THE man whose name is synonymous with the FA Cup and Southampton has hit out at possible plans to scrap replays in the tournament.

Ahead of this weekend’s fifth round ties, the Football Association is reportedly open-minded about doing away with replays in a bid to ‘streamline’ the competition.

Lawrie McMenemy, who famously guided Saints to FA Cup final triumph 40 years ago, claims “it is more often than not the replays that give the competition the magic.”

And he should know as the Saints needed two of them in 1976 on a golden route which led them to Wembley and what remains – four decades on – the greatest day in the club’s history.

Saints negotiated replays in the third and fifth rounds, beating Aston Villa away and West Bromwich at home respectively.

Writing in his exclusive Daily Echo column in today’s sports pages, McMenemy said the proposal to scrap replays “should be listened to and then thrown out the door.

“The thing about our FA Cup is that it is the envy of the rest of the world.”

Indeed it is.

Next Monday, in a tie which is laced with the traditional FA Cup magic, third division Shrewsbury host the mighty Manchester United.

Well, not so mighty at the moment admittedly.

Asked what an end to replays would mean to a club like the lower division Shrews, boss Micky Mellon said: “That would kill us. Absolutely we could lose clubs. Replays keep clubs afloat."

‘I don’t know many clubs at this level making money. We wash our own face and teeter on and make sure we’re not in any debt. To get that extra money in will only help us improve our football club.”

Shrewsbury face United at their New Meadow HQ, with the match shown live on BT Sport 2 – meaning a live broadcast fee of £247,500 into the coffers for each team.

Daily Echo:

PICTURED: Mick Channon scores one of his three goals for Saints as they beat West Brom in a replay in the 1976 FA Cup

A 9,875-capacity sell-out will further Shrewsbury’s funds, but the huge financial prize will be if they can hold Louis Van Gaal’s team to a draw, triggering a replay at Old Trafford and a share of the massive gate receipts.

Shrewsbury could make up to £2million in that scenario, accounting for more than the entire annual wage of the playing squad, understood to be around £1.4m.

In 2005 Exeter, then a non-league club, also benefited from a lucrative FA Cup clash against United, earning a remarkable 0-0 draw at Old Trafford before losing the return fixture at St James Park to goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney.

The £1m the Devonians made wiped out all the club’s debts.

Only last month, Exeter drew 2-2 at home to Liverpool. The replay at Anfield earned City over £500,000.

Our very own Eastleigh also benefited from a replay in this year’s competition. After holding Championship Bolton Wanderers to a 1-1 draw at home , they bowed out after a thrilling 3-2 defeat in the north-west.

Besides the money made by the club, it was a fantastic opportunity for the players to show off their skills at a stadium that up to a few years ago was hosting Premier League football.

Scrapping replays would be just another potential nail in the coffin of the FA Cup., which has had a few notable changes foisted upon it since the early 1990s.

Prior to 1991/92, there was no limit on the amount of replays.

In 1977/78, Saints were taken to a second replay by Grimsby Town. The third tie was held on neutral territory – in Leicester.

In 1978/79 Arsenal and Sheffield Wednesday played out FIVE ties – four replays – while the Gunners and Arsenal met four times in the 1979/80 semi-finals.

Those instances were obviously a total nonsense and McMenemy was fully behind the decision to hold a penalty shoot-out if the first replay ended all square.

Since the late noughties, both FA Cup semi-finals have been held at Wembley – a move which critics believe devalues the final being held at the same venue.

In 2011, for the first time ever, Premier League games were held on the same day as the FA Cup final, which many thought a big snub to the Wembley showpiece.

And since 2012, the cup final has had a tea-time kick off so fans from across the globe can easily tune in to watch it.

More worryingly, the increasing financial rewards for staying in the Premier League have forced many clubs to field weakened sides in early rounds.

Television, of course, is behind many of the changes.

This weekend, there are eight fifth round ties. When I was growing up and falling in love with football, they would all be played at 3pm on a Saturday afternoon. Why on earth would they ever have been played at any other time?

Now, only two of the eight ties this season will be played at 3pm. And the reason is television. It calls the tune, thanks to the huge sums of money they pay to show the games. But potentially scrapping replays won’t be a television decision.

It will be an FA decision, and hopefully they will listen to the likes of Lawrie McMenemy. For he knows what he’s talking about.