Haines: Your support is really valued by the team

The Eagles, who currently sit fifth in the Women’s Championship table, could mathematically still finish as high as second – with a repeat of last season’s club record fourth-place finish the target.

The first of their final three games falls this Sunday (16 April, 14:00 BST kick-off) against Birmingham City at Hayes Lane – Palace’s first home game since over 1,700 supporters roared them on to a win over Blackburn Rovers three weeks ago.

Another special occasion awaits attendees this Sunday with free entertainment, face paint, posters and more, as tickets remain available to purchase from just £5* for Season Ticket holders and Members, and Under-16s go free.

Haines told cpfc.co.uk: “The loyal Crystal Palace fans, who are in there week-in, week-out, drive us on, and it helps us give that extra bit when we can hear them every game.

“That so many came out last home game… it was just incredible to hear them singing from start to finish. It was like having a 12th player out there when we were playing, so any support is really valued by the team. We love having people back us at the game.”

While Palace can no longer mathematically achieve promotion, Haines wants to see her side continue to demonstrate their growth this season.

“We just want to try and get as many points in the table as possible, and implement what we’ve worked on from the first week of the season.

“We started a process with how we want to play, trying to get stronger at what we’re good at, and the process that we set out at the start of the season is just so important.

“Regardless of where we sit in the table, trying to improve our style of play and principles is just as important as fighting for the title.”

As for Birmingham – third in the table, and against whom the Eagles fell to a 3-1 defeat at St Andrew’s last month – Haines feels a tough examination is in order.

The Palace midfielder said: “They’re a very organised team, and their manager and coach set them up to be very disciplined. They have a good standard of play.

“It’s tough playing against a team with good management and good coaching, but we have quite a few levels above what we showcased against Birmingham last time, so it’ll be exciting to try and put into practice what we’ve been doing in training, and show what we can do.

“My focus is definitely on the game in hand, but they have Shivs [Siobhan Wilson], who I played with at Palace last season and am looking forward to seeing.

“Jo Potter is [Assistant Head] Coach there – I played in a team with her for a couple of seasons and she is just a role model for me. She was somebody that I looked up to, so it’s always nice to see one of your childhood heroes, while focusing on winning the game as well.”

*Please note that women’s matches take place at Hayes Lane, rather than Selhurst Park, and that ticket prices will increase on matchday for purchases made both online and at the stadium.