Etherington produced a man-of-the-match performance in Sunday's semi-final as his magnificent opening goal set the Potters on course for an emphatic 5-0 win over Bolton at Wembley.
Now the 29-year-old winger wants to beat Manchester City on May 14 and banish the memory of a heartbreaking Cup Final defeat with West Ham at the Millennium Stadium five years ago when Steven Gerrard's last-gasp equaliser gave Liverpool the chance to win on penalties.
Screamer: Matthew Etherington opens the scoring for Stoke against Bolton at Wembley
'I think about it a lot because you don't know if you'll ever get the chance to play in another final or not,' said Etherington.
'It took a while to get over. It hurts. You don't know when these opportunities might come round again so to be playing in another FA Cup Final is just fantastic. Now I want to go one better.
'City have got some world-class players but if we play like that again we'll be a match for anyone. I've never played in a better team performance than that.
'The pressure will be on City. Bolton were the favourites on Sunday and look what happened to them.
'We like being the underdogs. We thrive on it and tend to prove people wrong on a regular basis so hopefully we can do that again in the final.'
Etherington also wants to repay the faith shown by Stoke and their manager Tony Pulis by signing him from West Ham in 2009 and helping him overcome a gambling addiction.
In command: Ryan Shawcross (left) deals with the threat of Bolton's Ivan Klasnic
He added: 'I feel as fit and strong as I've ever been. I don't think I've ever played this well.
'It's down to loads of things - the manager, the club, my personal life. Everything is just clicking.
'The manager just put an arm around me basically and made me feel wanted, He tells me before every game how good I am and how good I can be. It makes you believe it yourself.'
Captain Ryan Shawcross scored in extra-time when Stoke knocked City out of the competition in a replay last season, and the Manchester United academy product is confident the Potters can spring another surprise.
'I would have preferred to face United just because I'm a United fan,' said Shawcross. 'To beat them in the final would have been great, but to beat City wouldn't be bad either.
'We all watched the first semi-final at the team hotel. There were a few United fans and a few City so it was a good atmosphere.
'I'm sure everyone will have given City the trophy already. We'll turn up as the underdogs. We usually are and that's fine. We'll go under the radar and I think we do well when we're trying to fight our way out of a corner.'
Is it not over yet? Owen Coyle was stunned by Bolton's display
Meanwhile, Bolton's shattered players were left to pick up the pieces after losing by the biggest margin ever in a FA Cup tie at Wembley.
Owen Coyle's team were three goals behind inside half an hour, and England defender Gary Cahill admitted they simply froze on the big occasion.
'I couldn't believe what was happening out there,' said Cahill. 'We've played so well this season but everything that has brought us success we didn't put into that game.
'I don't know if the occasion got to some people but it was like a different Bolton team out there. The first goal came against the run of play and then we just collapsed.
'We've had success by getting the ball down but we just played into their hands. We played far too many long balls and that's food and drink for Stoke.
'At this level you can afford to carry one or two, maybe not even that, but to carry the whole bunch of us is well, that's the outcome.
'The manager was in the dressing-room with his head in his hands.
'But you can't go back in time. This is gone. We need to move on because we've got the rest of the season and we don't want to throw away all our hard work.'
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?Explore more:People: Matthew Etherington, Tony Pulis, Ryan Shawcross, Gary Cahill, Steven Gerrard, Owen Coyle Places: Liverpool, United Kingdom
Source: Daily Mail
Source: Daily Mail