North London showdown in FA Cup third round draw

By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88

A north London derby between Premier League leaders Arsenal and Andre Villas-Boas’ Tottenham is the standout fixture in the draw for the third round of the FA Cup with Budweiser.

The draw, conducted by ITV’s Matt Smith and drawn (balls pictured) by Teddy and Charlie Sheringham failed to live upto the excitement of the build-up, with many of the leading clubs from the top flight drawn at home.

However the match between the Gunners and the Lilywhites does mean of the elite clubs in the Premier League will be knocked out of the competition by mid-January. It will be the first north London FA Cup affair since the semi-finals in 2001 when Robert Pires scored the winner in a 2-1 victory for Arsenal.

There were four other all Premier League ties. Manchester United who haven’t won the trophy since 2004 will begin at home to Swansea City, whilst Welsh rivals Cardiff City travel to Newcastle United. Norwich City meet Fulham at Carrow Road and two of the sides in the current bottom six will do battle in the Midlands as West Brom entertain Crystal Palace.

A couple of heavyweight Premier League clubs have to go on the road to Championship outfits. 2011 winners Manchester City will make the short journey in the North West to Ewood Park to face Blackburn Rovers and Chelsea visit Derby County, who have strung together a run of five successive victories in the second tier under Steve McClaren.

Liverpool might have to deal with Oldham Athletic for the third consecutive campaign in round three if the Latics can prevail in a replay against Mansfield Town. If Mansfield win that, they will get another crack at the Reds too after their agonising and controversial loss in the third round back in January.

The three sides from the non-league guaranteed in the third round all got home ties, though none against Premier League outfits. Kidderminster Harriers who dispatched Newport County on Saturday will welcome League One high-flyers Peterborough United and the conquerors of Northampton Town, Grimsby Town will play Huddersfield Town. Macclesfield Town though might fancy their chances against manageress Sheffield Wednesday.

Last season’s winners Wigan Athletic tackle Milton Keynes Dons at the DW Stadium and Bristol City, who overcame Tamworth 2-1 on Sunday afternoon meet Watford.

All third round ties will be played on the weekend of Saturday, 4 January and Sunday, 5 January 2014.

THE FA CUP THIRD ROUND DRAW WITH BUDWEISER
Barnsley v Hartlepool United or Coventry City
Yeovil Town v Leyton Orient
Liverpool v Oldham Athletic or Mansfield Town
Nottingham Forest v West Ham United
Bristol City v Watford
Southend United v Millwall
Middlesbrough v Hull City
West Brom v Crystal Palace
Kidderminster Harriers v Peterborough United
Doncaster Rovers v Stevenage
Stoke City v Leicester City
Southampton v Burnley
Newcastle United v Cardiff City
Rochdale v Leeds United
Wigan Athletic v Milton Keynes Dons
Charlton Athletic v Wrexham or Oxford United
Manchester United v Swansea City
Port Vale v Plymouth Argyle
Norwich City v Fulham
Aston Villa v Sheffield United
Macclesfield Town v Sheffield Wednesday
Sunderland v Carlisle United
Bolton Wanderers v Blackpool
Blackburn Rovers v Manchester City
Everton v QPR
Brighton v Reading
Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur
Birmingham City v Bristol Rovers or Crawley Town
Grimsby Town v Huddersfield Town
Ipswich Town v Preston North End
Derby County v Chelsea
Bournemouth v Fleetwood Town or Burton Albion

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