Crystal Palace v Newcastle United matchday programme by Crystal Palace F.C.

Crystal Palace v Newcastle United Saturday 23rd October 2021 // 3:00pm

palace √ newcastle sat 23 oct | 15:00

06 Manager 10 chairman 34 darren ambrose 40 over the road 47 voices of south london 51 non-league neighbours 61 cpfc 1861 64 palace women 66 from the terraces 70 stats & results

Directors Chairman Steve Parish, David Blitzer, Joshua Harris, John Textor Chief Executive Phil Alexander Chief Financial Officer Sean O’Loughlin Sporting Director Dougie Freedman Club Secretary Christine Dowdeswell Head of Sports Medicine Dr. Zaf Iqbal Academy Director Gary Issott Director of U23 Development Mark Bright Head Groundsman Bruce Elliott Commercial Director Barry Webber Director of Operations Sharon Lacey Head of Ticketing Ally Spicer General Counsel David Nichol Chief Marketing and Communications Officer James Woodroof Head of Safeguarding Cassi Wright Editor Ben Mountain Design Billy Cooke, Luke Thomas, Stu Ellmer Contributors Will Robinson, Ian King, Peter Manning, Darren Ambrose, Tash Stephens, Toby Jagmohan, Ed Reynolds Photography Neil Everitt, Seb Frej, Reuters, Dan Weir (PPA), Getty Printer Bishops Printers

contents

Because of football I travelled the world. Because of football I speak different languages. Because of football I met people I never dreamed of meeting

briefing palace √ newcastle sat 23 oct | 15:00

Palace supporters’ group share local charity efforts -

october

Volunteers from the fan collective One Of Our Own Foundation have shared news of their recent work in the community, having supported causes across south London from homelessness to local schoolchildren. The foundation was formed by supporters from the Arthur Wait stand when the COVID-19 pandemic struck with the aim of helping the community however they could. Volunteers first distributed food and other essentials to

homeless people in Croydon. They later contacted schools close to Selhurst Park to support students whose families were financially impacted by the pandemic. This has seen them since develop a relationship with Broadmead Primary School in Selhurst, to whom they have delivered Christmas hampers, stationary, Easter eggs and items for the food bank set up in November 2020. They also renovated a seating area in the school’s playground and provided pots, compost and seeds for the children to grow their own plants. Their latest project has been delivering boxes of clothes for

Nathaniel Clyne makes debut, 2008 v Barnsley

Palace 4-3 Millwall, 1989

Don Rogers born, 1945

Crystal Palace 5-0 Brighton & Hove Albion, 2002

Joel Ward born, 1989

premature babies at Croydon University Hospital. All of these efforts were made possible by supporters volunteering and donating, and the foundation is calling on Palace fans to spare any time or donations they can. To find out more, please search: Twitter @oooofoundation Instagram @oneofourownfoundation

Fan update It is now a Premier League requirement that clubs spot-check the COVID certification status of match attendees on arrival at the stadium.

What’s inside Find out… Patrick Vieira’s powerful message on discrimination (Page 12), the Palace Academy graduate with a secret record (Page 44) and how one south London team provided an entire England XI… twice (Page 51). briefing

manager

Welcome to Selhurst Park to the Newcastle United Directors, staff and players, and to everyone here supporting us today.

was really pleased with the way we played against Arsenal and that display shows our process in action. But it was not enough: we need to turn these good performances into wins. We went to Arsenal knowing the match would be really difficult and that the first 20 minutes especially would be a challenge. We did have a difficult period, but after that I felt we got into the game and played well. I woke up the next morning with disappointment because we should have won, and I felt the players deserved to win and worked hard to get more from this game. I felt the same way after Brighton. We need to continue the process in place to secure a win today, but I’m expecting a really tough afternoon. There has been a lot of change at Newcastle and when new owners come in you see players showing they want to be part of the football club’s next chapter. Newcastle’s future looks really exciting for the fans and for the city. However we have the advantage today, as we always do at Selhurst. We’re unbeaten at home

Every single home game has had a fantastic atmosphere, so when teams come to us and put us through a difficult period, we feel your support and are given the extra energy to fight manager

this season and that’s down to the part you play. Every single home game has had a fantastic atmosphere, so when teams come to us and put us through a difficult period, we feel your support and are given the extra energy to fight. This stadium is a difficult place for any team to come, and I have no doubt that will be the case today and for every match. A few pages along, I have given an interview about fighting discrimination for our second No Room For Racism fixture. I would ask you to read it, because I think football and stadiums reflect our society due to their diversity. This is why I believe there is no place for racism in our society. Finally, I would like to share my best wishes with the Newcastle supporter who required treatment during the recent game with Tottenham. I hope he is recovering. The reaction and how quickly help came from the stadium was fantastic. It just shows the solidarity between people, so all credit to the fans, doctors and staff who gave the support needed. Thank you for your support

captain

It is so difficult to concede late in a game and miss out on points you deserve to have, but we have so many positives to take from such a difficult start.

would like to look at our opening games. Chelsea, Tottenham, Liverpool, Leicester, Arsenal; five of the country’s top teams who are going to be fighting for a European spot. Then also Brentford, top 10 and fighting hard, West Ham who finished sixth and Brighton, our biggest rivals. To take eight points from this is encouraging. But we can say we dropped four points against Brighton and Arsenal, and maybe could have taken some more from West Ham and Leicester. If this season had had a little bit more luck or some things had gone differently, I will say we could be on 12 or more points. In football you hope that some good and bad luck cancels itself out over time - we see this every season. We have definitely had some bad luck, but this is not what the manager or players focus on. Instead, we are looking at how we make some good luck for ourselves, and most importantly how we remain tight at the end of games to ensure our hard work over 90 minutes brings us all the points. I think maybe there is just some focus missing right by the final whistle, and this is something we know needs

Selhurst is our home and this is where we are doing best this season. We are unbeaten in front of you here and want to continue that today

captain

addressing. But we are playing consistently and with confidence from the back to the front. It is when you are playing like this and dropping points through small mistakes that you can feel more positive, because your style is right and in time it will earn you some wins. Selhurst is our home and this is where we are doing best this season. We are unbeaten in front of you here and want to continue that today. We know that Newcastle have been going through some change and are not in their best form, so we want to make the most of this while remembering that they are a big club with some very talented players and that every team in the Premier League can cause you trouble. Today is our second No Room For Racism fixture and I would like to reinforce the message on behalf of the players and the club. As you will have seen this week, if you hear or see abuse anywhere on a matchday, please challenge it and report it. I am proud to represent a diverse squad and part of the world, and this is one of the things that makes Crystal Palace special. Make some noise!

chairman

Welcome to the supporters, players, staff and the new Directors of Newcastle United to Selhurst Park this afternoon for this exciting encounter. And welcome to each and every Crystal Palace supporter here to get behind Patrick’s team.

ur performance at Arsenal was nothing short of fantastic; I was particularly impressed by how the players pressed as a unit and of course with the two excellent finishes from Christian and Odsonne. It was absolutely gut-wrenching to concede so late, but as Patrick said on Sky after the game, we deserved to win the game and losing points like this will make us stronger. On Thursday, we will officially open our outstanding new Academy facility, with Gareth Southgate as our special guest. While the site has been operational for some time, huge progress has been made in recent weeks, most notably the completion of the full size pitch within a dome – which is already ensuring that our teams can play around the clock in all weather. It will be a hugely proud moment for me and those who have worked tirelessly on the project, and I look forward to welcoming many special guests including former players, managers and Academy graduates, and those who helped to make it all happen.

We have not forgotten about welcoming our Academy Founder Members to the site as we promised when they donated their Season Ticket refund to our project.

The atmosphere at our last outing here at Selhurst was quite incredible – and I’m sure you will raise the volume another notch today as we all throw our support behind Patrick and the players

We have a bit more work to do on site, but rest assured, we will be in touch soon to confirm arrangements. chairman

I’d like to make you aware of another magnificent club occasion next Sunday, as we are entering a team into The Generation Cup which is celebrating 150 years of the FA Cup. We are proud of our history in forming the Football Association in 1863, and it was fascinating to learn of our route to the semi-final in the first edition of the competition in 1871/72. It is only right that we are taking part in this tournament. Our 24-man squad will be managed by Alan Smith, and Mark Bright has done a remarkable job getting a fantastic group together to pull on a Palace shirt for this celebratory occasion. I urge you to tune in on Palace TV+ or pop along to Hitchin Town to support the team as they take on Maidenhead United and Hitchin Town. The atmosphere at our last outing here at Selhurst was quite incredible – and I’m sure you will raise the volume another notch today as we all throw our support behind Patrick and the players. Up the Palace

Patrick Vieira is as thoughtful as he is enthused about combatting discrimination. Towards the end of Black History Month and on Crystal Palace’s dedicated No Room For Racism fixture, the manager shares his viewpoint, discusses charity work and explains how his career inspired a nation. By Ben Mountain.

main interview

there it’s really difficult to start from the bottom. Those organisations have to lead on the kind of diversity we find in the stands and on the field.” A vocal campaigner for equality in football and beyond, Vieira says “all of us who have a voice have a part to play to improve our society and to improve the life of black people.” To this end, he has long stood at the forefront of the sport’s battle with discrimination, speaking out publicly to the point of fines, leading Manchester City’s Under21s from the field after alleged racial abuse, and sharing solutions over lunch with UEFA president, Aleksander Ceferin. These actions are as removed as imaginable from the gesture politics Vieira lambasts. Indeed, his approach goes beyond raising awareness and lobbying, with practical proposals immediately to hand: “Every country wants to organise or host Champions League football, a European Championship or any kind of big event. If a city wants to host the Champions League, there is criteria to be taken into consideration. They bid for it, and when you bid for it there is always a checklist. There is nothing on how to fight discrimination or what those cities are doing to fight it. I think this is something they need to look at closely. “The sanctions given to teams, clubs and countries are not having any impact on fighting against discrimination. If they really want to fight racism and discrimination, they need to hit where it hurts. That means points deductions or banning

atrick Vieira pauses and looks across the pitches of Copers Cope Road. He is talking at length about racism, how to fight it and why football can lead the charge. It would be easy to confuse these silences for a meticulous coach surveying the activities of his staff. But Vieira’s mind isn’t wandering off as he stops mid-sentence and turns his eyes towards the grass outside. It’s sharpening, assessing the different forms his words might take. On one hand, there is Vieira the player: unforgiving, uncompromising and pugnacious. On the other, there is Vieira the manager: consular, pensive and calm. When his voice tapers off and his gaze focuses elsewhere, the manager looks embroiled in debate: picking the sucker punch or handshake, diatribe or diplomacy. He lands between the two on most occasions, blending stinging criticism with considered suggestions. “In each country there are things the politicians or football bodies are doing to try to improve discrimination,” he says slowly, speaking as one of six BAME managers across England’s 92 professional clubs. “[… but] the diversity is not strong enough where decisions are being made… this is the biggest issue I have with UEFA, with FIFA or the federations, to start with the top of the pyramid. They are the ones who have to show an example of what diversity is all about. And if we don’t start from patrick vieira

the club, city or country from participating in any competition. “This will be a strong statement that will finally show those organisations want to fight racism and any kind of discrimination.” Over the last few years, social media has become one of the key battlegrounds in the fight against racism. In February this year, English football wrote an open letter calling Facebook and Twitter “platforms [that] remain havens for abuse” which is “debasing, often threatening and illegal.” It led to a boycott of social media across English football, with 43% of players studied by the Professional Footballers’ Association experiencing targeted and explicitly racist abuse online. “Social media is a reflection of our society,” Vieira says. “[People are] using the tools they have in their hands to express themselves in a way that is not appropriate or brave at all. So then it comes to the responsibility of the people who own those social media channels. They have a responsibility to not just make money but to run that platform for people to use it in the right way.” Shortly before this interview, Facebook entered the spotlight after allegations denied by the company regarding public safety were shared by former employee Frances Haugen. The argument that social media platforms prioritise profit over protection is one Vieira makes emphatically, again walking the line between passion and pragmatism.

“The question is: do they want to do it? Or is it okay for them because we’re talking about social media, making news, and any news is good news? “There is a moral duty on their part. It’s all about how much you want to fight discrimination, how much you want to fight homophobia, how much you want to fight racism. The tools are there to do it; I’m sure they know how to block those people. “If you use Instagram or Facebook and look at something, because you’ve opened that page you [later] receive all this [targeted]

They can do it, it’s just about how much they want to stop it, how much they want to fight discrimination. It’s time for those big companies to show their commitment information you don’t want… They can do it, it’s just about how much they want to stop it, how much they want to fight discrimination. It’s time for those big companies to show their commitment. “[If a player disclosed abuse] we will have to support them. It can be a player or it can be me. The support will be important, and again it’s, yes, the club will do its duty and as a team we’ll do what we have to do, but [that focus is] all about how we can stop it… the power to stop it is in the hands of those organisations like Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.” patrick vieira

main interview

Vieira is forthcoming about the scale of the challenge facing global football, but underpinning everything he says – despite the inhumanity of discrimination – is an unwavering belief in his sport’s ability to effect change. It provides the positive backbone to his comments, the small shard of light on an otherwise gloomy conversation. “To fight against it is to realise that if we want to change society or use football to send messages to

What I loved about when I was a player was when I was in the dressing room. You share that dressing room with people coming from all around the world, with different cultures, different colours of skin, different religions. That is an education

the world… we can use football to promote education, to fight against discrimination. Football can be a positive tool. “What I loved about when I was a player was when I was in the dressing room. You share that dressing room with people coming from all around the world, with different cultures, different colours of skin, different religions. That is an education because you try to learn about the guys who are next to you. “[Fighting discrimination] is not easy to do… but the power of football can make it happen.” patrick vieira

main interview

In 2003 Vieira’s faith in football saw him co-found Diambars Institute in Senegal. Alongside businessman Saër Seck and fellow professionals Bernard Lama and Jimmy AdjoviBoco, Vieira “wanted to use football to promote education,” and “build facilities for the kids in Africa, in Senegal, to have the same chance as the kids in Europe.” The manager left Dakar, Senegal, for France aged nine in the 1980s. His return to the country came aged 30, “to put down the first stones of Diambars.” “My first memories are about football,” he looks back; “playing in a small alley with one ball made of plastic or what you can find and just kicking it around. “When I went back so many people told me when I was a baby they put me on their back or came to our home. I felt a bit strange because they knew me more than I knew them. They’d followed me through my career. So they knew the steps I’d made and when they were talking to me it was really difficult to answer back because I don’t have any memories of them; I felt like I’d lost my memories. “They were following me and saw this kid who came from next door and managed to do what he loves, and that can inspire some of the kids. Some of them may not have the chance I had. “I wanted to succeed because of a love of the game. The more you grow the more you realise you can be an inspiration or an example to follow… You’ve come from Senegal to France and have the

chance to do what I really like. So many kids would love to do that.” Through Diambars, Vieira and his co-founders are ensuring the opportunity is there, cementing his belief in football’s power to change lives. “[The children’s] dream is to be a footballer. So we said: ‘Okay, let’s try to build something that will give them the chance to be a footballer, but at the same time, we’re going to use their love for the game to promote education.’ So we taught them that if you don’t do well at school you’re not allowed to train.

Every kid wants to play football. You can be from Brazil, you can be from Senegal, you can be from any country on any continent, football is universal and it’s for all

If you don’t do well at school you’re not going to play games. “Every kid wants to play football. You can be from Brazil, you can be from Senegal, you can be from any country on any continent, football is universal and it’s for all. “This is why I love the game very much. This game can be a really good instrument for education. Because of football I travelled the world. Because of football I speak different languages. Because of football I met people I never dreamed of meeting... Football made my education. This is the power of football.” patrick vieira

most admired france icons Patrick Vieira ranks among the greatest footballers France have ever fielded. Here, he picks five other Frenchmen who’ve inspired the country, naming the five France internationals he admires the most, for either their on- or off-pitch work.

Zinedine Zidane For me he is the perfect player that I will say is a legend. Everything he did made it really easy, making the things around him look good. For me a legend is someone who makes other people look good; he was making us look good. He is the top of the top.

Lilian Thuram

Marius Trésor

He’s a warrior. He is really a fighter. He can be stubborn at times but he’s a fighter; somebody on the field you can go to war with. He’s standing proud and ready to fight for the good of the team. And as well what he’s fighting for; he’s fighting hard against racism in France. He receives a lot of criticism but he stands proud and is fighting for what he thinks is right. He’s a really good inspiration not just for young black players but kids worldwide.

He was a black centre-half who was a really strong French international defender. He was a true gentleman as well. He’s a good guy, an example for the black French players about how humble you can be even if you are at that level. He’s loved by people in France.

Thierry Henry What he achieved in his career was unbelievable. People remember his talent but people don’t realise how hard he’d work to get to where he is. I think he’s a really good example about if you work hard you will have more chance to succeed, of a work ethic that can bring you success. the follow-up

Luis Fernandez He was part of the Carré Magique [magic square] in the French national team with Michel Platini, Alain Giresse and Jean Tigana. He was my idol because he played in the same position as me and what makes it really special is he gave me my debut at professional level in Cannes. I liked him because he was a leader by example, always doing the dirty work for the other three who had more talent. He had a different talent.

Rebrewed from head to hop. Carlsberg Danish Pilsner. NEW Brew NEW Glass NEW Fount Still iconically Danish.

Proud to support

Crystal Palace Football Club

Newcastle United F.C. est. 1892

Inside League-leading Ritchie Breaking a 17-year spell Being a player amid a takeover

opposition

Magpies newcastle united

Newcastle United have been in the spotlight intensely over the last few weeks, following their takeover by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and Steve Bruce's departure.

match preview Newcastle's on-pitch season has not been one to write home about so far, sitting in the relegation zone after eight games. That said, they have drawn three of their last six and will be rejuvenated as the club and its supporters enter a new era. Thankfully for Palace, Newcastle’s potential transfer window spree is still a while off, so Patrick Vieira’s men will be looking to strike against one of the league's leakiest defences. United have shipped more goals (19) than any side. Recent results between these teams have swung both ways, with each side securing an away victory in 20/21 and home victory the season before. But Palace’s form at Selhurst will inspire hope, with the Eagles going unbeaten in SE25 so far.

Story so far

Position Points Top scorer

Home

away

third

Last five Seasons Season

Position

Points

Top Scorer

20/21

12th

Wilson (12)

19/20

13th

Shelvey (6)

18/19

13th

Pérez (12)

17/18

10th

Pérez (8)

16/17

1st (Champ)

Gayle (23)

19th 3 Callum Wilson (3)

Most assists

Allan Saint-Maximin (3)

Most passes

Matt Ritchie (307)

league leader: Ritchie

opposition

Matt Ritchie has made more crosses (64) this season than any other player in the league, ahead of Trent AlexanderArnold by four.

Remember when?

Boot in both camps

Palace secured their first win over Newcastle in 17 years with an emphatic 5-1 victory in 2015. Papiss Cissé opened the scoring within 10 minutes before Palace bit back hard with goals from James McArthur (two), Yannick Bolasie (two) and Wilfried Zaha.

recent form

last time out Newcastle United 2 Tottenham Hotspur 3 Sun 17 Oct / St James’ Park

Starting xi 26

subs

K. Darlow

F. Schär

M. Ritchie

J. Shelvey

C. Clark

J. Lewis

J. Lascelles

J. Hendrick

J. Manquillo

F. Fernández

I. Hayden

R. Fraser

Joelinton

J. Murphy

S. Longstaff

M. Gillespie

J. Willock

D. Gayle

A. Saint-Maximin

C. Wilson

First sub Second sub Third sub Yellow card Red card Goal Own goal

9 7

14 11

opposition

Wayne Routledge Recently retired Routledge came through the Palace Academy system to make his Football League debut aged 16. After 123 Palace appearances, he joined Tottenham Hotspur, and was with Newcastle from January 2010-August 2011.

SAFE HANDS 101 apps 29 clean sheets

02 03 Ciaran Clark

Paul Dummett

POS: DEFENDER

NAT: IRELAND

NAT: WALES

05 12 Fabian Schär

Jamal Lewis

POS: GOALKEEPER

POS: DEFENDER

NAT: SLOVAKIA

NAT: SWITZERLAND

NAT: NORTHERN IRELAND

After initially impressing on loan and on his debut for the Magpies, Dúbravka made his move to Tyneside permanent on 30th May, 2018. He has since amassed over 100 appearances for Newcastle, keeping 29 clean sheets. Dúbravka has been sidelined this season as he recovers from a foot injury, but returned to training in September.

player profile

Martin Dúbravka

Age

Height

1.90m

Joined

31st January, 2018

Debut

11th February, 2018 v Manchester United

PREVIOUS CLUBS: Žilina, Esbjerg, Slovan Liberec & Sparta Prague. opposition

Emil Krafth

Federico Fernández

POS: DEFENDER

NAT: SWEDEN

NAT: ARGENTINA

Javier Manquillo

Matt Ritchie

SKIPPER

131 apps 31 clean sheets

Jamaal Lascelles

POS: MIDFIELDER

POS: DEFENDER

NAT: SPAIN

NAT: SCOTLAND

NAT: ENGLAND

player profile

POS: DEFENDER

Age

Height

1.88m

Joined

9th August, 2014

Debut

25th August, 2015 v Northampton Town

PREVIOUS CLUB: Nottingham Forest. opposition

Since his move from Nottingham Forest, Lascelles has grown into his role as captain and first-choice centreback at Newcastle. Though his recent seasons have been blighted by injury, the defender will look to add to his tally of over 30 clean sheets this time round. He featured in the Championship Team of the Year following Newcastle’s 2016/17 promotion.

14 Isaac Hayden

Ryan Fraser

POS: MIDFIELDER

NAT: ENGLAND

NAT: SCOTLAND

PLAYMAKER

59 app 8 goals

23 24 Jacob Murphy

Miguel Almirón

Allan Saint-Maximin

POS: MIDFIELDER

NAT: ENGLAND

NAT: PARAGUAY

NAT: FRANCE

player profile

POS: MIDFIELDER

Age

Height

1.73m

Joined

2nd August, 2019

Debut

11th August, 2019 v Arsenal

PREVIOUS CLUBS: Saint-Étienne, Monaco & Nice. opposition

Explosive winger SaintMaximin is at the heart of all Newcastle attacks, with his direct tricky runs at defenders. Since his arrival from Nice he has proved pivotal in many Newcastle attacks, with six goals and eight assists in two seasons.

09 28 36 DANGERMAN

156 app 56 goals

Joe Willock

Sean Longstaff

POS: MIDFIELDER

NAT: ENGLAND

07 34 Callum Wilson

Joelinton

Dwight Gayle

POS: FORWARD

NAT: ENGLAND

NAT: BRAZIL

NAT: ENGLAND

With over 50 Premier League goals to his name, Wilson is a proven goal threat. The striker made an instant impact at St James’ Park, winning the club’s Player of the Year award in 2020/21. He holds four England caps and has scored once, in a friendly against the United States in 2018.

player profile

POS: FORWARD

Age

Height

1.80m

Joined

7th September, 2020

Debut

12th September, 2020 v West Ham United

PREVIOUS CLUBS: Coventry City & AFC Bournemouth. opposition

NATURAL CAFFEINE ZERO SUGAR HYDRATION ENERGY now available countrywide

for SPORT

Newcastle have won just one of their last six away Premier League games against Crystal Palace (D3 L2), though it was in this exact fixture last season (2-0).

Palace have won three of their last five Premier League games against Newcastle (L2), more than they had in their first 15 against them in the competition (W2 D5 L8).

11 00

01 19

Passes per match 459

346 shots

100 Shooting accuracy %

28 goals conceded

19 clean sheets

Joachim Andersen Passes per match

Clean sheets

Ciaran Clark Passes per match

Clean sheets

opposition

ambrose from the studio

In each programme, club legend Darren Ambrose provides his unique insight into the opposition – offering analysis and expert opinion as a player-turned-pundit.

Picking up dropped points It’s so disappointing to concede such a late goal again, but the team and club need to avoid becoming concerned by it. It’s happened twice now – we’ve been 15 seconds away from an extra four points – and that does affect you, but you can’t let it become a mentality. In my opinion Palace deserved a comfortable victory against Arsenal. It was an Arsenal team in good form with three league wins and a draw behind it. They had fantastic players on the pitch and Palace were comfortably the better side. As soon as they got into the game they had Arsenal on the ropes, and that performance should have earned three points. But it’s all learning curves; after all, this is a new team. Tyrick Mitchell is young, Marc Guéhi and Joachim Andersen have only played together this season, and Joel Ward is massively experienced but playing in a new backline. There is all manner of positives to focus on: at the start of the season if you were offered eight points from

our first eight games, you’d take it. In my eyes, it’s a positive that we can be disappointed. We could have got more out of West Ham, Leicester, Brighton and Arsenal, so it’s only a matter of time before someone gets a hiding.

There is all manner of positives to focus on: at the start of the season if you were offered eight points from our first eight games, you’d take it Another encouraging sign was the formation; it shows Patrick really looks into games. Look at what Romelu Lukaku and Ivan Toney did to Arsenal’s backline by playing as direct forwards. Patrick must have seen that Christian could go up there and be a bully as well. Darren ambrose

He made the right call; the front players played particularly well.

Seizing a chance I’ve done a lot of analysis on Newcastle and this is not a good time for them: they’re nervous. There’s a lot contributing to that. At the time of writing, they’re second

from bottom, haven’t won a league game and have conceded 19 goals; three more than anyone else. Palace need to exploit that. Their takeover is unbelievable for the fans, but it comes with its own risks: every single player is playing for their future at that football club and beyond. While that can be motivation, it can also work against you. They’re nervous and you can see it in their play; they scored early against Spurs, looked shocked and then sat back. Palace need to go for the jugular and get an early goal – that’s crucial against a shaky side. Now, on the flipside, Newcastle do score. They’ve scored comfortably more than anyone in the bottom six. There are two main reasons for this: Allan SaintMaximin and Callum Wilson. Any pundit or supporter will tell you those two are Newcastle’s dangermen. I talk about players playing for their future, but SaintMaximin is the one the owners will be looking at as a potential superstar. And Wilson drives results. We saw that when he returned from injury last season, so it’s frustrating for Palace that he’s back on the scoresheet now. But I don’t think those two are enough on their own. Palace will need to utilise Saint-Maximin’s weaknesses. He’s fantastic on the ball, but will he track back enough off it? I’m not sure. That’s where Tyrick Mitchell can continue getting forward, using the space on the left and creating two-v-one situations with whoever’s on the left-wing.

I’ve been backing Patrick from the day he arrived and he’s showing how positive Palace can be Good times ahead There have been frustrating moments recently, but we’ve got to be patient with the new style of play. I’m loving watching Crystal Palace. I’ve been backing Patrick from the day he arrived and he’s showing how positive Palace can be. So we’ve got to be patient. There are going to be mistakes but there are some really, really positive times ahead.

Making the front pages Newcastle have been in the news constantly given their takeover, but I never found it difficult to play when boardroom matters were grabbing the headlines. Take 2010 as an example. We flew to Newcastle, landed and were told we’d been put into administration. We had a team meeting and were told Victor Moses couldn’t play because he was an asset they needed to sell. Neil Warnock and Keith Curle then finished what they had to say and Shaun Derry told us to stay for a players’ meeting. We darren ambrose

spoke to each other and said: ‘Look, it’s down to us now on the field. Whatever happens to this football club, we need to go out and make the supporters proud, do what’s right for our families and do our job. The boardroom stuff takes care of itself; we can’t get involved.’ And that’s exactly what happened. It’s different at Newcastle because when they dip into the transfer market, other clubs will come in for the current players. So those lads are playing for their futures both at Newcastle and elsewhere. Our motivation was to do people proud and to rescue the club from a situation it didn’t deserve to be in

writers Ed Reynolds

After widespread job cuts caused by the pandemic, it’s harder than ever for journalists to find work. This page offers three aspiring writers space to display their views and skill. Today, we hear from Ed Reynolds.

In recent weeks, Selhurst Park has been home to a few game-changing tactical tweaks. Substitutions have the ability to flip the outcome of a game, or to help maintain winning positions, and some players become known as ‘super subs’ due to their consistent impact off the bench. Whether seeing out a win or snatching a last-minute winner, players can establish legendary status at a club in the time it takes the fourth official to raise their board. There is no consistent formula that means a ‘super sub’ will work. Each match is unique, and depending on the opposition, minute or players each element will be taken into consideration when choosing substitutes. Whether a quick, agile striker is brought on to capitalise on tired defensive legs, a tall physical presence is added up front to cause problems aerially, or even an additional midfielder is told to sit deep and protect a lead, all substitutes are carefully decided. To make an instant impact the substitute must match the intensity of the game as soon as they are brought on.

Recently Odsonne Edouard broke the record for the fastest goal by a debutant in the Premier League, after scoring against Tottenham in just 29 seconds, before adding a second to become the first Palace player to score a debutant brace since Danny Light

Players will continue to impress coming off the bench, with Selhurst Parkshowcasing this emphatically of late. in 1967. Edouard took advantage of the tiring, disorganised Tottenham defence, and with only six minutes left he managed to score two and secure the win. Michael Olise and Jeffrey Schlupp spring to mind against Leicester, but another previous example of a Palace ‘super sub’ would be Wilfried Zaha on his aspiring writers

second club debut. In August 2014 Palace played away against Newcastle in a 3-3 thriller. A 22-year-old Zaha was substituted on in the 70th-minute with the Eagles 2-1 up. However, with 20 minutes left the score line was 3-2 to Newcastle, with Palace having lost their lead. In the last minute of additional time Zaha volleyed home an equaliser. Zaha’s substitution, similarly to Edouard, was with the aim to stretch a tired defence. On both occasions the plan worked perfectly. A substitute does not always constitute for a player not right for the starting XI. Instead, certain players are better known for their impact later in a game. Players will continue to impress coming off the bench, with Selhurst Park showcasing this emphatically of late.

Impressed by what you’ve read, and need work from a media professional? You can discuss work opportunities with Ed and our other aspiring writers by emailing programme@cpfc.co.uk.

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inside the academy copers cope road

Inside Meet the “extension to the coaching team” U23 player Introducing the Academy’s Head of Operations The Academy graduate with a hidden record

inside the academy

over the road The Palace Academy has produced players from Steve Kember to Wilfried Zaha, and plenty more in between. Here, we look at some of the talented prospects in the system today.

AIDAN STEELE age: 19 / position: Centre-midfielder / joined: 2017

highlights so far First collecting the captain’s armband and leading the Under-18s to a 2-1 win over Southampton. Steele remained captain as the Eagles rose to a second-place finish in 20/21.

Take note of Steele is a defensive-minded midfielder who seats deep on the pitch, collects the ball and looks to shift possession forward. As Under-18s captain in 20/21, he also exhibited the leadership skills and confidence that allowed him to leave his native Ireland and live alone in England as a young teenager. inside the academy

getting to know AIDAN STEELE -

Aidan is like an extension to the coaching team; he’s certainly a leader. You can hear him on the sidelines coaching his teammates through the game, which is a fantastic thing for such a young man Paddy M©Carthy u23S manager

Paddy McCarthy is one of the most respected Crystal Palace captains of the 21st century. So when he picks up the armband and awards it to his leader of choice, it’s quite the endorsement. It might be easy to think such a decision would come with fanfare and a rite of passage speech as a player transitions from regular teammate to captain. But, for Aidan Steele, McCarthy simply handed the Irish midfielder his armband and that was it. Steele’s captaincy continued throughout 20/21 with little more fanfare, such is the teenager’s composed nature. Instead, he began to have direct conversations with McCarthy on behalf of the squad’s quieter players. He also worked to lead by example: asking what he could improve on that the team could follow. “It makes you feel so proud to captain Crystal Palace,” Steele says. “When you’re captain the responsibility you have leading your team out every game is the best - win, lose or draw. You know at the end of the day that you are the leader and you have to set an example for everyone else. I love that feeling every week.” Steele’s main role in 20/21 was ensuring consistency and discipline across the team as McCarthy’s charges exceeded expectations to challenge for the league title. Now a member of the Under-23s, he explains Palace’s success in that first Category 1 campaign. Inside the academy

“The approach never changed for any game, any opposition. Even friendlies, nothing changed. We had a plan on how to beat teams, we had our set principles in attacking and defending transitions and every game we stuck to them. Dougie [Wright] the analyst once said in one of the meetings: ‘It’s no surprise in the results you get when you look at the goals we score, because every goal comes from our principles.’ That does give you the belief that what we’re doing is working. “Number one the ethic has to be we have to work as hard as we can every single game. I can say now, in the games we lost it’s a fact we didn’t work as hard as we should

When you look at the teamsheet and the names we have, there’s nothing to fear in any opposition we play against

have done. When you look back, you can see why you need to outwork teams because when you outwork teams they can’t get near you and you win games. That has to be number one for every game.” It’s an approach well-drilled into every Palace Academy player. But Steele, developed under McCarthy, embodies it like a true skipper

inside the academy

Karl Eccleston I’ve been at the club for nine years, starting as Assistant Club Secretary and becoming Head of Academy Operations about 18 months ago. That entails looking after the operations and giving our staff the tools they need.

hen I started - just after COVID hit, so learning everything across from my partner at the kitchen table - I had to get my head around what was happening at the Academy. We got permission to completely redevelop and then secured Category 1 status, so this operation has been huge. You don’t just become Category 1 by spending millions on buildings and pitches: it’s about having the right staff in the right positions and doing the right things once they’re there. We recruited physios, sport scientists, a player care team, a Head of Education, a psychology department and more, all things we didn’t have before. It’s enabled us to expand our work enormously; for example, one of the biggest things we’re doing now is supporting players who’ve been released. We’ve massively increased our education and player care team; recently employing someone whose job it is to look after the Under18s and Under-23s for three years after they leave. We’ve gone from no one doing that to a four-strong department in less than a year,

because we don’t think any player who leaves Crystal Palace should feel dumped on the scrapheap. And in the background of everything is the building work, which provided open plan offices,

The development’s biggest impact day to day is on staff morale and the atmosphere we’ve created here. The Academy is an unbelievable place to work

an analysis room, boardroom, three classrooms, state of the art canteen and kitchen, grass training pitches, a full-size outdoor 3G pitch with floodlighting, a show pitch and the indoor training pitch under the dome. What remains is

Inside the academy

more training pitches and a major development to build at least three more classrooms and a sport science and medical facility with state of the art swimming and rehab pools. All of this comes after renting a few Portakabins with pitches no better than your local playing field. It’s tough to see how we managed before. The development’s biggest impact day to day is on staff morale and the atmosphere we’ve created here. The Academy is an unbelievable place to work. Everyone here is given the tools they need to be successful, which feeds down to the players. Because of the work we’ve done we hope we to attract and keep the best players in London. I think this is the Chairman’s biggest thing: as a Category 2 Academy we produced the likes of Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who sold for a club record fee - which naturally helped pay for the new facilities. We’re not a selling club, but if you can get one or two players established from your Academy to your first-team every three years or so, that pays for itself. There is an incredibly bright future ahead for this football club

made in south london After a landmark season Club Historian Ian King looks back at Palace’s Academy history, recalling some of our proudest former graduates from the huge number to have made their name in SE25.

Defying the record books -

ARTHUR HUDGELL Born First-team debut Appearances Goals

28th December, 1920 31st August, 1946 26 (+177 in wartime) 1 (+7 in wartime)

inside the academy

The official record books state that Hudgell made 26 competitive first-team appearances for Crystal Palace in 1946/47 before joining Sunderland, however that does not do justice to possibly one of the finest left-sided defenders at the club, one on a par with Kenny Sansom. Born in Hackney in 1920 Hudgell was spotted playing for Eton Manor, for whom he also played cricket, on Hackney Marshes in east London. Having already been on the Palace groundstaff for two and a half years, he did not require persuasion from manager Tom Bromilow to sign professional forms on his 17th birthday in December 1937. By then Hudgell was already playing at left half-back or left-back for the ‘A’ team in the London Mid-Week League, turning out for Reserve games and appearing in the London Challenge Cup. With Nick Collins and captain Fred Dawes maintaining their places in the first XI Hudgell had to bide his time, but that all changed

with the outbreak of the Second World War. The Football League was abandoned in September 1939 after the first three games, with more localised leagues commencing in October. Hudgell was immediately included in the first XI as other players were called up to serve the country. In fact the young defender was virtually ever-present from then until October 1942, contributing to notable victories over the likes of

the young defender was virtually ever-present until October 1942, contributing to notable victories over Brighton, Norwich, Brentford and Southend Brighton, Norwich, Brentford and Southend while being the club’s go-to penalty taker. He was then drafted into the Royal Air Force and did not reappear at Selhurst Park - apart for the occasional outing while on leave - until September 1944, by which point he was believed to have spent time serving in Iceland and managing to play some football with Scottish outfit Raith Rovers. Back in south London Hudgell once more maintained an Inside the academy

almost unbroken sequence of firstteam appearances until the end of the wartime leagues. League football resumed with the 1946/47 season and Hudgell made his Football League debut in the first game at Mansfield Town on August 31st. The club was struggling on and off the pitch with Hudgell now appearing at right-back, and in January 1947 the FA Cup handed Palace a trip to Newcastle United. Despite losing 2-6 Hudgell’s play was noted by officials from Sunderland and at the end of the month the club accepted a £10,000 fee for him. It was the then-highest paid for a Third Division player and halved Palace’s overdraft in one go. Hudgell was with the Wearside club for 10 years, playing over 250 games until 1957, and this popular player was seen back at Selhurst with Sunderland for a benefit game for Jack Lewis in May 1949. He passed away in 2000

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South London is a unique place to live, work and experience. In each programme, we shed light on a few of the names or events that have shaped and continue to shape our half of the city. In this edition Palace’s Lead Psychologist Sion Thomas explains how the Academy has introduced sports psychology, and what effect his role has on players.

Voices of South London

“I

am really comfortable acknowledging the small cog I am within the bigger system,” says Sion Thomas, Lead Psychologist at Palace’s Academy. “But I also appreciate if I can get my cog to work effectively it can have a real positive impact.” Thomas is neatly summarising both his work as a sports psychologist and the wider support structure at Palace’s Academy. Staff are on hand for coaching, analysis, strength & conditioning, physio, education, life skills and now, most recently, psychology too. There is a full and broad umbrella of disciplines to ensure the club’s aspiring prospects are guided throughout their time in the system, each taking on more prominence as football evolves. Arguably the most recent to do so is sports psychology. “Twenty years ago was like this: the perception was it’s a weakness if you’re seen to be working with a sports psychologist,” Thomas explains, having worked in the profession for over 20 years. “Fortunately the landscape has changed dramatically over the last 15 years. Sports psychology has become a critical part of a person’s development.” Thomas’ career began in the 1990s and today sees him lecture full-time at Greenwich University, while also working with Kent County Cricket Club, Harlequins and most recently the Palace Academy, where he is stationed from Wednesday-Friday, and at

some games. He focuses on the Under-18s and Under-23s, with two colleagues, Claire Rossato and Kellsey King, working with the Under-13-16s. He joined in mid-2020, and works to help players “develop emotional control strategies” that enable them to handle the issues both on and off the pitch which may affect their performance. He was met with open arms upon arrival: “In my first month at the club, we had an Under-23s friendly at Dulwich Hamlet and in the changing room after the game – it was my first or second – [Shaun Derry] said: ‘Listen, Sion’s joined us. He’s come from five years of working at Charlton Athletic, who have a rich history Voices of South London

Fortunately the landscape has changed dramatically over the last 15 years. Sports psychology has become a critical part of a person’s development of providing players like Joe Gomez and [Ademola] Lookman. You need to use him.’ What was nice was Shaun said, despite his own personal resistance, he found sports psychology support to be critical, certainly towards the back end of his career. “I had a conversation with Paddy [McCarthy] about one of his Under-23s and he said: ‘This is the area which is holding this player back.’ Paddy’s rigorously told the

player: ‘You need to go and spend time with Sion.’ “When coaches are able to use their own experience as an elite player to say ‘this really helped me’ you get that buy-in before even having an opportunity to get to know the players.” The breadth of Thomas’ remit is particularly interesting, as he works with players who embrace his support, those who reject it, some who need to work on “extreme negative emotions” and some who need a hand with pre-match nerves. He explains his approach: “One of the first-year scholars found out he was starting… and it was going to be his first start for the Under-18s. So I had a message from him in the morning saying: ‘I’ve just found out I’m starting on Saturday and am actually feeling really apprehensive. Could we sit down together to go through one or two strategies and discuss how I’m feeling? Do you have any advice or guidance as to how I can cope more effectively before and during the game?’ “I’ve never yet met in 20 years an athlete who’s able to fully focus on their task or job if they’re experiencing the proverbial red mist. But it’s about helping them deal with not so much the red mist – because in those situations you want to be able to get to a point where they’re able to identify different triggers prior to getting in that state. “Prevention is better than cure, so let’s develop strategies

so that rather than having to deal with finding yourself within that situation where your game can go to pieces… you recognise the different triggers associated with how that might happen. “Players will contact me before a game and say: ‘Are you with us tonight?’ I say I’ll be there and they ask to catch up for 20 minutes before the warmup. “But also I’ll be on the pitch because I work with all the boys on a one-to-one capacity, so there are certain players I can have very brief interventions or conversations with on the pitch… A classic example might be: ‘Just remind me what your strengths are and what you do

I get real personal satisfaction through watching and seeing other people develop, That’s really important to me

really well. I’m looking forward to seeing those in action today.’ It’s a really small reminder of the stuff we’ve been working on together.” Voices of South London

Thomas acknowledges the conflicts of interest in his role: where do his responsibilities end and another staff member’s begin? When do issues need referring to external authorities? And how does a psychologist walk the line between the player and club’s best interests? It’s a tough role, and impossible to get right every time. But, as a small cog in a bigger system, Thomas and his team ensure another area of support for Crystal Palace’s crop of talented youngsters. “I get real personal satisfaction through watching and seeing other people develop,” he ends by saying. “That’s really important to me.”

21 years of Together for football Unlocking the powerof pitches Transforming lives Strengthening communities Tackling inequalities Improving accessibility Football Foundation The Premier League, The FA and Government’s Football Foundation has been investing into communities like yours for the last 21 years. Building football facilities and using the power of pitches to transform lives.

Find out more about the Football Foundation, its impact and the future plans for your local area: footballfoundation.org.uk

non-league neighbours Surrounding south London’s only Premier League club is a range of non-league sides. In each programme, we catch up with four – Beckenham Town, Bromley, Corinthian-Casuals, and Holmesdale F.C. – to cover the people who sustain south London’s rich non-league scene ticking.

Non-League Neighbours

Corinthian-Casuals In this edition, Corinthian-Casuals Chairman Brian Vandervilt offers a unique perspective on his club’s place in footballing history.

league table pos CLUB

recent results P

Pts corinthiancasuals

bowers & pitsea

-3

corinthian-casuals

-3

horsham

-5

“w

e’ve got an amazing history, and yet we’re of the past,” says Brian Vandervilt of CorinthianCasuals. It’s an astute summary of his role as Chairman, oddly balancing the custodianship of genuine footballing royalty, and the day-to-day running of a non-league club. “I see us as a completely separate entity to anybody else in non-league football,” Vandervilt explains. “We’re a strictly amateur club, the highest playing amateur club in the country. And we’re very proud of that. “There’s more money in non-league than there has

ever been; we are certainly very disadvantaged and always have been. So it’s a tremendous achievement that we have been able to continue selling ourselves with people wishing to play for us.” Something CorinthianCasuals have on their side in pitching themselves to players and staff is their incredible history sharing the game across the globe. “We spread football in its infancy throughout Europe,” Vandervilt says with real pride. “We’re the only team to have supplied the whole England side on two occasions. I know it was in the beginning, but you’ve got to start somewhere, haven’t you?!” Non-League Neighbours

0-3 merstham

1-0 worthing

corinthiancasuals

4-0 cray wanderers

In one country in particular, however, the club is idolised more than any: Brazil. The touring Corinthians of the early 20th century were inspiration for the founding of one of South America’s most successful clubs, Corinthians Paulista. “It’s a necessity for football lovers to come and visit us,” says Vandervilt. CorinthianCasuals matches always have an international flavour, as the pilgrimage of footballing purists from around the world come to tick the club off their bucket lists – not bad for the Isthmian Premier League. “Today we’re closed, but we still had a Brazilian come down here to pay homage to

us,” Vandervilt laughs, sounding almost surprised. “We get Brazilians in the ground every week to pay their respects. And this chap, as a lot of them are, was in genuine tears.” For the opening of Corinthians Paulista’s new stadium, Corinthian-Casuals were invited for a ceremonial friendly 100 years on from a cancelled tour of the country. “We were treated like Manchester United,” says Vandervilt, recalling an odd experience for a squad recovering from a 5-1 defeat to Redhill just days earlier. “We were mobbed at the airport by the fans. We had an open day when we got there, and sold signed shirts – there were hundreds of people queuing up to come and buy a shirt and have it signed. “We were lauded like pop stars. They were ripping our clothes off! Anything to do with Corinthian-Casuals they were crying out for. It was televised live throughout Brazil. It was amazing.” There is a problem, however: history doesn’t pay the bills. “You’re openmouthed about the way we’re respected everywhere other than in this country,” Vandervilt says. “We’re more respected abroad than we are in our own country, which is strange. “There is a big feeling that, while our history is so amazing, we have been left behind by remaining amateur.

But so be it: that’s our intention and always will be.” And so Corinthian-Casuals battle on, facing an uphill struggle to keep performing at such a high level. “We’re punching enormously above our weight,” Vandervilt points out keenly. “We get players here who are of a very good standard.

We’re a strictly amateur club, the highest playing amateur club in the country. And we’re very proud of that “But we encourage that if a player is of an ability, he should go somewhere and get paid for doing it. It does limit us. If we find a gem, we cannot receive any money for him because he’s not contracted to us. “Alan Pardew played for us. Andy Gray played for us. We’ve got quite a history of past players achieving great things having been with us – and good for them!” Strangely, the club’s amateur status has been something of a blessing throughout the coronavirus pandemic. “We’re in a unique position that it made little difference to us [financially] whether we played or not, because we didn’t have the expenses of paying the players. We are alone in that respect. Non-League Neighbours

“But running a club still has its financial obligations. We do need money to run, even without playing – and it’s more each year.” The era of amateur sides competing at the highest level is long gone, and in some ways there is a sense of sadness for Vandervilt that Corinthian-Casuals continue to fight against the odds. “We have no recognition here - particularly with the FA whereby we are treated specially. And one might say: ‘Why should you be?’ And that is a fair comment. But the recognition abroad is considerable.” While their most glorious days may be behind them, Corinthian-Casuals continue to fight in England’s seventhtier, drawing a worldwide audience for every home game. Clearly, they’re not entirely of the past yet

Newcastle United v Crystal Palace Football League Second Division 23/10/1982

Legends for their respective clubs, Jim Cannon chases down Newcastle’s Kevin Keegan at St James’s Park in 1982 .

moment in time

Premier League 6/4/2019

Players celebrate a late Luka Milivojevic winning penalty.

Newcastle United v Crystal Palace

ronald markham From its founding to the current day, Crystal Palace’s history is rich in stories and characters. Here, we look back at some of the best. Today, find out how the Palace squad taunted a celebrity psychic only to be cursed to their own detriment.

croll through Crystal Palace fan forums and messageboards for long enough and you’ll stumble across the name Ronald Markham, better known as 1970s illusionist ‘Romark’. Romark earned a reputation as something of a hypnotist, and stories have emerged over time of his driving through Ilford blindfolded only to crash in a ‘psychic blindspot’, attempting to hypnotise Muhammad Ali to lose against Richard Dunn (Ali won in the fifth round) and causing an apprentice to float mid-air in Lawrie McMenemy’s office. In the mid-70s, manager Malcolm Allison reached-out to Romark in a bid to support his squad with the sort of eccentric idea he became famous for. The stories surrounding such a relationship, of course, are wild and imaginative. Did Allison hire Romark to hypnotise the Palace squad before their efforts in the ‘76 FA Cup? The reality, explains former midfielder Martin Hinshelwood,

Romark celebrates as Southampton knock Palace from the 1976 FA Cup.

From the Archive

is less exciting. “Malcolm did things off the cuff,” he says. “He was always keen to try different things, Malcolm, to help the players. He brought him [Romark] in initially to speak to us all as a group and then anybody who felt they needed to speak to him individually could do so. “He said to me: ‘You need me to motivate you in games.’ I went: ‘If I needed you to motivate me in games, I’d pack up.’ I wasn’t trying to be nasty or nothing but I felt if I don’t motivate myself to play a game of football for Palace’s first-team then I shouldn’t be in this football club or anywhere near football. “We had a bit of banter with him and he did things with us a group. I can remember him going on the pitch and getting the crowd going. He’d run up onto the pitch with an umbrella and a microphone and start talking to the crowd: trying to get them up for the game.

“He had a lead from his microphone that went into the tunnel and as you do in those days, you take the plug out, don’t you? He’s talking in front of 20-odd thousand at Selhurst and the crowd are absolutely caning him because he thought they could hear what he was saying!”

I can remember him going on the pitch and getting the crowd going. He’d run up onto the pitch with an umbrella and a microphone and start talking to the crowd: trying to get them up for the game

From the Archive

Disappointingly, Hinshelwood suggests Romark was simply an early day sports psychologist with a penchant for positive mantras. But clearly Allison’s psychic support fancied himself as a ‘70s Uri Geller and, when the Palace manager fell into a dispute with him over wage payments, he wielded his mystical powers in revenge. Romark reportedly cursed Crystal Palace to sour their fortunes in an FA Cup semi-final against McMenemy’s Southampton. And so we’re back to the manager’s office, Romark levitating an apprentice and McMenemy preparing to take on Allison’s cursed Eagles from the Third Division. Romark had visited McMenemy to offer his support for the Saints boss and his team and, ultimately, Palace crashed out of the cup 2-0. Perhaps there’s something in sorcery after all

palace for life foundation delivers black history month lessons

alace for Life Foundation has seven professional coaches who spend each week working with local primary schools, and throughout October their pupils have received a Palace-focused lesson on Black History Month that explains the occasion, celebrates prominent black Londoners and aims to instil key values into young students’ lives.

It’s really important to celebrate black history, especially local black history

Throughout October, which has been the annual Black History Month since 1987, we have run sessions with children in Year Four and above that explains the month, highlights famous black leaders, Londoners and footballers, focuses on four Palace stars and encourages pupils to present a mind-map on why these players have succeeded. The students learn about Vince Hilaire, Chloe Morgan, Ian Wright and Wilfried Zaha and discuss which of their values can be taken into everyday life. We also promoted

The Foundation employs a full-time member of staff in six local schools, and one part-time in another. These coaches work day to day with pupils in PE lessons, and deliver additional courses created by the Foundation as well as programmes funded by the Premier League. palace for life

Premier League Primary Stars’ values of being fair, inspiring, connected and ambitious. The Foundation’s Primary Schools Programme Coordinator James Jenden said: “We’re doing this in our local primary schools because Black History Month is a really important part of the work we do. It’s really important to celebrate black history, especially local black history. As much as we can we relate it to famous Londoners and Crystal Palace players, and find that helps the children engage slightly more with the learning.

“We want all the children to fully understand and appreciate black history. Sometimes it’s a little bit overlooked and not celebrated enough… Being from Croydon, such a multicultural area, the kids react positively. A lot of their classmates are from different backgrounds and it’s about understanding and respecting everyone within their class.”

We want all the children to fully understand and appreciate black history. Sometimes it’s a little bit overlooked and not celebrated enough

Palace for Life’s Race Equality Lead, James Odagi, said: “We work hard to make sure we properly support our black community all-year round, but Black History Month offers a unique opportunity to educate the young people of our community on their history. We will continue to improve our work in this space and ensure that we empower black voices not only in Black History Month, but every month.” To find out more about Palace for Life’s work in schools, visit palaceforlife.org

MARATHON MARCH 2021 5th anniversary This month, 150 Palace fans walked 26.2 miles around the streets of south London raising money to support the young people of our community. So far, they have raised over £85,000! Scan the QR code to donate.

palace for life

It’s a bold statement, but Crystal Palace Football Club has a legitimate claim to being the oldest league side in existence still playing professional football. Throughout the club’s 160th anniversary season, author and supporter Peter Manning explains the fascinating tale of Palace’s history from 1861 to 1915, a history acknowledged in their 1906 handbook, laying out in each edition why the club’s heritage stretches further back than ever thought.

cpfc 1861

n the last programme we learned that the Crystal Palace Club played its first recorded matches against two other very early sides, Forest and the N.N. Club of Kilburn, in which five of the eight Founding Fathers of the Football Association played and got to know each other. In this edition we’ll look at the muddled state of football in the 1860s and the emergence of the Football Association.

Q: Was football an organised sport in the 1860s? A: The simple answer is ‘no’, it was very disorganised. The origins of football go right back to medieval times, when it was a rowdy sport. An unlimited number of players would try to kick an inflated bladder between villages and parishes. This was usually an annual event held on a public holiday, often Shrove Tuesday, and games were frequently violent, resulting in broken bones and sometimes even a player’s death.

The winner was the village or parish that managed to get the ‘ball’ into the opposition’s territory. The establishment regularly tried to get games banned, not least because they lasted for hours, were played on public highways, and often caused shopkeepers to shut and lose a day’s income.

The origins of football go right back to medieval times, when it was a rowdy sport But by the first half of the 19th century we see ‘football’ being adopted by the English public schools, who saw sport as a way of advancing the virtues and discipline of ‘muscular Christianity’. Each school developed its own rules, although they tended to fall into one of two camps. They either played the ‘dribbling game’, keeping the ball at the feet and kicking it

cpfc 1861

through a goal, as played at Eton and Winchester; or they played the ‘handling game’ as played at Rugby. The Rugby game also permitted the tripping and hacking of opposing players with the ball. As each school had its own guarded rules it was difficult for them to play each other, and this continued when the boys went to university, which, in the early 19th century, meant either Oxford or Cambridge. In 1848 we see the first attempt by Cambridge University to devise a set of rules as a compromise to allow students from different schools to play each other while studying there. They owed much to the Eton rules as they limited handling the ball and forbade tripping opponents, in defiance of the rugby community. These rules were a start and formed the core of what was to follow. As the young men left university and went into business, they and others, who hadn’t been to university, wanted to carry on playing football. However there was no universal set of rules

and players needed a common code, similar to those laid down by the M.C.C. for cricket. On and off between 1858 and 1863, what the Victorians described as a ‘warm debate’ went on in the sporting press agreeing that a universal code was needed, but vehemently disagreeing which set of rules should be adopted, particularly concerning the practice of ‘shinning’, kicking the shins of your opponents when they had the ball, which was allowed at Rugby. At one stage it got to the point that the editor of sporting paper Bell’s Life stopped the debate because the writers were becoming so abusive to each other the letters couldn’t be published. Football has always been a great stirrer of emotions!

Q: Where did Crystal Palace feature in all this? A: In an earlier programme we saw that, in March 1862, Crystal Palace played the first reported

match between two teams that went on to found the Football Association, Forest v Crystal Palace. In April 1863 they also played the N.N. (short for the No Names) team of Kilburn. The Palace players would have been introduced to Forest’s Alcock brothers, John Forster and Charles, and in the N.N. they came up against Arthur Pember and Ebenezer Morley. Together with Palace’s James Turner, these were players who would come to be recognised as five of the eight Founding Fathers of the FA.

At that first meeting the Football Association was born. the FA’s very first minutes list 11 clubs who attended and became members, including Crystal Palace

Much of the debate in the sporting press had been between old boys of the public schools but work had been going on in the background to organise a meeting of the leading football clubs’ captains, many of them not having been to public school. cpfc 1861

This was held at the Freemasons’ Tavern in Covent Garden on 24th October 1863 “for the purpose of forming an Association with the object of establishing a definite code of rules for the regulation of the game of football,” the first such association in the world. At that first meeting the Football Association was born. The FA’s very first minutes list 11 clubs who attended and became members, including Crystal Palace. The Crystal Palace Club’s secretary and master brewer, Frank Day, represented them, but Day was much more of a cricketer than a footballer. He subsequently handed over the reins to other Palace footballers for the next five meetings that were needed before the rules of ‘soccer’ were finally thrashed out

NEXT TIME In the next edition we’ll look at Crystal Palace’s crucial involvement in founding the Football Association and our important role in the struggle to establish the rules of the game we now call ‘soccer’. Peter Manning’s book, Palace at the Palace, is available online through the Club Shop.

lizzie waldie Our start to the season has probably been the best I’ve had here at Crystal Palace. We’ve got a new formation, new coaches and have enjoyed a really positive start.

ur new formation sees us play three at the back, with our wing-backs playing more like wingers. And our approach has changed, too: we’re trying to play small, quick passes to then break out and utilise the wingers’ pace to get the balls in and score. One of the main focuses is to keep the ball short, so instead of going long we can try to keep possession and play, trying to tear teams apart through our passing. It’s been a change and it’s been hard to get used to, but it’s clicking now. You can start to see the difference in the way we’re playing and the results we’re getting, which are both more positive than last season. Personally it’s more enjoyable; I can just sit back, do my defending and watch the magic happen in front of me. We can always gel a bit more but all the new players have fitted in well. It didn’t take long for everyone to get on with each other and we’ve all got the same goal: to get as many points as possible. palace women

As one of the longestserving players here now, I have more responsibility to help the others and make sure they know what the coaches expect from us. Individually, I still want to develop and to be one of the best players in the league. I want to keep the most clean sheets, I want to help my team out. If everything continues to come together like it is now, we’ve definitely got the potential and the players for a top four finish.

But there are areas we still need to work on, and one of those is defending set pieces. Our goalkeeper coach Harry Smart is the set piece master. He analyses the other team’s set plays, so we know where they run and prepare for it. At the end of last season we used zonal marking but it didn’t really work for us, so this season we’ve changed that around and have a mixture of zonal and marking the player. The combination

Individually, I still want to develop and to be one of the best players in the league. I want to keep the most clean sheets, I want to help my team out

is working for us really well. Lee Hayes does our attacking dead balls and I’m one of the tallest in the team, so I want to impact the game at set pieces. He shows us how the defence sets up and where we can find gaps for scoring opportunities. You heard it here first: top four finish!

palace women

The page for Palace supporters: taking your comments from the terraces into the programme. Make sure to get in touch with the details on Page 67 to share your own message.

Happy 16th Birthday Aaron. Lots of love Mummy Ruby Nanny Grandad Rory Sara Wayne Joe Rose Poppy Palace Nanny Bubbles Oli Emily Ellis and Jimmy xxx

Lifelong Palace fan Graham Richards passed away on Saturday 25th September. A season ticket holder in the Stephenson Lounge area for many years, he will be sadly missed by all his family and friends.

Dad/ Grandad/ Grandpa/ Keith Payne – our legend, our hero. Happy 80th to the biggest Palace fan. We love you.

Welcome back to Selhurst Conor Gallagher’s biggest fan Jack Fisher! Good luck in your game for Alford FC tomorrow. Let’s hope for a win for Palace and Alford! COYP!

Happy Birthday Ciaran Russell, with love from your Aunties Julie & Louise. Enjoy your special day x x

Wishing our daughter Poppy a very happy 2nd birthday. Love Mum, Dad, Lilly, Daisy and Bella xxx

from the terraces

Happy 18th Birthday tomorrow – October 24th – to Jack Browett. Palace mascot in the 2013 Play-Off final. Love from Dad, Mum, Ben, Sam & Ollie and all your many friends at CPFC.

Happy 18th Birthday Rohan! Hope we get a win today. See you in the bar, dust off your wallet and buy everyone at Selhurst a beer! Love from all the family.

Keith Michael, 10.02.1964 23.08.2021. A dearly beloved husband, father, brother, uncle and a legend to many. Forever in our hearts and until we meet again - Rest In Peace Keith

Happy 19th Birthday to Kadelia Wilkins. After 10 years’ service with CPFC Women’s FC juniors, now supporting the club from her college football scholarship base in Missouri USA

Eagles Fitter Fans were saddened to hear of the passing of fellow member and Palace fan Jim Golden in a car accident on 4th October in South Shields. Jim was a valued member of the group and took part in our European Tours of 2016 and 2017. We will forever remember ‘offside’ Jim. Our thoughts are with his son Joe and wife Lee

Happy 12th birthday to lifelong Palace fan from West Wickham Leo Williams. Hope you had a great day.

Happy 6th Birthday Paz - with much love Mum, Dad, Isla, Elliot & all the Family xx

Wishing a Very Special Husband, Father, Grandfather & Great Grandfather a very Happy 90th Birthday! A devoted Palace supporter for 76 years! With love from all the family A huge welcome to Selhurst Park to Isabella Andrews. Isabella is 10 years old and has been a regular at CPFC since she was under a year old and has now attended over 150 games. Her favourite players are Wilfried Zaha & Conor Gallagher and she plays football for Anchorians under 10’s.

In loving memory of James O’Sullivan. Nearly one year ago since you left us and life will never be the same again. Keeping your seat warm at the Palace. Love JoJo, Harrison and Hollie x

from the terraces

Email programme@cpfc.co.uk with a message of 30 words or fewer and an image to feature on our messageboard.

quiz, games, brighty & more!

Put your Palace, opposition and Premier League knowledge to the test in our various challenges below. The perfect way to pass time pre-match - let us know how you fare via social media!

Guess who

Spot the image

Can you guess the ex-Eagle above just from their picture?

The above cut-out is taken from an image in this programme. Can you find what page it’s on?

matchday quiz 1

What was the score between Palace and Newcastle when Wilfried Zaha played his first game back at the club in 2014?

Alan Pardew had an extensive non-league playing career. But from whom did he join Palace?

How many seasons did Dwight Gayle finish as Palace’s top scorer?

Which iconic manager signed Darren Ambrose for Newcastle?

Kenny Sansom joined Newcastle from Arsenal in 1988. Where did he finish his career?

GAmes

FAMOUS FAN

guess the ground

Can you work out which Football League club’s stadium this is?

This frontman grew up in Wallsend – a town just outside of Newcastle. He cites Bobby Moncur as his favourite player and recalls watching in 1969, the year Newcastle won the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup. He is, disappointingly, not a Brentford or Watford fan. Do you recognise this famous Newcastle fan?

BEAT BRIGHTY In each edition, club icon Mark Bright calls it how he sees it and predicts scores from the weekend’s football. See how you fare and try to Beat Brighty! Scoring: One point for every correct result, three for a correct scoreline.

Brighty

You

2-1 2-0 1-0 0-2 2-2 total Manage to Beat Brighty? Keep track of your total score above!

ANSWERS Guess who: Stuart Massey Spot the image: Page 23 Quiz: 1) 3-3 2) Yeovil Town 3) Three 4) Sir Bobby Robson 5) Watford Famous Fan: Sting Guess the Ground: Colchester Community Stadium - Colchester

games

team stats: women / U23S / U18S Chloe Morgan ‘Keeper Chloe Morgan secured a win in the Continental Cup with a penalty shootout save against Lewes.

Kaden Rodney Rodney bagged his first goal of the campaign just six days before signing a professional contract.

Scott Banks Banks scored his first goal of the season with a strike against Tottenham Hotspur.

Home fixture Away fixture Cup fixture (Crystal Palace score shown first)

AUGUST Sun 29

Bristol City

W 4-3

SEPTEMBER

AUGUST Mon 16 Leeds United

L 1-3

Fri 20

Arsenal

L 2-4

Everton

W 3-1

Sun 5

London City Lionesses

L 1-2

Fri 27

Sun 12

Sunderland

D 1-1

Sun 26

Liverpool

L 1-2

SEPTEMBER Mon 13 Leicester City

W 6-1

Sat 18

Manchester City

L 2-4

Fri 24

West Ham United

L 0-1

OCTOBER Sun 3

Sheffield United

D 0-0

Sun 10

Coventry United

W 3-2 W 1-1 (4-3)

Wed 13 Lewes Sun 31

Watford

NOVEMBER Sun 7

Durham

Sun 14

Charlton Athletic

Wed 17 Reading Sun 21

Blackburn Rovers

DECEMBER Wed 15 Bristol City Sun 19

Lewes

JANUARY Sun 9

Sunderland

Sun 16

Durham

Sun 23

Liverpool

FEBRUARY Sun 6

Bristol City

Sun 13

London City Lionesses

MARCH

OCTOBER Fri 1 Tottenham Hotpsur

W 4-3

Sat 16

Brighton & Hove Albion

L 1-2

Fri 22

Derby County

NOVEMBER Mon 1 Blackburn Rovers Sun 7

Chelsea

Sat 20

Liverpool

Sat 27

Manchester United

DECEMBER Mon 6 West Ham United Mon 20 Derby County JANUARY Mon 10 Everton Mon 17 Chelsea Mon 24 Liverpool FEBRUARY Mon 7 Tottenham Hotspur Mon 21 Manchester United Mon 28 Brighton & Hove Albion

Sun 6

Coventry United

Sun 13

Lewes

MARCH Mon 14 Manchester City

Sun 27

Charlton Athletic

Mon 21 Arsenal

Sun 3

Blackburn Rovers

APRIL Mon 4

Sun 24

Watford

Mon 25 Blackburn Rovers

Sheffield United

MAY Mon 2

APRIL

MAY Sun 1

Leeds United

Leicester City

women/u23S/u18S

AUGUST Sat 14 Leicester City Sat 21 West Ham United Sat 28 West Bromwich Albion SEPTEMBER Sat 11 Aston Villa Sat 18 Liverpool Sat 25 Southampton OCTOBER Sat 2 Reading Sat 16 Manchester City Sat 23 Birmingham City Sat 30 Arsenal NOVEMBER Sat 6 Chelsea Sat 20 Fulham DECEMBER Sat 4 Tottenham Hotpsur Sat 18 Brighton & Hove Albion JANUARY Sat 8 Norwich City Sat 15 Fulham Sat 22 Birmingham City FEBRUARY Sat 5 Tottenham Hotspur Sat 19 Arsenal Sat 26 Norwich City MARCH Sat 5 Leicester City Sat 12 West Ham United Sat 19 West Bromwich Albion APRIL Sat 2 Aston Villa Sat 9 Southampton Sat 23 Reading Sat 30 Chelsea MAY Sat 7 Brighton & Hove Albion

W 3-1 W 2-1 W 3-2 D 2-2 L 2-3 W 1-0 D 3-3 D 2-2

Name

Apps

Bianca Baptiste

Goals

Kirsty Barton

Hannah Churchill

Charley Clifford

Name

Apps

Tayo Adaramola

Victor Akinwale

Jay-Rich Baghuelou

Ryan Bartley

Scott Banks

Kalani Barton

David Boateng

Freddie Bell

Malachi Boateng

Maliq Cadogan

Junior Dixon

Owen Goodman

Leanne Cowan

John-Kymani Gordon

Aimee Everett

Reece Hannam

Coral-Jade Haines

Danny Imray

Annabel Johnson

Sophie McLean

Chloe Morgan

Leigh Nicol

Nya Kirby

Jake O'Brien

David Omilabu

Dan Quick

Jesurun Rak-Sakyi

Sean Robertson

Cardo Siddik Aidan Steele Rob Street

Emily Orman

Gracie Pearse

Molly-Mae Sharpe

James Taylor

Lizzie Waldie

Siobhan Wilson

pos CLUB P W D

A GD Pts

Jackson Izquierdo

Kanye Jobson

James Leonard

Cameron Lewis-Brown

Joe Ling

Fionn Mooney

Ademola Ola-Adebomi

David Ozoh

Jadan Raymond

Kaden Rodney

Joe Sheridan

Dylan Thiselton

Basilio Socoliche

Noah Watson

Matthew Vigor

Jack Wells-Morrison

Oliver Webber

Goals

Harry Freedman

Apps

Victor Akinwale

Name

Tayo Adaramola

Grace Coombs

Millie Farrow

Goals

Jack Wells-Morrison

Joe Whitworth

Vonnte Williams

DUR

7 15 6

mci

0 24 9 15 20

ful

16 5

LIV

5 13 3

whu

2 21 15 6 16

ars

0 17 9

8 14

ars

2 21 16 5 16

cry

0 14 9

5 14

Lon

3 13 3

CHA

7 12

SHE

4 10

pos CLUB P W D

A GD Pts

pos CLUB P W D

A GD Pts 11 15

bha

2 16 11

5 16

che

2 19 8

11 12

mun

2 15 11

4 14

lei

2 12

tot

3 21 19 2

bha

2 18 12 6 10

CRY

lee

3 20 18 2

sou

2 15 10 5 10

sun

cry

5 19 19 0

whu

3 10 11 -1 9

LEW

2 -1 7

liv

avl

3 23 19 4

10 che

4 12 19 -7 8

10 tot

4 15 20 -5 6

BRI

3 -2 7 -1 4

10 BLA

4 -2 6 -2 4

11 15 -4 8

lei

9 17 -8 8

wba

4 12 21 -9 6

12 eve

11 17 -6 7

12 rdg

4 12 14 -2 4

cov

5 -9 1 -6 1

13 bla

3 14 21 -7 7

13 bir

7 19 -12 3

12 wat

6 -12 0 -7 0

14 der

14 nor

2 25 -23 0

6 13 -7 3

women/u23S/u18S

MAY

APRIL

March

FEBRUARY

JANUARY

DECEMBER

NOVEMBER

OCTOBER

SEPTEMBER

AUGUST

Chelsea

15:00

0-3

18th

Sat 21

Brentford

15:00

D 0-0

13th

Sat 24

Watford

19:45

Sat 28

West Ham United