|
[ Home ] [ Personal ] [ Crystal Palace ] [ Family Tree ] [ Doctor Who Books ] [ SETI@Home ] |
|
1999/2000 |
|
|
|
|
| |||||||||
|
1998/1999 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Today was the day when the familiar environs of Selhurst Park were left behind and pastures new were explored. Travelling vast distances a thirty minutes train trip brought us to Watford, a place claiming to be in Hertfordshire although I didn't see anyone wearing a Manchester United strip. It being a reasonable day weather wise it was to be expected it would be a good day overall. Well, it would have been except for an idiot by the name of Eddie Lomas. Watford at this stage were just outside the playoffs while Palace, for perhaps only the second time in almost eighty years, are settling in for mid table obscurity. After the noise generated by the Holmesdale crowd at home in recent matches I was curious to see how vocal the home supporters were at other clubs. The answer is not very. I've heard Trappist monks make more sound than the Watford crowd. Fortunately the rather large Palace contingent was making plenty of noise throughout the entire game. In the early minutes of the game Sun Jihai finally managed to get on the end of a cross and get the slightest of touches to send it past the keeper. Unfortunately this was from a Watford cross and we were 1-0 down. At around the same time Petric got tangled up in a (fair) tackle and limped off with a badly cut shin. Having to use a substitute and conceding an own goal all within the first ten minutes is not the ideal way to start. The game was remaining an open one as Palace produced their worst defensive play in many months. Having said that it was still much better than anything shown in the early part of the season. Perhaps it is the knowledge they are safe from relegation or just the tiredness from a Herculean last three months that is taking its toll on players but concentration was certainly lacking today. Although Palace were playing pretty football at times they were having trouble in the last third of the pitch and scoring chances were limited. At the other end Kevin Miller was performing wonderfully with some excellent saves. He even managed to catch all the crosses to the huge relief (and cheers) of the fans behind him. At half time I talked to a steward who admitted that the Watford crowd was slightly more animated today than it usually is! In the second half it was an early goal that saw Watford double their lead. After a superb dive from a valid tackle on the edge of the box the referee inexplicably gave Watford the free kick to the delighted amazement of the Watford fans and the disgust of the Palace ones. The resulting free kick saw the defence looking at each other while a Watford player had a short range free header. After that the game drifted a bit although Miller was forced to make a couple of excellent saves. In the final twenty minutes Palace decided to wake up and started pushing more men forward. With five minutes to go Austin got past the defence on the right and sent over a perfect cross to McKenzie who nodded it in. After that it was all Palace who were storming against a defence which had looked solid all day but was looking a little jittery now. In time added on Morrison received a chip over the top but just failed to reach the ball as he was held back by a tug of the shirt in the area. PENALTY exploded the Palace fans behind the goal. The Watford fans looked shaken. The only one looking unconcerned was the referee who waved play on. Even Helen Keller could see it was a foul. Soon afterwards the final whistle went meaning the second loss on the trot. If two bad decisions hadn't been given it could have been so different. Just in case you haven't twigged the bastard in the black today went by the name of Eddie Lomas. From Manchester. That explains everything. |
|
Look at all those people in the cheap seats |
|
There was a slight change of view today. Working on the basis of its not what you know but who I watched the match from the lofty heights of one of the executive boxes. Unfortunately it didn't make the match any better. Against a team on the fringes of the relegation battle Palace started much the better but the inexperience of Morrison and McKenzie against crafty defenders is starting to overtake their youthful exuberance. Despite that the former was unlucky to see a shot roll agonisingly slowly past the keeper before hitting the post. That was about the only shot on target in the half as Palace managed to blaze a few well wide from shots outside the area. Swindon, looking for a win against a team unbeaten at home for 6 months played three strikers. Their one shot that forced Miller to make an excellent save was by the guy subbed after 25 minutes. They then lost another player through injury soon after so had two subs on within half an hour. Despite this there was a horrible feeling it wasn't going to be Palace's day. In the second half Swindon defended the way Palace have been doing recently which meant we were getting some of our own back. This was frustrating the front two, especially Morrison. Despite this we only picked up a single booking which has got to be some sort of record for this season. George Ndah, former Eagle, received a warm reception from the crowd at the start of the match. Amazingly he forgot to do the usual trick of an ex-player scoring against his old club. He did, however, perform a storming run down the left wing to produce an inch perfect cross. Our exulted position in the executive box was right over the goal which gave us a wonderful view of his strike partner banging it into the net. Palace pushed hard in the last quarter of the game but didn't really trouble the keeper. It ended at 0-1. A few points came out of this match. Sun was played up front in the role that the suspended Fan sometimes takes. This didn't work as he didn't have the quickness of touch or the physical presence such a role demands. When he dropped further back he looked a lot more comfortable. Petric, despite a broken nose to go along with the events in his homeland, seems to be getter better with each game. Matt Svensson, out for months with a ruptured spleen and a fractured ankle, returned to fray as a substitute. He was subbed himself after twenty minutes after doing the ankle again. The youngsters did look a little out of their depth at times, usually appearing just a fraction too slow for the needs of the game. None of them actually looked out of place, it was just that the rough edges showed at times. They have done a sterling job with the recent ten game unbeaten run but I get the feeling that the grind of a full season could start telling on them next year (administrators permitting!). One thing that is looking good is that a replacement for Craig Moore appears to have been found. Hayden Mullins has been excellent since moving back into the sweeper role. He doesn't quite have the ability to read the play as well as Moore yet, but the England U21 international has the potential to be even better. |
|
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz |
|
I was debating whether to go to this one or not. By all accounts by not going I saved myself the chance to sleep for 90 minutes. A team that is chasing promotion and playing at home is usually expected to attack. A team playing away (and now safe from relegation) is usually expected to sit back, soak up pressure and attempt to hit on the break. The script was followed a bit. Palace sat back and, er, that's it. Wolves had maybe three shots on goal but at least they forced the keeper into action. The Wolves keeper was kept company for most of the game by a pigeon pecking at the grass in his penalty area. It didn't have to move. Still, that makes it ten games without defeat which is amazing considering the state of the club. It also makes it the first game where the players didn't get their usual fish 'n chips afterwards. The club is so broke they had to do with cheap almost-past-the-sell-by-date sandwiches from the local supermarket. Almost as bad as the Portsmouth players who have to wash their own jockstraps. Sigh. |
|
I coulda been a contender |
|
This is the big one. At the start of the season it was expected that this would be the title decider. First against second to determine who would go up as champions and who would take the second automatic spot. Well some of it was right. Sunderland are galloping away with the title and are all but guaranteed of being in the Premiership next year. After the recent run of form Palace are all but guaranteed of being in the first division next year, assuming they are still in business of course. The day did not start too well because we couldn't get into our local. It has been occasionally full for well supported teams like Portsmouth and Birmingham but this is first time I've not actually been able to get in. The omens were not good, especially as the lucky Hartlepool shirt hasn't been doing too much for the original team who find themselves bottom of the third. Hmmm. The two teams I follow are both in danger of not being in the league next year. With this sort of luck maybe I should support Manchester United - Conference in four years easy! The crowd was almost capacity with about 6,000 Sunderland fans there looking forward to an easy three points. This didn't look likely in the first ten minutes as Palace were by far the better team in getting forward and creating chances. Unfortunately none of these could be turned into goals. After that Sunderland started to look slightly more composed and started to knock the ball around with alarming ease. It really was no surprise when a perfectly flighted corner had Miller coming then stopping. Phillips knocked the header past him and it was 1-0 down. Thirty seconds later Fan Zhiyi decided to prove that the goal against Bradford hadn't been a fluke by letting another long range effort go. Unfortunately Sorensen did enough to push it around the post. With the ability to keep running that comes from having a team full of hungry youngsters, a proper fitness training regime, and a manager who can focus that team Palace refused to crumble. Coppell's "babies" finally combined when a Thomson shot hit McKenzie. He turned, shot and Sorensen could only parry into the path of Morrison who, like a good goal poacher, was in the right place at the right time for the equaliser. Despite more efforts we failed to follow recent history and score on the stroke of half-time. In the second half Sunderland dominated. It wasn't as if they obviously stepped up a couple of gears it merely seemed as if they pressed the accelerator a little bit. Ominously they appeared to have plenty still left in reserve which is why they are top of the division. The Palace defence was having trouble coping with Quinn. There was no Moore to cut out the crosses before they happened and no Linighan to match Quinn in height so the cross into the tall target man was proving effective. Not to say the Palace defence is now filled with short-arses but the average height has certainly dropped since players went on loan. Quinn did miss a couple of headers he probably should have buried and, although having a lot more freedom than he did in the first half, still found time to complain. Now I know Quinn is Irish but he was doing the perfect impression of a whinging Pom. Every decision against him was met with a display of petulance that would put a five year old to shame. He also had a bust up with Petric in the first half which almost came to blows. Arms were raised but the referee, conscious of the Yugoslav's mental state, opted for the sensible option of only booking both players. The short of it is that Quinn is too good a player to need to act the prima donna. Palace were on the back foot for the whole of the second half. On the rare occasions they did get forward and put a cross in Sorensen judged it perfectly. I only wish Miller could do the same instead of dropping into his Mr Hyde mode whenever a judgment is required to catch a ball. Having said that Miller was certainly Dr Jekyll in the second half. A couple of saves and good catches and a little bit of luck when the cross bar got in the way were crowned by a truly glorious save in the last ten minutes, stopping what looked like a certain winner. I have a theory that Miller is superb at shot stopping because it is based purely on reflexes and experience. He doesn't need to think in those situations. Crosses, on the other hand, cause problems because he has time to worry about the action to take. I think this is due to lack of confidence in being behind a rather dodgy defence over the last couple of seasons. In the end Palace deservedly hung on for a point with every player making a contribution. Even a certain defender, formerly known to the crowd as "Austin you're useless" was being referred to as "Dean" and even "Deano" by the end of the match. Both teams received a standing ovation by both sets of supporters at the end. It may not have been first against second but for a while it seemed like it. |
|
I've just the lottery? No, something even more unexpected has happened |
|
Wonders will never cease. Three nineteen year olds in the starting lineup. Another three on the the bench, all making their debut. Oh, and a 1-0 victory. An away win! Only the second team we've done the double over this year. To top it all off the man on target was the boo-boy recipient from Spurs, the man who hadn't scored in seven years (sounds like my love life, sigh) Dean Austin. Mind you, after missing a fairly easy chance against Bradford the previous week it was probably necessary that he hit the target when left unmarked with a free header from five yards out. I have seen players miss from there before (take a bow Bruce Dyer) so well done Deano. Maybe it will shut up some of the crowd back home. |
|
That shattering noise you can hear is Mark Goldberg's credibility |
|
IN ADMINISTRATION (2nd April 1999) To write this stuff yesterday would have been tempting fate. In came the administrators then, quicker than you can say revolving door, out they went again. Depending on who you believe it was either the board not wanting to cough up enough money or a conflict of interest because they were also administrating another club (Luton). So in came corporate recovery specialists Moore Stephens Booth White to take the reins. Predictably Mark Goldberg came out with the following quote - "Today's Court Order marks a new beginning for Crystal Palace Football Club. We are delighted to be working with Moore Stephens Booth White, one of the UK's leading corporate recovery firms". Actually we aren't. If the club wasn't in this sodding mess then there would be no need to "work" with them. The more I hear Goldberg speak the more I'm convinced he should be in politics wearing those anti-reality rose-coloured glasses. Just to rub salt into the wounds Craig Moore finally disappeared up the M1 back to that two team competition called the Scottish Premiership. His will be a huge loss, probably more than that of Lombardo or Jansen. With loan players, NATO bombings and suspensions this leaves us with exactly one recognised centre half for the next game. Considering he made his debut last game this does not inspire great confidence although, with hopefully enough points to avoid relegation, this is probably not a bad time to blood the youngsters. My main concern is that with the departure of the last experienced defensive player it may signal a return to the chaos shown at the start of the season when you got the impression midfield and the back four weren't introduced to each other until two minutes before kick-off. After this I'm doubtful about Norwich tomorrow and positively pessimistic about Sunderland on Monday. |