Charlton Athletic Online

The last game before Xmas and for Charlton, if not a critical match, it is a critical time. Off the bottom of the league merely on goal difference, the run of 13 games without a win needs to come to an end fairly soon, or those teams sitting just outside the relegation area will seem a long way away, points wise.

Will the victory, which was as close as you can get on Monday, finally arrive in Norfolk tomorrow? Well, I suppose there is a good chance, but then again, we thought that we might see Addicks wins against Blackpool, Coventry and Derby, and all we got was one measly point from those three games.

On the plus side, the form shown against Derby was much better. True, you cannot actually get much worse than the way Charlton played in the Coventry game (even though an Arsenal-supporting friend who went said he thought we were unlucky…), but it was the leap from being utterly useless, to having some style, passion and much effort which pleased, even if the final result - courtesy of that 95th minute equaliser - did not. The only thing now is to get the minds right so that games that are there to be won can be on the pitch; and that role falls squarely on the managers shoulders.

Now that the revolving door has closed on the potential option of having Sam Allardyce running the club, I suppose the next crop of names will include a certain Paul Ince who will, no doubt, be desperate to get back into football management quickly. While Sunderland are manager-less, I guess we will always be looking at sloppy seconds, if we are going to be looking for a new manager outside of the club at all. And that decision will depend on how Phil Parkinson does over the next two weeks, when his, and Charlton’s season destiny could be shaped.

If Parky does get that illusive win (or even two!), then he is in with a very good chance of keeping the reins at the club until season end and maybe beyond. But the inevitable pressure is that he does need a win, after five efforts have left him still wanting.

The team that he sends out to try to get that at Carrow Road against Norwich is likely to be pretty similar to that which started on Monday night. Parky has tried out most of the squad during his short tenure, and he must stick by those that give their all in the Addicks shirt. As Rob Elliott (left) did little wrong, and we now know that Weaver’s hip injury sustained up at Blackpool has not healed fully, the local lad is likely to get to keep the gloves on this week too. It was my first chance to see Elliott play on Monday, as I missed the away Plymouth game last year and the August home Yeovil cup game in which he played. He is bigger than he looks when warning up, and has a big hoof of a punt on him, which did create a few problems for the Derby defence. On blustery days – and tomorrow may be one of those I hear? – his kicking and overall distribution could be beneficial. Weaver will no doubt sit on the bench until Elliott fails, or until his hip is better and his experience is preferred.

The defence did quite well on Monday, even though some of the many crosses into the box were not dealt with properly. Martin Crainie had a decent, busy, game, and he has little competition with Yassin Moutaouakil out of favour, while Grant Basey was preferred over Kelly Youga at left back. Grant may offer more going forwards but Youga is the better defender (albeit liable to lapses in concentration…), but I doubt Parky will switch them in this match. In the middle, Mark Hudson and Jonathan Fortune will carry on the better work they have done since being reunited, and hope for a welcome clean sheet?

The midfield four are also likely to be unchanged – Lloyd Sam was most people’s choice as man of the match on Monday, so he should get the nod ahead of Keith Gillespie, while Hameur Bouazza was not long ago the player of the month, even if his missed chances are starting to cost the team dearly (much as Varney’s did earlier in the season!). I expect them both to play again. Holding fort in the middle will be Jose Semedo, and Nicky Bailey. Semedo does all the dirty work in central midfield, and his job is to get the ball and give it to someone who can make better use of it than he can. He is low in confidence, but works hard. My worry about him is he sometimes gets drawn toward the ball too easily, when others are closer to covering, and allows the play to bypass him. If he can control that urge, and hold his position in the middle more often, he will be more influential. Bailey hit rock bottom confidence-wise in the Coventry game, but Parkinson has shown faith in him by keeping him in the team. Not wanting to be caught in possession, Bailey seemed to whack the ball forwards first time at every opportunity on Monday, and that in a funny way might help him in the long term. If he does a similar job on Saturday, the forwards will have the chance to run down the ball and relief pressure, which can only be a good thing with our defence!

The forwards doing the chasing are likely to be Andy Gray again and, if he has recovered from the apparent dead-leg he got in the first ten minutes on Monday, Martyn Waghorn. Waggy has signed on for an extra month at The Valley, which is excellent news; fresh from his first senior goal, and first non-defeat, he will be keen to stay in the team now that the too-many loanees problem seems resolved.

This is the side I expect Parky to pick to ruffle the Canary feathers –

Rob Elliott
Martin Crainie
Jonathan Fortune
Mark Hudson
Grant Basey
Lloyd Sam
Jose Semedo
Nicky Bailey
Hameur Bouazza
Andy Gray
Martyn Waghorn

Subs from Weaver, Moutaouakil, (Primus), Youga, Holland, Wright, Shelvey, (Gillespie), Dickson, Todorov, (Burton), McLeod.

Norwich are having an indifferent season, splattered with inconsistent results. The arrival of ex-Addick Leroy Lita on loan from Reading coincided with a glut of goals but they seem to have dried up recently as he has left and other loan or trial players have arrived. Ten million pound man Carl Cort (the player that Bobby Robson allegedly signed for Newcastle in mistake when he wanted Jason Euell!) may play some part in the match, having recently arrived on trial, provided his knees don’t give way again.

Pedro45 is going to stick with his recent predictions of 1-1 draws, as that is showing a continuation of the better form from the Addicks. It may not be pretty, and it may not be kind, but we need to grab anything we can in the next few games.

My one-to-watch in this match, having picked players who didn’t take part in the last two games(!) is going to be Martyn Waghorn (left) ; I’m sure he will be keen not to become this correspondent’s hat-trick on non-participants, and hopefully he can do what Clive Mendonca and Andy Hunt both did at Carrow Road some years back and get the right sort of hat-trick! Waggy showed he has a good football brain this week, and his link up play with Andy Gray was good, with the promise of being even better than that. Consecutive games are a good way of improving their relationship on the field, and I’m sure that the next goal in his career is not that far away.

In finishing, I’d just like to wish all readers of this blog a wonderful Xmas that brings them all that they want. A special Hi to fellow Addickted Pete, Sophie, Lennon, Malcolm, Spongey, John and his kids, Laura, Alan, Glynn, all the other bloggers, and everyone of the Blackburn 12! Now if we all stick together and wish hard, maybe Santa will bring Charlton three points?

Up the Addicks!

Labels: Charlton, Martyn Waghorn, Norwich

Charlton Athletic 2 Sheffield United 5

Dear Parents

Well, I made my Championship debut, but sadly I wasn’t able to get on the score sheet, and we had a rather bad loss too. I came on as a substitute early in the second half, just after Charlton had fallen 4-1 down, and when I finally got a touch of the ball a few minutes later, I did lay on a second Charlton goal for the player my team-mates call Hammer (left, scoring). Unfortunately, before I had had my first touch, some ginger player called Quinn had volleyed home the Blades fifth goal, so we really had an uphill struggle after that, and I’m not sure my team-mates ever thought that we might drag it back, even after I entered the field of play (Don’t tell them I said that though…).
The day had started quite brightly; that nice Mr Pardew (or “Boss” as we all call him) took me aside in the hotel, and told me that I would be playing, so I got quite excited, but then he added “but not from the start”. Oh well, I’m used to being one of Mr Keane’s substitutes regularly, so it isn’t much difference down in the smoke.

I took my place on the subs bench, and the Boss stood out front, arms crossed, surveying his teams’ start to the game. He just stands there like that all game – very strange…(Don’t tell him I said that though…). I was a bit surprised when my new team-mates fell behind, because it didn’t take long for the Sheffield players to start celebrating, although it was a bit of a weird goal – we had the ball, but when our French right back (Yass something-or-other) tried to cross it, the ball smacked into our right wingers face (Lloydy). Sheffield then broke out quickly, and when the ball was crossed in, our left winger Hammer tried to kick it but missed-cued, leaving an easy lay back and finish by that Big Blonde Beattie Bloke.

Being a Sunderland pro, I’m used to my team falling a goal behind (Don’t tell Mr Keane I said that though…), so I didn’t worry. Well, not much, not even when our keeper, who we call Weaves (because he weaves his magic off the pitch and not on it! Only kidding, but he does have the biggest car in the car park and he must have got that through trick or treating as he couldn’t have made a living from footie surely? (Don’t tell him I said that though…)) fluffed a clearance, and an ex-Charlton player showed why the manager (that nice Mr Pardew) hadn’t tried to sign him permanently last season by putting in a really poor effort and only hitting the bar from 45 yards when Weaves was trundling back from the wing…Mr Keane would have had a few words to say about that if he had been in charge I’m sure.

Sure enough, with just over a quarter of an hour gone, we equalised when our old centre half – Linvoy – thumped in a header (left). I’m sure the Sheffield Manager Mr Blackwell will wonder what happened to the marking from the free-kick, but at least it cheered up the home fans, for a while at least.

Then, in typical Mackems fashion, Charlton lost the momentum again, when some Welsh bloke called Speed who used to play for the other lot in black and white flicked home a free-kick to make it 2-1. Mr Pardew told me that he had spent quite some time working on set plays a few weeks earlier (as apparently it can be a problem for Charlton to defend at set pieces) so that was why we hadn’t bothered trying to defend them in training this week. Bet he wishes he had spent a few minutes in that area now! (Don’t tell him I said so though, as you know I hate defending…!)

Coming up to half time, as I sort-of warmed up on the sidelines, I was thinking that if the score stayed the same, I might only get a few minutes on the pitch late on, but sure enough, I shouldn’t have worried. Charlton conceded another silly goal when our keeper (Weaves) dropped the ball and their centre half scooped it home from the edge of the box.

At the break, and at 3-1 down, I wondered when Mr Pardew would let me loose, as I really did fancy my chances against two donkeys of centre backs (Don’t tell them I said that though…). But no, he said get warm, and be ready, so I just went through the motions watching our French left back (Kelleee) poke a cross into our own net before finally getting the call to go on. It was Kelleee who came off for me, he was a bit upset about being yanked, but as we passed I just said “C’est la vie” to him (I learnt that at school mum, it’s French speak for “That’s Life”), and I went up front with that nice Mr Gray (the one I told you had that trouble at home – shame eh?). Then they got the killer fifth goal; then I set up Hammer (there's me in the pic above beating the Chinese fella); but then nothing much else happened, even though I thought we could still get something and we did try hard and we showed lots of composure and commitment and effort but we didn’t get the breaks.

I have to say that the crowd were quite nice to me, though it was like being at a Mackems youth game; I’d say there were about 12 or 13 thousand in the ground, but the attendance figure announced was over 20,000. Maybe they count empty seats in this neck of the woods? They did keep singing most of the way through, but Mr Pardew might have been upset with some of the songs that they sung about him at the end of the game – he certainly didn’t look very happy at the finish of the match (Don’t tell him I said that though…).

Old Jim, the doorman, told me that when Charlton shipped five goals at home in the early 1970’s, a previous manager with an Italian name got sacked; and then he said that when Charlton shipped five goals at home in the eighties, another manager who hadn’t been in charge for long got sacked even though he had the European Footballer of the year on his books! Not sure I believe that bit though…

So I’m a bit worried that the nice Mr Pardew might be shown the door after this similar home reversal (Don’t tell him I said that though…); how that affects my chances of getting a few games I don’t know, but if that nice Mr Pardew does leave then I’ll still try my best and want to score in every game. I say bring on the Redvolution!

Well, that’s about all for now; we get a night off tonight so I’m going round to Kelleee’s bedsit to read some books with him, then tomorrow I’m going sightseeing in London town with the rest of the forwards (Luke, Dicko, and Izzy) who didn’t get a run out today. Luckily, I don’t think Weaves is coming otherwise we might get lost – he seems to be getting lost everywhere at the mo, even in his own penalty area! (Don’t tell him I said that though…).

Then on Monday we train for our match on Tuesday, over in the west end. Hope I get to start then?

Lots of Love, your loving son

Martyn

Labels: Charlton, Martyn Waghorn, Sheffield United