October 17 2001

Crystal Palace

Steve Bruce praised goalkeeper MATT CLARKE, who pulled off a string of class saves in the 2-0 win against Bradford last night.

CLARKE was signed from Bradford last month for £1.3m and denied Robbie Blake, Ashley Ward and David Wetherall.

Bruce said: "MATT produced some world-class saves and he kept the momentum going. But he didn't have anything to do for the first 40 minutes."

Bradford boss Jim Jefferies agreed CLARKE had a good game. He said: "I thought we outplayed them for most of the game but MATT saved Palace with some superb saves.

"We have been leaking goals lately and we've got to cut out the mistakes. It's a travesty we didn't get anything out of this game."

The Eagles now play league leaders Wolves on Saturday, knowing a win will move them into top spot, but Bruce is keeping his feet on the ground.

He said: "Let's not get carried away. All of a sudden, there's plenty of expectations. That's good but we've still got a way to go.

"The players have turned things around after almost being relegated last season but there is only a quarter of the season gone."