IT would be lovely to see Farnborough Town hammered by double figures at the hands of Arsenal on Saturday.

I have every sympathy for why the non-league side switched their FA Cup fourth round tie to Highbury and I would certainly have done the same had I run the club.

But I would have done so knowing I had played my part in the ongoing dismantling of everything that is good about the cup and that if we were humiliated on the pitch I could have no complaints.

Farnborough do not deserve the criticism they have had for denying the cup the kind of romantic tie - and the tiny possibility of the giant-killing of all time - that older generations of football fans have grown up relishing.

The extra £250,000 they will earn will keep them going for years and provide the financial foundation to build a brighter future.

In short, money talks a lot louder than the magic of the cup.

That's why Manchester United pulled out for a fistful of South American dollars a few years back and why Bolton Wanderers among others rest their players in cup games.

United were looking after their future when they snubbed the cup and they deserved the criticism they received. Bolton put the Premiership before the cup when they fielded below strength teams in both cups at Spurs last season and they cannot have any complaints about the good stuffings they got in return.

There are very many clubs who regard knockout tournaments as second rate competitions and they have destroyed the romance of the cup in the recent years. But you can't blame them for putting the financial security of their clubs before a decent cup run.

The problem is there is an obscene amount of money available for doing well in the Premiership while all that is on offer for doing well in the cup is excitement which comes a poor second in the finance-obsessed world of football.

Now the cup's standing is so low that even the likes of Farnborough are prepared to sell out.

I can understand why Farnborough have done it but the part of me that still retains a soft spot for the FA Cup hopes they get the drubbing they deserve on Saturday.