Crystal Palace - 1 (Mullins 24.)
Barnsley - 0

With a big demonstration planned for this match by disgruntled supporters, the fact that the side managed a win is probably even more to their credit. I find it difficult to agree with those that wish to protest, though I understand their "right" to do so. Palace are MY team, they have been so since 1956, and they will remain so for many years to come. If they play in the Premiership, or if they play in any other League, they will still be my team. Whilst letting the Chairman know exactly what you think may seem a good idea, without a viable alternative I am not sure what they thought they may achieve other than potentially putting the team off their game. I suppose all the above is fairly easy for me to say, as I do not have to live in England, and put up with all the jibes that are obviously being fired at Palace supporters at this time. But without the answers that suggest a better direction, let's all get behind our team!

Having got all that off my chest - let's get on with the important part of these notes - the game itself.

The first problem in this match was that we had not won since Boxing Day, we had not kept a clean sheet since November, and good old Bruce Dyer was in the Barnsley lineup, looking to score against his old side as many have done before him. To the credit of our defence Bruce had a very frustrating game, never once getting a shot at goal! With a side that was decimated by injuries Fan Zhiyi was moved up into attack, to partner Clinton Morrison. Both sides got underway somewhat slowly, but considering their positions in the League this was probably understandable. It took until about the 6th minute for the first move from the Eagles, with Tony Bullock snatching the ball from the feet of Fan. Not a great deal followed this until Andy Linighan sent forward a long clearance, which Sun Jihai took to the defence, the resultant poor cross finding Fan who won a corner. Needless to say the opportunity was wasted. 24 minutes had passed when Jamie Smith, Clinton Morrison and Fan all combined in a good move on the opposition goal.

Hayden Mullins found himself clear of the defence only 10 yards out, and duly shot for goal. The ball appeared somewhat easy for Bullock to control, but a wicked bounce sent the ball just over his grasp and into the back of the net. So, a little luck for the home side, and one can honestly say that it was more than overdue. Between then and the end of the first half Barnsley were the ones suffering the injury problems. Two of their players rose to head the ball at the same time, missing the ball and heading each other. The result was that Adrian Moses had to leave the field of play, Matty Appleby coming on to replace him. A few minutes later Appleby was also injured and another substitution had to take place. Finally Darren Sheridan was hurt, and Barnsley's third substitution had to take place at the start of the second period. Not only were they in trouble if any more players were hurt, they also now had a team that was forced to play somewhat out of position. The final minutes all belonged to Fan, though the combination of the poor pitch and the swirling winds "robbed" him, and us, of a badly needed second goal. The break came without any further addition to the score, though for once we had the lead.

The start of the second half saw Sun make a good move forward, but the shot taken on goal was deflected for a corner by the keeper. Despite pressure from Barnsley the defence was holding firm, and Craig Foster forced a corner at the other end. The corner resulted in a shot going into the side netting. The crowd was now buzzing, almost anticipating the chance of a second goal that would kill off any thoughts of the visitors gaining a point. Steve Evans came on for Steve Thomson, and with his first touch the ball was once again in the back of the net. With the crowd still getting ready to celebrate our "goal" the referee indicated that another Palace player was offside. Finally a good move by the Barnsley players saw Mike Sheron get a sight of the goal. Kevin Miller easily dealt with the 15 yard attempt, which fortunately went straight to him. This represented 66 minutes gone, Barnsley's first attempt on goal, and indeed their only real chance of ever scoring in this match. It is fairly easy to see why their position is no better in the League than ours. A final attempt at goal came when Evans saw his cross fall badly for Clinton, the keeper managing to get to the ball first. The final whistle sounded, and the crowd, and the players celebrated the win together. Just how many supporters raised their "Goldberg Out" cards at the end of the match was never really explained.

Colin Pryce

Crystal Palace: Kevin Miller, Craig Moore, Andy Linighan, Gordan Petric, Jamie Smith, Sun Jihai, Hayden Mullins, Craig Foster, Steve Thomson (Steve Evans 63), Clinton Morrison, Fan Zhiyi (Leon McKenzie 74).
Not Used: Sasa Curcic.

Barnsley: Tony Bullock, Nicky Eaden, Arjan De Zeeuw, Kevin Richardson, Adrian Moses (Matty Appleby 36, Martin Bullock 43), Scott Jones, Darren Sheridan (Don Goodman 46), Craig Hignett, Mike Sheron, Bruce Dyer, Clayton Blackmore.
Not Used: None.

Attendance: 17,021
Referee: Mr M R Halsey (Welwyn Garden City).