Scunthorpe v Everton - The Road to Wembley Starts Here!

After the highs of Wednesday and Everton's best performance of the season the strength of that apparent revivial will be tested at Glanford Park as the FA Cup gets going.

Everton's run to the FA Cup final in 2009 has only increased my longing for the Blues to become successful on a regular basis.

From the battling victory at Macclesfield, the dramatic last gasp win over Liverpool and joy and despair at Wembley it was a run to remember and one I would love to see us repeat.

The third round tie against struggling Championship side Scunthorpe is a classic 'David vs goliath' encounter. The media will be desperate for a big club to fall and for a lesser known club to be a 'giant killer' on what of the best days in the English football calendar.

It is all part of the magic of the FA Cup - as long as it doesn't happen to us that is!!

Losing to Shrewsbury in 2003 was bad enough and thankfully out record against lower league opposition has improved since then, though we still managed to lose at home to Oldham in 2008.

Despite our lowly league position our away record isn't that bad but our failure to convert chances is a long standing problem. However, freed from the shackles of 4-5-1 Everton produced more chances against Spurs than in any game this season. I really hope Moyes sticks with an unchanged side to give us the best chance of making on small step back towards Wembley way.

There are no new injury worries so an unchanged team is expected, with Phil Jagielka still out with a knee injury. Seamus Coleman, fresh from his match-winning performance against Spurs, will look to terrorise the right win again while Jermaine Beckford will be keen to score against one of his old clubs.

Match facts

The tie in context

• Scunthorpe are one of seven Championship clubs entertaining a Premier League club in the third round.

Gulf in class

• Everton are 32 rungs higher than Scunthorpe on the league ladder.

Head-to-head

• These clubs have only met twice, and Everton won on both occasions.

• The Merseysiders won the second round League Cup clash in September and October 1997, 6-0 on aggregate.

The clubs

SCUNTHORPE UNITED

Current form

• Lost seven of eight.


• Only won three home matches in all competitions this season.

• Lost their last six at Glanford Park, and not won in North Lincolnshire since prevailing 3-0 against Crystal Palace in the Championship on 28 August.

• Already lost to top Premier League opposition in a cup tie this season; 5-2, home to Manchester United in the third round of the Carling Cup on 22 September.

FA Cup form

• Qualified for the fourth round last season for the first time in six years.

• Never been beyond the fifth round.

• The last top-flight club they have knocked out was Sheffield Wednesday, in the fourth round in January 1970.

• Need to score twice to total 300 goals in FA Cup history.

EVERTON

Current form

• Won two of the last four

• Failed to win nine of the last 11

FA Cup form

• Losing finalists in the season before last was the Merseysiders' best performance since winning the cup for the fifth time in 1995.

• This is the first time in eight ties that Everton are playing at their opponents ground.

• Not eliminated by a lower division club since Oldham at this third round stage in January 2008.