PALACE are on the road in the next few days, starting with Stoke City today before a trip to Bristol City in the second round of the Capital One Cup.
Last Sunday's 1-0 defeat to Tottenham is nothing to be ashamed of and the battling qualities shown by Palace were there to see, with the defence performing well as a unit.
Indeed, pundits on BBC's Match of the Day pointed out the positional awareness of Danny Gabbidon and Damien Delaney as a key factor to keeping Spurs quiet, especially in the first half.
Stoke have built a reputation over the years of being a physical outfit, mainly down to Tony Pulis' tenure, and now it's down to Mark Hughes to prove a few critics wrong at the Britannia Stadium.
Palace can take heart from the performances against them in the FA Cup in January, which required extra-time in the replay before they succumbed to what can only be described as "Premier League quality shining through".
Well, that was what a few supporters said behind me in the press box on a bitterly cold night in January, but the Eagles are now mixing it with the big boys and I believe they can go to Stoke and get a point at least.
However, due to the presence of defensive duo Robert Huth and Ryan Shawcross, don't be surprised if Ian Holloway starts with Aaron Wilbraham again in attack to win the aerial battles.
Wilbraham has that side to the game but we may see Marouane Chamakh come in for Dwight Gayle to partner him.
The Moroccan looked sharp when he came on against Spurs and will be looking to get a good run of games under his belt to replicate the form that gave him a move to Arsenal from Bordeaux a few years ago.
Holloway will definitely be without Jerome Thomas still, while Yannick Bolasie may continue to miss out with a hamstring problem but could make a return against former club Bristol City.
Of course, new loan signing Jason Puncheon could feature, while Palace may strengthen further before the games and that would give supporters optimism heading up north.
New defender Florian Marange may have to wait for his chance as Dean Moxey gave a solid account against Spurs despite giving away the winning penalty, while Gabbidon and Delaney look likely to keep their places too.
Mile Jedinak, who was a Stoke transfer target last season, will need to put in another dogged display to win the central midfield battle, but one man who could be in for a tough afternoon is Joel Ward, who may have to deal with creative winger Matthew Etherington.
Should the game stay goalless up to the hour-mark, we can expect Holloway to throw on a couple of attacking players in a bid for victory, and that may mean Jonny Williams has to settle for a place on the bench again alongside the evergreen Kevin Phillips.
Both changed the way Palace played against Spurs but coming up against a physical side like Stoke could mean Kagisho Dikgacoi partners Jedinak in the middle with Owen Garvan once again looking to get forward.
I don't believe there will be many goals but Palace can definitely go there and grab a 1-1 draw in my opinion.
