Thank you for Brighton and Hove Albion’s derby day demolition – but please don’t let Crystal Palace go down

Even wearing my blue and white tinted spectacles, nearly a quarter of century later I have to conceded that Palace could have had 10 and Brighton were lucky to get nil.

This horrendous memory therefore made Saturday’s emphatic 4-1 victory at the Amex all the sweeter. Almost a case of both short-term, in light of the midweek thrashing at Luton, and long-term redemption?

Palace were dire, and if I’ve got the teeniest bit of criticism towards the Albion is that at 3-0 up with barely half an hour gone, RDZ’s men should have gone for the jugular, and we could and basically should have had a cricket score. Imagine 6,7 or even 8-0? The ghosts of 2002 exorcised, and the result forever in the record books.

But it didn’t pan out that way. For whatever reason we, to a degree, took our foot off the gas, and even went to sleep to let Palace pull one back, but then upped it again for Joao Pedro (the Albion GOAT?) to conjure up a sublime strike late on. We then had time for the returning Fati to narrowly miss out on making it 5-1.

Rivalry aside, Roy Hodgson is a decent man, but at 76 he should be sucking Werther’s Originals and going on country walks, not managing in the greatest league in the world. He looked a broken man, and, putting rivalry aside, he deserves better.

Thankfully due to the dross at the bottom of the League, Palace almost have a free hit this season when it comes to avoiding relegation, but I think this is very much a one off in EPL terms.

In a ideal footballing world, I’d like Palace not to get relegated – ever – but be bouncing around 14 to 17th place in the EPL, because our rivalry is part of the lifeblood of the Albion. We certainly missed them when we didn’t play in the dark years.

And finally, and this is just my opinion, I have to say something about the heavy police response to the ‘handbags’ between two sets of fans on Saturday.

It was obviously derby day, emotions run high, and due to the wonderful world of social media we’ve all been treated to footage of the ‘handbags’.

Sussex Police have now embarked on a ‘manhunt’ to find the person who threw the final punch (although I thought it was more of a push.). In my view it was just handbags, so why waste valuable time, money and police resources pursuing the case? Ludicrous, if you ask me.