March 5 2008

Selhurst Park

One point, no goals, little satisfaction and more than a little disappointment after the Taffs turned up at Selhurst, reports Jamesey.

This columnist's ageing bones feel the cold more and more as the seasons unfurl. So on a freezing night (Mar 4), it took some effort to launch myself onto the Selhurst stopper for our evening appointment with Cardiff City.

The thought of two attractive European fixtures, both on ITV and both involving top English clubs, made the temptation to stay at home in the warmth even more alluring.

However, duty is duty, and three pints of anti-freeze (aka full-strength Belgian lager) in the Selhurst Arms sped me on my way.

Over 13,000 hardy souls, including a dedicated flock of Bluebirds, also braved the raw night and Palace supporters' were hopeful of our first home win since Bristol City in mid-January.

I listened to the Preston North End away game on Saturday (Mar 1) and our 0-1 victory seemed deserved and, could one dare hope, have been the beginning of another little run to propel us back up the table again.

The first half did little to sustain our hopes as Cardiff City had the best of the game, with Trevor Sinclair in particular, frightening the pants off the Palace defenders every time he touched the ball.

Victor Moses looked promising although to use a lazy cliché, far from the finished article.

Do they teach them throw-in development at our Academy? Both Victor and Lee Hills seem able to launch the ball about 50 metres.

The second half was better and brought the arrival of one of our finest wunderkinder, Sean Scannell, who really should have scored with a one-on-one chance.

Well, four points from six is certainly no tragedy but why can't we make our home games count? The next two, against weak opposition, are a real opportunity to move up the league and snap up one of those play-off positions.

The best part of the evening's entertainment for this football fan was returning home to a warm sitting room and, with a couple of glasses of Aussie Merlot, watching the highlights of Arsenal doing the impossible and beating AC Milan 0-2.

It suddenly struck me that a pint of the above-mentioned anti-freeze now costs £3.20 on licensed premises while for not a lot more you can pop into the supermarket and take home a very drinkable bottle of wine.

Small wonder that boarded-up public houses are such a common sight on the streets of London these days...

Email Jamesey with your comments to Jevans3704@aol.com

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