel that leads to the French team's locker room, I found him alone, with the bitterness of defeat and the red card in his heart. He was surprised by my visit, and the first thing he said to me was: 'Wow, how did you leave all that noisy celebration and come here?'
I told him: 'Joy won't make me forget my friend, the one I played with He hugged me warmly, took off his shirt, and gave it to me with a personal autograph, while telling me in Italian: 'Thank you, my friend. I'm happy for you. You're the best l've ever played with, and you really deserve this World Cup championship.'"
Check out the FA Carling Premiership showcase for PES 99
Faces, Kits, Adboards, Referees, Stadiums, Scoreboards, Competitions, Database all edited so you can play as authentic an experience as possible in the 98/99 Season
Available in December