Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Downhill…
Bristol Rovers 2 Charlton Athletic 1Charlton lost in front of the Sky TV cameras again, and were left battered, broken and frustrated by the home side in another dismal performance. Dave Mooney was the battered player, suffering a horrific clash of heads which left him with a golf-ball size lump on his forehead, while Grant Basey was broken – his ankle snapped by a poor late challenge after just 12 seconds of the match. It was desperate luck for the Welshman, and now means he is unlikely to feature again this season. The rest of the side were simply frustrated (left) - by lack of ability, tactical nous, and form.
Whether the early injury affected the players I do not know, but the team played with a lack of confidence, and were hassled and hustled into errors regularly. The first goal was conceded from another corner after fifteen minutes of play; the ball was flicked on at the near post and whoever was meant to be marking Rovers centre half Elliot wasn’t, and he had time to fire a powerful volley past his despairing Charlton goalkeeping namesake.
Charlton huffed and puffed a bit, with Nicky Bailey shooting whenever he had the opportunity, and Akpo Sodje saw two headed efforts come to nothing, but it was the Addicks ‘keeper who kept the team in the match with fine saves from Heffernan and Lines. The midfield battle was very definitely lost in the first half, and the forward players saw little of the ball for any length of time. Although Lloyd Sam had a couple of good runs, most of Charlton’s good work in that opening 45 minutes came down the left through Bailey.
Dave Mooney replaced Akpo Sodje at the break, which either suggested that Akpo was injured or Parky did not like the fact he had missed two good chances; if it wasn't this, then why did Parky pick him to start in the first place? Mooney brought more movement, but with the inept Deon Burton totally overwhelmed by two big defenders, Mooney had little support. With half an hour left, Parky went for broke and played the usual card of removing Jose Semedo in favour of a more attacking player; this time it was Kyel Reid, who came on to play on the left with Bailey moving inside.
Almost immediately, Heffernan burst free and this time Elliot could not save the one-on-one situation, and Charlton fell two goals behind. With this lead, the home team seemed happy to concede possession for the first time in the game and sit back and soak up some pressure. This allowed Therry Racon to start to influence the game, and he at least strung some passes together now where he had been unable to before. Mooney was helped off with fifteen minutes to go, and the ten men battled on, with Sam supporting Burton centrally whenever he could. As Lines had also been carried off (with a self-inflicted knee injury), there was plenty of added time at the end of the game, but the ten men struggled to get possession, and it was into the 97th minute that Racon half-volleyed a late consolation goal for the Addicks from the edge of the penalty area (left).The game hinged on big moments, and there was none bigger than that opening tackle which did for Basey; had Blizzard been rightly sent off (as everyone on TV agreed he should have), it may well have been a very different game. As it was, the same problems Charlton had a couple of years back are surfacing, as the management tinkers with the team in an effort to find the right formula. At this stage of the season, we should be playing our best players in their best positions in a set formation. I don’t mind if we go back to 4-5-1 with one leading the line, but we should not be dropping the guy who has been our best player in the last three games, or switching the next best player out to the wing. Pedro45’s opinion is that we need to run with 4-4-2 for the rest of the season, and that means also playing with two wingers. We may concede more goals, but at least we might look a little dangerous going forwards on occasion, which is something we do not at present.
The danger is that Charlton are now going to be that "seventh" club – the one that misses out on even the play-offs; from automatic promotion candidates to also rans in just over a month. Why?
Labels: Bristol Rovers, Charlton
Sunday, February 14, 2010
The Sky's the Limit!
Monday night sees Charlton live on TV for an away game at Bristol Rovers; it is a chance for the Addicks to shine, which is something that may be a bit foreign to them. 2010 certainly cannot be called a vintage year so far, and even if it does end up promotion to the Championship, the last few weeks will be recalled only as a low point that the team bounced back from. The issue is just that the team need to bounce back, as they are in pretty poor form at present.The point gained at Swindon in the last game may look good on paper, but those that saw it (of which I was not one) claim that Charlton were very much second best, inferior, and lucky to get anything from the match. That followed another 1-1 draw at Walsall, who are hardly setting the division alight, and a similar score at home versus relegation candidates Tranmere. Prior to that was the home defeat to Orient, so it is four games since Charlton last won – the club’s longest winless run of the season in the league. This sequence of results has seen the club drop back from the front runners at the top of the table to become also rans, vying with other clubs to maintain one of the play-off places come the end of the season. It is not beyond the club to push on and get back to challenging for automatic promotion, but it really would take a very good run-in over the last sixteen games to get in front of either Leeds or Norwich.
So what has gone wrong since the turn of the year? Certainly the enforced lay-off due to the snowy weather did not help, and since the thaw the pitches at everywhere except the Valley have been pretty awful – muddy and uneven. This has not helped Charlton’s play, or the teams confidence, as it is pretty hard for a skilful player to run along the pitch and try to kick the ball not knowing if it will be where he thinks it is when he started swinging the peg. The other thing that has hurt the team, is the constant switching of the formation and tactics; while I see no problem have a flexible squad that can be picked and played to suit certain conditions and opponents, the fact that manager Phil Parkinson is still searching for a best team in any game is worrying. We have good players, but they are either not performing, or not in the team. Hopefully the bad weather is now starting to recede (even if it is still very cold) and we should be OK in home games where we know the Valley will provide a decent enough surface. At away games, we may struggle, especially as Rovers are another of those teams (like Wycombe) who share their pitch with a rugby club.
Parky will need to counter this problem, but first, he will have to pick the right personnel to get Charlton back into a winning mode, and that to me means playing our best players. It does seem that through circumstance, we have yet to play our best eleven (even allowing for Kelly Youga’s injury), and now we seem to have sorted out the problematic left side of midfield through the loan of Kyel Reid, the onus must surely to get the right personnel playing in the other key areas of the pitch. Nicky Bailey is best at supplementing the forwards and bursting forward from midfield, not at playing the holding role. This should mean a return for the club’s best defensive midfielder Jose Semedo, who has been left out of the last couple of matches. Similarly, Lloyd Sam is a better winger than Scott Wagstaff, and he too should come back into the team, especially as Waggy has had a couple of poor away games now and was hauled off at half-time in Wiltshire last time out. With these two changes, the whole team is stronger, and you can vary your tactics around them, with Therry Racon, Jonjo Shelvey, Akpo Sodje, Dave Mooney, and Deon Burton all vying for the two remaining starting places.
Burton’s inclusion is an interesting point; since he was sent off on Boxing Day, his play has been fairly lacklustre, and this resulted in him being rightly dropped for the Swindon game. In that match, Parky ran a variation of a 4-5-1 formation, hoping to over-run the midfield and counter attack quickly; this tactic failed, even though in glimpses it showed that it could have worked. With Rovers being a lot weaker than Swindon are, it would surely be folly to retain a system that did not work if the club really want to win? I’m hoping that the positive spin put on that game and in reports since means that Parky is going to revert to two up front, thereby restoring Burton and appeasing those that said he shouldn’t have been dropped in the first place. With this tactic, and with Semedo coming back into the side, it does mean that either Shelvey or Racon or both are dropped, and this comes down again to hard choices - we cannot play all of our squad in every game. We could switch back to Burton leading the line on his own, but one of the reasons that the team was set up this way early in the season was because of a lack of alternative options; now we have options, and I do think that we must start with two from Burton, Akpo Sodje, and Mooney. If we get the forward line-up right, then the lack of a clean-sheet can by ignored for another week or two.
This is the side I would like to see play at the Memorial Ground in front of the Sky cameras –
Rob Elliot
Frazer Richardson
Sam Sodje
Christian Dailly
Grant Basey
Jose Semedo
Nicky Bailey
Lloyd Sam
Kyel Reid
Akpo Sodje
Deon Burton
Subs from – Randolph, Solly, Llera, Spring, Shelvey, Racon, Wagstaff, Dickson, Mooney.
If Charlton don’t attack the home team, then that will only give Bristol confidence, especially after two recent home defeats gave left them almost no chance of making the play-offs themselves. Rovers main problem at present is the number of injures that they have, and their best player –Chris Lines – is likely to be missing from the game. Goalscoring is also a problem, and they have drawn five blanks in the seven games they have played since Xmas, so maybe Chris Dickson may have a chance to go back and join them on loan at some point? Lines has scored three of the four goals they have managed since festivities, which shows his importance to the side.
Pedro45 must be positive about this match, and I am going to forecast a welcome return to form and a comfortable 3-0 victory. This may sound silly after sounding the warnings highlighted above, but Charlton cannot afford to be anything other than positive now, and that may actually help matters over coming weeks. Playing it neat and tidy, and not taking chances is all well and good, but sometimes you just have to go for it and I think Charlton are at that stage now; it’s not all or nothing, as the play-offs beckon, but if we want to have a real go at catching those above us, bearing in mind that they are both having a wobble at present, then now is that time.
My one-to-watch in this match has to be captain Nicky Bailey. The scorer of a point-saving last gasp equaliser last time out has been in excellent goal scoring form this season, even if some of his overall play can be erratic. With wingers on each side of the pitch to give the ball too, his runs into the area to get on the end of their product should allow him more efforts on goal, and I fancy him to carry on scoring in this match. The inclusion of Semedo would also free him from some (but not all) defensive duties, and he could play more freely than alongside Racon or Shelvey for instance.This will be Charlton’s fifth and last match in front of a live TV audience this season (bar any possible play-off matches), and the record one win and three defeats so far is not good, especially when you bear in mind that the club has only lost six games all season (three in the league, and one each in the three cup competitions). A win here will give us a positive record in live TV league matches this season, and that is what is required. Rovers are there for the taking, and we must put them in their place.
Up the Addicks!
Labels: Bristol Rovers, Charlton, Nicky Bailey
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Six More at Home
Charlton Athletic 4 Bristol Rovers 2Six more goals at The Valley, and another resounding victory for the Addicks as forwards Dave Mooney, Deon Burton and Akpo Sodje all scored on a blustery night. At least the weather wasn’t as bad as in the previous two games, but the swirling wind did get up in the second half and make passing accuracy difficult.
The highlight though was not one of the players or goals, but the amazing fourth official, who certainly raised chuckles from the stands and ridicule from the benches of both clubs. More later…
Charlton made two changes to the team that started in Somerset on Saturday, with Miguel Llera replacing the suspended Sam Sodje as expected, but less expected was the involvement from the start of Jonjo Shelvey for Therry Racon. Shelvey took station on the left wing, and involved himself as much as possible without really stamping any authority on his position.
The first goal came quickly, after just four minutes; Lloyd Sam hassled his full back and won the ball and made it to the byeline where his pull back found Burton ten yards out. Burton had time and space to control and turn and fire in a shot across goal that the ‘keeper parried out, and Mooney gleefully stroked in the rebound (top pic).
Soon Sam was being hacked to the ground but he still gave the full back a torrid time. A quarter of an hour into the game and Charlton won a corner. Before it was taken, the referee warned the defenders on holding as Llera fell, but they obviously didn’t learn as when Grant Basey swung over the dead ball Llera again clashed and the referee pointed to the penalty spot. There was confusion over who was booked for the foul at this point, and the scoreboard failed to indicate which player had got the yellow card. Burton stroked home the penalty kick with aplomb (below pic), and at two-nil, Charlton were cruising, but as so often happens, chances were missed, and the away team came into the game more.
Sadly, Kelly Youga injured himself when clearing a ball, and he had to go off with Elliot Omozusi filling in at right back.It didn’t go all Charlton’s way though, and after that period of control, the referee evened things up a bit when he penalised Christian Dailly as a cross sailed into the box, and Rovers had their own penalty. Much as at Carlisle, the ref seemed to want to give one a side. Carl Ikeme had saved that one at Brunton Park (although the rebound was scored) but he couldn’t get near this kick from Hughes and five minutes before half-time it was 2-1.
It was no real surprise when Charlton conceded the equaliser ten minutes into the second half; Rovers had started the half very confidently, and with Shelvey and the forwards were struggling to hold the ball for any length of time. The passing from the back was long, in the main, and this simply allowed the wind to carry the ball to their ‘keeper and gift possession back to the away team. Lines headed in a corner to bring the teams level, and you did wonder if the two-nil lead would end in a 3-2 defeat. Omozusi had to make a couple of excellent blocks near the goal-line to keep the Addicks on level terms, and slowly the game turned and the concern subsided. Shelvey then had a goal-bound half-volley from close range unfortunately blocked by Mooney's body, and you did wonder if Charlton could respond and get back in the lead.
Thankfully, this Charlton team are built of resilient stuff, and with Akpo Sodje waiting to come on, a great move involving man-of-the-match Sam, led to his cross being flicked on by Burton to Mooney, and his header hitting the bar before Nicky Bailey bundled home the rebound to give Charlton the lead once more. Shelvey did then make way for Scott Wagstaff, and Sodje came on for the tireless Mooney. Soon, the younger Sodje was celebrating his first Valley goal (left) after he turned home from close range. With just fifteen minutes left, there was no way back for Rovers now. More chances were spurned, but Charlton comfortably saw the game home.The most controversial moment though saw the referee make several bookings in the second half, including a yellow card for number four Lines. When he was penalised again for pulling back Bailey and the referee reached for his pocket, the player looked like he was seeing red, but for some reason he got what seemed like another yellow card and no following red. The crowd, Bailey, and the Charlton dug-out all tried to remonstrate with the referee, especially as it could lead to a punishment for him from the authorities if it is found he did give a player two cards and not send him off, but he was adamant that he was right.
The fourth official obviously at this point checked his notebook; he had written every little thing that happened in the game down in this book, and was constantly checking the watches he wore on both wrists. Most fourth officials stay seated, and only get up if something untoward is happening with the team officials. Not this one, he stood the whole game, checking both ways like he was about to cross a road, and regularly found himself in the team box talking to one side or another (we think he may have wanted to be a manager he spent so much time there!). When a substitution was made, he not only checked the players boots, but asked them to lift there shirts and amazingly their shorts too in case they were hiding anything! If a goal went in, he ran to the box to keep the officials off the pitch, not that anyone looked like they may encroach, but just because he wanted to be wanted I guess? When a late foul went against Rovers, their manager went mad and had words directed at the referee, a record of which went straight into the notebook of this man, so it may well be that Trollope gets reported for what he said. God help us when this guy takes charge of a match…
Lennie Lawrence received a nice ovation when he made his way along the touchline before the game, but for some reason he had to sit on the naughty step all through the game. He sat quietly most of the match, celebrating the equaliser, and then the final touch was that the fourth official spoke to him about what Trollope said, as if reporting him to his elder brother. Smirks all round!
So another home win for Charlton without too much trouble, bar Youga’s injury. The key now is to start winning away games too.
Labels: Bristol Rovers, Charlton
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
It’s A Gas
Charlton will be hoping to maintain the recent positive momentum in tonight’s fixture versus Bristol Rovers at The Valley; a thumping of MK Dons in the last home match was replicated in effort if not the result on Saturday in Somerset, where, but for Sam Sodje’s sending off, three points would surely have been won.Phil Parkinson will need to make at least one change to his side, due to Sodje’s sending off, but may make others after the exertions on the soggy Yeovil pitch, while a man short, which could have left some struggling for fitness.
Carl Ikeme did what he needed to on Saturday in goal, making one decent first half save, kicked like a mule (only to see the ball travel short distances) and then watched the second half from afar as the wind kept the ball away from him for prolonged periods. He is sure to retain his place, with Darren Randolph on the bench as understudy.
The mini-experiment of playing Kelly Youga at right back worked reasonably well on Saturday; Youga’s defending was as good as ever, and he did get forward at every opportunity – especially in the second half when a man down – but his inclination to dribble on that pitch wasn’t suited and the fact that he wanted to bring the ball onto his left foot in order to cross seemed to slow things down a little. On a better pitch, the ability to cut inside may suit Youga, so I would persevere with him at right back tonight. The only option is to play Elliot Omozusi from the start, but I believe that Grant Basey on the left offers a better all round option than Omozusi, so would keep him on the opposite side to Youga. Basey had a good game at Yeovil, defending well, and offering surging runs forward in the second half when Charlton attacked at will. Basey also possesses a great left peg and his corner taking was good, and importantly he learnt from each kick and ended up hitting the bar courtesy of the wind.
Christian Dailly used his experience to the full effect in Somerset and, up against young Spurs guns on loan, he did well. Miguel Llera also played well after coming on once Sodje was sent off, and Llera should keep his place while Sodje serves his suspension tonight. Llera also has a sweet left foot, and he is a dangerous option from free kicks, when Nicky Bailey allows him to shoot that is!
Providing Bailey is fit, I expect the midfield to be unchanged this evening, with Jose Semedo anchoring the three creative players that are Bailey, Therry Racon, and Lloyd Sam. Racon was sacrificed at half-time as Parky sent on an extra forward on Saturday, so he should be fit enough to run on a pitch that he doesn’t get bogged down on. Bailey got his usual whack that went unpunished by the referee in that game, but hopefully it’s just another bruise on top of his other bruises. Sam has showed glimpses of a return to form recently, and he put in an excellent second half showing in Somerset, so a continuation of that would be good. If anyone is unfit, Matt Spring and Scott Wagstaff will be ready to jump at the chance of a starting slot.
Parky’s biggest decision is going to be who plays up front; Leon McKenzie, Akpo Sodje, Deon Burton, and Dave Mooney have all scored inside the last three games, but only two can start tonight. Add to that the fact that Izale MacLeod has now served his three-game ban, and Tamer Tuna scored a hat-trick for the youth team last week and Parky has plenty off options. With still no news of Burton having his hernia operation, and the fact that Parky has said it takes him a few days to recover from a game due to this problem, I think Burton may be rested tonight, and he may well have now gone under the knife with no game to come on Saturday. That would leave Akpo Sodje to carry on where he left off on Saturday, and also bring Dave Mooney back (after he was sacrificed for Llera after Sam Sodje’s sending off). McKenzie didn’t make the subs bench on Saturday, rather surprisingly, so I hope he isn’t injured again, but if he is, and Burton has had his op, then McLeod could make a quick return to the squad but not the starting eleven.
This is the side I think Parky may send out tonight –
Carl Ikeme
Kelly Youga
Christian Dailly
Miguel Llera
Grant Basey
Jose Semedo
Nicky Bailey
Therry Racon
Lloyd Sam
Dave Mooney
Akpo Sodje
Subs from Randolph, Omozusi, Mambo, Jenkinson, Spring, Stavrinou, Wagstaff, Burton, McKenzie, McLeod, Tuna.
Our opponents, Bristol Rovers are having an up-and-down season. They started well and sat just behind us in third place in the table back in September, but have since slipped down again (losing all five league games in October), before returning to positive results over recent weeks with two homes wins. They have a goalkeeper on loan from Reading – as Yeovil did on Saturday! – and also our own Chris Dickson, though he isn’t allowed to play. The dangerman is the diminutive Jo Kuffour, who has six goals so far this season. They will be hoping to win again, but will settle for a point if offered I’m sure. One thing is obvious from their results - they concede goals (not having a clean sheet since mid-September), so the Addicks strikers could profit tonight?
Pedro45 has to be confident going into tonights game, based on the last two games, and predicts a 3-1 victory. With the power and goalscoring threat up front we now have coupled with a strength in midfield, and some (only some) fresh legs, we could have too much for Rovers to handle once more, provided we can keep eleven players on the park.
My one-to-watch tonight is going to be Dave Mooney. Our Reading striker will be one of the fresh ones, after playing just half an hour on Saturday. He broke his Charlton duck in the last home game with a crisp finish, and has got better as his fitness improved over recent weeks. With possibly a new partner to start with tonight (if Burton is not played from the start), I can see him forging a potent attacking force with Akpo Sodje that may be to hot to handle – I hope so!With Rovers porous defence, and Charlton finding their goal-range recently, we could see a few hitting the back of the net tonight. We mustn’t be over-confident, but we should win games like this at The Valley.
I will leave with a thought for the man pictured at the top and returning to SE7 this evening; a man who led the club through all the dark days of the 1980’s – Lennie Lawrence. What Lennie did for Charlton should never be forgotten, even if his autobiography is (or has); the man is a star and should get a standing ovation as he arrives for his kind are few and far between. We may have had Kinsella, Parker, Di Canio, Bent, Rufus, Brown, and Robinson in recent times, but without Lennie, there may well have been no Charlton, and none of those players playing for the Addicks. Give it up for Lennie!
Come on you reds!
Labels: Bristol Rovers, Charlton, Dave Mooney
