Neil Warnock feels Crystal Palace are the team no-one wants to play as they continue to come up on the rails in the Championship play-off race.Warnock's Eagles shot down FA Cup semi-finalists Barnsley 2-0 at Selhurst Park to keep alive their own hopes of a trip to Wembley.

Tom Soares and James Scowcroft struck in the second half to move Palace onto the shoulders of the top six, just five months after they were languishing in the bottom two.

"I knew it wouldn't be an open game but I told the players at half-time to keep foraging and the opportunity would come," said Warnock.

"We were on our game at bit more today. You could say Barnsley had the cup on their minds, but they didn't when they won against Ipswich on Tuesday, and that would be taking a bit away from us.

"Someone at West Brom the other night commented that they wouldn't want to play us again - and I don't think many people would. I'm not making any apologies, we're not the finished article yet and you can only do what you can do with what you've got.

"But we've got a great team spirit and a will to keep our own goal intact - and it's a case of onto the next game."

Barnsley passed up decent opportunities from Kayode Odejayi, last weekend's goalscoring hero against Chelsea, and Istvan Ferenczi, and were made to pay barely a minute into the second half when Soares cracked home a 25-yard drive.

Scowcroft made the game safe with his 100th career goal, a neat turn and finish from close range, and was immediately challenged by his manager to guide Palace into the play-off places.

"He doesn't usually miss from a yard out," smiled Warnock.

"When he plays, we play, and when he wants half an hour off, we have half an hour off. So the last seven games for us are down to how he feels. But nobody wanted to mark him today."

Tykes boss Simon Davey has banned his players from talking about Wembley after they slipped to a first defeat in six games.

His side's first-half display merited a point, but they were blown away by Soares' sucker-punch and are still hovering just above the drop zone.

"In the first half we played well, we had good chances and didn't take them," he said.

"In the second half Palace got the goal they needed and got the momentum from that.

"I'll take nothing away from them, it's been a hard month. The schedule takes it's toll and with the cup exploits maybe there is a bit of mental fatigue.

"But nobody's got their shirts for the FA Cup game yet, we have to keep picking up points in the league. We won't talk about Wembley now until two days before the game."

Goalkeeper Luke Steele, one of the stars of the Tykes' cup run, is now due back at West Brom unless Davey can extend his loan deal.

"His loan has finished and we are in talks with West Brom, but nothing has been agreed yet," he added.

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