Palace bowed out of the competition after a spirited 5-2 away defeat to League One high-flyers Stevenage.
An unfortunate Harry Lee own goal, followed by strikes from Jovan Malcolm and Phoenix Patterson, gave the hosts a 3-0 lead. George King’s header pulled one back on the stroke of half-time, and Kaden Rodney’s smart finish made it 3-2 entering the final third.
However, further goals from Patterson and Lewis Orford sealed the result for Boro.
On the performance, Powell said: “It was good in patches, and not good in some patches. Second half, we just changed a few things. So, we could just put a bit more pressure on the ball, which I felt we did well.
“We created opportunities, numerous opportunities on the break. But then our defending, it just let us down. There was a moment, 3-2, when the momentum was with us.
“But then, if you can't keep them out the other end, you're going to struggle. And that's what we did. The goals were preventable, in my eyes, preventable.
“So tough to take, tough to take. Again, I can't knock the effort from the players. We've got a first-year scholar playing out there with us.
“A few second-year scholars out there as well. So, it's a good experience for them, really is, and they coped well with it. But yeah, it was a tough one.
“Yeah, tough, tough, but in patches, it was really good.”
