Palace's sharp scoring touch complements class

Crystal Palace 4 Wimbledon

If the final scoreline was flattering, there was no doubting the decisiveness in Steve Bruce's Crystal Palace side. Quality in front of goal was the main difference between the teams but Palace also displayed patience in abundance and a gritty determination when placed under intense pressure, as they were for long periods after the break. That they scored twice in the face of this adversity speaks volumes for a strength of character that looked so fragile before Bruce's involvement.

"The players are enjoying their football, they are confident, they are working well and we look like we have a real cutting edge," said a beaming Palace manager. At the heart of his side's success was the performance of Jovan Kirovski, the US international who Bruce first spotted in the Manchester United youth ranks. "He was around with the likes of Beckham, Scholes and Giggs and, for me, he was the outstanding prospect but he couldn't secure a work permit and ended up as a fringe player in Dortmund and Lisbon." In south London, conceded Bruce, he is unlikely to fall victim to the squad rotation system and, after this performance, it's easy to see why.

Before Kirovski was given the chance to shine, the Selhurst Park tenants squandered two opportunities to take the lead against their landlords. Patrick Agyemang broke with speed and power to furrow through a clutch of challenges before being shepherded over the byline by the goalkeeper Matt Clarke. With a simpler opportunity, set up by the deft back-heel of Agyemang, the unmarked former Palace striker Neil Shipperley struck squarely at the keeper from 10 yards.

The near-misses jolted the home side into action and the Wimbledon backline finally succumbed when Kirovski's low-ball found Clinton Morrison in space and the striker placed his shot to Davis' left from 15 yards. The goal followed a sequence of corners for Palace and while the lead was deserved it was almost squandered from the restart but Kevin Cooper rushed his close-range effort.

The miss proved costly as, on Palace's next drive, Jamie Smith found Dougie Freedman on the right flank and his cross was dummied by Morrison for Kirovski to drive in from the edge of the box. Kirovski was again leading the Palace cause within seconds of the restart when, after good work on the right, he found Simon Rodger who struck low and just wide from long-range.

Both sides were defending fine recent records that have brought each within touching distance of the First Division leaders. Wimbledon had won three of their previous four, all away, and perhaps the familiar surroundings harmed the sequence. Palace's record is more impressive still, having now secured five straight league wins, but Wimbledon were proving more obdurate after the break and, in seeking to atone for their earlier shortcomings, both Cooper and Michael Hughes came close to halving the deficit, the latter denied by a fine one-handed save from Clarke.

Against the run of play, Palace sealed the points with an outstanding and out-of-the-blue drive by Aki Riihilahti who, seeing few options elsewhere, struck from 35 yards beyond the outstretched Davis. To compound matters for Terry Burton's men, Cooper was denied after Clarke's save matched the excellence of the volley before Wayne Brown turned into his own goal from a corner.

Shipperley almost grabbed a consolation a minute from time but his header rattled the crossbar. It was that kind of day for Wimbledon. "We didn't have the run of the ball and they capitalised on the chances we presented to them with quality finishing," said Burton.

Crystal Palace 4 Wimbledon 0

Morrison 33, Kirovski 42 Riihilahti 79, Brown og 85

Half-time: 2-0 Attendance: 20,009