Barnsley face Cardiff in FA Cup semis

LONDON, England -- Barnsley, who eliminated FA Cup holders Chelsea and recent European champions Liverpool, to reach the semifinals of this season's competition, will meet fellow Championship side Cardiff City at Wembley next month, for a place in the final at the same ground on May 17.

In the other semifinal, on the weekend of April 5/6, the sole surviving Premiership team, Portsmouth, will meet another Championship side, West Bromwich Albion.

The draw was good news for Barnsley goalkeeper Luke Steele, a hero in their fifth round victory at Liverpool. He is on loan from West Bromwich and cannot play against them in the competition.

"I was more nervous than before the Chelsea game," he said. "I thought that, knowing my luck prior to coming here, it's going work against me, we're going to draw West Brom and that's the end of the campaign."

He will now be hoping that Barnsley and Portsmouth make the final.

Barnsley's one triumph in the competition was in 1912, shortly after the sinking of the Titanic. If West Bromwich face them in this year's climax to the tournament it will be a repeat of that clash 96 years ago.

After a goalless draw at Crystal Palace one goal was sufficient to give Barnsley the trophy at Bramall Lane.

Barnsley are struggling in the league this season, lying 19th, four points clear of the relegation zone.

Their manager, Simon Davey, said he had been unconcerned about which of the other sides his side drew.

"You'd probably say we wanted to avoid the Premier League club (Portsmouth) but we beat two in the previous rounds," Davey said.

"Cardiff are a good side. We've played them at home this season and drew 1-1. They play good football and we know it is going to be a tough game. But we are 90 minutes away from an FA Cup final and we will be looking for it."

"We've got a tough one," Cardiff manager David Jones said. "We said that in the last round and the round before. We'll know each other inside out but it will all about the day and hopefully we will come out on top and I'm sure Simon will be saying the same.

"They come off the back of two fantastic victories against Liverpool and Chelsea so they won't fear anybody."

It is the first time in a century that only one top-flight side has made the last four of the world's oldest Cup competition.

Cardiff, who are 14th, are currently involved in a wrangle with their chief creditors which may finish up in court.

They are the only club outside of England to claim the trophy, winning 1-0 against Arsenal at Wembley in 1927. Their campaign this year began at lowly Chasetown in round three and they had to come from behind to win 3-1.

Should they lift the cup they will be unable to enter the UEFA Cup, because UEFA regulations prevent the Welsh side from playing in European competition as an English representative.

West Bromwich, well in contention for promotion in fourth place in the table, will be out to emulate their feat of 1931, when they won the cup and went up to the First Division.

That victory over neighbors Birmingham was one of five FA Cup triumphs and they have been runners-up the same number of times, although they were most prolific in the century before last.

Portsmouth, favorites by virtue of being the last survivors from the Premiership, were rank outsiders when they beat Wolves 4-1 for their sole FA Cup success in 1939. E-mail to a friend