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by Glenn Lavery at Vicarage Road

Watford 0-1 Tottenham Hotspur
The FA Cup with Budweiser
Fourth Round Proper
7.45pm, Friday 27 January 2012
Vicarage Road, Watford FC
Live on ESPN
Winning clubs will receive £90,000 from The FA prize fund
Click here for all the other Fourth Round ties

You often hear the word ‘spirited’ attributed to the smaller, or lower-leagued, team who lose a Cup tie to a so-called ‘giant’.

And while you could easily direct this adjective to Championship side Watford, following their defeat to Premier League Tottenham in the Fourth Round of The FA Cup with Budweiser on Friday night, that one word tells only half the story.

The record books will state that Rafael Van der Vaart’s 42nd-minute goal handed Spurs a place in the last 16 of football’s most famous knockout competition. What it won’t tell you, though, is that Watford were the better side for large portions of the tie, they created a greater number of chances than their more illustrious opponents, they hit the woodwork twice, and, probably did not deserve to lose a pulsating tie in front of their vociferous fans.

However, Spurs are third in the Premier League table for a reason, and, ultimately, they had enough know-how and just enough quality to progress to Round Five.

Watford set the tone for the game inside the first five minutes as Marvin Sordell skipped inside Younes Kaboul to call Carlo Cudicini into action early on. Sordell also came close to prodding home a rebound from Troy Deeney’s long-ranger, before Hornets skipper John Eustace fired harmlessly wide.

Deeney then raced down the right to deliver a cross to the near post, but Sordell could only direct the ball past the post, and Prince Buaben cracked a shot narrowly wide as the hosts took the game to Tottenham from the off.

With Spurs unable to muster any chance of note by the midway point in the first half, a better connection from Joe Garner in meeting Lee Hodson’s centre might have given Watford what would have been a deserved lead.

Indeed, Tottenham’s first shot on goal came in the 29th minute, when Jermain Defoe hit a shot into the ground and the ball bounced into the air for Scott Loach to make a comfortable claim.

After that first attempt, the north Londoners then began to enjoy more of the ball, but were unable to create any further openings until they took the lead just before the interval. Kyle Walker collected the loose ball when a Watford attack broke down and the full-back then made a customary dash down the right flank. He fed Van der Vaart in-field, who advanced before trying his luck from around 25 yards. The ball bounced in front of Loach before hitting the back of the net, but the Watford ‘keeper will feel he should have done better.

And so somehow Spurs went into the half-time break ahead.

Unperturbed, though, Watford came out all guns blazing in the second half, and after Sordell and Eustace had sent shots high over the bar, Sean Murray came within the width of a post of levelling the scores.

Cudicini played a short goal-kick to Michael Dawson on the edge of his own box. Under pressure, the Spurs captain failed to clear the ball properly. The advancing Watford midfield accepted possession and slipped a through ball to Murray who bent a sweet shot towards the far corner only for Cudicini' fingertips and the post to intervene. Deeney was unable to capitalise on the follow up with the goal gaping.

Tottenham, though, settled much quicker in the second period than they did in the first and penned the Hornets in their own half for a sustained period. Loach was forced to tip Walker’s header over the bar and Danny Rose, operating at left-back, flashed an angled shot well wide.

The game regained its Cup tie feel with both teams enjoying their fair share of possession. It was then the visitors turn to hit the woodwork as Van der Vaart curled substitute Aaron Lennon’s lay-off onto the bar, with Loach beaten.

But Watford came again, as Eustace hit the post with a header from substitute Mark Yeates' corner and Buaben tested Cudicini from the edge of the box. Yeates delivered another corner which Garner met true but he could only direct it wide.

With the game entering its final stages, and Watford nearing an undeserved exit from the competition, Sean Dyche’s side really upped the ante. A free-kick from the right fell to Nyron Nosworthy inside the box who prodded goalwards. Cudicini blocked and Sordell followed up, but this time Kaboul was in the way to avert the danger. Then Yeates saw a cute flick cleared by Dawson, who knew little about it.

It was backs-to-the-wall stuff for Harry Redknapp’s men, and late substitute Roman Pavlyuchenko was even forced to thump a clearance wildly into the Watford half, rather than seek out a team-mate.

But Spurs did hold on to their slender lead and booked their place in Round Five, the draw for which will take place on Sunday afternoon.

Watford
1 Scott Loach, 2 Lee Hodson, 4 John Eustace (C), 6 Adrian Mariappa, 9 Troy Deeney, 12 Lloyd Doyley, 19 Prince Buaben, 20 Marvin Sordell, 22 Sean Murray (7 Mark Yeates, 65), 25 Joe Garner (24 Matt Whichelow, 80), 33 Nyron Nosworthy
Substitutes not used 30 Jonathan Bond, 3 Carl Dickinson, 10 Chris Iwelumo, 11 Craig Forsyth, 14 Ross Jenkins

Manager Sean Dyche

Tottenham Hotspur
23 Carlo Cudicini, 4 Younes Kaboul, 8 Scott Parker, 10 Emmanuel Adebayor (9 Roman Pavlyuchenko, 90), 11 Rafael van der Vaart, 14 Luka Modric (7 Aaron Lennon, 46), 18 Jermain Defoe (40 Steven Pienaar, 80), 20 Michael Dawson (C), 25 Danny Rose, 28 Kyle Walker, 29 Jake Livermore
Substitutes not used 24 Brad Friedal, 19 Sebastien Bassong, 21 Niko Kranjcar, 32 Benoit Assou-Ekotto

Manager Harry Redknapp

Referee Chris Foy
Assistant Referees Simon Beck and Jake Collin
Fourth Official Peter Walton

Attendance 15,384