Warnock on warpath as Palace scare Villa

A LATE equaliser, a stunning free kick, a plucky tale of underdogs who almost had their day and a typically forthright rant from Neil Warnock that left at least one of the match officials with blasted eardrums.

Only the most cynical could fail to have been absorbed by this FA Cup tie.

The outcome was that the two teams will meet again at Villa Park in the week before Martin O’Neill’s side are due to face Manchester United in the Carling Cup final at Wembley.

The additional fixture will hardly be welcomed by the Villa manager but for Warnock, whose Crystal Palace side are attempting to repair their season following the imposition of the 10-point penalty that comes with falling into administration, the trip to the midlands offers the prospect of more cash and another rare moment in the spotlight.

It could, however, have been even better for the Championship side.

Having matched their more senior opponents for most of the match, Darren Ambrose fired them into a 2-1 lead with the sort of 35-yard free kick that Cristiano Ronaldo has attempted to trademark.

It was certainly a goal worthy of winning this fifth round tie, and so it would, had Palace not succumbed to Stiliyan Petrov’s diving header from Stewart Downing’s 87th minute corner.

There was nothing wrong with the header, an admirable effort.

Warnock, though, was furious that the corner had been awarded in the first place, claiming assistant referee Trevor Massey misread the incident and incorrectly awarded a corner when it should have been a goal kick.

“It’s disappointing,” said the Palace manager. “It’s bitter. I’ve been told that if Mr Massey got it wrong, he’ll be suspended. I said to him: ‘Will you think about us when you’re sitting and watching on your settee?’

“We’ve got a Premiership referee and we’ve got Mr Massey who was laughing his head off all afternoon with the flag. The ball comes off (Nathan) Delfouneso and neither of them wanted to make a decision.

“They wait and wait to see which way to give it then… a Premier League team are losing 2-1, so we’ll give it to them. That’s a disgrace. He should be banned for weeks, Mr Massey, because all he could do was smile.

“I don’t feel any sympathy if he is suspended. I hope it’s for a long time. Does he realise what it means to a club who can’t afford this, that or another and we’re giving everything, and we’re not let down by anything that’s a football matter, and yet we’re let down by…. incompetence.”

O’Neill was predictably far more diplomatic and balanced. “I didn’t realise what he was upset about,” he said. “I’m never sure what Neil’s upset about. I think he said it wasn’t a corner. So we got a little bit of luck.

“But was their free-kick to score the goal a definite free-kick? You haven’t seen it? I could be totally wrong, and it could be blatant, but I wasn’t sure at the time. If we got a little bit of luck from the corner, I’ll take that. But, overall, I didn’t think either team deserved to lose the game.”

O’Neill’s more rounded assessment of the game was spot on.

It would have been harsh on Palace had Villa flexed their Premier League muscles in the second half and clinched the tie, although striker John Carew was denied on three occasions by the excellent home keeper Julian Speroni.

Villa’s extra quality showed in the opening 20 minutes, but it was Palace who struck first when Johnny Ertl out-jumped the Villa defence on the six-yard line to meet Ambrose’s corner and head the home side into a 25th minute lead.

The visitors responded in kind, in their case through James Collins’ header from Stewart Downing’s corner and it became clear there would be little to choose between the two teams.

Ambrose’s 70th minute goal – his 16th of the season – encouraged hope that the financially stricken Championship club would reach the quarter-finals before Petrov dampened home celebrations.

“We wanted to take them back there, to be honest,” said Warnock. “It would have been flat today if we’d won and then got Reading or West Brom (in the quarter finals). Let’s get up there then get on with the league. If they have a decent day and we don’t, there’s only one winner. Let’s be honest. But we worked so hard.”

REFEREE: Kevin Friend (Leicestershire) 7: Neil Warnock directed his anger at one of the assistant referees and didn’t have a bad word to say about Mr Friend. High praise indeed.

MATCH RATING: ****

Everything a good cup tie should be, with both teams committed and refusing to allow the other to gain the upper hand. Not always pretty, but absorbing nonetheless.

MAN OF THE MATCH: Darren Ambrose (Crystal Palace): Warnock’s side are direct and muscular but Ambrose gives them quality and his free kick was simply outstanding.