Mark Langdon: One FA Cup tradition that needs to remain

There is a saying that goes something along the lines of tradition and heritage are dead people's baggage, so stop carrying it and move forward. And there are numerous examples of history getting in the way of progress.

I appear to be one of the few people who was more than happy to roll with the killing off of FA Cup replays and this season's competition has not been poorer for the removal of additional matches which would often take place in half-empty stadiums with half-arsed efforts from both teams.

National League outfit Tamworth were, literally, poorer after missing out on a replay at Tottenham after a gallant goalless draw in 90 minutes way back in the third round when Spurs playing like a pub team was still a bit of a novelty, but who knows if the Lambs would have been silenced earlier if the rules had been different. 

In the second round they took advantage of the new one-off FA Cup format by beating League One Burton on penalties. If there had been replays maybe Tamworth would have lost and we'd never have got to know that their zesty forward Beck-Ray Enoru had a day job as a sales assistant at Zara.

Given TV habits are changing and the propensity for short-form clips over longer form, wall-to-wall coverage of players in the team hotel and then following them on the coach to Wembley before the FA Cup final has to be a thing of the past. However, the decision to move this showpiece fixture from the end of the season is one we should fight against.

This year's FA Cup final has been dumped between Premier League fixtures on the Friday and Sunday and then there's still another full round of matches to be played next weekend. There won't even be too much time to celebrate for the winners as Crystal Palace and Manchester City are back out in Premier League action on Tuesday. Should City win, it's 5-6 each of two as to whether party boy Jack Grealish will have been home before heading straight to the Etihad for the midweek match.

Thankfully for Palace they are safely tucked away in mid-table, but just imagine if Tuesday's clash with Wolves was a relegation six-pointer. Oliver Glasner might have had some uncomfortable team selection decisions to make, while for City it could have been a title decider against Bournemouth that would have overshadowed a day that should be seen as one of the highlights on the domestic calendar. 

Palace's two previous FA Cup finals still live long in the memory. Their 3-3 draw with Manchester United in 1990 was an absolute classic and Alan Pardew's dad dance is alongside Sir Geoff Hurst's World Cup final hat-trick in 1966 as Wembley's most iconic moments.

Both of those Palace finals ended in losses but it might just be third-time lucky for the Eagles, who have a lively chance of causing an upset and might need to strike now as they fighting off richer clubs for many of their star performers. 

Highly-rated sporting director Dougie Freedman has left the club and, presumably tempted by the challenge of the project rather than extra bunce, is set to be lured to Saudi Arabia's second division, while Glasner is bet365's 6-4 favourite to be Tottenham's manager at the start of next season.

Eberechi Eze, Marc Guehi and Adam Wharton are all attracting serious attention and Palace's progress might annoyingly be checked at a time when they look ready to make decent strides forward.  

But that can wait for tomorrow - all that matters is this opportunity to go down in FA Cup folklore.

The FA Cup final is a special day in the English football calendar. It's built on history and tradition and should not be messed with.  

Read more from Mark Langdon:

Mark Langdon: The secret sauce behind Napoli's Scudetto charge 

Mark Langdon: No magic from Graham Potter at West Ham 

Mark Langdon: Cup runs can't compensate for league losses 

Mark Langdon: How does Mohamed Salah's new deal impact next season's title betting? 

The numbers behind Illan Meslier's Leeds axe 

"Future of football" Andoni Iraola is a manager in demand 

Paris St-Germain are finally winning hearts 

The numbers behind Burnley's remarkable defence 

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