The magic of the FA Cup was on display during the replay of the Derby-Nottingham Forest cup tie. This was more then just your average Derby match, the rivalry between these two clubs is fierce and the fact that one club has the opportunity to knock the other out of the oldest cup competition makes it even more intense. There are so many underlying stories of this tie that add to it: Kris Commons a former Forest player returns to the City Ground against his old club, Derby have not won at the City Ground since October 1971, Nigel Clough, the son of legendary Forest and Derby manager Brian Clough is on the Derby touchline and former Derby Manager Billy Davies is on the Forest Touchline. If that wasn’t enough, the first leg ended 1-1 at Pride Park after a scrappy match with tempers flaring.

The match started out nightmarish for Derby as they went down 1-0 in under one minute when Chris Cohen took his own short corner and put the ball into the top corner leaving Derby Keeper Stephen Bywater unable to save. It went from bad to worse if you were a Derby fan when Bywater brought down Nathan Tyson for a penalty. Stephen Bywater was luck to not see red since he stopped a goal scoring opportunity, Tyson then stepped up and put the ball into the top right corner. Derby were now down 2-0 and only 14 minutes had passed. It looked as if Forest would get the best of their rivals and bragging rights would be theirs but with a cup tie things were about to change. Derby refused to give up and on 27 minutes, Rob Hulse headed in a cross from Gary Teale to give Derby a lifeline, it was now 2-1 to Forest. No changes were made when both teams came out for the second half and Derby came out on fire, Paul Green equalized on 59 minutes heading it home from Teale who had his second assist of the match. Game on! The moment that made this tie was yet to come and showed why the magic of the FA Cup was alive in this tie. Derby winger Kris Commons was jeered every time he touched the ball by the Forest faithful who considered him a traitor for signing with Derby over the summer. He didn’t let that bother him and was shooting all match long, in the 73 minute that persistence would pay off. He blasted a shot that deflected off Forest defender Wes Morgan. Derby fans went wild, they had come from 2-0 down to take a 3-2 lead. Derby held on for the win and a home tie against Manchester United in the 5th round.

This tie had everything a football fan could hope for, drama in both legs of the tie, two clubs and fans who don’t like each other and never will, underlying stories and dramatic winners. This tie showed that while both teams may not play in the BPL that doesn’t mean you can’t have a good cup tie. The FA Cup magic was on full display during this tie and showed how magical it truly can be.