Crystal Palace boss Paul Hart praised his players spirit and resolve as his ten man side slipped to a 1-0 defeat at home to Leicester City.
A straight red card for Claude Davis towards the end of the first half meant the Eagles had to play the remainder of this encounter a man down and Hart was unable to offer any excuse for Claude's off the ball challenge on the Foxes Michael Morrison
"I don't think we can defend that at all. I am very disappointed. Having said that playing against a good side, it was tough enough with 11 men and the way we played in the second half showed what the players were made of, they were excellent and were unfortunate not to get at least one goal. But the game is hard enough with 11. Now I have got to consider about the recovery of these players as they put a massive shift in tonight."
When asked what the players were feeling in the dressing room, following the end of 90 minutes of action at Selhurst, Hart's reply highlighted just how highly he rates the current squad's morale despite the situation the club is in.
"They are disappointed but they did not deserve to walk off of that pitch with their shoulders hunched, whatever frailities we have got you can't call courage and desire one of them.
"They don't realise what they have done for me, I go home every day with a smile on my face working with these players. I will back them all the way and help as much as I can. It is unusual to get a group as passionate as this and you can throw all the criticism at them you want but as a group of players they are excellent. We have got young kids being thrown on and they are performing but we know what we need to get some results and they deserve it with the commitment they have shown even when it has been tough."
Chances were few and far between for the Eagles and Calvin Andrew nearly got within a foot of putting the ball in the back of the net in the first half, only to see it to be cleared off of the line, a situation that Hart admitted needs to change.
"We created chances but we have had four shots cleared off of the line in the last two games. All season it has not been exactly prolific but I have seen chances where we have been the victims of good defending and finishing could be better."
Alan Lee and Nathaniel Clyne both made way at half-time for Matt Lawrence and Lee Hills, one of which was enforced on the Palace boss.
"Nathaniel Clyne was taken off because of a groin strain that he picked up and we will have a clearer idea of what that is like tomorrow, the other subsitution was purely tactical."
