The defender grabbed an assist as he teed up Jose Baxter for the opening goal of their Semi-Final against Hull City, before the Premier League side launched a second-half fightback to win 5-3.
And although his side drew plenty of plaudits for their Cup exploits, Brayford says that the Blades should be preparing to play Arsenal on Saturday 17 May in the Final - not Hull.
Hull City 5-3 Sheffield United
FA Cup with Budweiser
Semi-Final
Wembley Stadium connected by EE
13 April 2014
Brayford told TheFA.com: “Some people call it a fairytale, but we haven’t just bought a raffle ticket and got here, we earned the right to be here.
“We had a damn good chance to win here today. Just because they are two leagues above us didn’t mean they were better than us and we are disappointed we haven’t gone through to the Final.
“We knew that they were going to come after us in the second-half but we give two sloppy goals away early. We tried to turn the game back round and the effort the lads put in was unbelievable.
Watch the pitchside highlights from the game
“You could tell that by the reaction from the fans at the end and the way they responded to us – but as much as we can be proud of our efforts we could have been through to the Final.”
Chasing the game at 4-2 – United refused to die and Jamie Murphy gave them a lifeline as he grabbed a goal back as the match entered additional time – but soon after they were caught on the counter as Hull grabbed a fifth.
“When we grabbed the goal, you never know,” said Brayford. “And we had a chance after that too. But you only get one chance in this competition.
“I know we lost 5-3 in the end, but I’d rather that than have not had a go and lost 4-2 or 4-3.”
“As much as we can be proud of our efforts we could have been through to the Final”
John Brayford Sheffield United defender
Although disappointed to bow out of the Cup, Brayford added that this season’s run has had a huge impact on the whole club.
He said: “It has galvanised the club. The gaffer has been tremendous and just told us all to go out and enjoy ourselves and we are playing like that.
“We have shown we can compete against the best teams and we should be competing with them teams week in and week out – that’s where this club should be."
