Report: Sensational Derry volley secures point for 10-man Palace
In the pouring rain at Copers Cope, the ten men of Crystal Palace Under-18s came back from a goal down to earn a point against Southampton, thanks to a sensational effort from Jesse Derry.
Quinn makes two changes to the side that lost out to Spurs
10: Palace dominate the opening exchanges, but can't find a clear shooting chance
22: Casey deflects Obou’s shot in, but it’s ruled out for offside
27: Derry and Casey have chances that are dealt with by the Saints ‘keeper
35: Palace withstand a succession of Saints efforts and corners
40: Casey and Williams come close to finding the breakthrough
41: Hill makes a solid stop to deny Dibaga
HT: Palace 0-0 Saints
54: Pitts puts the visitors ahead early in the second-half
63: King is shown a second yellow card, Palace reduced to 10 men
75: Derry levels with an outstanding volley
90: Southampton are reduced to 10 men as Fry is shown a second yellow
90+5: Cowin clears on the line to deny Southampton
FT: Palace 1-1 Saints
A week on from their opening day defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in a 10-goal thriller, Crystal Palace Under-18s were back on home soil as they welcomed Southampton to Copers Cope.
Rob Quinn made two changes to his side which faced Spurs, with Sean Somade and Charlie Walker-Smith coming in for Joshua Muwana and Matteo Dashi.
David Obou continued in the side with special dispensation from the Premier League, as part of his recovery from a lengthy injury that ruled him out for almost all of last season.
The young Eagles were on top in the opening exchanges, pressing from the front and winning the ball back in dangerous positions, though they couldn’t quite work an opportunity to test Khiani Shombe in the Saints goal.
Palace did have the ball in the back of the net halfway through the first-half, as Obou’s shot inside the box deflected in off of Benjamin Casey, but the forward was in an offside position.
Jesse Derry and Casey both tested Shombe, with the former seeing an effort turned behind for a corner and the latter managing to just hit it over from about four-yards out under immense pressure.
Southampton had chances of their own with 10 minutes to go in the half, though the Palace defence stood firm to withstand a succession of corners and shots on goal.
Marcus Hill made an outstanding stop to deny Sufianu Dibaga, charging out to the edge of his box and getting a hand to the forward’s effort.
The two sides would’ve gone into the break rueing their opportunities to open the scoring, but when they came out in the pouring rain for the second-half it was the Saints who managed to find that elusive opener.
Joshua Pitts pounced on a loose ball in the Palace final third and managed to work his way into the box, finishing on his left foot to give the visitors the lead.
Quinn and his side had it all to do after going a goal down and they were handed another blow as George King unfortunately received his marching orders for a second bookable offence halfway through the second-half.
The young Eagles persevered despite the man advantage for the visitors and managed to draw level with a spectacular goal from Derry. The ball was kept alive following the second phase of a corner and Cowin floated it back in towards an unmarked Derry inside the box.
In space, he managed to pull off a spectacular acrobatic volley, smashing it past a helpless Shombe in the Saints goal.
Momentum remarkably swung in Palace’s favour after levelling, with a comeback potentially looking on the cards, though they couldn’t fashion a clear opportunity at a second goal.
The visitors were reduced to 10 men as the game trickled into stoppage time, with Max Fry being issued a second yellow for a second bookable offence in bringing down Casey on a breakaway.
In the last moments of stoppage time, Freddie Cowin displayed great composure to clear Pitts’ tame effort on the goalline - securing a hard-earned point for Palace.
Attention now turns to the U18 Premier League Cup for Rob Quinn’s side, as they take on Birmingham City on Wednesday. You can watch this game LIVE on Palace TV+ - click HERE for more info.
Saints: Shombe (GK), Adjei-Afriye, Dobson-Ventura (Matthews, 80), Fry, Goremusandu, McMullan, Pitts, Martin, Oyekunle, Gathercole (Emsden-James, 90+2), Dibaga (Bassega, 84).
Subs not used: Upstell (GK), Quartey.
Palace: Hill (GK), King, Somade (Muwana, 67), Walker-Smith, Whyte, Williams, Adams-Collman, Cowin, Derry (Lameiras, 88), Casey, Obou (Dashi, 75).
Subs not used: Mason (GK), Redhead.
