There was to be no sinking of ships or parking the boat in Dover, as Crystal Palace expertly avoided an FA Cup mis-hap with a 4-0 win in Sunday’s first game.
With their former FA Cup Semi-Final hero Alan Pardew taking charge of the Eagles for the first time, his new players provided just what was needed after only one victory in the past 11 games.
Dover Athletic 0-4 Crystal Palace
FA Cup Third Round
Crabble Athletic Ground
Sunday 4 January 2015
Winners receiver £67,500
And despite playing a team placed 86 spots below them in the football pyramid, Chris Kinnear’s Dover side came into the fixture full of confidence, unbeaten in the last 15 games and with a packed crowd at the Crabble behind them.
But a first-half double from defender Scott Dann put Palace in control, before Dwight Gayle, no stranger to non-League venues himself following his time with the likes of Bishop’s Stortford, added a third after the break and a late strike from Kevin Doyle compounded the hosts’ misery.
On a crisp but cold day in very deepest Kent, Palace knew what was required right from the off and never really looked in danger.
They started sharply and almost went ahead within 60 seconds, when Wilfried Zaha’s cross from the left was headed by Glenn Murray straight at Andrew Rafferty.
The Dover keeper denied Murray again soon after, as he saw an angled left-footer blocked, before Rafferty bettered both of those stops with a fine double-save.
Zaha was the architect again, rolling a low cross into the centre for Barry Bannan, whose low effort forced Rafferty into a smart save to his left.
The ball was swiftly worked back into the middle for Murray who planted a firm header to Joel Ward’s cross but the striker, starting his first game since returning from a loan spell with Reading, watched his effort palmed away by Rafferty.
Palace did not have to wait long though, as Dann hit the mark in the tenth minute when Zaha’s deep cross picked him out at the far post and he side-footed a volley home after lingering up front following an earlier free-kick.
That goal, and Palace’s swift start to the game, took the wind out of Dover’s sails and it was no surprise when the Eagles doubled their lead in the 34th minute.
Bannan swung a corner over from the right to pick out Dann at the far post and he made no mistake by heading firmly into the bottom corner to set the Eagles on their way.
Palace put the gloss on their victory midway through the second half when Gayle slotted a low shot past Rafferty, after skipping past Connor Essam and into the box.
And two of Pardew's subs combined when Jerome Thomas crossed for Doyle to make it four from close range in the dying stages to give Palace’s vocal army of fans more to cheer on the road back to south London,
Dover Athletic (4-4-2): 30 Andrew Raffery; 5 Sean Raggett, 26 Tom Bonner 6 Richard Orlu; 10 Tom Murphy, 8 Liam Bellamy 11 Barry Cogan, 16 Tyrone Sterling, 17 Nick Deverdics; 29 Connor Essam (c ), 14 Stefan Payne.
Substitutes: 20 Chris Nanetti for Raggetts 57; 3 Tom Wynter for Bellamy 70; 7 Rickey Modeste for Murphy 82.
Substitutes not used: 15 Sean Francis, 19 Jake Reid, 22 Lee Hook, 12 Matt Lock.
Cautions: Connor Essam 45
Manager: Chris Kinnear Sr
Crystal Palace (4-3-3): 13 Wayne Hennessey; 2 Joel Ward, 6 Scott Dann, 27 Damien Delaney (c ), 34 Martin Kelly;, 12 Stuart O’Keefe, 25 Barry Bannan, 28 Joe Ledley; 11 Wilfried Zaha, 17 Glenn Murray, 16 Dwight Gale
Substitutes: 9 Kevin Doyle for Murray 46, 14 Jerome Thomas for Gayle 73; 3 Adrian Mariappa for Ledley 76.
Substitutes not used: 4 Brede Hangeland, 8 Adlene Guedioura, 26 Chris Kettings, 42 Jason Puncheon.
Goals: Dann 10, 34; Gayle 68; Kevin Doyle 88.
Manager: Alan Pardew
Referee: Andre Marriner
Watch highlights of the Third Round tie at the Crabble
