so it's better to have no plan at all?

Well said.

This is an interesting article in the Independent about European Clubs hunting young English players, and while it mentions the trap top Premier League clubs are in, I think it nicely explains Roy's challenge with giving youth a chance:

"the fundamental question put to any scout regarding a player is whether “he’s better than what we’ve got?” This goes to a deeper level with the highest-level English clubs, though. The question is not just whether a player is better, but whether he is ready enough that there is minimal risk of dropping points if he is used. Those clubs will know a young foreign player is ready, because he has already been given top-division experience in another league. They won’t know whether their own young player is, because they won’t risk that experience, creating this curious circular problem."

[Link]

As always we are in total agreement

And he went to Ruskin.

1. Roy cannot physically put the ball in the back of the net himself. You can hardly blame him for the extreme profligacy of the team this season. If a few of the sitters like Jimmy Mac’s last Saturday had gone in those stats would be very different.
2. Roy has not yet had the same financial backing as the others.
3. Two of the three managers you mention embarrassingly walked out on us.
4. I prefer having a manager who has natural love and affection for our club than some money grabbing, here today-gone tomorrow mercenary who ‘retires’ to a better paid job or leaves you in the lurch on the eve of a new season.
5. The style of football played under Roy has been very pleasing on the eye. We are a decent side and play some of the most attractive football I’ve seen as a Palace fan. We are far better than our results suggest and with the addition of a goal scorer those stats will inevitably improve.
6. The only alternatives are to either appoint a newbie who will use us as a stepping stone in the unlikely event of success or one of the serial failures from the manager-go-round.

You obviously were not around in the days of Taylor and Francis and quite a few more , you don't know that a s**t job is, In 50 years plus of following Palace. Hodgson would be in the top 6.