Crystal Palace - 2 (Hopkin 55. Akinbiyi 64.)
Preston North End - 0
Preston got this game underway, and following a couple of moves forward by the visitors Ade Akinbiyi and Aki Riihilahti teamed up well together, but Hayden Mullins was forced off the ball by what was to prove a very resolute Preston defence. A chance at each end was well cut out by the respective defences, and then Ade looked well placed to score when he was penalised for handling the ball. Richard Cresswell then did well to get a pass in to Clyde Wijnhard, but his header at the back post went astray, appearing to skid off his head and bounce safely away for a goal kick.
Julian Gray then made a good move down the left, but his pass through to Curtis Fleming was too long, and the chance went begging. Danny Granville then did well to intervene when Creswell was bearing down on goal, and his clearance to Alex Kolinko, though risky, was effective, and we all breathed a little easier once again. An attempt to lob the ball over the head of Alex was well read by the keeper, and he made no mistake holding on to the ball. A free kick to Palace bore no dividend, but then Dean Austin came away with the ball, his pass though proving ineffective once again, the ball far too long for any of our players to get on to the end of it.
Hayden then made a good move through the centre of the field, but his pass to Clinton Morrison was well cut out by Michael Jackson. A good move involving Tony Popovic, Andrew Frampton and Julian saw the ball going just too deep for Clinton to once again get to, and then Ade managed to get the ball down the right, made a good move into the centre, and fired his shot just wide of the mark.
A free kick to Palace was taken by Danny; and though Ade nodded his cross on the Preston defence was able to clear the danger once more. Ade once again got clear on goal, but this time his shot was deflected behind for a corner and it was Tony who was up there trying to get in on goal, this time his shot going over the top.
At the other end Gareth Ainsworth pushed a shot goalwards, but it went straight to Alex, and shortly after Ainsworth again got free, this time his cross finding Cresswell; but his header went just over the top of the bar. Michael Keane then tried a shot on goal, but his attempt went just wide, and though the chances were not too alarming for the Palace faithful, they were certainly coming just a little too often for our liking.
Curtis then made a move goalwards, but was well cut out again by the Preston defence. Ade got the ball out to Julian, but he went down in the tackle, and stayed down for a while.
Following another raid on the Preston goal once again they came back at us, this time in the form of Ainsworth, who tried in vain to chip the ball over the head of Alex once again. A little difficult when the keeper is right on the line, so tall, and so alert. A cross into the danger area saw the ball slide off the head of Ade and sail over the bar, and then Palace made a very early substitution, taking the injured Julian off and bringing on our own Andrejs Rubins for a very rare appearance this season.
Alex cleared the ball upfield, and the first touch for Andrejs nearly caught the defence napping when his cross found Clinton, but Preston finally managed to wrest the ball away from him. Preston then won a corner, but Alex simply punched the effort away to safety. Dickson Etuhu then sent in a cross that sailed out into touch, and as a result of the throw Andrejs made a quick move upfield and took a shot that curled, dipped and flashed just wide of the post with the keeper, Tepi Moilanen, simply looking on.
A free kick to Preston looked dangerous for a moment, but the defence finally cleared the ball, and Andrejs ran away from the visiting defence once again before crossing the ball to Ade who overran it, and the move broke down. Danny then pumped the ball up to Clinton, who, not for the first time this season, was ruled offside. Ade then made a run down the right, but his cross goalwards was well cleared by the defence, and then the action was back down our end of the park, resulting in Alex making a couple of fine saves to keep the visitors out.
Curtis cut out the next attacking move, and his ball reached Ade who fed it on to Clinton, his shot going just over the top of the side netting. A good cross in from Andrejs was well cut out by Moilanen, and then at the other end Alex caught a simple tap from Cresswell, when the attacker really should have hit a much stronger shot. With only one minute of added time the sides trooped off all square, and with everything to play for in the second period of play.
At the start of the second half David Hopkin came on for Andrew, which seemed a reasonable move as Andrew was playing in midfield, not ideal for a young up-and-coming defender. David and Ade linked well to put the visitors goal under threat, but the defence still seemed equal to the task. Andrejs then got put off a shot when he tried to transfer the ball from his right to his left, and being forced to take the shot with his right foot it failed to find the goalmouth, and was easily booted away.
Alex then cleared the ball upfield, and his clearance found Andrejs who made ground up the centre of the park before crossing the ball in to David. His first time shot sailed into the back of the net, and suddenly, out of the blue, Palace were 1-0 ahead. Andrejs then won a corner, and the shot was taken by Tony, his up and under shot just failing to find Clinton lurking in the centre, as usual. Aki put in a long ball for Clinton to run on to, and he played a neat pass to Andrejs, the move falling apart shortly after though.
Andrejs then made a good run down the right (what was he doing over there?), and it seemed his turn of speed was totally bemusing the Preston defence, that had looked so good earlier in the day. Ade then made room down the right, and crossed the ball into the centre for Clinton to simply tap home; but as the crowd started to celebrate the linesman already had the flag up, and the "goal" was ruled offside.
Andrejs then made another run, this time down the left side of the field, and put in a great cross that simply had to be tapped in by Ade to double our lead, and really freeze Preston out of the match. This was Ade's first home goal, and only his second in a Palace shirt, but it bears mentioning that both today's goal have come from the magic touches of Andrejs in the midfield. Who says we need a new midfielder?
Clinton then fired in a cross that Aki sent just wide of the goalpost, and more in desperation than in a tactical move Preston replaced Ainsworth with David Healey. Andrejs was badly cut down by Graham Alexander, and it took a few minutes for him to come back on to the field of play. Iain Anderson came on for Keane, but still the chances were all happening at the Preston end of the field. David magically stole the ball from Moilanen, and sent in a cross that Clinton managed to send just over the top of the bar, instead of just underneath it.
Palace then won a corner through the guiles of David, that Danny took and the keeper punched away. Paul McKenna then sent in a cross that went all the way across the face of goal, and there was not a Preston attacker on hand to finish the job, then a long shot from McKenna was easily dealt with by Alex, who was putting in another fine performance. Ade managed to beat a couple of defenders before crossing the ball just out of the path of a rapidly approaching Clinton.
In a final substitution move Palace relieved Andrejs, by far the man of the match for most Palace supporters, and brought Wayne Routledge on for the final few minutes of the match. Just what Trevor thinks he might gain by such a late substitution is beyond most of us. He cannot, surely, see much of the player that he is bringing on, and he can only be hurting the feelings of a player who has acquitted himself so well for the bulk of the afternoon. Still, I guess that is why he is the manager, and we are not. Surely he must know what he is doing? Maybe Andrejs was hurt in that tackle, and it was merely a precautionary move?
Ade fired another shot goalwards, but this time the keeper managed to hang on to the ball. Wayne made a good run down the right side of the pitch before he was forced off the ball by Robert Edwards. Wayne then did manage to get down that side once more, and his cross found Curtis in the centre, but the move broke down, and we faced the final three minutes of added on injury time for the last time this season at Selhurst Park. During this time only one shot was made at goal, along-range effort by Clinton that Moilanen easily dealt with, and the final whistle sounded to give the Palace faithful something to cheer about on their way home. As for Preston, they now face a monster task, including all sorts of permutations, if they are to make the top six, and thus a play-off spot for the end of the year. Somehow I can't see them making it.
We now go on to face West Bromwich Albion next Sunday, and it should be a great curtain closer to our season, and maybe just an indicator of what might be in store for us next season.
Colin Pryce
Crystal Palace: Alex Kolinko, Dean Austin, Hayden Mullins, Danny Granville, Curtis Fleming, Tony Popovic, Aki Riihilahti, Andrew Frampton (David Hopkin 45), Julian Gray (Andrejs Rubins 25, Wayne Routledge 87), Clinton Morrison, Ade Akinbiyi.
Substitutes not used: Cedric Carasso, Tommy Black.
Preston North End: Tepi Moilanen, Graham Alexander, Michael Jackson, Sean Gregan, Clyde Wijnhard, Robert Edwards, Paul McKenna, Gareth Ainsworth (David Healey 66), Richard Cresswell, Dickson Etuhu, Michael Keane (Iain Anderson 66).
Substitutes not used: David Lucas, Mark Rankine, Adam Eaton.
Attendance: 21,361
Referee: Mr C Wilkes (Gloucester)