ENGLISH FA CUP/Leeds United v Arsenal: Clubs have always been condemned to put their ambitions in the care of thoughtless young men.

In 1886 the Blackburn Rovers side froze their feet while watching the Boat Race on a chilly Saturday morning, bolted down some food and then left themselves with a panicky rush to be at The Oval in time for kick-off in the FA Cup final.

They only drew and so needed a replay, in Derby, to beat West Brom. The team may have had a telling-off but Blackburn received a silver shield from the FA for winning the competition for a third consecutive year. Footballers' problems are never so quaint these days but Arsenal are aiming for kinship with those Victorian sportsmen.

After a gap of 118 years Arsene Wenger's team could repeat the achievement of Blackburn (and, in the 1870s, Wanderers) by lifting the tournament for a third year in a row.

The worth of the FA Cup is supposed to be so debased that such an exploit is in danger of being treated as a coincidence rather than a triumph.

The facts, however, refute the argument that the competition is becoming a mere consolation prize for clubs lacking the means to contend for the Premiership and the Champions League.

For the past eight seasons the trophy has gone only to Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United. In an era when they are supposed to be obsessed with more lucrative competitions the tight grip of the most highly regarded clubs in England has squeezed romance out of the FA Cup more efficiently than in any previous period.

Perhaps they cannot help themselves after amassing formidable squads who will prevail if they reach even normal standards. In addition, sides continue to fight for the FA Cup with a passion that cannot be explained by economics.

Yesterday Wenger was soon recalling that Arsenal could already have completed a treble of FA Cups. It was two late pieces of effortlessly perfect finishing by Michael Owen that trumped the superiority of Wenger's team in 2001.

"The fans respond strongly to the FA Cup and the biggest disappointment for them since I've been here was in losing the final to Liverpool," the Arsenal manager said.

His own hierarchy of hurt is not identical to that of the fans but he is in broad sympathy with them.

"For me it's a competition associated with my childhood," the Frenchman said, thinking of the formative years in Alsace. "The final was one of the few games you could watch on TV then. The final was always prestigious.

"I love the fact that you have a competition where you must be up for it on the day. In France the FA Cup is still quite big. We have a lot of French players here and they also rate the FA Cup highly as well."

The FA Cup has become a multi-purpose event for Arsenal. There have been jubilant days, but Wenger describes last season's final as "a relief". Although he had still to cope with the memory of the Premiership title slipping into the hands of Manchester United, the FA Cup win converted desolation into a more tolerable "anticlimax".

Priorities tend to get subjugated to the emotional imperatives of the moment.

"The championship and the Champions League are more important," said Wenger, "but you don't go into a season thinking that. You win what you can and go as far as you can."

At the first mention of matching Blackburn's feats, Wenger almost interrupted in his keenness to react. "Let's go for it. Come on," he said.

Guardian Service