2012/13 - Part Three: Comebacks, changes and derbies

Over these two weeks, you can follow the account of Club Historian Ian King on cpfc.co.uk, telling the story of a dramatic campaign – with a little help from the stars of When Eagles Dare, now available to watch on Palace TV+.

• Part One: A challenging start
• Part Two: Transfers, fortunes and breakthroughs

Read Part Three below...

29th September: Bolton 0-1 Palace

Palace gained their first victory in 17 attempts at Bolton thanks to a Glenn Murray penalty 10 minutes from time. Joel Ward started, with Peter Ramage injured, and Owen Garvan replaced André Moritz to face a Wanderers side recently relegated from the Premier League.

The south Londoners almost scored after just two minutes when Wilfried Zaha forced Ádám Bogdán into a reaction save and Murray headed wide just before the break.

Bolton had reportedly made an offer for Zaha the previous January and the Ivorian showed what they’d sought when he drew a foul in the penalty box as the clock began to tick down. Murray dispatched a fierce spot kick, but the hosts nearly drew level at the death with future Palace player Lee Chung-yong’s drive.

September began with Palace rock bottom of the Championship, but by the end of the month, the club sat 10th with 13 points from the last five games. Meanwhile, Brighton led the way just three points ahead.

2nd October: Wolves 1-2 Palace

Palace faced another recently relegated club when they travelled to Molineux to play third-place Wolves.

Both sides had opportunities to score in a topsy-turvy first-half, but Wolves drew first blood in the 53rd minute when Sylvan Ebanks-Blake robbed a hesitant Damien Delaney and slotted the ball home.

Minutes later, two future Palace signings, Bakary Sako and Kevin Doyle, created scares, with the former having a shot blocked and the latter hitting the crossbar.

Zaha then turned the game on its head with two goals in six minutes. First, he gathered Ward’s long ball on the edge of the box, beat his marker and found the bottom corner for the equaliser; he then controlled a raking pass from Garvan and rifled in an unstoppable shot from just outside the penalty area.

6th October: Palace 4-3 Burnley

With Jonny Williams standing down the team welcomed back Kagisho Dikgacoi after the South African missed the Wolves game through injury, and Darcy Blake replaced Ward.

‘Kids for a quid’ boosted the crowd to over 20,000 – and they were treated to a seven-goal thriller.

The Eagles started on the front foot but the Clarets scored twice in three minutes midway through the first-half to dampen the initial buzz. Just before the break Moritz played a ball through to Zaha on the left for the winger to hold off Kieran Trippier and reduce the arrears.

Eight minutes into the second-half Palace drew level with another Moritz-Zaha combination, followed midway through the half when Delaney buried a left-footed drive to give his side the lead.

Murray then netted his seventh goal in seven games by turning home Dean Moxey’s cross, and the hosts survived a nervy conclusion after Charlie Austin netted Burnley’s third. For the second time in two weeks Palace had come from 0-2 down to win at home, a feat last achieved in April 1969.

The week after the game, Dougie Freedman and Murray were named the division's Manager and Player of the Month respectively.

20th October: Palace 2-2 Millwall

Garvan returned to the side for a south London derby that had almost everything.

The Eagles stormed into an early lead with a blistering 25-yard strike from Mile Jedinak in the 35th minute, which Delaney doubled four minutes later by heading home a Garvan free-kick.

Palace were in control and cruising when Dean Moxey had a moment of madness, handling the ball on the line in an effort to keep it out; he was dismissed and the Lions reduced the deficit with the subsequent penalty.

Playing the whole of the second-half with 10 men, Palace were just about holding on until 13 minutes from time, when Millwall found an equaliser as Mark Beevers reacted fastest from a corner.

Despite this draw the Eagles remained in fourth place as both Wolves and Brighton lost, while Leeds also had drawn their clash with Sheffield Wednesday the previous evening.

Later that day, Bolton approached Palace for permission to speak to manager Freedman. Three days later, the Scot agreed to take over in the north-west.

23rd October: Barnsley 1-1 Palace

On the day Freedman left to take over at Bolton it fell to Lennie Lawrence and Curtis Fleming to oversee the game at Oakwell.

Palace, with Julián Speroni making his 250th league appearance but Moxey and Zaha missing through suspension, started brightly by producing two efforts on goal that narrowly missed the target.

Then with 11 minutes gone, Murray netted his eighth goal of the season from Jonathan Parr’s low cross. There was another opportunity minutes later when Murray’s header forced ‘keeper Ben Alnwick into a good save but as the half wore on the Tykes came back into the game.

An even second-half ensued and in the final 15 minutes Kagisho Dikgacoi’s teasing effort hit the post, but four minutes from time David Perkins curled a shot past Speroni into the top corner.

With other clubs around Palace also dropping points the team remained fourth, with Leicester City and Cardiff City joint leaders four points ahead.

27th October: Leicester 1-2 Palace

There was a vocal support of over 2,000 Palace fans who travelled to table-topping Leicester, with the Foxes having won all six home league fixtures to that point.

In an outstanding team display the unlikely scorers were central defensive partners Delaney and Ramage, who scored both goals in a five-minute spell midway through the first-half. First Kasper Schmeichel failed to hold the ball from an outswinging Garvan corner and Delaney rifled home, before Ramage was left unmarked at another corner for a free header.

The Foxes applied more pressure after the break although Palace looked more likely to score again through Yannick Bolasie and Garvan.

In the end, Andy King netted in injury time and Palace couldn’t add an insurance policy third. Still, they had become the first club to beat Leicester on home turf that season.

The Eagles’ unbeaten run now stretched to 10 games but with Cardiff and Middlesbrough also victories, they remained in fourth place - but not for long...