Palace's lucky omen?

Last updated : 05 May 2006 By Nik Taylor

There's not much to call between Palace and Watford.

Both have had decent seasons and although the Hornets have ended up three places above us in the league, we can counter with the fact that we've done the double over them during this campaign.

So, since the formbook can't help us out much, how about some good old superstition?

Well, here's one for you. May 6th – tomorrow's date – is Palace's lucky day.

In fact, if Palace were looking for a lucky day on which to play their first leg, they could not have chosen much better.

Our club has played nine matches on this date over the years – and only ever been beaten once. That was way back in 1950 – since when we've played on this date another five times. Out of those five games, Palace have won four and drawn one.

But here's the best bit.

The last time Palace played on May 6th was in 2001. It was a match at Edgely Park against Stockport that we had to win to have any chance of staying up. The scoreline stood at 0-0 with 87 minutes gone. Then, Dougie Freedman embarked on a surging run at goal – and the rest is history.

So May 6th is a reasonably auspicious day for Palace.

Watford, by contrast, do not have good fortune on this day. Over the years, they have played eight matches on this date – and won just two of them. The other six consist of two defeats and four draws. Most notably, Watford have never won a match when playing away from home on May 6th.

So there you have it. May 6th: a lucky day for Palace and an unlucky one for Watford.

Will it stay that way by close of play tomorrow? Let's hope so…