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I WAS gutted to hear the under 18s had been knocked out of the FA Youth Cup at Charlton on Tuesday night.

I couldn't get to the game myself, but by all accounts it was done and dusted inside the first 20 minutes.

Charlton have an academy side and all the reports we have had suggest they could go all the way this year.

I'm sure the lads are disappointed but as long as they learn from the experience they will come back better players.

They should feel proud of themselves for getting as far as they did in the competition, and who knows next year they could even go a step further.

Paul Bodin has been there and done it before so his experience will be invaluable.

Now that nine have signed on 18-month contracts they have every incentive to continue their development and push for a place in the first team.

The FA Cup has provided more than it's fair share of shocks this season and it's really opening up into one of the most exciting draws in recent years.

You can't help wondering what if' we had not been beaten on penalties at Barnet.

Whenever you get knocked out you always follow the progress of the team that beat you - and after beating Barnet the draw has really opened up for Bristol Rovers.

With another home tie against West Brom in the quarter finals there's a big chance they could get to Wembley.

I was fortunate enough to play in the Wolves team that reached the semi-finals in 1999, when we lost to Arsenal.

The draw was kind to us that year, but we did beat Leeds United when they had the likes of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink in their team.

It's what the FA Cup is all about and with Barnsley winning at Anfield last week the romance of the cup seems to have returned at last.

We may be out of the Cup but we still have plenty to play for in League One.

All the talk has been about reaching the play-offs and that is certainly our aim, but we also have to look at the bigger picture.

Like the fans I want to see us get into the Championship as soon as possible, but for now we should enjoy the fact we have a stable club again and the future looks very bright.

The play-offs are attainable though and we must keep pushing for a top six place.

Walsall visit the County Ground on Saturday and they are currently in sixth, so it will be a big game for both sides.

Hopefully we come out on top and we can start to build some momentum towards the end of the season.

10:00am Thursday 21st February 2008

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