A goal just
after the hour from James Vaughan meant Palace was to suffer from that typical
football curse of the old boy at a wind locked John Smith’s Stadium on
Wednesday night. On a night where the elements came to dominate both teams
struggled to come to terms with the high winds swirling in off the Pennines and
around the pitch.
Palace gave
a debut to Ashley (Jazz) Richards on loan from Swansea City as Jacob
Butterfield continued to partner Mile Jedinak in midfield. This partnership
given time to develop as KG Dikgacoi’s absence at the African Cup of Nations
remains keenly felt. However Butterfield looked to be settled in to the Palace
midfield standing firm in a match where a Palace side showed endeavour without
any individual truly standing out. Up against Palace was four old boys from the
period of our survival fight that ended so successfully in South Yorkshire at
Sheffield Wednesday. Alan Lee and Sean Scannell started on the bench with James
Vaughan up front and Neil Danns on loan from Leicester in Huddersfield’s
midfield.
Indeed it
was Neil Danns who set the tone for the fashion in which the match would be
played. Going in two footed on Moritz, Danns escaped without even a booking
when in fact he was very lucky not to be sent off. This raised the temperature
on the field on a cold night for the supporters off the field as the referee struggled
to keep control. The referee’s performance proved frustrating and inconsistent for
both teams. On a number of occasions he inadvertently affected the flow of the
game upsetting Huddersfield fans. His inability to clamp down on time
wasting frustrated the hardy band of travelling Palace fans and led to seven
minutes of stoppage time.
In the first
half chances were limited as the game was affected by the windy conditions.
Both sides tried to maximise the conditions by exploiting the winds with long
range efforts. Bolasie stung the palms of Alex Smithies from distance and
Huddersfield’s Scott Arfield tested Julian Speroni’s reflexes in the Palace
goal. The away wheelchairs were housed in a far corner high up in the John
Smith’s Stand behind the goal, a long way from the pitch so it was difficult to
gauge distance and depth perception at the far end of the field. What was clear
was the intense physical battle going on in the centre of the park. Ultimately
the conditions ruined the game but Huddersfield in coming to terms with the
conditions the better of the two sides earned what could prove a more than
useful three points.
James
Vaughan’s neat sixty fifth minute effort was a good finish and proved the rule
of the ex. Despite going close to an equaliser through substitute Jermaine
Easter the game ended in controversy following a supposed elbow by ex Palace
striker Alan Lee on current Palace midfield enforcer Mile Jedinak. The incident
went unpunished and Jedinak later required hospital treatment, causing a no
show from Palace boss Holloway at the post match press conference and a bad
tempered end to the game.
Another
frustrating away defeat as Palace came away with nothing in a match where neither
side did enough to deserve the win. A cold midweek trip to the edge of the
Pennines left Palace feeling cold about their recent away form. Not ideal
preparation for Saturday’s London derby against Charlton Athletic but Saturday
does present an immediate opportunity to get back to winning ways!
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