FA Cup Throws Up Some Surprise Results

It was a busy day in the FA Cup fourth round today with some shock results on the cards. Reading beat Burnley whilst Chelsea saw off Preston in the early games but all eyes were on Accrington Stanley/Fulham for the 15:00 kickoff’s.

The minnows of Accrington Stanley played well against Fulham and despite conceding the first goal they fought back to equalize within four minutes. Things were looking good for Accrington but after Kempson saw red they began to slide and in the second half they conceded two goals, going on to lose the game 1-3.

Aston Villa beat fighting Brighton 3-2 and Bolton overcame a strong Sheffield Untied side to win 2-0 and give some merit to the Premiership sides. In the two ‘all Premiership’ games, struggling Portsmouth beat Sunderland 2-1 and in-form Birmingham won away to Everton.

Derby saw off Doncaster with a late goal and a 1-0 win whilst Cardiff also left things late, grabbing two last ditch goals to claim a 4-2 victory over Leicester. West Brom beat Newcastle United – who had Ryan Taylor sent off – 4-2 as well whilst Crystal Palace put on a good show for the Championship sides when they drew 2-2 away to Premiership Wolves.

One of the biggest shocks of the day came when League 1 side Southampton managed a 2-1 over Championship side Ipswich. Wigan also struggled away to Notts County and the Premiership team looked doomed when they were 2-0 down, but they fought back to 2-2; claiming a replay at the DW Stadium.