Three goals in the last 10 minutes handed Crystal Palace a dramatic derby day win over Brighton, condemning Gus Poyet's men to their first ever league defeat at the Amex Stadium.

Craig Mackail-Smith put Brighton in the lead with a close-range finish at the near post in just the seventh minute, as Dougie Freedman's men struggled to get to grips with their rivals.

But after a slow start, they began to dominate and got their reward in the 80th minute, when the lively Wilfried Zaha danced through the opposition defence to fire home from the edge of the area to equalise.

Zaha then had a hand in Palace's second, feeding Jonathan Parr down the right who crossed low allowing Darren Ambrose to bundle home in the 89th minute.

Former Albion man Glen Murray added Palace's third in stoppage time, slotting home from 25 yards out.

After the game, Palace manager Dougie Freedman admitted his men had taken the match to the wire.

"We left it late to score but I felt 3-1 was a fair reflection of the game," he said.

"It's fantastic for our fans, a great result. They have been through a lot."

Murray was also singled out for praise, but Freedman was keen to stress the contribution of the team as a whole to the result.

"Glenn played very well as he has done since he has been here," he said.

"He's a wonderful player and a wonderful addition to our squad.

"But it's about Crystal Palace, not the Glenn Murray show. It's a good night for Crystal Palace."