Watching Palace pre-season is always something to look forward to what with weeks without games and the addition of new players, but to travel to the other side of the Atlantic to get the fix... surely a mad thing to do.

 

Nevertheless, along with about 15-20 others from the UK, I made the trip combining it with the sights of north east Amercia.

 

Thankfully my travelling companion has a geography degree and without her and her route preparation and map reading skills we may not have made it at all.

 

This Palace game was in as remote a place as one could imagine (although the Gothenburg game in Sweden two years ago ran it close), and we were the only car on the approach road for many miles. Although, on arrival the car park (or parking lot) was filling up after a while.

 

At the game it was difficult to know who was supporting who as Baltimore fans also wore their CPFC replica kits.

 

The game itself was at the home of the Blue Crabs baseball team so the pitch had been especially laid and we caught up with Mick Jones inspecting the surface before the kick off. He was pleased with the preparation so far and said that Palace couldn't have been made more welcome.

 

Apart from the 15 or so Palace hardcore fans behind the goal to my left the majority of supporters were families with a fair spread of local people and Baltimore fans who had made the trip south; over a thousand in total.

 

Usual refreshments were served except for 'pie' read as 'pretzel', and we were allowed to take our beers to our seats - how refreshing!

 

We were even provided with drinks holders, a bit like a posh cinema, and that seemed to actively encourage refreshment throughout the game!

 

I guess as we'd made the long trip it was correct that we sang the National Anthems.

 

So in their new Nike kit Palace took to the field with Baltimore wearing last season's sash without the sponsor.

 

I won't go into the full match report here as this can be read elsewhere but Baltimore had the better of the opening exchanges until Alan Lee got on the end of a Freddie Sears cross (the new lad looks good by the way) to give Palace the lead.

 

Palace led 2-1 at half time through an own goal and then began to dominate after the break with Sears scoring the third goal.

 

Baltimore managed to claw one back before the game was put beyond doubt towards the end with two more goals.

 

I think the announcer and the guy who pressed the Glad All Over music got a tad confused as it was only Baltimore who got the music initially when they scored, but towards the end all goals received the rendition!

 

Talking with some Baltimore fans after the game they hadn't realised that Glad All Over was played at Selhurst! They thought it was exclusively their song!

 

With the action over, time to leave... that is, at least, what we thought but not yet as players and fans alike were treated to a fabulous fireworks display!

 

Fans were then actively encouraged onto the playing surface to collect autographs... all very friendly... and a satisfactory evening's work for the boys before their trip to the White House tomorrow!