Told us some home truths in the dressing room game... and we deserved it
Parish (below) headed for the home dressing room to address the players.
He wanted to ensure the fans’ frustrations had registered and make it crystal clear that apart from their win against Bournemouth, recent displays have not come up to scratch.
Midfielder Joe Ledley said: “It is right what he said. I am sure everyone in that changing room took the message on board and we need to learn from our mistakes now and try and perform better as a team.
“I’ve had a chairman come into the dressing room and congratulate us if we have won, but this was a new experience for me.
“Steve has been a great owner of Palace, bought great players and kept them in the Premier League, so we are all behind him.
“We want the fans behind us and the new manager Sam Allardyce as well. We know it is unacceptable to play the way we did and come away with a result like that.”
An earlier than usual 7am start to discuss the game followed on Sunday and Ledley insists the post-Sunderland inquest has made a difference “big time.”
“Training has been a lot higher tempo this week,” he said. “Tackles have been flying in and that’s what you want.
“Hopefully that is swept away now and we move on. Sunderland is behind us and we look forward to Stoke.”
Second-bottom Palace’s perilous position does not tally with the talent at their disposal.
In boss Allardyce, they have the ideal firefighter for the rescue act that is required. His changes to the coaches, training and nutrition – “tablets and supplements have all been brought in and we’re eating the right food” – have gone down well and Palace’s players “are all leaner now”, Ledley says.
But all that has yet to produce an upturn in form. The most significant change – getting Palace back to basics – is taking the longest to introduce, but is one Ledley approves of.
“We just need to get back to what Crystal Palace was all about,” he said. “Working hard as a team, being hard to break down and keeping clean sheets. “We need points and wins. That’s what’s going to kick-start our season and without those things it is not going to happen.”
Ledley insists Palace are not in a crisis just yet with only two points separating them from safety. But until their survival is secure, he will not start thinking about his own future despite his contract being up this summer.
Palace’s problems this season have also meant there has been no repeat of the dressing-room dance moves that made him an internet sensation during the Euros.
The Wales star added: “I am still waiting for a good opportunity and – well, we need to get out of the bottom three before I do anything silly like that.” Joe Ledley wears the new Typhoon/ Tornado New Balance Football Visaro 2.0 boots. To find out more about New Balance Football go to newbalance. com/football or follow @NBFootball on Twitter and Instagram, @nbfootballofficial on Facebook and NB.Football on Snapchat