A long, long time ago back in the early ‘noughties’, I went to my first Palace game.
It was rubbish. A boring 1-1 draw against Wigan Athletic is credited as being the reason behind my support of Crystal Palace. It was a Danny Granville goal that sealed the draw, and I absolutely loved it. The atmosphere, the often colourful language, the passion and support from the fans. The whole experience was incredible, and it has been a hell of a ride since.
This season, the Eagles certainly lived up to their erratic reputation. For the first half of the season, we were world beaters, the second half we were whipping boys, beaten by pretty much everyone, even lowly Aston Villa. It was a typical Palace season, big expectations, and failing, once again to live up to them.
This summary may seem a little harsh for some, so let us rewind back to last summer.
We had just signed Yohan Cabaye, our top players signed new contracts and the season is looking bright already. Our manager had not quit two days before the first game of the season and we have had a great pre-season.
First game of the season, Norwich City away. Recently promoted, this would be a test of our firepower, and it was a test indeed as we certainly did not make it easy for ourselves. The hosts should have had an equalising goal through Cameron Jerome, but then our main man Yohan Cabaye sealed the game. The confidence this win gave allowed us to push on, and we went up to Christmas performing in similar fashion. In the midst of this, we had a top of the table clash with Manchester City and it was all very, very exciting.
Then Christmas came, and we all got a very sudden slap in the face. The performances were there, the results however, were not. Something was going very very wrong somewhere and Alan Pardew just did not know how to fix it. This not only cost us our place in the top six, but nearly our Premier League status altogether.
During this period, many fans went from hailing Pardew as a god, to baying for his blood. Some even changed their Twitter name to ‘Pardew Out’. Very lame. You know, football used to be a sport of integrity, where people are given a chance. If I cock up at work, I do not get sacked, I get time to remedy the situation, to prove I am good at my job. Everyone faces adversity at work, and Pardew is no exception. Next season is the time for him to prove he is the man to lead us to further glory.
My view is we have a poor recruitment policy, chasing the bigger names, with the bigger price tags. Cabaye was a gamble and it paid off. Emmanuel Adebayor was a gamble and it most definitely did not. The latest players that have made it big in the Premier League, came up from the lower leagues or from youth academies. Jamie Vardy, Dele Alli, Marcus Rashford have all worked their way up through the youth system or lower leagues and something we look for the same kind of player.
Here are my thoughts for Steve Parish who is a regular reader of TEB.
Dougie Freedman. His image may not have fully recovered from the Bolton Wanderers incident, but it seems, in hindsight, that he had an eye for a player or two. Joel Ward, Damien Delaney, Mile Jedinak, Yannick Bolasie, Andre Moritz and Glenn Murray. These are all players signed under the reign of Dougie Freedman, four are still regular starters in our first eleven, one was until last summer, another was outstanding in the Championship, and arguably deserved a chance in the Premier League.
It is easy to look back and think that the guy was an amateur manager beginning his career. The difference is, this guy means something to the club, much like Pardew does. He cares about the club, he wants us to succeed. Steve, bring him back, as director of football, get him involved in the growth of this great club. He hurt the fans when he left, but I know he can bring it back, with all these other former club legends working for us, we are going in the right direction in terms of structure.
Time for me to sign off for the summer now, with all my ramblings to cease for the time being. I just want to offer you one final nugget of appreciation. Thank you for reading my thoughts this season, it has been fun. Whether you have agreed with them or not, I hope they have been of interest to you.
Your support of this great club has been vital in the past, present and will continue to be that way long into the future. There has been so much change here in the last six years, from bust to boom, and the journey has been nothing short of spectacular. This journey is barely beginning, and as more people join the ride, keep supporting, keep believing and keep loving this fantastic club. There is nothing quite like Crystal Palace in the Premier League. Let us keep it that way.
Enjoy your summer Palace fans. I will be back in August when all this madness begins again.
