EXCLUSIVE

Jason Puncheon is well prepared for what to expect from Southampton fans when Crystal Palace play his old club in the FA Cup tomorrow.

Puncheon is returning to his former employers for the first time and should get a warm reception for his efforts during four years as a player on the South Coast. But the winger knows he is bound to be reminded about the time he was forced to leave the pitch for an emergency toilet break during a match at St Mary’s two years ago.

“It is one of those moments people will never forget,” says Puncheon of the incident that happened during a Premier League game against Everton, which was screened live on TV. “I still get reminded about it now but I take it all with a pinch of salt. It is one of those things that happens, and it just happened to be me. The fans have their song about that and I’m sure they will always sing it.”

Puncheon delivers the last comment with a smile and clearly retains a soft spot for his former club. He was part of the first phase in rebuilding Southampton’s fortunes after they dropped from the Premier League to League One and into administration.

Signed by current Palace manager Alan Pardew in January 2010, Puncheon helped the Saints halt their slide down the divisions in his first season. After falling out of favour under Nigel Adkins and being loaned to Millwall, Blackpool and Queens Park Rangers, he returned to help the club get back into the top flight.

“It was up and down but it finished well,” says Puncheon, who had a public fall-out with then Southampton chairman Nicola Cortese after criticising him on Twitter during the promotion season. The pair made up and Puncheon played an important role in ensuring the Saints stayed up on their return to the Premier League.

“The last 18 months there were really good for me and Southampton had a big and positive impact on my career,” he says.

“They always had the infrastructure in place to get back up and the position they are in now is testament to the whole club.”

Puncheon left Southampton to join Palace on loan in August 2013 and made the move permanent the following January. For a player who grew up in Croydon, a return to south London and a settled life off the pitch has had obvious benefits on it.

He is now a senior member of the squad and is playing some of the most consistent football of his career.

“This club came into my career at the right time,” says the 28-year-old.

“It is difficult to find footballers who are playing for their home team. I have got children and being around your family on a day-to-day basis has a massive effect on you. I felt I could have done better during the first half of the season but it was the same last season and I finished that well.”

Puncheon has been reunited with Pardew, who has turned Palace’s fortunes around with back-to-back League wins since replacing Neil Warnock.

"He has instilled a belief in the players,” says Puncheon. “The fans respond to him because he has been here before and that breeds a positive energy around the whole place. He demands certain things to get the best out of you, so it has been good.

“He has managed at a big club in Newcastle for five years and managed some great players. That can only help us because he knows the expectations he has of his players, so you have to prove yourself even if you have played for him before.”

Pardew talked about Puncheon in glowing terms after last Saturday’s 3-2 win at Burnley, describing him as “the best player on the pitch by a country mile”.

“Football works in mysterious ways,” says Puncheon, who has responded positively to his now infamous penalty miss against Tottenham at White Hart Lane last March.

“Sometimes you have to stand up and be counted,” he says of that miss.

“The best way of doing that was with my feet. When you are on a good run, it is important to carry on. It will be good to see some old faces but tomorrow is about my team winning.”