CREWE ALEXANDRA 2
Jones 7, Higdon 93
CRYSTAL PALACE 2
Freedman 51, Morrison 65

Memories of last season's injury time set-backs came flooding back for the Eagles on Saturday, after sloppy marking allowed Crewe's Michael Higdon to head home a 93rd-minute equaliser.

Palace boss Iain Dowie was furious with the manner in which his side threw away the win in a game the Eagles should have killed off before Higdon struck.

Dowie said: "We had chance upon chance and the goal in the first half was their only shot on target but they're a good football side.

"We're disappointed, particularly with the manner of it, coming so late."

Palace had the better of the possession in the early stages, with Ben Watson forcing Crewe keeper Ben Williams into an early save, but it was the hosts who took the lead, when Steve Jones found space behind Darren Ward and Emmerson Boyce and calmly slotted past Gabor Kiraly.

Alex nearly punished the Eagles' slack marking again minutes later, when Higdon failed to connect to Kenny Lunt's in-swinging free kick.

But with 10 minutes of the first half remaining, the Eagles were starting to find their stride and Ward was inches away from equalising when his powerful header from Danny Butterfield's cross hit the post, before Marco Reich had a fierce shot deflected over.

Michael Hughes then tested Williams from 25 yards and Fitz Hall couldn't find the target from a Dougie Freedman headed cross just before the break.

But the Eagles' pressure was bound to pay of and it did on 51 minutes, when Freedman volleyed in Hughes' cross.

An injury to Kiraly then brought the game to a temporay stop when he dived bravely at the feet of Higdon, and was replaced by Julian Speroni.

Palace's dominance was starting to wear down Crewe and the inevitable goal came in the 65th minute courtesy of Clinton Morrison's well-placed header from substitute Gary Borrowdale's cross.

Morrison should have put the game to bed in the 88th minute when he some-how lifted the ball over from three yards.

But nerves started to creep in deep into injury time as Crewe bombarded the Palace goal with a series of crosses before Higdon ghosted in to head home unmarked to cause Palace more injury time heartache.