"Anything Could Happen"

4 January 2016

60s

Capturing the romance of the Cup.

One of the most difficult tasks in advertising is the reselling of an annual event like the FA Cup. The message is quite simple... the business end of the competition is about to get under way and it's time to enjoy all the drama and excitement of the Third Round. But how do you say that without saying the exact same thing you said last year?

The rather brave answer to such a question is provided by this wistful film from Tony Barry. It opens with a father and daughter watching as the teams are pulled from the proverbial hat. Drawn against Liverpool, the youngster feels the club they support hasn't much of a chance but dad leans earnestly forward to remind him that this is the Cup and "anything could happen", which he does with a rhyming couplet that veers gently towards song.

In the other vignettes, the same thing happens - and it slowly adds towards a quiet intensity reflecting the vain hopes of supporters hoping to see their team rise above current form to secure an unlikely win.

For those who remember Hereford unceremoniously dumping Newcastle out of the Third Round in the 1970s; Sutton United's amazing win against Coventry (when the latter were holders); plus any number of other extraordinary feats of giant-killing, this is a poignant reminder of the drama so often generated by the world's oldest football competition.

In some respects this is like a commercial for National Lottery... fans - like punters - can't help dreaming their team has the ability to win the six matches required to hold the cup aloft, even though - in reality - they know their chances are minuscule.

There'll be a lot of references to "the romance of the FA Cup" ahead of Saturday's fixtures and this trail captures that notion to a T.

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