Davis blow hits Eagles

Crystal Palace have been rocked by the news that Claude Davis could be out for two weeks.

The on-loan Derby centre-back is suffering from a thigh strain and will miss tonight's clash with Barnsley at Oakwell.

It's another headache for boss Neil Warnock, who is also missing Matt Lawrence (hamstring) and Paddy McCarthy (shoulder).

It means Warnock may continue to blood some more of the club's youngsters in preparation for next season. The Eagles have seen their season fizzle out and there will be no late push for the play-offs like last season. So Warnock is willing to take a gamble on starlets such as Rui Fonte, Kieran Djilali and James Comley. He said: "I'm planning for next season and it's quite drastic.

"We are going to have to have a bit of luck to do it with Bosmans, so we have to try and integrate these youngsters as well. Hopefully, they can get eight or nine games in before the end of the season. I want to get a couple more into the team in the next few games.

"Then, if we can pick up five or six decent players in the summer, we should be in the play-offs next season. I think we should be in the play-offs now but we haven't been good enough."