I HAVE got a funny feeling that this season's FA Cup is a big story waiting to happen and after tonight we will know if the next chapter will include the Clarets.

In recent years the finals have been dominated by the usual suspects and that is one reason why people may have been talking about the glamour being lost.

With the Premiership now a beast of almost uncontrollable power a big May show-down between the top sides in the country is just another televised event, probably the third time they have been live on our screens in the season.

It is 11 years since a Sunderland side, featuring familiar Clarets Gordon Armstrong and Kevin Ball, was the last side from outside the top flight to play in the Cup Final.

Ten finals have followed with Arsenal, Man United and Chelsea playing in four of them, Chelsea in three, Newcastle and Liverpool in a couple and Sheff Wed, Middlesbrough, Everton and Villa completing the set.

It is nice for mid-table teams like Middlesbrough and Liverpool to have a shot at Cup glory but not once since the inception of the Premiership has a club from outside the elite managed to make it to the final.

At the risk of betraying my age, when I was a kid it was, to quote Tom Jones, "not unusual" for a then second division side to get to Wembley.

In fact four times in the space of eight seasons teams from outside the top flight played under the now defunct Twin Towers, twice actually lifting the trophy.

Tonight's visitors to Turf Moor started the run in 1975 when they were left to regret a couple of errors from a former Claret, Peter Mellor, as he allowed a future Claret, Alan Taylor, to win the Cup for West Ham.

Taylor fits into the category of characters who will basically be remembered for their one day of glory, a group including Roger Osbourne, Lawrie Sanchez, Micheal Trebilcock and a white horse.

If he had not sadly died, Bobby Stokes would have been the president as he was the Southampton hero back in 1976 when they sprang one of the great shocks of all time, beating Tommy Docherty's Manchester United.

Four years later it was Arsenal who were shocked by a lower league side although this time the match-winner was one of the most famous players in the land, Trevor Brooking netting the only goal for then second division West Ham.

Mind you, I wish he had never found the net - and that does not mean I am a Gooner!

I once decided to give myself one pound for everytime a BBC commentator enjoyed some light hearted banter with our Trev about scoring with his head - "Ha-ha, I thought it was only for your hat!" or "Ha-ha, you must have had your eyes shut!" - but having bought a Ferrari Testarossa I decided enough was enough.

Two years later Terry Venables got QPR to the final - a rare high point for the most over-rated manager in the country - where they lost to Spurs.

Since then it is only Sunderland who have managed to go all the way but, until the end of tonight at least, Burnley fans are entitled to at least dream they might be next.

Watford away will not be easy but holds no great fears from them and, with the Gunners and Chelsea paired together, the semis are not as scary as they might be.

Neither Leeds nor Southampton will be overly confident about beating Sheffield United or Wolves respectively so the road to Cardiff is still wide open.

Mind you, defeat tonight and it will turn into another disappointing dead-end!