IT WOULD have been the worst possible start to the new year if Streatham-Croydon had not scored in the final minutes of the second half to secure a fourth-try bonus point.

Even then, it was a performance that suffered from a first half malaise which may have significantly dented Streatham's promotional aspirations.

The first half began poorly for the home side and became progressively worse at its close. From the kick-off, Old Emanuel forced a mistake from Streatham at the breakdown, which ended with the team who are currently second-from-bottom in Surrey Two grabbing the game's first try.

Streatham retaliated promptly with a penalty from the boot of winger Aaron Brown but this was not the catalyst which many hoped it would be.

While they enjoyed vast amounts of possession and territory, the home side lacked a clinical edge.

Numerous forays into the opposition 22 following strong running from Streatham forwards failed to herald points.

And this problem was further compounded by Old Emanuel, who seemed to have the very quality which Streatham lacked.

Their three tries in the first half were, in truth, their only incursions into the home side's 22, but this mattered little as they made the most of their opportunities.

The second half did not follow the same narrative with Streatham-Croydon managing to take the chances presented to them. Additions to the backs and forwards and a juggling of the backline meant tries for prop Damion Darlington, Walter Pretorius and Mike Jackson.

Jackon's effort in particular was a wonderful team effort, with both fleet of foot and quick handling allowing him to dive in at the corner.

While improving significantly with ball-in-hand, defensive frailties still reared their ugly head, as each time Streatham made ground on the visitors, any hope was quickly punctured by further Old Emanuel scores.

Other results in Surrey Two went some way in lifting the despondency after the final whistle.

With Battersea Ironsides drawing against Old Tonbridgians, Streatham are still within touching distance of a promotion spot. However, their performances must improve if they want to secure a third promotion in three years.

OLD Walcountians hauled themselves out of the relegation places in Surrey One with an impressive eight-try demolition of fellow strugglers Croydon at Kent Gate last Saturday.

From the start, the Walcountians pack was in control of the game with props Pete and Steve Cowlin anchoring a powerful scrummage, while lock Simon Fowler and flanker Jack South worked tirelessly in the loose.

However, in the early stages of the game, Croydon's defence proved stubborn and the home side benefited from a penalty count in their favour.

And it was against the run of play that Croydon opened the scoring with a penalty in the 17th minute.

But Walcountians took only six minutes to respond. A tap penalty close to the Croydon line gave Jack South the opportunity to crash over the line and open the Old Boys' account.

Walcountians bided their time and did not lose their composure when what appeared to be a legitimate try by Pete Cowlin was disallowed in the 35th minute.

They got a critical breakthrough as the game went into stoppage time when hard tackling led to a breakdown of play near the halfway line, from which winger Tom Naylor pounced on the loose ball and broke clear of the Croydon defence to run in from 50 metres for a try.

Croydon banged over a second penalty in the sixth minute of stoppage time just before the break.

In the second half Walcountians' hard work finally paid dividends as they cut a tiring Croydon defence to ribbons.

Fly-half Tom Diamond set up the first of six second half tries in the sixth minute when he jinked past the Croydon defence and found Simon Fowler in support to put scrum-half Callum Stone away to touch down.

Nine minutes later, Gerry Connor scored the second when he broke from a ruck in the Croydon 22 and drove through a cover tackle to touch down. Even with the bonus point for scoring four tries in the bag, Walcountians were hungry for more.

The loss of rugged hooker Remy Claustres after being on the wrong end of a late and high tackle made no difference to Walcountians' forward dominance, as they had an experienced replacement in Matt Houghton.

Full-back Matt Witcomb scored the first of two in the 20th minute after supporting a break by centre Sam Naylor and, five minutes later, flanker Joe Henderson scored his first try for the club when the powerful Walcountians pack rolled a maul over the Croydon line.

Carelessness by the Old Boys gave Croydon the opportunity to reduce the arrears with a breakaway try in the 27th minute, but Walcountians responded with two more tries.

The first, in the 35th minute, came when replacement scrum-half Will Diamond linked with Connor to feed Matt Witcomb, who rode an attempted tackle on the way to scoring the Old Boys' seventh try of the day.

The final try came in stoppage time when centre Fred South forced an error by the Croydon defence on their own line and touched down the loose ball.

Walcountians will face a stiffer challenge tomorrow when they take on fifth-placed Kingston at Clock House. Kick-off is at 2.15pm.

MTV reality star Leeroy Reed has been arrested on suspicion of raping a woman at a Croydon hotel.

Leeroy Reed, 21, from television show The Valleys, was arrested on the morning of New Year's Day following an allegation of a sex assault at a hotel, having spent the previous evening at Shooshh nightclub.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said this week: "We were called at 9.30am to reports of an allegation of rape at a Croydon hotel earlier that day.

"It's being investigated by officers from our Sapphire team. He was taken to a south London police station and subsequently bailed to return on a date in late January."

The spokesman would not confirm which hotel it referred to.

An MTV spokesman said: "We take allegations like these very seriously and will continue to follow any investigation very closely."

The Valleys launched in September last year and follows 11 people sharing a house in Cardiff.

Aspiring star Reed, from Bridgend, said he wanted to be Wales' next big urban music sensation.

A RAVE in a luxury apartment block descended into carnage after more than 200 people turned up and trashed the eight-floor building.

Residents at MAX Apartments, the low-rise section of the Latitude 25 tower, in East Croydon, have spoken of their horror after the revellers left a trail of destruction, including condoms and vomit in corridors, blood smeared in the lift and broken glass on all floors.

Dwellers also witnessed fights, suffered racism and overheard partygoers joking about sexual acts being performed on the easy-access roof of the building.

Despite the mayhem police, who attended, made no arrests.

The Advertiser understands the group checked in to a flat on a top floor for just two nights on New Year's Eve, when they held the party which spilled out across the building.

Sumira Joshi, a cleaner at the complex, said: "It was hell. It took four hours just for the hoovering and everywhere on every floor was broken glass. It took a whole day to clean from top to bottom.

"I have been working here all this time and this is the first time I have seen something like this."

Luxury apartments in the block have been advertised for up to £550,000.

Royce To, who lives in an apartment a few floors down from where the party was held, said: "There must have been about 200 or 300 people. It was crazy, like something out of American Pie."

CROYDON picked up all three points with a 4-2 victory over league leaders Egham Town last Saturday.

It was the visitors who took the lead after 36 minutes through Jamie Read, but Croydon equalised shortly into the second period thanks to Sean Rivers' firm header from Danny Davenport's cross.

But Egham restored their lead moments later when Brendan Matthews found the top corner.

The hosts sent on Josh Cover, who had a hand in Croydon's next three goals. He scored the second equaliser just after the hour-mark with a fantastic shot from the edge of the box, before his corner led to the Trams taking the lead for the first time in the match.

Cover's corner dipped mercilessly into the middle of the goal area and Read headed in to his own net this time. It was a bit of luck that the Trams' general play deserved.

Cavell Poleon came on for Ryan Fowler for his home debut and he seemed to be at the heart of every move, including a chance for Karl Doughlin, but the ball hit a divot as he struck it and his shot went just over.

But in added-on time, Poleon got his reward when some slick interplay with Cover saw him nestle a shot in the net and confirm Croydon's superb win.

PALACE boss Ian Holloway paid tribute to his players after their heroic goalless draw against Premier League outfit Stoke City last Saturday.

The Eagles more than matched their top-flight opponents throughout the contest and had the better of the chances, but they will now travel to the Britannia Stadium for the replay on Tuesday next week.

"I saw us looking more like my team, so I'm delighted," said the manager.

"I thought we played very well, and we had to, and it was a very decent game.

"All I'm looking at is shape and pattern, and it's starting to come. There are bits we can do better, like getting turned and getting at people, but obviously without Glenn Murray we had a bit of a problem and I thought we started a different way.

"It almost got us a goal when they sussed it out, so I had to go back to what we normally do, but I'm delighted with the lads – that was probably the youngest bench I've ever had.

"Now we've got another game away at Stoke, which is notoriously difficult to go and play away, because their crowd is brilliant, so it will be a fantastic experience for my lot."

Just two minutes were on the clock when Palace created the first chance of the match when Jermaine Easter cut inside from the left and forced Thomas Sorensen into a fine parry.

And the Eagles nearly converted the follow-up through good link-up play from Wilfried Zaha and Yannick Bolasie, but the visitors managed to clear their lines.

Stoke had a great chance to open the scoring when old England pair Michael Owen and Peter Crouch combined inside the box following the corner, but the latter scuffed a shot wide from just three yards out.

Palace midfielder Stuart O'Keefe received the first yellow card of the afternoon when he lunged in on Jonathan Walters, and following the free-kick, Ryan Shotton raced down the right and delivered for Crouch, but the tall striker headed woefully over.

Walters went in the book for a late challenge on Dean Moxey on the half-hour mark, and from the resulting free-kick, Sorensen punched clear, but the ball fell to Moxey to shoot back towards goal, only for a Stoke defender to put in a timely block.

Andre Moritz, who scored two goals on New Year's Day against Wolves, then went very close to grabbing the first goal of the afternoon for Palace when he found space inside the box before opening up his body and curling an effort towards goal, but it went inches wide.

Zaha was next to go close shortly before the break when he forced Sorensen into another top save with a ferocious shot on the right side of the danger area.

Bolasie had the first chance of the second period when he found space in the middle of the park but scuffed a shot wide from a full 25-yards out, while Zaha nearly danced his way through the Stoke defence moments later but the ball was eventually cleared away.

Michael Kightly had the next chance of the match but shot high and wide of Lewis Price's goal, before Moritz had a great opportunity at the other end but he scuffed a shot over from inside the box after a strong run from Bolasie.

And Bolasie tested Sorensen soon after with a low shot, before Zaha limped off with an injury and was replaced by Jonathan Williams.

Stoke made a couple of changes, sending on Charlie Adam and Cameron Jerome for Owen and Kightly, and Jerome had a shot well saved by Price from the edge of the box minutes after his introduction.

Kwesi Appiah replaced Easter in attack midway through the half, while Jason Banton came on for Bolasie to make his first-team debut shortly after.

And the youngster had a great chance to show Selhurst Park what he could do when Moritz played a great through ball to him on the left side of the box, but he shot wide of the near post with a couple of team-mates waiting in the centre.

Banton was then at the heart of Palace's next attack when he motored down the left and cut inside, and despite a slight touch from a Stoke defender, he decided to stay on his feet.

The ball fell to Appiah on the edge of the box and the striker played Williams in on the right, but his low shot was well saved by Sorensen down to his right.

With four minutes added on, Stoke full-back Geoff Cameron delivered a great ball across goal, but thankfully for Palace no one was on the end of it.

And the Eagles could have snatched it at the end when Peter Ramage fired over the final chance of the match when he looked to get on the end of a free-kick.

PROPOSALS for an online shopping warehouse creating 400 jobs have advanced with the submission of a planning application.

Indigo Planning added that discussions "are advanced" with a prospective tenant for the site, having revealed back in March that the would-be tenant in question was Waitrose.

The distribution centre in the Ullswater Estate would include a 7,210 sq m warehouse, 180 car parking spaces and 180 van parking spaces.

It would employ 500 people, 400 more than currently employed by the site's occupiers, Ricoh and Iron Mountain.

In its plans to the council, a spokesman for Indigo Planning wrote: "The proposal will involve the demolition of units 11-13, 15, 18 and 19 Ullswater Crescent and their replacement with a high-quality, single distribution warehouse intended for the home delivery market. The warehouse will facilitate the delivery of products directly to customers within the local area who have placed orders online."

The proposal claims the warehouse will reduce traffic in the area, adding: "The envisaged 203 deliveries per day will save around 2000 car trips to a supermarket on the wider network."

Waitrose says it has yet to decide whether it wants to move onto the site, but Charles King, chairman of the East Coulsdon Residents' Association, welcomed the prospect.

Indigo Planning added that it expects up to 220 staff on site at peak times, with three shifts per 24 hours.

It claimed ten per cent of the 500 jobs would be management grade.

RESIDENTS have complained that planned bridge works will take too long and disrupt their day-to-day lives.

Coombe Road, in South Croydon, is set for months of chaos while the bridge has its steel beams replaced.

The works will mean single-lane closures between Park Lane and Park Hill Road until Friday, March 29.

Although residents appreciate the need for the works, they do not understand why it will take so long to complete in already gridlocked South Croydon.

Resident Charlotte Davies said: "We already have chronic traffic problems in that area, especially next to the Swan and Sugar-loaf Tesco. Coombe Road is already so narrow, I think it is going to be absolutely gridlocked. I don't understand why it is going to take three months.

"The rush hour is going to be a nightmare; anyone going to Lloyd Park or the schools in that area, it will really affect them."

Shop owners in the area are also hoping the traffic will not put people off paying them a visit. Jonathan Law, from Feline Guitars, in Coombe Road, is optimistic. He said: "It's going to cause disruption but we are near the bottom of the road so I hope it won't affect the business.

"It definitely could be a bit tricky during rush hour for some people. I don't understand why it is going to take so long but I suppose the bridge must be mended. We haven't had much disruption so far but in a couple of months I may change my mind."

ONE of the borough's three police stations is set to close, under budget cuts announced by the Met on Wednesday.

The front counter at Wallington Police Station, in Crosspoints House, Stafford Road, is earmarked for closure – one of 65 stations destined for the axe across the capital.

Instead, the Met wants officers to be available to the public in locations such as supermarkets and post offices, as it looks to save money by selling off a large slice of its building stock.

Steve O'Connell, London Assembly member for Croydon and Sutton, said: "What the public wants is more constables out on the streets and longer hours for SNTs.

"They're not particularly bothered about buildings. They want to see the front line protected and, in this case, bulked up.

"What I'm excited about are plans to use post offices and public libraries as contact points. That's where the big footfall is."

Carshalton and Wallington MP Tom Brake described the closure as "very disappointing".

He said: "What I want to see now is the ability for residents to report a crime in other ways instead of having to go to the Sutton station.

"I'd like to see apps developed to report a crime, or a number, or a website. I want to see much easier ways of people being able to report crime."

A LOAN shark who ripped off more than 80 people has been jailed for eight months at Croydon Crown Court.

Stephen Chapman, 47, of Gorse Road, Shirley, had pleaded guilty at a previous hearing to eight charges of illegal money lending.

He was arrested in August last year after a joint operation between the England Illegal Money Lending Team and Croydon Council trading standards officers.

Officers from the Illegal Money Lending Team who searched Chapman's home at the time of his arrest discovered £1,500 in cash along with notebooks and other documentation listing names of clients, amounts loaned and interest paid.

Some of the loan books dated back to January 2005 and officers discovered that Chapman had lent almost £137,000 to 86 people through 144 loans.

He claimed a return through interest of more than £220,000.

The officers found that loans were usually for small amounts,

A financial investigation under the Proceeds of Crime legislation is continuing.

Chapman has already served much of his sentence, having been remanded in custody since September for breaching his bail conditions.

LONG-AWAITED regeneration of East Croydon has been boosted this week as Stanhope/Schroders gave the first detailed insight into housing plans for its Ruskin Square site.

The pre-application scheme, comprising 161 homes, was due to be presented to the council's strategic planning committee yesterday (Thursday).

Councillors will have the chance to comment on the proposals prior to the submission of an application in the next couple of months.

Stanhope/Schroders already has outline planning permission for the overall development, comprising 550 homes and one million sq ft of offices next to East Croydon Station.

The new proposals will see the homes built in a 22-storey tower and a nine-storey adjacent plinth development.

The building will contain 26 one-bedroom, two-person flats; 55 two-bedroom, three-person flats; 66 two-bedroom, four-person flats and 14 larger two-bedroom flats, again for four people.

Thirty-four of the homes would fall into the affordable category.

The scheme also includes landscaping of the site to include a private communal space at ground level with children's play area.

A roof garden would be provided on the top of the plinth.

THE devastated mother of a nurse whose body was found in the boot of a car in Thornton Heath has said her daughter had been "looking forward to the future".

Mother-of-two Janelle Duncan-Bailey was reported missing last Wednesday after she failed to collect her two young sons from a friend's house.

Police launched an appeal to help to find the 25-year-old, but three days later her body was discovered in a parked car in Thornton Heath.

Jerome McDonald, 30, her ex-partner and father of her youngest child, has been charged with murder.

Janelle's mother, Ann Bailey, described her daughter as someone who loved her job and had big plans for life.

Speaking from her Croydon home, she told the Advertiser: "Janelle was a really lovely person. She was very ambitious, studious and hard-working.

"She was a good mum who was looking forward to the future. She was making lots of plans, things she wanted to do with her boys and her own career aspirations.

"I'm so devastated that all those plans will never come to pass."

Ms Bailey spoke of how proud she was that Janelle had raised two boys, aged 2 and 7, while building a career working with special needs children as a mental health nurse for Bupa.

"She was a young woman who had two small children and she was making headway in her life," she said.

"I always told Janelle that I admired her. I wonder whether I would have managed all those things so well.

"She was doing an extremely good job and raised two beautiful boys. I will make sure I carry on her work."

Her cousin, Patrick West-Allwood, described how Janelle would "light up a room".

"She always had this beaming smile on her face and would give you a big hug and a kiss when she saw you," he said.

"You could go out of your way to make sure she was happy because that's the way she made you feel. She was the sort of person who would lift anyone's spirit."

Janelle, of Pawsons Road, was last seen between 5am and 5.30am on January 2 in Limpsfield Avenue, Thornton Heath.

She had left her sons with a friend in Bromley that evening while she attended a family function. Her friend reported Janelle missing when she failed to collect them later that morning.

Janelle's body was discovered in a car in Mayfield Crescent on Saturday.

A postmortem examination gave her cause of death as asphyxiation and compression of the neck.

Her mother said: "There are no words to describe how I feel. The mere fact that I can't even come up with a word should be able to explain how this is just a nightmare. I keep hoping that I will wake up out of it, but I can't so I know it's real.

"Janelle was a lovely person. She had so many friends. She was a sister, cousin, daughter and mum. That she has been taken from us has affected so many people."

Janelle's father, Richard Duncan, added: "Janelle was the apple of my eye. I'm not coping with her death."

Friends and family of Janelle have paid tribute to her in a makeshift shrine of flowers, candles and messages in Mayfield Crescent.

One friend wrote: "Janelle, I should not be writing this; you should be home with your princes."

On Saturday McDonald, 30, of Fairlands Avenue, Thornton Heath, was arrested and then charged with murder.

He appeared at the Old Bailey on Wednesday and was remanded in custody until a hearing on April 5.

THE police station in Kenley and another base in Purley will be closed, the Met has announced.

The closures, announced on Wednesday, mean Croydon will have just one full-time police station – in the town centre – and none in the south of the borough.

When questions were raised about the future of Kenley's police station in Godstone Road last February, ward councillor Steve O'Connell told the Advertiser: "I am absolutely committed to making sure Kenley Police Station stays open. I will do everything in my power to make sure that it stays."

Speaking on Wednesday, Mr O'Connell, also the London Assembly member for Croydon and Sutton, appeared to have backtracked and said he was "excited" about plans to use post offices and libraries as police contact points.

He said "What the public wants is more constables out on the streets and longer hours for SNTs. They're not particularly bothered about buildings. They want to see the front line protected and, in this case, bulked up."

The closures, which will also affect the stations in South Norwood, Addington and Norbury, form part of far-reaching changes to policing, which mean Croydon will be allocated an extra 117 police officers - the second highest increase in London.

Labour leader Tony Newman has claimed the figures are being "spun" and branded the closures "utterly shocking".

Tarsem Flora, from Purley and Woodcote Residents' Association, said: "I find these closures very, very disturbing.

"I don't know what is to be done because we don't have the resources for the police stations anymore, but I know many people in Purley, Kenley and the surrounding areas will be very distressed at this news.

"I don't see residents from the south of the borough going all the way into Croydon to the police station. That station is very inaccessible anyway. Everyone is going to feel much less safe."

Kenley resident Roger Capham fears the closure of his village's station, which is currently open to the public from 10 am to 2pm on weekdays, will leave people feeling "unsafe" and "distressed".

He said: "My biggest concern is we will see an increase in crime. If there is no police presence around here, people who commit crimes will see us as an easy target." New Addington has its own police base in Central Parade but it is not open to the public and crimes cannot be reported there. Residents fear the closure of the Addington station in Addington – currently open to the public from from 8am to 7pm Monday to Friday – could leave the estate 'exposed'. Ken Burgess, chairman of the Central Parade Business Partnership, hopes the promised extra officers will filter into New Addington. He told the Advertiser: "I think it [the station closure] is a bad step. and It is going to leave us exposed. "People are not going to be able to report stuff. At the moment the one on Central Parade cannot be used for reporting anything. "For people who have a problem and need to report something, where are they going to go? "If they open it [the one in Central Parade] to the public, that to our mind would be a good move. "If they are just shutting Addington Village and not improving the facilities in Central Parade, that would be a bad move. "To put the money into bobbies on the beat is good, but we still need a point of contact."

ARSON is the suspected cause of a fire which tore through the derelict clubhouse at the former home of Croydon Athletic FC.

A blaze broke out at the Keith Tuckey Stadium off Mayfield Road in Thornton Heath at about 11.30pm last Thursday.

Michael Thomas, Norbury's blue watch manager, said there was "100 per cent damage" to the roughly 20m by 30m building.

He said: "We received multiple calls about the fire because it could be seen from quite a distance.

"We had five fire engines and because of the distance of the clubhouse away from the road we had to set up a water relay.

"The chances are it was deliberate because it is a derelict building."

A police spokesman said it was awaiting the findings of the fire brigade before deciding whether to investigate.

The blaze was under control by 12.30am, with crews staying on the scene until 6am. No injuries were reported.

The grounds are owned by Croydon Council and were leased to the former Croydon Athletic FC.

The club folded in December 2011 following a troubled period including since-proven allegations of owner Mazhar Majeed's involvement in a cricket-fixing scandal, and the suicide of its chairman, David Le Cluse.

AFC Croydon Athletic, formed last year by fans of Croydon Athletic FC, has long hoped to start playing at the grounds.

Its chairman Paul Smith told the Advertiser: "It has always been our wish and continues to be our wish that we will go back there, but clearly that has taken a knock as a result of the fire."

A spokesman for Croydon Council said the clubhouse was insured and would be restored.

A LOCAL derby football match stopped for ten minutes after players weighed into a terrace brawl.

The fracas broke out 27 minutes into Warlingham v Croydon Athletic match on Saturday, held at Whyteleafe FC's ground in Church Road.

When the referee managed to restore order, he booked four players from each side for leaving the field of play without permission.

For home player Liam Giles it meant he was instantly sent off, having already been booked earlier in the match.

The clash sparked mixed reactions from the teams' bosses.

Warlingham's chairman Steve Rolfe said: "I have been involved in football for 38 years and have never known anything like this to happen.

"One of our fans made some comments to the Croydon goalkeeper, which members of his family who overheard took exception to.

"They did not quite come to blows because some players quickly intervened and stopped them getting to each other.

"There was lots of pushing and shoving.

"Its the sort of thing you do not wish to see."

No one was hurt and the feuding parties shook hands afterwards, he said.

Mr Rolfe added: "Both clubs' officials expressed their shock and disappointment at half-time in the boardroom.

"And we wished each other well for the rest of the season."

Croydon Athletic manager Antony Williams, meanwhile, dismissed the ruck as "banter and handbags".

He tweeted: "There was a small incident between some spectators.

"You cannot blame the lads for helping mates and dads."

His club's chairman, Paul Smith, said: "These were the sort of scenes you see every Saturday night in town.

"It was just a bit of nonsense which had nothing to do with the game."

CROYDON could soon be seeing plenty of great bakes - but hopefully not so many soggy bottoms.

The town is set to play host its own version of hit TV series The Great British Bake Off.

Five million people tuned in to the BBC show last year, which made celebrities of the judges Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry -famed for her 'soggy bottom' critique of the less appetising entries.

Now, one cake connoisseur has capitalised on our love of all things baking and set up the Great Croydon Bake Off 2013.

Resident Christo Matthews is running the four-part live baking event in Matthews Yard, with a junior contest also being held in the summer.

Mr Matthews said: "I'm really excited to be running the bake-off and we already have all the slots filled up for winter. Everyone loved the programme so bringing it to Croydon seemed natural.

"Throughout the days there will be live baking demonstrations and interactive workshops so everyone will have some fun."

Each event through the year will showcase four different bakers, culminating in a grand finale with the winners from each bake-off. Each baker will have to make a sweet and savoury bake.

The winners will be chosen by judges Sean Coughlan, product director of the Coughlan's bakery chain, and Tim Fisher, multi-award-winning chocolatier and pastry chef.

Mr Matthews said: "Our ambition is to inject the emerging, bustling foodie culture in Croydon with creativity and provide a chance for Croydon bakers to show off their skills.

"Croydon has proved it has a love of food; it even has a whole quarter named for it. That quarter of Croydon houses some fantastic restaurants serving a wide variety of cuisines.

"Croydon also loves celebrating what it has."

The winter event will take place on February 16, the spring contest on May 11 and the summer one on July 13. The Junior Bake Off will take place on July 14.

The final will be held at Matthews Yard on October 19.

More information and a full list of the participants can be found on the website

BEFORE you can all look forward to next Tuesday's FA Cup third round replay at Stoke City, there is the other important matter of Burnley in the Championship for Palace to deal with.

Despite a rocky December, the Eagles managed to keep in touch with the teams around them at the top of the league, with just a narrow defeat to Cardiff City the only dampener.

A new year is about a fresh start for many, and even though that may not have been the case for Ian Holloway's side after a great season so far, they began 2013 with a bang against Wolverhampton Wanderers and a gutsy display against Stoke.

And another gritty performance could be required again tomorrow as Palace travel to the north west to tackle Burnley at Turf Moor.

Glenn Murray missed the goalless draw against Stoke through illness, but manager Ian Holloway confirmed to Advertiser Sport this week that his top goalscorer has resumed training and is set to make the journey, while Wilfried Zaha returned to training on Tuesday following an injury against Tony Pulis' side.

Midfielder Owen Garvan went for a second scan on his knee last Friday and the worst was confirmed by Holloway, with the Irishman will miss the next three months.

That could mean Andre Moritz will become a regular in the side, while Jonathan Williams has returned to the first team squad looking very bright in the last three matches with substitute appearances.

Moritz boosted his credentials with a fine display against Wolves, including his two superb free-kicks, but with Kagisho Dikgacoi away on international duty in the African Cup of Nations, you would think Holloway would be in the market for a central midfielder this month.

However, the manager has suggested he is prepared to give Stuart O'Keefe a chance, and the midfielder did not disappoint last weekend, so he could be thrown in against Burnley.

Goalkeeper Julian Speroni is set to come back in, despite a good performance by Lewis Price last weekend, while Dean Moxey has come back into the side and looked bright with some good runs and deliveries down the left.

But does Jonathan Parr really like playing out of position at right-back?

From the past two games, the answer to that suggests the very opposite with two good displays, but with Joel Ward out for another three weeks, we may see a loan signing brought in to aid that area of the pitch.

Central defender Aaron Martin returned to parent club Southampton at the start of January, and while there is still no sign of Paddy McCarthy's return, plus an injury to Danny Gabbidon, Palace suddenly look a bit light in that department.

Earlier this week, Holloway confirmed that he was to give Welshman Gabbidon a chance to prove his fitness by Thursday, so it could be a late decision whether to risk him at Turf Moor, especially when the boss will need as many options available to him ahead of Stoke.

In terms of the opposition, Brian Stock is set to serve a suspension against the Eagles after his red card against Barnsley in the FA Cup last weekend.

And top marksman Charlie Austin may also miss the game after suffering a hamstring injury. However, Burnley boss Sean Dyche was optimistic that his star striker would not be out for too long, so he may surprise us all and recall him.

But Dyche may welcome back Chris McCann (hamstring) and Martin Paterson (thigh) from injury after both were taken off as a precaution in their recent win over Sheffield Wednesday, while Dean Marney and Junior Stanislas are likely to feature.

Meanwhile, Jamaican international Dane Richards is set for his league debut, having signed for the club from the Vancouver Whitecaps, and he is likely to come up against Moxey down the right side of midfield.

Dyche may look to play a 4-4-2 formation, and everyone remembers that thrilling 4-3 game in October the last time the two clubs met, so hopefully we'll be in for an entertaining game again – and a Palace victory, of course.

A win for Holloway would also be his first as a manager at Turf Moor.