November 27 2005

Iain Dowie

IAIN DOWIE blasted his Palace flops for their worst display of the season

Palace were well below par as they crashed to a 2-0 defeat at Luton.

Markus Heikkinen and Rowan Vine scored first half goals for the Hatters to leave DOWIE fuming.

He said: "It was our worst performance of the season. Luton were the better side from start to finish.

"With the exception of Emmerson Boyce, no-one played anywhere near the level I expect. There was not enough drive and not enough hard work.

"We did not match Luton in any department. I have told the players how I feel. They have plenty of plaudits when they play well and I call a spade a spade when they don't.

"It was good for them to listen. If they had reacted to me, they might have got more than they had bargained for."

DOWIE also confirmed his commitment to the club despite interest from Premiership side Portsmouth.

He said: "The chairman turned down the request and informed me of his decision. That's the end of it as far as I'm concerned.

"I still believe we can be promoted, even though we are 20 points behind Reading now.

"It's a good group of players, but we have to make sure we put this right straight away."