A Return To Old Haunts In Richmond

Richard Bamber

30th Jul 2014

 

After two days spent in various East Coast cities such as Washington DC, a lot of the touring Palace faithful arrived in Richmond the day before the final tour game against USL Pro (a 2nd tier of sorts after MLS) side, the Richmond Kickers.

 

After we explained why we were in Richmond, it took the barman about 2 seconds to break into 'You'll Never Walk Alone' & proudly explain how he was a Liverpool fan who'd actually been to Anfield. He laughed at our response, a chorus of '3-0, & you f*cked it up'. One interesting fact is that of all the cities & towns in America that tune into Premier League action, Richmond punches way above it's weight in being the 6th market for this.

 

There was only pub to go to pregame, the Commercial Tap House, an establishment that has almost legendary status amongst traveling Palace fans after it hosted us 8 years ago when we played the Los Angeles Galaxy in Richmond. That day Palace completely took over a bar which normally sees a handful of customers. The manager remembered us from years ago & joked that the bar had been surviving on the takings from that day ever since!

 

If you want proof of what the Premier League & good ownership does, you only has to see the crowd who were twice as strong as last time. This included a group of about 15 American lads, who had latched on to Palace in the past year and had formed a local supporters group.

 

The bar really hadn't changed & this was evident by comparing it with old photos posted on the BBS (www.cpfc.org). Apart from drinking, we amused ourselves by trying to recreate the old shots of people slumped over the bar & striking silly poses.

 

A short cab ride to the stadium & we were introduced to realities & disorganization of lower league football, USA style. After two designated away fans section at Columbus & Philadelphia, it appeared that the Kickers hadn't quite understood the message & made the whole stadium general admission. This resulted in pockets of Palace fans, all worried that our chanting, singing & chanting would annoy the locals. After 15mins of hurried conversation & a general stadium-wide round up of Palace fans, we had an away section of sorts.

 

The line-up was the first interesting thing about the game as due to Ward, Dann & Delaney having picked up knocks, our centerback partnership comprised of Glenn Murray & Peter Ramage - not exactly who we are expecting to play there in the Premier League!

 

The game began & apart from the odd attempt by the home side, Palace rarely looked troubled in a 3-0 win with headed goals from 'defenders' Murray & Ramage plus Chamakh. With a relaxed atmosphere, the away end started going through the songbook, much to the amusement of the home fans sitting nearby. Palace fans scanned around for other Premier League shirts, with Liverpool, Chelsea & Arsenal particular targets for songs. I should add that in America it is perfectly acceptable to where any football shirt to a game, regardless of which two teams are playing. Hopefully a few people learnt that the unwritten rules are a bit different in England!

 

After the game we all headed back to the Tap House for a few more beers to wrap up the tour.  There was one final treat in store as I ran into the entire squad at Richmond Airport the next day as we all began our respective journeys home.

 * A big Thank you to Richard Bamber for his coverage of Crystal Palace's tour of America for Burchyspalaceblog.* his twitter # is @ColoradoPalace.

 

Brentford 3 – 2 Crystal Palace: Palace’s Preseason Preparations Hit by Bees Sting in Tail!

Palace travelled to West London for their only preseason fixture in the UK. In what was a split squad with new signings Hangeland and Campbell both sent to Forest Green to play in an XI that included Club Captain Paddy McCarthy and striker Dwight Gayle. 

At Brentford, Palace fielded a strong squad but could not quite find a way to beat a solid Brentford team at the end of their Preseason routine, and ready for their Championship bow against Charlton Athletic next weekend. A game that would see Brentford take their Championship bow with their first match back at that level in twenty one years since 1993.

Palace played under the captaincy of Australian World Cup goal scorer Mile Jedinak and fronted up with a strong squad. Joe Ledley partnered Jedinak in midfield with Yannick Bolasie and Jason Puncheon playing down the wings. Glenn Murray started up front on his own with support coming from deep offered by Marouanne Chemakh. At the back Wayne Hennessey started in goal with Julian Speroni playing the second forty five minutes. Damian Delaney and Scott Dann was the centre back partnership with Joel Ward and Adrian Mariappa playing the wingback positions.

In what was a watchable first half that ended goalless both teams had opportunities but with Palace looking somewhat lethargic after returning from their American tour, it was clear that Brentford was further along their Preseason match fitness programme given their big kick off against Charlton is only a week away. With the Premier League kick off a further two weeks away, the biggest test of Palace’s preparations for Arsenal on the opening day will come against Bundesliga Team Auchsberg in Bavaria Germany next weekend.

Meanwhile at Griffen Park in the second half, Brentford took control with two quick goals from Jonathan Douglas and Andre Grey. The shock of the goals seemed to wake Palace up, and with flares being lit in the away end Palace hit back with two quick strikes of their own. Within minutes the lead was gone, Glenn Murray neatly finished past David Button in the Brentford goal after a defender slipped to make it 2 – 1, then Marouanne Chemakh tapped in an equaliser as red smoke from a flare caused confusion in the box. 2 – 2.

Yet roared on by a passionate home crowd Brentford’s record signing from Leyton Orient, Moses Odubajo capitalised on an error from Delaney at the back to skip past Ward and score past Speroni to give Brentford a surprising yet well-deserved 3 – 2 victory.

Next weekend Palace face Auchsburg in Germany in what will be a tough test in preparation for their League opener against Arsenal. Brentford meanwhile can look forward confidently to the Season opener against Charlton Athletic in what is worth remembering will be their first game in the second tier of English football for twenty one years!     

 

German Beers, School Buses & A Game In Philly.

Richard Bamber

July 27th 2014

Friday night saw the traveling Palace support converge on a German bar located a few blocks south of Philadelphia's bustling city centre. The reason was simple & was nothing to do with a sudden love of all things Teutonic; the bar was the only place providing a fun & easy way to get to Philadelphia Union's stadium, which is located about 20 miles south of the city in the suburb of Chester. While the stadium lies just of the I-95 interstate, parking was a slightly ridiculous $20 & the public transport option involved two trains & a bus. There was a degree of hopefulness amongst the fans, in particular the English contingent as we all clutched PayPal confirmations that claimed a bus would duly pick us up 90 minutes before the game.

 

Throughout the afternoon, fans clad in red & blue arrived, with a particular mention going to the New York Eagles who brought their giant 3x2m flag which was hung from the upstairs balcony to rapturous cheering. Old friends caught up with each other & a large amount of German pilsner was consumed.

 

Much to some relief, two American style yellow school buses arrived at the allotted time & the Palace faithful  started to board. Better still, these vehicles each featured two enthusiastic Union fans who begun handing out canned & bottled beer immediately. My red & blue flag was attached to back of one of the buses & we set off.

 

The flag didn't last three blocks as it seems that having one job is too much for some of our inebriated regulars! I am reliably assured that the driver behind got a bit of a fright & had to swerve as it exited the window at the back of the bus.  Luckily it was a generic club shop one so replacing it shouldn't be hard.

 

This wasn't the only casualty of the trip, as with the traffic not being great & nearly an hour after departure, it all became to much for one Palace couple who hadn't been to the toilet. They were let off & presumably had an enjoyable time walking the last mile to PPL Park.

 

We got into the stadium, which is only a few years old having opened in 2010 after being expressly built for Philadelphia Union to join the USA's Major League Soccer.  About 100 Palace fans gathered in a corner section on a beautiful summer's evening.  The game kicked off & To be fair was nothing remarkable. Palace broke the deadlock on midway through the first half with the game's only goal, which unfortunately was scored by the Union's Ethan White. However the highlight was the moment that the away contingent spotted a young guy sporting a Liverpool top sitting next his mum who had a Palace scarf on. '3-0, & you f*cked it up' & 'If it wasn't for the Palace, you'd be top' chants rang out for the next few minutes. Hopefully that kid learnt his lesson that if you aren't wearing the colours of one of the teams playing, it really should be plain clothes!

 

Special mention should also go to Palace co-owner Steve Parish, who took the time to come over to the away end at half time & chat with fans. The gesture was roundly appreciated by those lucky enough to meet him.

 

After the game, we headed back to the buses which were restocked with beers. The ride back was excellent with the 'old guard' teaching the newer fans some of the more obscure ditties from the Palace songbook. We arrived back at the bar around 10pm for more drinks after which things begin to get a little blurry!

 

Most on the fans on tour spent the day after in either New York, Philadelphia or Washington before heading south to Richmond, Virginia for Monday's nights game against local side, the Richmond Kickers. Some of the latest updates & pictures from the tour can be found on Twitter via @ColoradoPalace.

 

Again Thank You to Richard Bamber for keeping all us UK based Eagles supporters updated with the latest happenings on Crystal Palace's American Adventure!

 

Palace Meet The Crew: A Guest Blog by Richard Bamber! (apologies for colour formatting erors.)

July 23rd 2014

 

Richard Bamber

Palace kicked-off their USA tour with a friendly against Major League Soccer side Columbus Crew. 'The Crew' were crowned MLS Champions by way of a play-off final victory as recently as 2007 however the team as such has done little of note since then. The Crew Stadium was about half full for this midweek match with approximately 100 Palace fans filling a south stands section underneath the giant video wall / scoreboard which gained notoriety last year when it caught fire, delaying the start of a Crew home fixture. Most supporters were already enthusiastic about the local hospitality after attending a traditional American 'tailgate' in the car park hosted by the home fans before the game. Red & blue were happy to mingle with Black & Gold before kick-off. The match started & Columbus went 1-0 up after 15 minutes courtesy of a superb Adam Beddell header. However Palace made their Premier League presence felt throughout the 1st half, which finally paid off when Glenn Murray equalized in the 36th minute.

 

At half-time, several Palace fans were curious what the large canopy & lack of seats was for behind the goal at the other end of the stadium. The answer is that Columbus were the first team to get what the Americans call a 'Soccer Specific Stadium' in 2001. Like many stateside sporting arenas, the venue was also intended to be used for concerts too. The 18,000 for soccer / 25,000 for concerts capacity template has now been copied several times by MLS teams, however newer stadia such as Sporting Park in Kansas feature more elegant solutions than simply sacrificing many attractive seats directly behind the goal.

 

The stadium has also gained legendary status amongst USA national team fans as it is the venue usually selected to play any home World Cup qualifiers against bitter rivals Mexico. The USA have a great record here, with the last 3 contests resulting in 2-0 victories for the Yanks. Because of this, the Spanish inspired 'Dos a Cero' chant has entered the repertoire of many a supporter based over here.

 

The second half started with Palace changing goalkeeper Julian Speroni for Wayne Hennessey with another three substitutions on 51mins. The Eagles went ahead in the 70th minute thanks to a Jake Gray goal. However Columbus's Daniel Paladini equalized with 10 minutes to go & the match ended with the score at 2-2, a quite respectable score for the Americans given that their league counterparts suffered heavy defeats on a night where several English teams played MLS sides.

 

Palace head to the east coast next where a Friday night fixture against Philadelphia Union awaits. Some of the latest updates & pictures from the tour can be found on Twitter via @ColoradoPalace.

 

Many thanks to friend of the blog Richard Bamber for his report live from the Columbus Crew game this last Wednesday Night. Do follow him on Twitter @ColoradoPalace for the latest fan pics and action updates from Palace’s latest American Adventure. Last night Palace beat Philadelphia Union 1 – 0

Sweeping into 2015: A Pre-Season blog taking in old memories of a US tour and development of US soccer alongside a world cup, hosted in Brazil in 2014.

Hey-Ho and welcome back to my blog covering all things Crystal Palace into our first consecutive Premier League campaign and our sixth Premier League season in total. As usual and as of the last three years since 2011, this blog will keep you updated on Palace’s top flight fortunes! As others such as Brighton and Charlton struggle to catch up, whilst hopefully arrogantly failing miserably.

Since I wrote about the Gayle that blew across the Thames at Fulham on the last day of last season, there has of course been the small matter of a World Cup Quarter finals in Brazil containing the 8 group winners for the first time since the tournament was extended to its current eight group thirty two team format. What followed was a very exciting set of matches that prevailed with Germany winning the tournament including an efficient 7 – 1 mauling of hosts Brazil on their way to the trophy.

Meanwhile Crystal Palace have prepared for Pre Season in Austria which is now under way in the form of a three game tour of America with games against Columbus Crew (2-2), Philadelphia Union, Friday evening (25^th July) rounding off with a match against the Richmond Kickers days later. Preparations during Preseason are being overseen by the Stoney eyed guidance of the excellent never relegated Tony Pulis; surely a fact to tempt fate with given Crystal Palace’s history but for now let us hope not! On Palace’s return to UK soil they play Brentford on August 2 and then travel to Bavaria, Germany to play Augsburg a week before the season begins at the Emirates Vs Arsenal.

Crystal Palace’s current tour of the States brings back many happy memories for me having attended the clubs previous tour of the States in 2010 when Simon Jordan was still Chairman. Just thinking of that tour brings back so many happy memories as access to the then first team squad was very open and then gaffer Neil Warnock was also totally approachable to every Palace fan on the trip and at that time led the club brilliantly. As a result I will always hold Warnock in great affection. 2010 was a tough battle to keep Palace in existence which was fortunately successful. On a personal note it culminated wonderfully with Palace’s Championship survival and me been given the honour of CPFC fan of the year 2010.

A good friend of mine, Richard Bamber who travelled with me on the 2010 Palace tour has since moved to the States and is based permanently in Denver Colorado. Hopefully he will deliver some observations on the 2014 tour including some reports which will be possibly uploaded onto this blog! No doubt he will enjoy the 2014 version of a Palace tour to his adopted homeland. A key difference between the 2010 tour and this years’ incarnation is the proliferation of soccer from east to west with the college system feeding MLS in the men’s game alongside the continued growth of the Women’s game.

In 2010 the experience of being able to watch Crystal Palace play football in a country as culturally diverse as America was immense. Yet it was still definitely a minority sport in America at that time, with games being played to various back drops from Athletics fields, to adapted Baseball diamonds. Compare the difference four years makes and Palace’s 2014 tour is very different as soccer finds its backbone in American sporting psyche, with every game vs The Crew, The Union and the Kickers being played in custom built stadiums filled to capacity most weekends as MLS makes a definitive mark on the American sporting landscape.

In 2010 we had a blast but it did appear many of the matches were piggybacking of the infrastructure of the existing sports such as Baseball. There is no doubt the 2014 tour to America takes place in a very different backdrop. The Success of the American National Team in Brazil under the control of German maestro Jurgen Klinsmann with his policy of naturalising German players to represent America, finally gives soccer/football in America the foothold it needs to be embraced in the hearts of America’s sporting public. MLS has organised purpose built stadiums to bring a competitive viewing and pricing policy, competitive with other sports such as the NHL, MLB, NFL, and NBA.

After the game against Brentford on 2^nd August Preseason wraps up in Germany against Augsburg and although I will only be attending the Brentford match keep tuned to my blog as I will bring some of the flavours of all the matches through friends that will be in attendance. We can confirm today the signing of Fraizer Campbell as rumours continue surroundings a return to the club of Palace youth heroes Victor Moses and Wilfried Zaha.

In concluding this preseason note, a big thank you to those who check my blog regularly. Although last season was an incredibly difficult one to get through personally, Palace showed me the way and gave me the strength to come back and continue this blog process. A big thank you to all my friends and family, Including my PA Elliot and little nephew Ali Joe, who will hopefully grow up to love Palace as much as I do.

 

Enjoy the new Campaign!                                                                               Samuel    

 

 

Fulham 2 – 2 Crystal Palace: Cold Gayle Blows out Fulham’s Premier League Status!

Fulham said farewell to the Premier League with a spirited 2 – 2 draw against Crystal Palace on a crisp, windy, early summer Sunday afternoon by the Thames. Another brace from Palace’s Dwight Gayle capped a good week for the striker following up his two goals against Liverpool at Selhurst Park the previous Monday evening. He has now taken his goal tally for the season to seven goals from five starts and a handful of substitute appearances.

Eagles’ fans were in a jolly mood and ended their season jovially singing about survival and gently mocking the opponent Fulham fans about their status as a relegated club. With an eye to the future one key change to Crystal Palace’s starting line-up came in goal when Wayne Hennessey was handed his debut in place of season ever present and Player of the Year Julian Speroni who’s future maybe in doubt long term despite some very consistently excellent performances, as Palace have been linked to relegated Norwich City goalkeeper John Ruddy.

Palace took the lead on twenty eight minutes when Gayle diverted the ball home from a Joel Ward cross after he was played in by an excellent one touch layoff from Yannick Bolasie. New Keeper Wayne Hennessey’s distribution was very good despite the obviously nervous start given the difficult task of filling such big shoes left behind by Julian Speroni. Quick well thought out distribution pass kicks from Hennessey played in Ince and Bolasie on both flanks with great regularity. Following the goal Palace went close to a second when a Thomas Ince crossed free kick was met by a Scott Dann header which was saved by David Stockdale.

Fulham, already relegated decided to go with youth up front in the form of Cauley Woodrow (19yrs) and Chris David (21yrs). They went close when Fernando Amorebieta’s header was saved by Hennessey. They did equalise when Hugo Rodallega lay off was perfectly into the path of Woodrow who curled the ball accurately into the corner of the net on sixty one minutes. Palace retook the lead when Dwight Gayle brilliantly curled a free-kick home with less then ten minutes to go that looked like the winner. Almost immediately Palace could have wrapped up the match and the season when substitutes Puncheon and Murray combined for Murray to hit the crossbar as Gayle missed the chance for a hat-trick as the rebound hit him and bounced wide.

Palace paid for this profligate miss and their sloppiness in closing out the game as Dutchman Chris David scored for Fulham slamming home a brilliant shot from distance with their last kick in the Premier League for now to make the final score 2 – 2 in this entertaining if relaxed end of season affair. What a campaign that sees Crystal Palace finish in 11^th position. With Tony Pulis picking up Premier League Manager of the Season Award whilst also being nominated for the LMA Award won deservedly by Brendon Rodgers. A season met with great satisfaction by all around Selhurst Park from the management, owners, and players through to fans, recovering from a dreadful start to end in relative comfort with the achievement of denying Liverpool the title with an amazing draw.

With Tony Pulis most likely to be in charge for next season 2014/15, it promises to be one of progress as Tony Pulis is not the kind of manager to stay around without signs of relentless and sometimes ruthless progression. Part of this progression may involve evolving the goalkeeping position. If this is in fact the case and there is a change of goalkeeper then a word for longstanding Argentine custodian Julian Speroni. After ten seasons and five Player of the Year Awards, his latest last Tuesday, he has been a fantastic servant to the club and is one of Palace’s best ever keepers, up there with John Jackson and Nigel Martyn. He remains the best ever keeper I have seen at Selhurst Park. He will be unlucky not to be included in the Argentinian World Cup squad for Brazil, it is their loss if he does not go. If and when he does leave Palace next season, I for one like all Eagles fans will wish him well wherever he ends up playing his football.

 

Thanks for reading my Palace Blog this season, Burchy’s Palace Blog will return for another Premier League campaign in 2014/15!!     

 

Crystal Palace 3 – 3 Liverpool: Gayle Force Rocks Reds Title Bid!

Three goals in the final eleven minutes of the season at Selhurst Park potentially destroyed Liverpool’s title challenge as they blew a comfortable 0 – 3 lead in a match they needed to win. In a pulsating atmosphere under the lights at Selhurst Park on an early summers evening the ground was jumping and the Palace faithful were ready to celebrate one of the most successful seasons in their clubs’ history. The players emerged to a cacophony of noise, banners and a ticker tape display at the Holmesdale Road End as Palace songs of celebration filled the Selhurst air.

Despite the atmosphere of celebration in the air and a relatively even start, it was Liverpool who took the lead when Joe Allen peeled away from Joe Ledley at a corner to score at the back post. Allen was not picked up, it was poor marking that allowed Allen to meet Gerrard’s corner planting a header past Speroni into the bottom corner. Palace pushed on and despite Liverpool claiming a penalty when Bolasie challenged Johnson, Simon Mignolet was forced into action to make excellent saves from Jason Puncheon and Mile Jedinak just before halftime.

In the second half and needing to win Liverpool charged out of the blocks and seemingly had control of the game. Sturridge was superbly denied by Speroni when he tipped his shot onto the post only for Suarez to wildly slice wide the rebound in front of an open goal. Liverpool did make it 0 – 2 when a Sturridge shot deflected off a defender to trickle agonisingly out of Speroni’s reach and into the net. The game seemed over with more goals possible on fifty five minutes when Suarez netted Liverpool out of sight to make it 0 – 3 with his thirty first goal of the season.

The match changed with eleven minutes remaining when a Damian Delaney pile driver took a deflection to find its way into the top corner to make it 1 – 3. Substitute Dwight Gayle then took advantage of sudden Liverpool uncertainty as Bolasie surged down the wing roared on by a raucous and vivacious Palace crowd. When he found Gayle with a neat cut back his cool finish was greeted by jubilation in the crowd as the deficit was cut to 2 – 3.

Two minutes later Selhurst was sent into raptures. Liverpool had thrown away a three goal lead to seriously dent their title hopes! Substitute Glenn Murray combined perfectly with Gayle he chested the ball into his path allowing Gayle to comprehensively blast the ball home past Mignolet to make it 3 – 3 and leave the home fans delighted and Liverpool fans comprehending the end of their title challenge. At the end of the game the Palace sides’ achievement was celebrated during a deserved lap of honour. Yet with Speroni throwing his gloves to the fanatics with no new contract signed, and Pulis’s managerial stock never being higher it could be a summer of uncertainty as a result of great success in SE25 before the next Premier League campaign of 2014/15.

The season ends next Sunday with a trip to relegated Fulham. Crystal Palace’s season awards night takes place on Tuesday evening and whilst revenge maybe on the cards for Fulham’s 1 – 4 victory at Selhurst in early November that saw an end to Ian Holloway’s tenure, it will be interesting to see who takes home the Player of the Year gong out of Speroni, Ward, Delaney, Puncheon, Jedinak, and Chemakh. Although all are worthy of the gong, for sentimental reasons alone in case he is not at Palace next season I hope Jules wins it!