Speaking as part of a 'Down Memory Lane' several years ago, Palace trio Nigel Martyn, John Salako and John Humphrey looked back on the 1990/91 season which culminated in that triumph at Wembley in the Zenith Data Systems Cup.
Despite reaching the FA Cup final in 1990, there was no sign at the beginning of the 1990-91 season of the success that was to come.
“We’d struggled in the league that season although we got to the FA Cup final,” remembered Martyn. “It was the players that came in and took the first-team places – like John [Humphrey] and Eric [Young] – that strengthened our team.
“It was the real emergence of [Ian] Wright and [Mark] Bright, and then Geoff [Thomas] and [Andy] Gray and [John] Salako were the powerhouses in midfield that created so much attacking flair for us.
“It was an exciting time. We finished third that year, and it showed how much improvement we’d had.”
For Humphrey, Palace’s offer left him with very little thinking time – his career options were, literally, up in the air.
“I was travelling back from Australia on a pre-season tour when I was told that Palace were signing me, and that the club had an accepted an offer,” he recalled. “So I had the flight back from Australia to think things over.
“I wanted to play at the highest level I could because I was 30 at the time. On landing, I met the representative from Palace and, looking at the squad with Wrighty and Brighty up front, you’re always going to score goals. Then with Nigel in goal you’re not going to concede many.
“They were very welcoming. It’s always difficult when you’re coming from somewhere like Charlton, but they were very welcoming. We had some strong players – the vast majority went on to become internationals.”
For Salako, it was the character of the group that stood out alongside their obvious talent.
“It was such a strong group,” he said. “There was such a brilliant team spirit. Everyone got on brilliantly.
“It was just the camaraderie: the team believed in themselves and believed in each other. It was such an incredible unit on and off the pitch.”