A HEAD TEACHER says he is "thrilled" and "delighted" his school had been chosen by the council to win a prestigious award.

Mark Southworth, head of Woodcote High School in Coulsdon picked up the council's secondary school of the year prize on behalf of staff, pupils, parents and governors.

The award "recognises the hard work, dedication and achievements of our staff and those working on behalf of Croydon Council through our partners and contractors".

It was presented to Mr Southworth at the council's awards last Thursday (November 27) by Louisa Woodley, the council's cabinet member for people and communities.

After the award ceremony he said: "I was thrilled when I heard that we had been nominated and then delighted that we were the eventual winners.

"Of course, I was only there to pick up the award on behalf of the teachers and students at Woodcote.

"It would have been lovely had we been able to bring some of our superb students to share in the glory, but space was limited."

The award had recognised the improvement in the school over the last two years, he added.

Mr Southworth: "Our local education authority adviser, Maggie Brady, who nominated us, comes into school regularly to monitor us and she has recognised the hard work of the teachers and students and sees all of the little things that make Woodcote such a great place to learn and work."

In an open letter to parents, Dr Paul Driscoll, chairman of governors, described the award as "an honour and a welcome development that surely recognises other aspects of school life.

"I'd like to convey my congratulations to all of those involved, Mark Southworth, his leadership team and the whole teaching staff, the support staff, and of course the students and their parents," said Dr Driscoll.

"All are part of the community that makes for Woodcote High School – well done."

CROYDON'S Ben Haenow is one step away from winning the X Factor.

The 29-year-old from Shirley will go up against Fleur East in the X Factor final tonight after being voted through part one by the public last night. Van-driver Ben performed Demons by Imagine Dragons and was joined on stage by Ed Sheeran for a duet of Thinking Out Loud.

Italian Andrea Faustini was knocked out of the competition and now finalists from Simon Cowell's 'Overs' category Ben and Fleur will fight it out for the X Factor crown. Ben is still bookies favourite to win the competition's £1 million record deal prize at 4/9 over Fleur's 7/4 (oddschecker).

The X Factor final is on ITV at 8pm.

TO VOTE FOR BEN TO WIN X FACTOR,CALL 09020 50 51 01 FROM A LANDLINE, OR DIAL 6 50 51 01 FROM A MOBILE.

Watch Ben's X Factor journey from the start:

Room audition: Ain't No Sunshine by Bill Withers

Arena audition: Wild Horses by the Rolling Stones

Bootcamp audition: Hotel California by the Eagles

Judges' Houses: With A Little Help From My Friends by The Beatles

Live shows: Week One: Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel

Week Two: Jealous Guy by John Lennon

Week Three: I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing by Aerosmith

Week Four: Highway to Hell by AC/DC

Week Five: Man In The Mirror by Michael Jackson

Week Six: Cry Me A River by Michael Buble

Week Seven: I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston

Week Eight: Come Together by The Beatles

Week Eight: Thinking Out Loud by Ed Sheeran

Semi-final: Please Come Home For Christmas by The Eagles

Semi-final: Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen

Final: Demons by Imagine Dragons

IT wasn't a classic at Selhurst Park between Palace and Stoke City on Saturday.

Here are our Eagles player ratings from reporter Mark Ritson.

Speroni – Hardly had anything to do in a dull match. 6

Kelly – Had a comfortable afternoon. 6

Ward – Continues to a decent job out of position. 6

Hangeland – Hasn't done much wrong and is keeping place on merit. 6

Dann – Not a difficult time against an average Stoke side. 6

Jedinak – The beard is off. Kept things ticking in the middle. 6

Ledley – Decent passing and offered himself to team-mates. 7

McArthur – Another good display and non-stop running. Rewarded with first goal. 7

Bolasie – Tried his best to give Palace spark. 7

Zaha – In and out of the game. Substituted. 6

Chamakh – Held ball up well again but really needs a goal soon. 6

Substitutes

Puncheon on for Zaha (61) – Didn't have much impact this week. 5

Gayle on for Chamakh – Hardly touched the ball. 5

Bannan on for McArthur – Introduction too late to do anything. 5

Subs Not Used: Hennessey, Delaney, Thomas, Campbell. 

Man of the Match: James McArthur. His performances in recent games have been superb and he was rewarded with his first goal for Palace.

NEIL Warnock described Palace's 1-1 draw with Stoke City on Saturday as a "war of attrition".

Two goals in three minutes was the stand out highlight in a relatively dull afternoon at Selhurst Park.

Warnock said: "It was like a war of attrition. If I was a journalist I'd probably lead with that, use that as a first paragraph.

"It's difficult when from the first minute you get teams that have got a set way; time wasting from the start and you've got to cope with that.

"The problem we had is we didn't keep the lead for long enough. You've seen how many efforts on goal and how many shots and really I think that we had to keep the lead longer than what we did.

"That was our biggest problem today."

Warnock was left frustrated again with Palace failing to create the opportunities they created in the game that resulted in nothing - as has been the situation in recent games.

"We are creating opportunities," said Warnock.

"I think we know the squad is a little bit thin; physical presence wise. When [Marouane] Chamakh came off we didn't really threaten them enough.

"We just need that extra; from the bench as well."

Palace travel to the Etihad to take on Manchester City next week yet Warnock remained positive about his side's chances.

He said: "We're at the Etihad next week not that they'll give us much chance there but you never know, we might come up with something against them and surprise everybody, that's how we are.

"I don't think you can write us off against anybody but we have got to create chances and we have got to get two or three players in the transfer window as quickly as possible and take it forward."

By Dan Gibbs 

CRYSTAL Palace have been boosted by the news that Manchester City are enduring a striker crisis ahead of next Saturday's clash at the Etihad Stadium.

Star man Sergio Aguero is out for six weeks with a knee problem, while Edin Dzeko pulled his calf in the warm-up before the game at Leicester City on Saturday and is out until the New Year.

And it seems Stevan Jovetic is also struggling and won't play again in 2014.

Boss Manuel Pellegrini said: "We are without Aguero, Dzeko and Jovetic for more than a couple of weeks.

"It's a difficult situation but we will see the best way to resolve it."

City's only striking option is youngster Jose Angel Pozo, who started the game at Leicester game at the age of 18. 

TRANSPORT for London is exploring new possible solutions to the lack of step-free access at Norwood Junction after an Advertiser campaign.

Last month, we launched Better Access for Norwood Junction, which attracted considerable support from the local community.

The station, which is used by more than 3.5 million people per year, has six active platforms but only one of them is accessible to all.

Now TfL, which has operated the station since it became part of the Overground line in 2010, has said it is looking for a solution to the problem.carrying out studies to see if the problem can be sorted.

Previously, it said it would be too difficult and expensive to reconfigure the station for accordingly to install lifts because the platforms were too narrow. It TfL even suggested told disabled passengers they should "get a bus" even if it made for a proved much longer and made their journeys more complicated journey.

However, this was based on a study by Network Rail in 2007. Now and renewed pressure has forced TfL to look at the possibility of changing the access question again.

A spokesman for TfL stressed there would be no quick changes but that if a solution is can be found then it would mean it could look at applying for funding from the Department for Transport in the future.

Greater London Assembly member for Croydon and Sutton Steve O'Connell wrote to Network Rail, TfL and the DfT lobbying for a change.

He said: "It is absurd that such a strategic and well-used station has no step-free access."

Croydon Council also asked that TfL to make transforming the access at the station a priority, with council leader Tony Newman saying: "If we can land spaceships on Mars then we can improve the access at Norwood Junction."

The TfL spokesman said if it could be proved there were more people using the station and the need was greater, it would make its funding case stronger.

The Advertiser spoke not just to disabled station users who felt discriminated against but also mothers with buggies, the elderly and people with mobility problems.

According to 2012/2013 estimates, Norwood Junction was the 123rd busiest station in the country. In 2006, it was selected as one of the first stations for the Government's Access for All programme.

But soon after once Network Rail began designing the project, it was quickly scrapped as no solution could be found which would receive have received safety approval.

TfL will now look to produce a new report into the solution in the coming months. 

THREE people have been taken to hospital after an assault in Waddon, Croydon this morning.

Metropolitan Police and London Ambulance Service were called to an address on Borough Hill, Waddon, at 8.25am this morning where they found two men and one woman with head injuries.

Police said they were all taken to a South London hospital. One man was in a serious condition and the other two people had minor injuries.

A spokesman said: "The suspect fled the scene and Met Air Support unit helicopters were deployed to help MPS Croydon."

No arrests have been made and inquiries are on going.

DETECTIVES are appealing for information after a cash machine was detonated in Warlingham in the early hours of this morning.

East Surrey CID said an implement was used to detonate the machine at the NatWest bank on The Green at around 2.45am in an attempt to steal the cash inside.

Three men wearing balaclavas were seen fleeing the bank. Two vehicles, including a van and a high-performance sports car, were also seen in vicinity at the time of the incident.

A spokesman said it is believed the incident could connect to another offence in Coulsdon later this morning which is currently being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Service. More on this incident to follow.

Scenes of Crime Officers have attended the scene it is believed no money was stolen. Uniformed officers from the Tandridge SaferNeighbourhood Team are assisting detectives with their investigation by carrying out house-to-house enquiries in the local area.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Kerry Akehurst, said: "I would appeal to anyone who was out-and-about in the Warlingham area during the early hours of this morning who may have seen either the vehicles we suspect to be involved in the incident or anything else suspicious which may connect to contact us with information.

"I would also appeal to anyone who has their suspicions around someone they know, who they believe may be involved in this incident, if you are that person, please share this information with us. Sometime, for whatever reason, you may wish to provide information anonymously and this can be done through the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

"We have had a number of recent similar incidents reported in the Surrey and south London area and part of our investigation will be to establish whether the crimes are connected but at this time it is too early to say."

Anyone who can assist detectives with their investigation is urged to contact Surrey Police on 101 quoting reference 45140105339. Information can be shared anonymously with the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

EAGLES boss Neil Warnock praised James McArthur's performance in Palace's 1-1 draw with Stoke on Saturday.

The midfielder scored his first Palace goal after heading home from Yannick Bolasie's cross after just 11 minutes.

Warnock said: "The lads have really given me everything, I can't complain at all.

"I thought we slightly shaded; I'm disappointed not to get three points.

"Another great save from McArthur [shot], he's seen it very late and it was nice to get McArthur on the score sheet.

"We've got to get him and [Joe] Ledley scoring more goals with Yannick and Wilf [Zaha] or Jason [Puncheon] that create things, so we've got to get more goals from other areas."

Asked whether that was the Scottish international's best performance in a Palace shirt, Warnock struggled to single out one performance other another in a string of recent games.

"I think he's had six or seven if I'm honest like that," said Warnock.

"At Everton he was fantastic. I just feel that he compliments the set up and it gives Yannick a little more freedom and Wilfried because he does get into the box at the same time as defend so it was really pleasing.

"I've been ribbing him this week about not scoring. I asked him if he'd scored this year and he said "Yeah, once at Wigan," so he's been due one and it was good to see that. It won't do him any harm."

On reflection, Warnock realises that had Palace taken more of the chances they created in recent games, they could have picked up more points.

He said: "I think that's five games really where we could have and should have won every game really so we've just got to convert more of our chances and opportunities really.

"I always feel we have good balance, we've got decent creativity and we're just not taking our opportunities.

"We're coming across some good goalkeepers as well at the moment so no complaints with the lads at all."

By Dan Gibbs 

MEN in balaclavas used an explosive to try and break into a cash machine at a bank in Warlingham in the early hours of Sunday morning.  

East Surrey CID said a device was used to detonate the machine at the NatWest bank on The Green at around 2.45am.

Three men wearing balaclavas were seen fleeing the bank and two vehicles, including a van and a high-performance sports car, were also spotted in vicinity.

The blast caused extensive damage to the cash machine and to the ceiling of the ground floor of the bank. 

Police are investigating whether the incident could be connected to another offence in Coulsdon later on Sunday morning currently being investigated by the Met Police.

It is understood that despite detonating the device no money was stolen during the Warlingham incident. 

Officers from Tandridge SaferNeighbourhood Team are assisted detectives with their investigation by carrying out house-to-house enquiries in the nearby area.

Detective Constable Kerry Akehurst, leading the investigation, said: "I would appeal to anyone who was out-and-about in the Warlingham area during the early hours of this morning who may have seen either the vehicles we suspect to be involved in the incident or anything else suspicious which may connect to contact us with information.

"I would also appeal to anyone who has their suspicions around someone they know, who they believe may be involved in this incident, if you are that person, please share this information with us. Sometime, for whatever reason, you may wish to provide information anonymously and this can be done through the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

"We have had a number of recent similar incidents reported in the Surrey and south London area and part of our investigation will be to establish whether the crimes are connected but at this time it is too early to say."

Anyone with information is urged to contact Surrey Police on 101 quoting reference 45140105339. Information can be shared anonymously with the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

CROYDON'S Ben Haenow has been crowned the winner of the eleventh series of the X Factor.

The 29-year-old from Shirley beat Fleur East in tonight's final to win a £1 million record deal and a shot at Christmas number one with his first single, Something I Need, originally by One Republic.

On winning Ben said: "Thank you so much for making my dreams come true everybody! 

"There are literally not enough words. I feel on top of the world. I want to thank everybody who voted for me. Thank you Simon for being the greatest mentor in the world."

Ben, a van-driver who lived with his mum before moving in to the X Factor house, was voted the public's winner after performances of his song of the series Michael Jackson's Man in the Mirror and the winner's single Something I Need by One Republic.

Ben's first performance of Man in the Mirror was so good it melted the heart of previously steely Mel B, who said: "You made me cry a little bit. Job well bloody done."

And more great comments from the judges on Ben's version of Something I Need left him in tears, saying: "I can't believe this has happened to me."

Olly Murs and Demi Lovato, One Direction with Ronnie Wood and Sam Smith also performed on the show.

CROYDON'S van-driving Shirley superstar Ben Haenow won the X Factor with a comfortable 57% of the public vote.

Ben's faithful Haeniacs got their man the crown in the eleventh series of the show tonight having lead the voting since week four.

Fleur East came further behind than expected in the final with 34%, and Andrea Faustini was knocked out last night with just 8.5% after receiving the most votes in the first three weeks.

Here is how the voting split over the series: 

Vote 10 Final

Ben Haenow - 57.2%

Fleur East - 34.3%

Andrea Faustini - 8.5%

Vote 10 at Freeze
Ben Haenow - 45.1%
Fleur East - 32.7%
Andrea Faustini - 22.2%

Vote 9
Ben Haenow - 36.5%
Fleur East - 24.3%
Lauren Platt - 20.1%
Andrea Faustini - 19.1%

Vote 8
Ben Haenow - 26.4%
Andrea Faustini - 21.0%
Fleur East - 17.9%
Lauren Platt - 17.8%
Stereo Kicks - 16.9%

Vote 7
Ben Haenow - 19.4%
Fleur East - 16.1%
Lauren Platt - 16.0%
Stereo Kicks - 15.3%
Stevi Ritchie - 14.7%
Andrea Faustini - 13.2%
Only the Young - 5.3%

Vote 6
Ben Haenow - 16.4%
Fleur East - 14.0%
Lauren Platt - 13.2%
Andrea Faustini - 12.7%
Stereo Kicks - 12.2%
Only the Young - 12.2%
Stevi Ritchie - 10.8%
Jay James - 8.5%

Vote 5
Ben Haenow - 14.8%
Andrea Faustini - 14.0%
Lauren Platt - 13.1%
Stereo Kicks - 12.4%
Fleur East - 10.8%
Stevi Ritchie - 10.3%
Only the Young - 8.4%
Jay James - 8.1%
Paul Akister - 8.1%

Vote 4
Ben Haenow - 12.2%
Andrea Faustini - 11.9%
Stevi Ritchie - 11.5%
Lauren Platt - 11.0%
Paul Akister - 9.5%
Fleur East - 9.4%
Only the Young - 9.0%
Jay James - 8.3%
Stereo Kicks - 8.3%
Lola Saunders - 6.3%
Jack Walton - 2.6%

Vote 3
Andrea Faustini - 14.4%
Lauren Platt - 11.8%
Ben Haenow - 10.1%
Paul Akister - 9.4%
Fleur East - 9.3%
Stereo Kicks - 8.9%
Stevi Ritchie - 7.4%
Jay James - 7.1%
Lola Saunders - 6.9%
Jack Walton - 5.3%
Only the Young - 5.2%
Jake Quickenden - 4.2%

Vote 2
Andrea Faustini - 14.5%
Lauren Platt - 12.7%
Paul Akister - 9.9%
Ben Haenow - 9.1%
Jay James - 7.6%
Lola Saunders - 7.6%
Fleur East - 6.0%
Stevi Ritchie - 5.9%
Only the Young - 5.6%
Jack Walton - 5.3%
Jake Quickenden - 4.8%
Stereo Kicks - 4.4%
Chloe Jasmine - 4.0%
Stephanie Nala - 2.6%

Vote 1
Andrea Faustini - 19.2%
Lauren Platt - 10.4%
Paul Akister - 10.0%
Ben Haenow - 8.7%
Fleur East - 6.0%
Lola Saunders - 5.7%
Jay James - 5.5%
Jake Quickenden - 5.1%
Jack Walton - 5.0%
Stevi Ritchie - 4.9%
Stereo Kicks - 4.6%
Chloe Jasmine - 4.3%
Only the Young - 4.0%
Stephanie Nala - 2.9%
Overload Generation - 2.7%
Blonde Electra - 1.0%

(Voting series percentages from X Factor)

CRYSTAL Palace midfielder James McArthur has joked he didn't mean to send his looping header into the back of the net to give the Eagles the lead on Saturday.

The Scotsman grabbed his first goal for the club against Stoke City after 11 minutes, getting on the end of Yannick Bolasie's cross.

And he was lost for words slightly when asked what he remembered of the moment he made a connection and if he meant it.

"Yeah (McArthur shakes head) - I think it hit my shoulder instead!", said McArthur.

"It was a great ball from Yala. He's been mixing it up, which is good for midfielders arriving in the box where sometimes he's getting by his man and sometimes he's just getting it in the box.

"That's great and hard for the opposition because they don't know what's happening if he's beating the man or getting a cross in.

"It was nice to score but I would like to add more goals to my game. I think I can at Palace, especially when we're playing three in midfield where it gives me the licence to get forward.

"Joe Ledley is the same, he wants to add and he's getting forward. As a team we want to add goals throughout and we want to keep pushing ourselves.

Peter Crouch equalised within 90 seconds to cancel McArthur's opener, and the midfielder admits Palace were caught off guard seconds after they nearly doubled the lead.

"That was really disappointing for us," he said. "Joe Ledley and I maybe pushed too much forward to get a second goal straight away, and they may not have expected us to do that so quickly.

"It has countered against us but we move on."

And McArthur was happy to play the same formation utilised against Tottenham Hotspur the previous weekend.

"It's been working well so I don't know why we would change really," he said.

"It worked again and we had chances, but we couldn't take them."

By Mark Ritson (Twitter @MR_LWMedia)

GAS cylinders were used to blow up a cash machine in an attempted bank robbery in Coulsdon in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The police were called to NatWest, in Brighton Road, just before 4am where they found significant damage to a cash machine.

An hour earlier a branch of NatWest in Warlingham was targeted by balaclava-clad men using the same method.

Speaking about the Coulsdon raid, a Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said: "It is believed the bank was broken into using gas cylinders because debris was found at the scene which suggested an explosion had taken place as part of the robbery."

A suspect fled the scene and detectives from Flying Squad are investigating. No arrests have been made.

Surrey Police linked the robbery to a similar incident in Warlingham just before 3am the same morning, where men in balaclavas used an explosive to try and break into a cash machine at the NatWest bank on The Green.

CROYDON Council has rejected a Freedom of Information request to publish the list at the centre of a school playing fields row, claiming it does not exist.

The Labour-led administration published a report last month which said that some school fields were "excessive" and could be used to build houses on.

After the document was published Simon Hall, cabinet member for finance, backed the plan and said he had gone through a "print out" of school sites and found "there are ones that...appear very, very big" and that the council would look at whether it could "free up" some of the land.

He later repeated that those involved in drawing up the policy had "gone through lists" of schools.

The issue, which was followed by a U-turn by Cllr Hall's fellow cabinet members, prompted Mario Creatura, a Conservative councillor in Coulsdon West, to submit a request to the council for the list via the Freedom of Information Act.

In its response the authority said it could not provide the information because "it does not hold a list comparing pupil numbers with playing field size".

Despite insisting they had no intention of building on school playing fields, councillors approved the report at a cabinet meeting on November 17 then rejected a Conservative motion calling on them to amend the document at a full council meeting on December 1.

Council leader Tony Newman then reworded the report - deleting reference to playing fields - behind closed doors using his executive powers.

A Labour source had earlier blamed an overly "excited" council officer for mistakenly including playing fields in the strategy document, only for the authority's press office to tell the Advertiser that wasn't true. 

A 15-year-old Indian boy has won the trip of a lifetime to train at the Crystal Palace Academy.

Dhruvmil Pandya, from Mumbai, beat more than 350 teenagers who took part in the Play for Palace trials and was identified as the outstanding young talent for the future.

The event was a partnership between Crystal Palace FC and Indian Super League club, Mumbai City FC, to coincide with the Barclays Premier League Live fan festival in the city.

Dhruymil was the youngest of more than 100 teenagers who took part in a trial last Thursday, having made it through the preliminary stages, and was one of eight boys who made it to yesterday's (Sunday) final.

Dhruvmil, a midfielder, has dreamed of playing professional football since he was a small boy and has recently been selected to represent the Indian National team at under-17 level.

The judging panel, led by Crystal Palace ambassador Mark Bright and representatives from Mumbai City FC, with input from former Liverpool striker Robbie Fowler, felt he was the best future prospect.

"There were so many good players, but once it got down to the final eight I knew I was in with a chance," said the delighted teenager. "This is a dream come true for me to travel to England and train with the Crystal Palace Academy.

"It's a big day for me and I hope in a few years Indians will be playing in the Premier League or at big European clubs".

His diet will be monitored over the coming months and he will follow a fitness plan created by coaches at Crystal Palace and Mumbai City FC to help with his conditioning before he arrives at the Academy.

Dhrumvil will train at the Academy for a week next spring, meet manager Neil Warnock and first-team players, and attend a home match as guest of honour. When he returns to Mumbai, he will become an ambassador for Crystal Palace.

Palace want to build a long-term partnership in Mumbai, which will help improve the quality of football and raise the club's profile in India where the Barclays Premier League is increasingly popular.

Crystal Palace ambassador Mark Bright said: "This is a unique initiative. Everyone has a favourite local team and favourite overseas team – we want football fans in India to follow us".

Working with the Magic Bus charity, the CPFC Foundation team also held coaching sessions for local youngsters and an evening workshop for coaches and volunteers at local clubs.

The Crystal Palace Academy has a long tradition of developing young talent – former Academy members include Premier League stars Victor Moses, Wilfred Zaha, Nathaniel Clyne and Wayne Routledge.

A MAN and a woman have been jailed for trying to steal from a woman with learning difficulties after meeting her in Queen's Gardens.

Robert Egan, 28, of South End, Leatherhead, and Stacey Lewis, 37, of St James's Road, Croydon, approached the vulnerable 44-year-old woman on June 28.

They engaged her in conversation and escorted her to her bank in George Street, coaching her on the way to withdraw money to give to them.

The pair also told the woman to inform bank staff they were her carers but were overheard by two concerned witnesses who followed the couple to the bank.

The witnesses called police on the way and when officers arrived they found the victim in the process of withdrawing money from her account with Lewis stood next to her and Egan sat nearby.

Both pleaded guilty to attempted theft at Croydon Crown Court on December 8 and were jailed for 18 weeks for the offence. Egan was given an additional day in prison for resisting arrest.

Lewis was given a further 12 weeks imprisonment for breaching a suspended sentence order given to her at South Western Magistrates' Court on April 7 for an assault committed in June 2013.

CROYDON police have released a third batch of pictures of people they are hunting in the run up to Christmas.

The five men are all wanted either on recall to prison or for failing to appear at court.

This week's gallery is the final released by the Met as part of a three-week push to try to find wanted people in the borough.

The men are:

Jaroslaw Rutkowski, 28, wanted for failing to show up at Croydon Magistrates' Court after being charged with common assault. Wanted since March 30 and has links to Croydon town centre and South Croydon.

Nasir Ahmad, 22, wanted for failing to appear at Croydon Magistrates' Court after being charged with actual bodily harm. Wanted since August 11 and has links to Thornton Heath.

Albert Gregory, 45 wanted on recall to prison after being convicted of robbery. Wanted since September 25 and has links to Thornton Heath and Wandsworth.

Faraz Khan, 38, failed to appear at Croydon Magistrates' Court after being charged with common assault. Wanted since April 17 and has links to the Thornton Heath area.

Sam Curran, 21, failed to appear at Croydon Magistrates' Court after being charged with shoplifting and theft. Wanted since October 22 and has links to Croydon town centre and South Croydon.

Detective Sergeant Jonathan Kent, in charge of Croydon's wanted offender's unit said:

"The work that we do in trying to track down wanted people can sometimes take us months, if not years, but we'll do all we can to pursue those wanted by the courts or prisons in order to bring them to justice.

He also pointed out the value of public appeals, referring to a case where a social club owner was jailed on Friday, December 5 after a "ferocious" knife attack on his business partner in London Road seven years ago.

He said: "Last week, we saw a man who was jailed nearly seven years after he had violently assaulted and stabbed his victim back in December 2007.

"He fled the country almost immediately, but through the work of detectives in my team here, we tracked him down to living near Amsterdam in the Netherlands and he was arrested last year by Dutch police on a European arrest warrant.

"It was a fantastic effort by the officers involved and I know that the victim was very pleased that he got to see his attacker brought to justice after all these years.

"I hope results like this encourage the public to help us with our appeals and would ask anyone with information on this week's most-wanted to get in touch with us."

Anyone with information about the men should contact police on 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

JAMES McArthur has praised the Crystal Palace fans, describing them as "rowdy and noisy".

The central midfielder says their help has been noticed by the squad, especially in recent matches when the team have been under pressure before coming away with something.

And McArthur is delighted with the relationship he has struck up already since signing for the club at the start of September.

"I have settled in really well - the manager and the fans have been brilliant," he said.

"The fans do it every week for us and they're going to be needed in the future. We need to keep our performance level high and they help us so much when times are hard.

"Recently we've been conceding goals and getting back into games and picking up points. I think the fans are a big part of that as well.

"I've always a had a great relationship with the fans that I've been with. The Palace fans here are very, very loud.

"They're very rowdy and noisy. They're like Wigan Athletic, in a sense that they're a family club."

CRYSTAL Palace midfielder James McArthur says he's been playing through the pain barrier recently but is delighted to help the club pick up points.

The Eagles have bounced back superbly following the international break, with just one defeat in their last five games.

And that defeat to Aston Villa was harsh having dominated the contest at Selhurst Park.

McArthur scored his first goal for Palace on Saturday against Stoke City and even though the visitors hit back immediately, the engine-roomer was happy to avoid defeat.

"I've got some bruised ribs but I'll be fine," he said. "I've never been one for injuries and then this year I've picked up a couple of knocks. I hope I'm over that now.

"We were disappointed not to win the match (against Stoke)."

"We had a few chances where we should have maybe taken them, and I had a couple as well where the goalkeeper made saves.

"On the whole we're disappointed but we'll take the point and move on. It was a dogged performance from both sides but it was important we didn't lose the game.

"We played against Sunderland at home where we were on top a lot and we let that point get away.

"It's making sure you don't lose games as well. We obviously want to do everything we can to win the game but it's important we don't lose."

Meanwhile, McArthur has urged the club's ground staff to get the Selhurst Park pitch up to scratch as soon possible, with the next game at home coming on Boxing Day against Southampton.

"I think it's something the club are trying to address," he said.

"It wasn't great, it's been cutting up for a number of weeks and I think it doesn't help us or other players playing on it."

By Mark Ritson (Twitter @MR_LWMedia)