After 50 matches, three managers, 76 goals, 66 points and a total of 34 players in the red-and-blue stripes, all the efforts in Crystal Palace's troubled season amounted to zero.

Mid-table tedium seemed a distant possibility when Steve Bruce's high-flying Eagles were taking on all comers in Division One in August and September but Palace's eventual decline to 10th place should be seen as less a result of managerial upheaval and more the place the combined talents of the squad warranted.

STEVE BRUCE

The Steve Bruce era began with plenty of optimism, a team full of pace and touch looking to accelerate the ball along the wings for Clinton Morrison and Dougie Freedman, with the young Julian Gray beginning to establish himself as a fans' favourite.

But even Bruce admitted it was a Jekyll and Hyde side, as capable of collapsing against ordinary passing sides such as Portsmouth and Nottingham Forest as it was capable of tearing apart teams such as Wimbledon and Grimsby Town. A humiliating home defeat against Millwall proved to be the nadir for supporters and players alike.

But Bruce's boys bounced back and stormed to the top of the table. Seven straight wins crystallised Palace's promotion push and the belief boiled over at Molineux, when, despite being under siege for long periods, the Eagles snatched a win with a wonderful long-range goal from Jovan Kirovski.

Bruce's Palace seemed destined for success but they had yet to play four of the nine teams who would ultimately finish above them and were beaten by three of the others, so perhaps the early-season optimism masked a deceptively cruel fixture list.

Ultimately, their early season success cost Palace their manager.

Birmingham City, unhappy with Trevor Francis' failure to gain promotion, ditched him and made clear their intention to poach the Palace boss.

For Bruce, it was an offer he couldn't refuse but to the delight of football lovers everywhere, his betrayal was not the cynical skip from club to club he had envisaged; Palace chairman Simon Jordan drew out the move in the High Court to make it as painful as possible.

STEVE KEMBER

After Bruce's act of treachery, loyal Palace stalwart Steve Kember took over while Jordan searched for a new manager but it seemed the players were stung by their boss's departure.

The defeats piled up despite Kember's best efforts and losses at Coventry and Gillingham and a draw with Walsall proved the team was more fragile than first thought.

TREVOR FRANCIS

It was left to Trevor Francis to take over the reins at the club his Birmingham replacement had abandoned.

His more conservative style of football has found fewer fans than Bruce's cavalier attack and the new Palace supremo has presided over some truly awful defeats.

His defensive signings of Curtis Fleming, Kit Symons and Danny Granville were all well received as good quality at a good price and in January Palace once again seemed play-off bound.

But after a good start, including a home win over leaders Man City, Francis' tinkering with the winning 3-5-2 formation started to raise doubts among the Eagles faithful.

The double loss to injury of Symons and Tony Popovic, both superb at the back for the Eagles, was a real blow.

It also meant the inspirational Hayden Mullins was forced back from midfield to cover for the pair.

One win in five followed and the Selhurst fans began to turn on Francis.

In the meantime, Palace secured the services of goal-shy Ade Akinbiyi for £2.3million. Some Palace fans must also look long and hard at themselves and their attitude towards Akinbiyi.

The club's record signing has hardly set the side alight since he arrived, coming in at a difficult stage of the season with his confidence dented after a poor spell at Leicester, but that is no excuse for the moronic abuse he has suffered at the hands of a section of his own supporters.

It has been a disappointment in a season when, despite making Selhurst Park at times even quieter than the Highbury Library, the away support has been a credit to the club.

So Palace ended the season with their heads down as they watched West Bromwich Albion rise up into the promised land of Premier League success and television money.

Next year it will be harder but promotion can still happen if the manager brings his squad together and plays in a style that can bring consistent victory - and maybe if the fans got behind their side rather than sitting in silence or booing their own players.