From the FA site:

Rivals team up

Arsenal v Leeds United
The FA Women's Cup Final in partnership with Nationwide
1pm, Monday 01 May 2006
Millwall FC

As they both look forward to The FA Women's Cup Final on Monday,
Sue Smith and Rachel Yankey put their club rivalry aside
to take a coaching session together for children at Danson Primary School yesterday.

Sue Smith helped Leeds United to their first ever Final with victory over Liverpool in the Semi-Final,
but they face a difficult task with six-time winners Arsenal the opposition.

Both Smith and Yankey played their part last week
as England Women's team edged closer in their pursuit to make the 2007 World Cup in China,
and Smith warmed up nicely for her club side with a late goal in the 4-0 win.

England international Sue Smith scored twice to guide Leeds United through to the final of the FA Cup Final
after a hard working 2-0 win against Liverpool.

Jayne Ludlow's goal in the second minute of stoppage time at the end of extra time
gave Arsenal a 2-1 win.

Former England goalkeeper Pauline Cope kept Arsenal at bay with a string of tremendous saves
before she was finally beaten by striker Julie Fleeting in the 70th minute.

Charlton striker Eni Aluko, who scored both goals in their recent Premier League Cup final win against Arsenal,
equalised four minutes later to take the game into extra time.

Cope continued her heroics but, in the final move of the match,
Ludlow headed the winner from a Rachel Yankey corner.



COME ON Arsenal !!!

I added a poll to this topic,
please vote for who you think will win

I think the bookies in town have this wrong but at present they have Leeds to beat Arsenal , can't remeber the exact odds but I'm gonna check later in the week. The girl behind the desk assured me it was right but I still reckon she is wrong

I think Arsenal will do it, hope its a good competitive match though!
I'm gonna have to set a reminder on me phone cos I have a baaaaad memory
- knowing me I'll forgot its on and miss it

Arsenal 3 - 1 Leeds

My prediction:

Arsenal 4-3 Leeds

Jayne Ludlow to score in the last minute

3-0 to Arsenal kelly smith, jayne ludlow and lianne sanderson!! oops i nearly voted for leeds in the poll thought Arsenal would be at the top!

Head says 3-1 to Arsenal, heart says 2-1 to Leeds!
C'mon Sue Smith!!!

Did you vote for Arsenal then?! They always say you should follow your heart, but by the sounds of it, you should follow your head this time round!!

Erm... Her name is Kelly.
Hahaha just kidding
Justme is right - you should give Leeds one vote, it is 6:0 for Arsenal right now

Well if I was putting money on the winner I would choose Arsenal, their quality of players and past record says it all I think!
Leeds will have to be on top form to win and mabe a bit of luck too, can't wait to watch it!

Agent Smith - u funny!

But I've already voted Arsenal!

You can't vote twice ! I would go back andvote for Leeds because they need some support, but on the fairgame poll leeds are winning so maybe not!!

Oh no!
Mis read the fairgame question given another vote to Arsenal!- now I'm proving to be a real Arsenal supporter - gotta learn to slow down!!!

Yes, on the Fair Game site you can vote more than once
so I'm guessing that's what Sue Smith has been doing for the past few nights hahaha!
Juuuuuuuuuuuust kidding!


COME ON YOU REDS !!!

v

lmao thats class Agent Smith...i don't blame Sue she was probably doing that whilst trying to scratch off the asda sign on her shorts!! I am sorry Sue if you come across this i love you really, espeacially your last name

FAYE WHITE's three Leeds players to watch:

Sue Smith
"Sue has loads of experience and has over 50 England caps. She scored two goals in the Semi-Finals against Liverpool and also scored recently for England in Austria. Sue has always played well against us in the past and she is one of the names mentioned when we talk about players of the season in our dressing room. She has come back from an ankle injury and has really been flying this seaso. Sue is a tricky left winger with a lot of pace; we'll have to keep a close eye on her."

Karen Walker
"Karen was one of the most prolific goalscorers in the country in her heyday and even now she scores a lot of goals. She has also been prolific at international level for England and is a really hard player to handle. Karen is strong in the air and has a good eye for goal. She gets in the right place at the right time, she's very strong and invites you in to make a challenge. She wins a lot of free-kicks in dangerous areas so we need to be careful in and around the box. I will be up against her and will think about how I need to play her before the match"

Natalie Preston
"Natalie is a midfielder who works extremely hard and has a great engine. She is quite skilful on the ball and has a good range of passing. She looks to get forward and support the strikers whenever she can and is very consistent. She reminds me a bit of [Arsenal Ladies midfielder] Ciara Grant, who is also strong and reliable in the centre of midfield."

Source: Arsenal.com

3-1 for the Gunners.

Don't know if you have seen the vid of Rachel Yankey talking about the final and other things!!

Not sure how to do links but you can just copy and paste into the adress bar...or someone might be able to put a direct link, not too good on computers!!

Yankey hopes for large home support video

that's a good vid, Yanks always speaks open & honestly about things!


welcome shlj - have fun

Yeah she is a lovely person!

The Guardian have done a SmallTalk interveiw with Sue Smith in the build up to the Final:

Hello Sue.
[In cheeky Scouse pitch] Hiya.
Most people recognise you because you're always in the studio for games like Monday's women's FA Cup final [against Arsenal]. Are you looking forward to showing them what you can do on the pitch?
Oh my god, I'm so excited, it's like a dream for me. Like you say, I haven't had loads of opportunities to play these sorts of big games so I just can't stop grinning about it.

Who's going to take your place on the telly?
Well, I love doing the TV stuff so much I'm still doing a report for them. Obviously I'm really chuffed to be playing in the final but I phoned the BBC up straight away and said I still wanted to be involved. I think they'll have Gavin Peacock and Rachel Brown in the studio.
You said when you signed for Leeds a few years back that you wanted to win trophies: how do you rate your chances for Monday?
Obviously we're massive, total underdogs, but we're a good side. We know we can score against them, which not many people do, so that's something we need to keep in mind. It would mean everything to lift that trophy. I've achieved a lot at international level but I haven't had that at club level.

Where do you think the key battles will be against Arsenal?
I think their attacking players will be the key - they've got Kelly Smith, Rachel Yankey, Julie Fleeting, Liane Sanderson and then Jayne Ludlow pushing through from midfield ... you could literally list every Arsenal player because they've got so many good ones. Really we'll have to try and stop them playing before we can do anything else.

The game's in London and Arsenal get good crowds, but when you play for England it's your name that gets the supporters going. Are you hoping your familiar face will level things up at the New Den?
I think I'm only familiar because of the dodgy barnets to be honest. But yeah, it would be great if we can get some good support together. People in Leeds are amazing: if you're wearing a Leeds shirt they'll come and support you. Plus people always love an underdog, so hopefully they'll come down and give us a shout.

Is it true you lost your entire Leeds kit in one fell swoop?
[Makes a noise that sounds distinctly like 'Ahr-eh'] How did you know about that? Basically, in one game, I lost my training T-shirt, my training top and my tracksuit trousers. I don't know who would nick it, but I think it got nicked and that's my story.

And while we're on strange tales, why are you called Wongy?
Oh my god, how did you know about that? Really?

Being a professional journalist, Small Talk never reveals its sources. Come on, spill
It started years ago but it's just the most rubbish story. I need to make something up. Basically, Natalie Preston [Leeds team-mate] used to have a cat called Susie Wong, and she started calling me Susie Wong too. Then I got called Wong, Wongy, Wonger. Even my mum and dad used to get called Mr and Mrs Wong.

Right ... erm, there's no easy segue here. England, Euro 2005: how gutted were you to miss the cut?
It was such a blow. I was involved in the build up so I was totally gutted not to make it. Obviously there were reasons in my game that meant I didn't get picked, but basically there was lots of cover - Rachel Yankey came in when I got injured after the last Euros and she's done a fantastic job. It's made me work harder because if England get to the World Cup in China next year, obviously I'd like to be there.

Enough shop talk. On to the real questions. Are you superstitious?
I always have to put my left boot on first. Or my left trainer or whatever. When I try shoes on in a shop and they bring the right foot I don't like it.

Chocolate or cheese?
[Pondering] Chocolate. Proper chocolate like Dairy Milk or something.

What was the last CD you bought?
[Umming and aahing] Black Eyed Peas. I'm into all sorts of music, I buy stuff like the Kaiser Chiefs, but I really like the Black Eyed Peas at the moment. They're cool.

So the kids are saying. What about your favourite TV programme?
[Barely pausing for breath] 24. I love it. I like EastEnders, too, I love soaps, but it's 24 at the moment.

Who would you pick to play you in a film of your life?
Erm, Pink, I think. She's pretty cool and she's got good hair.

And what's the maddest thing you've done when drunk?
I don't really get to that point to be honest. My 21st birthday was a bit of a mad one though, it was one of those nights where you wake up the next morning and go 'Oh my god, did I really do that? Did I really snog him?' I usually just get really hyper when I'm drunk and everybody wants me to go away.

What is it you're drinking to make you so hyper?
[Adopts faux posh tone] Being an athelete, I don't drink really, [breaks back into Scouse tones] but I quite like gin and tonic - such an old granny drink.

Who or what would you put into Room 101?
[Small Talk hears a small lightbulb ding! into action above Sue's head] Bus drivers. I'm sure they're really nice people and everything - oh god, your dad's probably one, isn't he? [Small Talk confirms this is not the case] But they are the one thing that gives me road rage - they just pull out in front of you.

Before you go, we have to know: who would win a fight between a lion and a tiger?
The tiger. I like tigers, I like the way they look. And they're quick. I mean I know lions probably are too, but ...

Thanks for that Sue. Good luck on Monday
Thanks, cheers Small Talk. See ya.

With only 24 hours to go, Arsenal's build up to their 7th FA Women's Cup is well underway and hotting up.

On May 1st Bank Holiday Monday at 1pm, they will take on Leeds United in a match that could see them secure the double for a 5th time.

Heads-to-heads this season against their cup opponents have ended up with two wins, 4-3 at home and 3-1 away, in favour of the Champions but they had to come from behind in both games.

Manager Vic Akers recalls: "We turned it around on both occasion but we know they have some established players. Karen Walker is the most famous, she's their centre forward, a big powerful striker in the twilight of her career. Winning the Cup would be a fitting way for her to go out of the game if she retires this year.

"But in the end it comes down to us. We've got to start thinking about ourselves and make sure we work that much harder. A final is a final, there is always tension and it's up to us to get the girls well prepared and ready to go. They will be up for it, they are big game players and they will enjoy the environment. I think we'll do well."

Akers will be without defender Yvonne Tracy, while Ludlow, Arsenal's semi-final hero, is struggling with a swollen knee suffered on international duty for Wales last week. She didn't train on Thursday night and unless she gets through a session on Sunday, Akers will not risk her.

Source: FairGame site


COME ON JAYNEY! Get well very soon!

COME ON Arsenal!

I voted for Leeds in the poll
felt sorry for them having no votes, so I gave them mine

how many people are actually going to the game from here?

Hahaha, I bet they'd be grateful for your act of mercy

As far as I'm concerned: I am going, so is Twmcat and Conner + Katie
and a few of our newbies

And six or seven thousand other people

Going of course 19th Arsenal game this season