Sheffield United - 3 (Asaba 35. Peschisolido 86. 88.)
Crystal Palace - 1 (Park og 82.)

Having lost to United only a few weeks ago, it really was time for some payback. Unfortunately we were unable to field a team that looked even remotely like our first choice, and as a result our chances were somewhat diminished. For a few minutes it looked as if we might just force the game into extra time, but the tactical substitution of United's scorer, Carl Asaba, for Paul Peschisolido soon put paid to that idea.

The first move forward in the match came from Danny Butterfield, the chance being cleared by Shaun Murphy. A free kick against Tommy Black resulted in little joy for United, and then Murphy returned the compliment at the other end, Hayden Mullins taking the kick that went well over the bar.

Palace won a corner that did little to trouble the home defence, but Hayden's shot at goal a few moments later worried them, the effort going wide of the mark. Tommy then got booked for another foul, and Wayne Allison got free on goal, his shot also going wide of the post.

A cross into the centre by Tommy was well cleared by Robert Page, and another corner to Palace was cleared, this time by Murphy. Stuart McCall then fired the ball into the goal area, Hayden being on hand to clear the danger, whilst a cross at the other end was well caught by Alex Kolinko. A corner to Sheffield was played in by Michael Tonge, but once again Hayden did the clearing.

Peter Ndlovu was the next to fire the ball into the danger area, but Darren Powell was on hand to clear the danger once more. Tommy fired a shot on goal that the keeper had little trouble hanging on to, then Aki Riihilahti was adjudged to have fouled Michael Brown, the resulting free kick missing the mark once more. Another corner to Palace was cleared by the defence, and another corner moments later was cleared from the area by Patrick Kenny.

A corner at the other end saw Tonge fire the ball in and Murphy head the ball goalwards. Alex needed to be alert to tip the ball over the top of the crossbar, but the corner was to be our undoing. The ball came in again from Tonge, and this time Asaba was on hand to bury the ball into the back of the net, giving Alex little chance of even seeing the ball. Murphy cleared another Palace corner, and a final chance in the half fell to Dele Adebola, his effort going wide of the post once again.

The half time break would surely have brought stern words from the manager - perhaps we could get back into the match in the second period of play?

A cross into the centre by Tommy was pushed behind for a corner by Murphy, but the corner was once again wasted. Finally Andy Johnson got a shot on goal, his effort being tipped round the post by Kenny. Murphy cleared yet another corner, then AJ got another shot on goal, the keeper doing well to once again save the shot, this time managing to hang on to the ball. Phil Jagielka then fired a cross in that Alex did well to pluck out of the sky, and the next corner to Palace was cleared by Jon Harley.

Hayden was booked for a foul on Allison, then Danny tried a shot on goal that the keeper once again tipped round the side of the post. Asaba cleared our next attempt at getting the ball from the corner flag to the back of the net, and then he raced down the other end to fire a shot on goal that missed the target, giving Alex little to worry about.

Brown was the next name in the book, this time for a foul on Dele, and Palace opted to replace Will Antwi for Gary Borrowdale. Murphy again cleared a corner kick, just how many corners does it take to score a goal? Ndlovu tried a shot on goal that was cleared by Darren, and then a corner to the home side resulted in a shot by Tonge that was cleared by the defence. Palace made a second substitution, this time replacing Dele with Gareth Williams.

Julian Gray tried a shot on goal that the keeper again tipped round the post, but once again the corner was wasted. Pressure on the home goal was starting to mount though, and finally an attempt by Tommy was steered into the back of the net by Robert Page, resulting in the defender being credited with the goal. Either way we were back on even terms, and there was only about eight minutes left in the match.

The fateful substitution came, Peschisolido coming in to the play, followed almost immediately by another as McCall made way for Nick Montgomery. A shot by Brown went wide of the post, but Ndlovu played a good centering cross that found Peschisolido who simply headed the ball into the back of the net. Despite prolific calls for an "offside" ruling, particularly by Alex, the goal stood, and suddenly we were behind once again. To add insult to injury Alex was booked for his ministrations, and Peschisolido added another goal this time into the bottom corner of the goal; no dispute as to the legality of the shot this time.

Of course, this was more than enough to seal the match, and though Palace will be aggrieved at the final scoreline, the players will have been quite pleased with their individual efforts. Many supporters will console themselves with the thought that the side can now concentrate on moving up the League, but of course there is still another Cup run to come, this time the FA Cup. This starts with a trip to "sunny" Blackpool, but let's hope we have a few more League points before this comes about.

Colin Pryce

Sheffield United: Patrick Kenny, Phil Jagielka, Jon Harley, Shaun Murphy, Robert Page, Michael Brown, Stuart McCall Nick Montgomery 84), Peter Ndlovu, Michael Tonge, Carl Asaba (Paul Peschisolido 84), Wayne Allison.

Substitutes not used: Laurens Ten Heuvel, Robert Kozluk, Jean-Phillipe Javary.

Crystal Palace: Alex Kolinko, Darren Powell, Kit Symons, Will Antwi (Gary Borrowdale 66), Danny Butterfield, Hayden Mullins, Julian Gray, Aki Riihilahti, Tommy Black, Andrew Johnson, Dele Adebola (Gareth Williams 79).

Substitutes not used: Nikolaos Michopoulos, Gavin Heeroo, Sam Togwell.

Attendance: 22,211

Referee: Mr E Wolstenholme (Lancashire)