FA CUP THIRD ROUND DRAW, MONDAY 2nd DECEMBER [BBC2 7PM]

The draw for the Third Round of this years Emirates FA Cup will be made later on tonight, it will be broadcast live on the BBC Two Channel from around 7pm and although sadly my club Afc Wimbledon have failed to make it into the draw this season it's still a feature day of the seasonal calendar as the top flight sides from the Premier League and the Championship enter the fray.

There are 64 Numbers in the "hat" for the Third Round, The 44 clubs from the Premier League and Championship enter the fray at this stage, joining the 20 clubs who prevail from this weekend's second round ties. The Etihad Stadium, home of reigning FA Cup champions Manchester City, is the venue for what remains one of the most-anticipated events in the domestic football calendar. The third-round draw throws up the possibility of small or part-time clubs facing big-time opponents. League Two Newport dumped Leicester out of the competition at this stage a year ago, so who of the remaining non league sides will be doing the giant killing this season, AFC Fylde are one having beaten fellow non league opponents Kingstonian on Saturday, they are joined by the likes of Eastleigh, Boston and Hartlepool although they will all have replays to resolve before they can reach round three while the final 2nd round tie is Solihull Moors vs Rotherham which will kick off later on tonight.

Mark Chapman will host the programme and in charge of the draw will be former Arsenal captain Tony Adams and ex Manchester City defender Micah Richards pulling out the balls. The third round is scheduled to take place over the weekend of Saturday 4th January 2020.

Winning clubs will receive £135,500 after The FA doubled the prize fund at the beginning of the season. The draw will be updated here as it unfolds live;

      Leicester City    Vs    Wigan Athletic

      Queens Park Rangers    Vs    Swansea City
      Fulham    Vs    Aston Villa
      Chelsea    Vs    Nottingham Forest
      Wolves    Vs    Manchester United
      Charlton Athletic    Vs    West Brom
      Rochdale / Boston United    Vs    Newcastle United
      Cardiff City    Vs    Forest Green Rovers / Carlisle United

      Oxford United    Vs    Exeter City / Hartlepool United

      Sheffield United    Vs    AFC Fylde
      Southampton    Vs    Huddersfield Town
      Liverpool    Vs    Everton
      Bristol City    Vs    Shrewsbury Town
      Bournemouth    Vs    Luton Town
      Brighton and Hove Albion    Vs    Sheffield Wednesday
      Bristol Rovers / Plymouth Argyle  Vs  Coventry City / Ipswich

      Eastleigh / Crewe Alex    Vs    Barnsley

      Manchester City    Vs    Port Vale
      Middlesbrough    Vs    Tottenham Hotspur
      Reading    Vs    Blackpool 
      Watford    Vs    Tranmere Rovers
      Preston North End    Vs    Norwich City
      Millwall    Vs    Newport County
      Crystal Palace    Vs    Derby County

      Rotherham   Vs   Hull City

      Brentford    Vs    Stoke City
      Fleetwood Town    Vs    Portsmouth
      Arsenal    Vs    Leeds United
      Gillingham    Vs    West Ham United
      Burton Albion    Vs    Northampton Town
      Burnley    Vs    Peterborough United
      Birmingham City    Vs    Blackburn Rovers

      

Good luck to all in the 3rd round, us Dons will have to get back to the league one form in the meantime with a game against Bolton Wanderers to come. The TV ties will almost certainly include the Merseyside derby Liverpool v Everton and the Arsenal v Leeds tie looks tasty too.