December 5 2005

Ben Watson

Jamesey celebrates his 100th column for HOL, but our 1-1 draw with Millwall leaves mixed feelings

Until the final minute of stoppage time, I thought there was a sign hanging in the visitors' dressing room - "Bottom of the league? Come to Selhurst and grab three points?"

Fortunately Ben Watson's very late equaliser evened the game and saved our blushes and, after the Brighton home debacle, the shame of capitulating at home to another fierce rival.

I did not witness our goal because I was already on my way to Selhurst station to catch the 5.01pm to Clapham Junction.

To those holier-than-thou people who think leaving a match early is a cardinal sin, I can only say that the thought of sharing a northward-bound train with a bunch of neanderthal Millwallies does not appeal to me and my firm desire is to be well out of the way before they leave the ground.

As stated above, this is my 100th Jamesey column for this website.

Four or five years ago, Peter Guntrip and Gordon Law who run the site, asked me to write a column from a veteran fan's point of view. Since then I suppose the column has evolved into a general supporter's view rather than some old bloke having a rant.

I've made quite a few new friends since the summer of 2001, some of them living at the far ends of the earth.

I have received electronic sackfuls of emails, all of which I have attempted to answer, except the more obvious basket-cases.

As is the case often in life, the columns which I innocently expected to attract little comment were the ones when the excrement truly hit the ventilator.

At the beginning of last season when I unsuspectingly wrote that I thought we would be relegated from the Premiership, I was taken to task by quite a few furious members. Well, I was right, it gives me no satisfaction to point out.

Later on in the season I wrote (uncharacteristically, I think) a gloating column about our 3-0 victory over Tottenham, a club that has always got up my hooter.

Somebody must have posted it on a Spurs website, because I got hatemail by the tonne, some of it not very pleasant to read.

On the other hand, my views that it was wrong to stand in an all-seater stadium or call other fans "scum" attracted little but friendly comment when I expected the flak to really fly.

I guess it wasn't until the late 90s when CPFC looked seriously like going belly up that I realised what an integral part of my life it was. What on earth would I do as a hobby for nine months of the year without Palace to support and all the accompanying joy (not much), angst (plenty of that), and other in-between emotions?

Well, blessedly, it didn't happen and we survived but it reinforced to me that important lesson in life that we should never take anything for granted.

So, like me or not, I intend to carry on for the next 100, unless I become surplus to the management's requirements or that Great Referee in the Sky blows the final whistle...

Email Jamesey with any of your comments to Jevans3704@aol.com

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