Charlton manager Phil Parkinson is hoping a first win in 19 Championship matches will persuade his club's board that relegation is no longer inevitable provided they splash out before the transfer window closes.

The worst League run in Charlton's history ended at The Valley last night with a 1-0 victory over derby rivals Crystal Palace. It was also Parkinson's first League success since replacing Alan Pardew towards the end of November but he insisted: "We're not going to get carried away.

"We need to improve the squad and this game was pivotal for the board to look at the situation and say, 'We've got a chance'."

In reality, it remains a slim one. The euphoria sparked by Matthew Spring crashing home an unstoppable 14th-minute volley for his second goal in as many games was tempered by Jonathan Fortune suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon.

The knowledge that the centre-back will be out for the rest of the season will have Parkinson renewing his efforts to prise Wayne Brown from Hull City, assuming the cash-strapped board give him the green light. And Charlton, still firmly rooted to the bottom of the table eight points adrift of the safety zone, will have to play a lot better than they did against Palace if they are to stay up.

For all the defensive fortitude shown by Mark Hudson, Charlton were awful. They huffed and puffed but generally looked devoid of ideas other than the one that involved hoofing the ball into areas devoid of a red shirt.

Fortunately for them, Palace were even worse. Manager Neil Warnock acknowledged: "We need that little bit of quality. I'm hoping I can get somebody in before the transfer deadline."

Cleverly deflecting critical questioning of Palace's faltering push for a promotion play-off place, Warnock let fly at the opposition, insisting: "They should be disgusted with themselves, the Charlton players, to put effort in like that.

"If they had done it for Pardew, they wouldn't be in this position."

But Parkinson said: "Sometimes, when you take over at a club, the players are disaffected with the previous manager and you can have a positive effect.

"But I never had that because the lads liked Alan, they respected him and they were fighting for him. They were very disappointed when it didn't work out."