LFL: PALACE

This was another great result for us. We battled well all over the pitch and more than held our own against one of the top-end teams.

BEFORE

This afternoon's match will be our toughest test so far this season as Palace have gone from strugglers to major players in recent years and if we could get a draw, I'd be very pleased. The squad has had a fortnight more to get to know each other and especially the most recent signings, Brobbey and Geertruida. They both sound like great assets and they may well be among the subs today. It's not at all easy to get tickets from the London Branch for our away games these days but as it happens I'm in Sunderland and I'll be listening to the match with a few friends. Match prediction 1-1.

When I got the team-news I saw that there were two changes from the Brentford game with Adingra and Isidor starting in place of Mayenda and Le Fee. Le Fee must have been injured as he wasn’t among the subs. New boys Brobbey and Geertruida were on the bench as was Traore. My friends’ match predictions were 1-1 and 2-1 to us.

THE GAME

We put together the first threatening move in the second minute which culminated in a Diarra cross from the right being gathered by Henderson in goal. Four minutes later Sadiki was fouled as he burst down the left and we were awarded a free-kick in a dangerous spot but it ended in a free-kick against for a Mukiele foul. Shortly afterwards Palace threatened for the first time but Lerma’s shot was very high and wide. We were under pressure for the next few minutes but we weren’t giving them much space at all. In the fourteenth Munoz got the first yellow of the game for a tough tackle on Alderete, not a man to get on the wrong side of I’d say, and from the resultant free-kick Sadiki lashed in a decent shot that went not far from the left angle. In the twentieth minute Yeremy Pino had the best effort so far but his low shot was thankfully just wide of our right post. We’d edged the first quarter but Palace were starting to press a lot more.

Sadiki went down injured and there was a stoppage for a few minutes but he came back on again. Just before the half-hour mark Reinildo splattered Yeremy Pino and he had to receive some treatment too. In the thirty-sixth it sounded like we were about to go behind when a long ball found Pino racing goalwards with only Roefs to beat but his shot went wide of our right post. Five minutes before the break Talbi had a great chance to put us ahead when he got on the end of a cross from the left but his shot was beaten away by a defender. We soon won a corner on our right but it went for a throw to us on the left. We were finishing strongly and in the forty-sixth we were awarded a free-kick near the left angle of their box, though it came to nothing. There were four minutes of added-time and it remained goalless as the half-time whistle went. We’d done well and I reckoned we’d had slightly the better of it in a competitive game. 

We had a chance almost from the off but Isidor couldn’t quite get on the end of a cross from Talbi on the right. The game really started going from end to end and in the fiftieth Pino had another great chance to put them ahead but his close-range shot was deflected for a corner. We soon won another corner ourselves but the training-ground routine didn’t work out and it ended in a throw to Palace. We won another corner in the fifty-fourth and that ended up in another throw, to us. We were keeping up the pressure with plenty of throw-ins from our right and one resulted in an Isidor shot going wide. As we passed the hour-mark we were still playing well and I could hear our fans coming across loud and clear. We conceded a corner in the sixtieth and managed to get it clear and as we entered the final quarter a substitution was in the air.

A few minutes later Brobbey came on for Adingra so we were going for the win. Diarra had a strong shot that wasn’t far wide and soon Roefs did well to parry a shot from Kamada. The rain was coming down heavily and it could well play a part in proceedings. Fifteen minutes to go and we still had Mayenda to come on if needs be. The home fans were sounding frustrated and that was all to the good. In the seventy-ninth Roefs made another crucial stop, from Mateta, as Palace enjoyed a period of pressure. “Red and white army!” was coming across clearly and next thing Geertruida replaced Sadiki so it was good to see two of the newest signings having a run-out. With three minutes on the clock Palace played a free-kick in from the left and it resulted in Roefs making two more great saves to keep us in it. There was a VAR check for a Palace penalty, with Isidor making what was described as a "striker's challenge", which we survived but there was another corner to Palace. Four minutes of added-time were announced and we were on the back-foot so it was going to be a long four minutes. We conceded another corner with about two minutes to go but it eventually went out for a goal-kick. Rigg replaced Isidor and it eventually ended 0-0 while “Sundland till I die” echoed around the stadium.