From Palace players past and tantalising titbits from eras gone by, to memorable meetings, tense transfers and shared stories: club historian Ian King takes a look at our wacky, weird and wonderful history with other clubs, one new tale at a time.
We begin, alphabetically of course, with a Palace pearler against Arsenal...
A Cup Final in SE25
A cup final at Selhurst Park, under the lights, against a London rival? Bring it on. But how, in the late 1950s, did we get here?
Around 70 years ago, football clubs began to install floodlight systems – albeit in rudimentary form compared to those of today – and that included Crystal Palace. Those at Selhurst Park were ready for the start of the 1953/54 season but were initially only used for a series of midweek friendlies against a mix of British and European clubs.
As the popularity of these games spread, a new cup competition was organised for league clubs in the London and southern area. Named the Southern Professional Floodlight Cup, it started in the 1955/56 season.
Arsenal and Palace competed in every edition, and in April 1959 they faced each other in the final at Selhurst Park.
Palace had defeated Reading, Millwall and finally Luton in the semi-final while the Gunners’ route had taken in Aldershot, Brentford and West Ham – the easy draw, as per usual!
Such was the anticipation for the game that there was a post-war record attendance of 32,384 inside Selhurst Park, desperate to see how Fourth Division Palace would fare against an Arsenal side containing such stellar names as John Charles and Tommy Docherty.
But for the home supporters, the keenest eyes were on the 20-year-old Johnny Byrne. How would the precocious talent fare in more exalted company? His control and astuteness did not disappoint.
