Henderson: The travelling support was phenomenal
Dean Henderson thanked Palace’s ‘phenomenal’ supporters for the noise they made to help get the team over the line in Fredrikstad.
The Eagles recorded a third clean sheet in five competitive matches this season to secure UEFA Conference League qualification in Norway – and with it, a first-ever European tour in the club’s history.
Although it wasn’t the prettiest performance at times – albeit on an AstroTurf pitch, Palace’s first such competitive match in 35 years – a 0-0 draw at Fredrikstad Stadion sealed a 1-0 win in the tie, and ultimately got the job done.
Henderson told Palace TV: “I think everyone should be more buzzing than they actually are.
“Obviously, the performance wasn't great today. I thought we defended the box really well, which is most important. We've come away to a tough place, obviously a different surface, and there were some tired legs tonight.
“But I tell you what, we're going on the first European tour and it's something we should be bouncing about. Obviously, the away end was unbelievable at the end there. It means so much to those fans and so much to us as well.
“It's phenomenal to see what we've achieved so far. It's something to be really proud of.
I was proud of the lads, honestly
—Dean Henderson
"It was obviously disappointing not to win the game, of course. We came here to win the game. The Manager’s put big emphasis on that. But the reality is they made it difficult for us. They were chucking long throws in there.
“I was proud of the lads, honestly. They defended the box so well and as a team, as a unit, we were solid again, which is important. If you want to go far in these competitions, you've got to be solid. You've got to keep clean sheets. You've got to be hard to beat.
“We showed that. We've got the foundations for that. It's just getting some goals at the other end which would be nice to top it off.”
On the Palace supporters, Henderson added: “They were phenomenal. They were phenomenal.
“Obviously, it's their first taste of that and to come away and have them behind us…
“If they can follow us in those sorts of numbers every time, I'm sure we'll give it a really good go.”