Crystal Palace - 1 (Granville 72.)
Millwall - 0
Palace got this match underway, and an early free kick, to Millwall, saw Kit Symons clear the danger. A free kick at the other end saw Dele Adebola head the ball over the top of the bar from a good cross in by Danny Butterfield. A shot from Ben May failed to wake Alex Kolinko between the sticks, as not only did the ball go out of play, but it went out of play for a throw-in, not a goal kick! The free kicks continued, as Aki Riihilahti was penalised for a tackle on Dennis Wise, but the danger was cleared by an alert Palace defence. Tommy Black got our real first shot on goal as a cross from Julian Gray saw him turn on the edge of the penalty area and fire the ball goalwards, the keeper holding on well to the slippery ball.
Matthew Lawrence then fired a shot wide of the upright, and as the ball made its' way up the other end of the park Danny Granville swept the ball into the area, the keeper once again saving well. Wise then moved forward, but Aki relieved the danger, and suddenly it appeared as if the referee, Mr Dowd, had seen enough of the poor tackles, and he started brandishing the yellow cards, as if there was no tomorrow.
Booked in the space of only a few minutes were Paul Ifill for a tackle on Julian, which Dele headed wide; May for pushing over Tony Popovic; Hayden Mullins for dissent, which saw the kick marched a further ten yards forward, and finally David Livermore for bringing down Danny B. How long before someone gets a red card?
A free kick, with no card, saw Danny B fire in a weak effort that was easily cleared by the defence, then at the other end Livermore sent in a rasping shot that Alex did well to hang on to. A corner to Palace was once again cleared by the defence, and a free kick, once again to Palace saw a cross from Danny G, and a header from Dele that shaved the post, unfortunately on the wrong side.
A cross into the centre by Danny B was met by Hayden, his header going just over the crossbar, whilst at the other end Wise totally messed up an easy kick on goal, when he really should have done better, but the Palace faithful breathed a sigh of relief.
The half was rapidly coming to an end, and deep into added-on time Tommy won a corner, which once again was wasted. The whistle went, and the sides trooped off for the oranges, or whatever they may consume these days in the break, and presumably for a "pep" talk from the respective managers.
At the start of the second half Steve Claridge fired a shot straight into the arms of the waiting Alex, and Robert Ryan fired a shot wide of the mark from the edge of the box. May managed to send Darren Powell flying, and it was only surprising that a booking, and thus an automatic red card did not follow, though within minutes he found himself replaced by Neil Harris. Presumably what one might call a "defensive" substitution? A cross from Danny B was flicked on by Dele, but Julian totally mishit the shot, and once again the chance was wasted.
At the other end Harris almost got clear, but a good tackle by Hayden denied him a shot on goal, then Aki fired a shot at goal that was well stopped by Tony Warner, who was by far the busiest of the two keepers on the day. Wayne Routledge came on for Julian, but one could clearly call this a tactical substitution. Dele did well to bring the ball down in the area, but as he was about to shoot from close range he appeared to be pulled back, his kick merely slicing through the air. Of course, no infringement was noticed by the referee this time, and thus a certain penalty went begging.
Alex pulled off a good save from a shot taken by Ifill, then young Wayne won a free kick on the edge of the area. Danny G took the kick, and a stupendous shot it turned out to be. The ball rifled through the air, hit the underside of the crossbar, and nestled neatly into the back of the net. 1-0 up, finally. Another free kick went the way of Palace, and once again Millwall made a substitution, this time replacing Matthew Lawrence with Ben Johnson.
A good effort, this time from Tommy, was well held by Warner, and then Dele was clear on goal when he was brought down in the area by Mark Phillips. This time the penalty was obvious, and was duly awarded; it was only surprising that the player causing the penalty to be given was not sent off. Tommy stepped up to take the kick, the keeper guessed right, and the chance was saved. One can only hope that we do not concede a late goal following a miss such as that. Dele then made a good run into the area, but the keeper pushed the shot round the corner of the post, and then saved yet another shot from Dele.
Yet another great save by Warner, this time from a shot fired in by Wayne, almost gave him the man of the match award, though it would be unfair to bestow such an honour on the opposition. That honour eventually was awarded to Tommy. With Wayne still feeling a twinge from the injury that had kept him out of the game for the last few weeks, he was immediately substituted, this time the replacement being Shaun Derry, though there was only injury time to be played.
The yellow card made a late appearance, this time Darren and Harris both getting booked for a tussle, and without further ado the whistle signalled the end of the game, and a welcome three points for the Eagles. We now have a week of rest, and a chance to get a few players fit before we meet Norwich City at Selhurst next Saturday. Bring them on, the Eagles are on a winning streak!
Colin Pryce
Crystal Palace: Alex Kolinko, Danny Granville, Hayden Mullins, Tony Popovic, Darren Powell, Kit Symons, Danny Butterfield, Julian Gray (Wayne Routledge 66, Shaun Derry 90), Aki Riihilahti, Tommy Black, Dele Adebola.
Substitutes not used: Nikolaos Michopoulos, Gary Borrowdale, Gareth Williams.
Millwall: Tony Warner, Matthew Lawrence (Glen Johnson 78), Stuart Nethercott, Mark Phillips, Robert Ryan, Paul Ifill, David Livermore, Steven Reid, Dennis Wise, Steve Claridge, Ben May (Neil Harris 56).
Substitutes not used: Willy Gueret, Ronnie Bull, Andy Roberts.
Attendance: 19,301
Referee: Mr P Dowd (Staffordshire)