FA Cup weekend review: Shawcross spirit shows the way for some more success at Stoke

Ryan Shawcross . . . hasn't missed a minute for Stoke this season

The big guns of Chelsea and the Manchester clubs lead the betting - but Ralph Ellis is looking away from the favourites for a long-price FA Cup punt after third round weekend...

The year that Stoke went to Wembley, the journey began with a third round tie at home to Cardiff which went to a replay.

I saw that game. And I'm not sure I've ever seen two teams trying harder not to win a game of football. Malky Mackay had his eyes on promotion and had picked a reserve side - Tony Pulis was far more concerned about making sure he stayed in the Premier League and did the same.

I've seen testimonial games with more tackles, and when Stoke eventually edged their way through with a couple of set-piece goals in extra time the celebrations would have made Saido Berahino's grumpy reactions to his four goals this weekend look like New Year's Eve fireworks.

By the time Wembley came round, the script had been rewritten. Stoke had always had a passion for the FA Cup that year and Pulis was telling the world about his romantic memories of watching finals on the TV as a kid before running out to play with his mates.

It's a tale worth telling after the horribly flat way that the Potters began this season's FA Cup journey. They were 10 minutes from becoming only the second Premier League team to lose to a non-League side after Wrexham, from the lower half of the Conference, had gone a goal up at the Britannia Stadium.

So even though two Steven Ireland goals ultimately got them out of jail with a 3-1 win, you can understand why Mark Hughes' side are as long as 36.035/1 in the betting to be this year's FA Cup winners.

I rather fancy a punt on that, though. Of course it isn't hard to see why the usual suspects of Chelsea, 5.79/2, Manchester City, 6.86/1, and Manchester United, 6.411/2, lead the market. But recent history proves that the game's oldest and grandest competition has begun to offer a chance to clubs from outside the elite, and Stoke have the right credentials to take advantage.

First of all, they are taking this competition seriously. Ryan Shawcross proves that - the club captain didn't want a rest at the end of the hectic Christmas schedule and Hughes didn't want to give him one, either.

Say what you like about Shawcross, and Arsenal fans still say plenty because they have never forgiven him for THAT tackle on Aaron Ramsey, but he's an old school professional. He's now (along with Sunderland's John O'Shea) one of only two outfield players in the Premier League who has played every minute of every game in every competition this season.

If you want somebody to get in the way of a shot, to head away a cross, to dish out a rollicking to a team mate, to be a leader on the field when things get tough, Shawcross is your man.

Then Stoke have shown they have the ability to upset a top side. They've won at Manchester City, Tottenham and Everton this season as well as beating Arsenal at home. And in Bojan when he is fit again they have a special player with the talent to unlock any defence.

And third, Hughes clearly cares about this and fancies putting an outing to Wembley on his CV. He handed out a rollicking for the poor performance afterwards rather than shrugging his shoulders and thinking it didn't matter.

Scraping a win against a non-League club might not seem the best formline. But the time May rolls around all we'll remember is the 3-1 scoreline. A bit like the last time the club went all the way to the final.