Shaun Derry says his experience at Crystal Palace has toughened him up for the fight at Cardiff.
He was an integral part of the team that beat West Ham in the play-off final two years ago, only to be dumped on the bench and then farmed out on loan once in the Premiership.
Derry: ‘What happened with Palace makes me doubly determined to go up and make my mark in the Premier League. That was a bitter pill to swallow.
‘I’ve spent eight years in this division, and it’s a tough one to get out of. Now I just want to play in the Premiership so badly.
‘I’m so determined to beat Watford I can’t look any further ahead than Sunday.
‘Beating West Ham a couple of years ago has been the highlight of my career so far, but if we get the right result on Sunday then it will top that.
‘Everyone knows this is a big club and needs to be in the Premiership. But the name goes out of the window on Sunday. There are two equal sides and we each have as much right to play in the Premier League.
‘That’s why there’s no favourite either, and it doesn’t matter if you’ve experienced, big-game players in your squad because it’s a one-off game and anything can happen.
‘We’ve done everything we can to get ourselves focused and prepared for this, but we know we are going to have a tough game on our hands.
‘We are determined to get the job done, and we know if we play our normal game then we will be a hard team to beat.’
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