Crystal Palace succumbed to a 2-0 defeat at the hands of West Bromwich Albion in this afternoon's Premier League clash at Selhurst Park.
James Morrison headed into the unmarked net just two minutes into the game and his side held out until half time as the Eagles laid siege to their goal.
Seven minutes into the second half, a thumping 25-yard drive from Craig Gardner put the Baggies two up to deflate Palace, for whom a goal had seemed imminent.
It just was not to be Palace's day as chance after chance went amiss, with Tony Pulis's charges seeing the game out to all but secure Premier League safety.
Here, Sports Mole rates each of the players that took part in the game to see who starred for their team and who let their side down.
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CRYSTAL PALACE
Goal
Julian Speroni: His biggest contributions to the game were picking the ball out of his net on two occasions, though this was not necessarily his fault as he was otherwise largely untroubled. (6/10)
Defence
Joel Ward: Did not have much to do in terms of defensive work but linked up well with Zaha on the flank. (6/10)
Damien Delaney: Should have done better in the first few minutes when his marking was suspect in the set piece that led to West Brom's first goal. Otherwise he was decent up against Anichebe. (5/10)
Scott Dann: Failed to properly clear the corner that led to Gardner's second-half goal, though he did well to keep Berahino at bay. (5/10)
Joe Ledley: Did not do too badly considering that he was played out of position by Alan Pardew. (6/10)
Midfield
Yannick Bolasie: The standout player, not just for Palace but in the game, as his every foray led to trouble in the West Brom box. Nearly scored an exceptional overhead kick. (8/10)
Mile Jedinak: Very lucky not to give a penalty away against Anichebe in the first half. (5/10)
Jason Puncheon: Struggled as he found himself deeper than usual in midfield and proved largely anonymous. (5/10)
James McArthur: Tested Myhill early on but fizzled out as the game went on. (5/10)
Wilfried Zaha: Very bright on the right flank, he was unlucky not to be given two penalties as he clashed with Gardner. (7/10)
Attack
Glenn Murray: Was given plenty of chances to get on the scoresheet, but was not at his most confident and appeared to almost give up towards the end. (6/10)
Substitutes
Pape Souare: Was incisive on the ball after coming on as a substitute and helped his side create a handful of chances. (6/10)
Dwight Gayle: Unlucky to strike the bar from close range just after the restart, but contributed little besides that. (6/10)
Yaya Sanogo: Could have had his first Premier League goal late on, but it was disallowed for offside. (6/10)
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WEST BROM:
Goal
Boaz Myhill: Was impervious deputising for Ben Foster in between the sticks and did well to keep a clean sheet. (7/10)
Defence
Craig Dawson: Largely anonymous and was subbed off after 70 minutes for an injury. (5/10)
Gareth McAuley: Was cool and composed as he worked well with Lescott to keep the Eagles at bay. (7/10)
Joleon Lescott: Marshalled his defence with authority and did well to thwart Murray time and time again. (7/10)
Chris Brunt: His corner led to Morrison's early goal, but he did little else and appeared unable to deal with the threat of Bolasie and Zaha. (6/10)
Midfield
James Morrison: Took his chance well early on to break the deadlock and give his side the advantage, though he fizzled out as the game went on. (7/10)
Darren Fletcher: Very composed in the centre of the park, he stifled Puncheon to great effect. (7/10)
Claudio Yacob: Proved effective in breaking up play with a host of tackles and challenges. (7/10)
Craig Gardner: A Jekyll-and-Hyde display as he scored a wonderful goal to effectively kill off the game, but could have also given away not one but two penalties against Zaha. (7/10)
Attack
Saido Berahino: Found himself stifled by Dann throughout the majority of the game, though he came close to getting a third for his side from close range. (6/10)
Victor Anichebe: A frustrating afternoon as he was denied what appeared to be a stonewall penalty. (6/10)
Substitutes
Andre Wisdom: Dealt well with Zaha after coming on for the injured Dawson. (7/10)
Jonas Olsson: Subbed on in the latter stages of the game, he had little impact as his side was on course to see the game out. (6/10)
Giuseppe Labellarte
