I HEARD there was a report earlier this week saying that Palace are one of a number of clubs singled out for homophobic abuse towards Brighton & Hove Albion.

Well, I heard their fans sing homophobic songs about themselves. I don't know about the rivalry between the clubs but I do know what they did on the pitch against my team the other week.

I haven't been at Palace long enough to understand that sort of rivalry but down there I thought the songs they were singing to our fans were a little bit near the knuckle to say the least, but with some sort of humour in it.

I'm not homophobic – whatever anybody's choices are is down to them and that's the way the world should be.

I believe there's somebody for everybody, and even things are being brought to the law if you look at what the Conservative party are looking at.

I love football and I love banter. If banter offends someone, it turns to bullying, and there's a very careful line you've got to draw under it.

If that's the case and it's offended some people, then everybody should stop saying it, but if you're going to go into it in that detail, some comedians are going to be banned aren't they?

They take the mickey out of absolutely everything and sometimes in bad moments in life, humour can be great to get you out of it – sometimes you need a bit of banter.

You can't take everything so seriously all the time, but I don't think I'm qualified yet to talk about Palace and Brighton.

It's a very touchy subject and I don't want to go against our supporters because I want to learn about their club. Meanwhile, it's a weird scenario up at Sunderland – they had Martin O'Neill, a sought-after manager, and all of a sudden they've gone and given the job to someone from League One.

Good luck to Paolo Di Canio, but we're seeing managers leaving their jobs every week at the moment.

It's Sunderland's decision to do what they've done, and who I am to criticise?

I'm not going to, but I don't understand what these fascist claims are against Paolo.

What is a fascist? Is it someone who believes in their own country or their own tribe? What is it?

The management and I looked it up on Tuesday to see what it actually means. I have never worked with Paolo over the years or ever seen him, so I don't know him at all.

But I know what he did at Swindon.

He created a fantastic atmosphere there and I was talking to a mate of mine who watched them a lot, and he said he's never seen a team play with so much energy and vibrancy every time you watched them.

He's definitely got ability and we saw that as a footballer, he was a genius at times, and sometimes that opens doors for you, so good luck to him in his new job at Sunderland.

CROYDON Council is to carry out an internal review to see if lessons can be learned from the deaths of Zachary and Donna Oettinger.

The three-year-old and his mother were killed on March 22 by a train outside Riddlesdown during morning rush hour. Police say they have found no suspicious circumstances around the deaths.

A spokesman for Croydon Council said: "Following the tragic deaths of Zachary Oettinger and his mother Donna Oettinger, the Croydon Safeguarding Children's Board (CSCB) has made the decision to undertake a serious case review.

"This relates to Zachary but the board will be considering all agencies involved with the family."

The review will consider whether there are lessons in the case for agencies such as social and health services.

Councillor Tim Pollard, cabinet member for children and a CSCB board member, said such a review was normal in the circumstances and there was "no guarantee any lessons needed to be learned".

He added "Each individual [safeguarding board] takes a decision as to where each thinks the line between conducting and not conducting a review is, but I think in this particular case given the facts of the case it is a sensible thing to do."

The council's published guidance on serious case reviews says they should be conducted whenever a child dies and abuse or neglect is known or suspected to be a factor in the death, regardless of whether children's social services have been involved.

A spokesman refused to comment on whether its own social services had been involved with the family, saying: "We do not comment while a serious case review is ongoing – one aspect of these reviews is to find out which agencies a family was known to and to what extent."

The news comes as family of Donna and Zachary in England spoke publicly for the first time about their loss this week. In a joint statement released through British Transport Police, they paid tribute to "devoted mother" Donna, sole carer for her "full of fun" son, whose father, Mohamed Nasr, lives in Egypt.

They said: "Donna was a devoted mother, daughter, sister and auntie, who always had a big smile and a sparkle in her eyes. She was a single mum who loved and cared for her family and worked hard to provide and care solely for Zaki, who she worshipped.

"They had lots of fun and adventures together, travelling around the country, visiting friends and abroad to see Zaki's dad, who was unable to leave Egypt for various reasons. Our beloved, darling Zaki – a very happy little boy full of fun and mischief – loved dancing to music, playing with his toys, going to playschool and spending time with Lisa, his childminder, while Donna was at work."

They added that Donna suffered from "severe anxiety," adding: "Our thoughts go out to sufferers and families of anxiety, an illness not to be underestimated."

They continued: "We wish to express our gratitude for all the help and messages we have received from families, friends, colleagues and the people we have never met."

Detective Chief Inspector Iain Miller, senior investigating officer, said police are preparing a file for the coroner for an inquest to be opened.

He added: "Our thoughts remain with Donna and Zaki's family and friends."

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call British Transport Police on Freephone 0800 40 50 40, quoting incident reference 104 of 22/03/2013.

PALACE defender Peter Ramage says he didn't come off social networking site Twitter due to abuse he and other players have received from a number of fans.

The 29-year-old and central defensive partner Damien Delaney both came off Twitter just hours after Easter Monday's 1-0 defeat at Blackpool but, according to the former Newcastle United man, it wasn't planned together.

"I had been talking about coming off Twitter and we didn't realise we had both come off it within a minute or so of each other – it was just total coincidence," Ramage said.

"We just want to get back to focusing on the pitch – we go on Twitter for a bit of banter, we don't go on there to air our views or say what happens on the training pitch.

"People are going to draw their own conclusions why we've both come off it but it's purely to have a break and clear our heads and be fully focused on the job.

"Some of the abuse has gone a little too far but if you put yourself up on these sites, you're going to get people who want to air their opinions, which they're entitled to just as much as the guys who praise you.

"I don't really take notice of the ones who hate – some have gone a bit far with the abuse, but I'm old enough and big enough to ignore all that. Coming off Twitter has got nothing to do with that.

"I'll be back on it in the near future but for now it's about clearing my mind and not having the distractions of it."

Ramage says the squad were very frustrated on the way home from the north west following the defeat against Paul Ince's side, but the defender remembers the start of the season when things were even worse than they are now.

He said: "We're still in a great position.

"Everyone seems to be doom and gloom at the moment because we've lost three on the bounce, but think about the start of the season when we were bottom of the league.

"If someone said to us we were going to turn it around and be fourth with six games to go, everybody would have bitten your hand off. There was a lot of frustration from everyone after Blackpool and the bus journey home wasn't great either.

"Everybody believes we can get the job done. OK, it's not going for us at the minute but there's not one player, management staff or anyone at the club who is not focused on trying to get there.

"We just need to relax, soak up the pressure we're putting ourselves under and start again on Saturday against Barnsley."

Ramage hopes to give the fans something to cheer about come the last game of the season on Saturday, May 4.

"The fans were with us at the start of the season and they are with us now – that hasn't changed," he said. "We just want them to stay with us as it's been a roller-coaster of a season, but there's been more highs than lows.

"And you have to think about what the club has gone through over the last three or four years.

"I hope we can give the fans something to shout and cheer about at the end of the season."

• Did you know Mr Amarasinghe? Pay tribute by leaving a comment below, emailing reporter georgie.keate@essnmedia.co.uk or calling 01737 783808.

A South Norwood man who urinated in the back of a police van after crashing his own vehicle  into a brick wall has been jailed for four months.

Richard Stinton, of Manor Road, was charged with failing to provide a specimen, dangerous driving, assault with intent to resist arrest, failing to stop for police, failing to stop after an accident and criminal damage.
 
The charges were brought after officers on routine patrol spotted a white Vauxhall Combo van in suspicious circumstances on Ninehams Road in Caterham around 12.25am on  November 21.
 
They attempted to stop the vehicle but the driver continued to drive the van until it collided with a brick wall on Taunton Lane in Coulsdon. The driver left the scene on foot before being arrested nearby following a pursuit by officers.
 
While under arrest Stinton assaulted a police officer causing him to fall to the ground and urinated in the back of the police van.
 
Investigating officer Dave Evans from East Surrey CID said: "Sinton was not only putting his own life at risk but that of other Surrey road users and I hope the time imprisonment and the driving ban will convince him to change his behaviour behind the wheel.
 
"This type of selfish behaviour will not be tolerated by Surrey Police and we will do all we can to keep the roads around our county as safe as possible by prosecuting people like Stinton." 
 
Stinton, who was also banned from driving for a year, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing and was sentenced at Guildford Crown Court today (Friday).
 

• Two men appeared at Croydon Magistrates' Court this morning charged with the murder of Danny Gough in December 2010. 
• The eldest son of a pensioner who collapsed and died after returning to his home to find it had been burgled has described how he tried to save his father's life. Earlier this morning a post mortem gave Stanley Amarasinghe's cause of death as heart failure.
• A man has pleaded not guilty to murdering Janelle Duncan-Bailey. Jerome McDonald, 30, allegedly strangled his former partner and left her body in a car in Thornton Heath.
• Police have appealed for help in finding a missing 12-year-old who has links to Croydon. SuadaGashi, from Lewisham, was last seen when she boarded a non-stop coach from Birmingham to London Victoria on Tuesday morning. 
• Magistrates ruled that the case against an autistic man accused of a bomb hoax during the Olympics should go to trial despite concerns about the strength of the evidence against him.
• Police arrested a man on the roof of a Tesco supermarket in South Croydon with the help of a police helicopter and London Fire Brigade.

A HASTILY assembled Warlingham Wizards Sevens side entered the well-established Old Caterhamians Easter Sevens tournament on Saturday.

Out of 13 teams, Warlingham drew Worth Old Boys, Ealing Trailfinders and Old Caterhamians in the group stages.

They dispatched Old Cats easily by eight tries to nil, but then they faced the highly fancied National League One side, Ealing Trailfinders, coached by former Warlingham coach Steve Wagstaff.

Despite a sterling effort, Warlingham went down by four tries to two and needed to win their final group game to stay in the main competition.

Worth Old Boys were a well-drilled outfit and at the half-time whistle the score was equal with one try apiece. In the second half, Warlingham's determination and support play came good and they scored two more tries to put them into the knockout stage of the main tournament.

In the quarter-final they were pitted against a Saxons' invitation side, formed of a Richmond development sevens boasting a number of fit and pacy academy players.

Warlingham scored three tries to Saxons' one and cruised into the semi-final where they met another National League One side, Esher.

The bitter wind and snow blizzard conditions hampered open play. Esher took a two-try lead, which they extended in the second half with two quick scores. However, Warlingham were not to be outdone. They pulled back two well-taken tries to reduce the deficit to a mere five points. They continued to press for several minutes but were unable to breach the tight Esher defence and lost by just one score.

Esher went into the final against Ealing Trailfinders, who justly took the Cup and the prize money.

Old Caterhamians won the Plate competition, which was just reward for a well-organised competition in bad conditions.

After the tournament, Warlingham Sevens captain, Jon Osborne said: "The conditions were extreme for all teams and, with limited training, I think we did well to get to the latter stages of the competition. We have a schedule of sevens tournaments and will look to improve."

Warlingham's Auber Edwards and Alex Skinner were joint men of the competition for Warlingham but the squad deserved recognition for a spirited effort.

THREE defeats on the bounce has come at the worst possible time of the season for Palace.

Furthermore, they have failed the find the back of the net and the recent form has been the poorest since the start of the season.

However, who would have thought the Eagles would be in fourth position and just six points off an automatic position with six games to go?

It's all too easy to get comfortable with watching delightful football, and we have certainly had a large chunk of that this season.

Remember the 4-1 defeats at Bristol City and Preston North End back in August? A season of doom and gloom looked set for the boys in red and blue, but the turnaround has been quite unbelievable.

Yes, the Brighton defeat hurt. Yes, Birmingham shocked us all in SE25 on Good Friday. And yes, the 500-mile round trip to Blackpool was hugely disappointing to concede in the final six minutes.

Saturday's game against Barnsley is a great opportunity to put things right.

In fact, it's a must-win game in some respects if the Eagles are to make another charge at automatic promotion.

Watford actually did Palace a favour by beating Hull City on Tuesday night, even if some may have seen a draw as a good result.

A victory for Steve Bruce's men would have surely meant Ian Holloway's side were destined for a play-off position, but the Hornets' win has pegged them back and it allows Palace another chance.

Of course, Barnsley are scrapping for their lives at the bottom of the table and have been in good form recently, so it will be far from a walkover at Selhurst – I think we all know by now that anyone can beat anyone in this league.

Holloway said after the Blackpool defeat that he's expecting a response from his players, while Peter Ramage admitted the latest run of form has brought the players close together in a bid to get out of this blip.

Having looked at the Championship table from the previous two seasons, it has taken 75 points to secure a play-off place, and that's in sixth position. In 2010, it was 70 points and the year before that, 74.

So, Palace will need at least three wins from the final six games, and anything more is a bonus.

The first of those must come against the Tykes tomorrow, and with no game next weekend due to original opponents Millwall playing in the FA Cup semi-final, it would be good to take three points into the next game at Ipswich Town on April 16.

In terms of team news, it seems that we may have to wait a little bit longer than expected for Aruna Dindane's debut after Holloway revealed on Monday that the club have been unable to get international clearance from Qatar for the Ivorian.

The boss has made changes over the past two games involving Danny Gabbidon and Peter Ramage, while Jonny Williams should come back into the starting XI.

Kevin Phillips could come back in for Stephen Dobbie, who was ineffective at Bloomfield Road, while a few people have been questioning Kagisho Dikgacoi's performances in recent weeks but it's unlikely that Alex Marrow or Stuart O'Keefe will be promoted for a starting position.

One man who is ready for a return to the starting XI after injury is Joel Ward, and the full-back has been on the bench for the past two games.

The 23-year-old is arguably a lot more solid than Jazz Richards, while Richards' attacking threat seems to have waned since his loan arrival from Swansea City.

Tomorrow's game presents a great chance to get back to winning ways and the players require all the support they can get heading into the final push.

PALACE loan defender Jazz Richards signed a new three-year contract at parent club Swansea City last week.

And he wants to help the Eagles into the Premier League before nailing down a starting position at the Liberty Stadium.

The 21-year-old Wales international would have been out of contract in the summer, but his new deal extends his stay through to 2016.

"By offering me a three-year contract, the club made me feel they have a plan for me," he said.

"There was interest from other clubs but Swansea is where I want to be.

"The plan is to finish the season strongly and try my best to get Palace into the Premier League, and then I'll return to Swansea and look to impress Michael Laudrup enough to be involved regularly in his first-team plans."

CROYDON Council is to spend £3.1 million on a whole new set of furniture - rather than £2.1 million on moving old pieces into its new Bernard Weatherill House (BWH) this summer.

At a corporate services committee meeting last week, the report set out by the Conservative administration argued that the cost of moving existing furniture over 18 weeks – dismantling and re-assembling pieces, running both the Taberner and BWH buildings and replacing 25 per cent of the unusable furniture – was not good value for money at £2,123,000.

Instead, it proposed buying a whole new set of equipment for £3,143,000 over a six-week move.

All six Conservative councillors voted for the plan, whereas the five Labour councillors voted against.

Tim Pollard, a Conservative on the committee, said the decision would save money in the long term.

He added: "The way the council will be run in the new building will be very different. In Taberner, around a third of the desks are unused at any one time because officers are out in the field.

"This is expensive to maintain. In BWH, not every person will get their own desk – officers will share facilities to save space and money."

Sara Bashford, the Conservative member who led the report, said: "I know how this looks when the economy is so bad and cuts are being made but a lot of work went into this and it is the most efficient proposal.

"None of the old furniture will fit in with the new floor plan for BWH and it is due for replacement in the next five years anyway.

"We will even be getting income from it when partner organisations pay us to use the facilities.

"That's just what new furniture costs – it's expensive."

George Ayres, a Labour member who voted against the plans, said: "This is a totally inappropriate use of taxpayers' money in this era of deprivation and cuts. I cannot understand why they would choose this option and spend over £3 million on furniture.

"That morning, I had been at a meeting about the problems facing mental health treatment because of cuts. Going to the committee was like entering a parallel universe – I might have understood in richer days, but these are not rich days."

The report states that the old furniture and stationery will be offered to schools, charities and community groups.