1996/97
That’s right, it was another 14 years before we troubled the third round of the cup. The Premier League had brought a new era and wins against Hartlepool (Division Three, fourth tier) and Manchester City (Division Two, second tier) brought a Premier League side to the Bank.
Not at first – we needed a trip to the Dell to overcome the away draw, but Mark Hone and Gareth Ainsworth earned us a second go. We led 1-0 until a dive and a cheap penalty ended our resistance, and we eventually lost 3-1.
Verdict: Good draw
2020/21
Wait, another 14 years? Wow.
Was this a good draw? Beating Crewe and Bradford was respectable, and Liverpool at home would be a huge draw under any other circumstances. But this was Covid times, and few could be in the ground. I was lucky, filming Matchday Live from a box, with an untucked shirt. I tried so hard as well.
Bearing in mind Liverpool were reigning champions, and had won the Champions League a year before, there is no doubt this is the biggest draw we ever had, and fans, sadly, had to miss out.