Alan Pardew performed his best Steve Coppell impression on the final whistle here,turning on his heels in the technical area and darting down the tunnel to leave the public celebrations for his players out on the pitch. His managerial mentor had done the same amid a joyful pitch invasion up at Villa Park back in 1990 on the last occasion Crystal Palace secured passage into an FA Cup final. Now, 26 years on, or this club has another showpiece event to relish.
This was arguably their best performance of a bizarrely unpredictable season,a victory secured courtesy of Connor Wickham’s magnificent header but earned via the effervescence of their wingers. Watford never came to terms with the pace and invention offered up by Wilfried Zaha, Yannick Bolasie and Jason Puncheon, and a trio described by Quique Snchez Flores as “astonishing” and who tormented their markers throughout.
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Source: theguardian.com