Get well soon Richard

I’d like to add my best wishes to Richard Murray on a speedy recovery after suffering a mini stroke. Charlton and The Valley without Richard Murray’s influence and investment these past two decades would be a very different place and not a better one for sure.

Fulham 4 Charlton Athletic 0

Hardy heartbroken by that and proud of the display and the excellent support.

I listened in on Radio London and their view was although Fulham deserved to win the game, it was never a 4-0 result and we can be very proud of ourselves. My brother held the same view and indeed until Dempsey’s second goal there was only one team in it, and David Stockdale was playing a blinder.

Charlton Athletic 2 Carlisle United 0

I was at the Atlanta Christmas Parade yesterday whilst the game was being played out in front of a Millwall-sized crowd at The Valley, showing the indifference to which fans as well as Chris Powell have to the FA Cup (this season anyway).

Powell made a lot of changes with only four of the recent regulars starting but it was still enough to overcome a Carlisle side for the second time in 6 weeks with Morrison and Jason (always believing) Euell scoring the 2nd half goals.

Are we up for the Cup?

Still buzzing after Monday night’s game. Judging by some of the players’ Twitter comments on Tuesday morning so was the training ground. Perhaps it’s a good thing that we avoid a league game tomorrow and a potential ‘after the Lord Mayor’s show’ moment and concentrate on our next cup run (sic).

No doubt Powell will rest one or two players tomorrow. Cort looks destined to play as does Hayes, Russell, Waggy and Evina.

I was at the Carlisle game 6 weeks ago, which was the first game after the Stevenage defeat. I actually thought the Cumbrians weren’t bad and their form since that Valley game has shown that and they sit just 2 points off the play-offs.

FC Halifax Town 0 Charlton Athletic 4

It’s what good teams do. How many times have you seen other sides kill games off so convincingly late on?

4-0 flattered us, and Halifax played very well with Sullivan’s early 2nd half stop key but we weathered the expected storms at the beginning of each half and scored goals at vital times of the match to vanish some Northwich Victoria memories and move into the next round where we were given a home tie against Carlisle United.

Wallow

As Pembury Addick so eloquently put in my comments box the other day, us Addicks are having to re-educate ourselves in the art of enjoyment. 4-0′s up at half-time don’t come along very often and yes I have allowed myself a little bit of self-wallowing this week.

A week that has mostly been spent in the company of Americans, although there were some Germans thrown in too and I’ll leave the story of me having to explain what my poppy meant for another post!

Normally I avoid any real conversation about football with those young soccer upstarts from across the Atlantic because it invariably gets to the “which team do you support” question, and the answer is always met with a blank apologetic stare.

But not this week. I have explained to all and sundry who the mighty Charlton Athletic are and if they get home and Google English Football League One, then they can start at the top and see for themselves who I support.

Feels good, doesn’t it?

FC Halifax Town game on the box

I have to agree with Dave and I wish the weekend of November 12/13th was another league game so we could just get on with it.

The ITV live coverage means I can at least watch us over breakfast, probably with a cushion over my eyes, but its desperate for Addicks’ fans and our hosts in terms of crowd and atmosphere.

There is a blank Premier League calendar that weekend so why us and Sheffield Wednesday can’t both kick off in the afternoon is beyond me and only exiled northern Addicks, a few hardy coach travellers or those that want to make a weekend of it will be sprinkled around the covered away terrace. Halifax for what it is worth is a decent weekend venue if you are considering it.

Charlton Athletic 0 Brentford 3

No one cared did they? A listless cup performance, and another defeat in front of a worldwide TV audience (a couple of hundred?). What else do you expect?

I truly wasn’t bothered about last night but both Preston and Brentford will feel they have a psychological advantage over us now but more worrying for me is now the perceived lack of quality outside the first 16. Fans were each critical of Doherty, Hughes and Alonso’s performance last night and the latter two in particular should be considered replacements for current first-teamers.

My drum is truly worn out from me banging it about the lack of a reserve league and this is definitely having a detrimental affect on the fringe players in my mind. Mind you I would have both Mambo and Cort in front of Doherty, who was interesting Luton Town earlier in the week, but I believe have now turned their attentions to Pete Doherty instead!

Charlton Athletic 0 Preston North End 2

A first defeat of the season but there will be very few tears shed amongst Addicks’ fans last night especially when League One results elsewhere conspired to take us to the top of the table.

From early reports it sounded as if our 2nd XI disappointed last night after the furore of the Reading game. Now this could be one of two things, the main one for me being the lack of match practice for our reserve players. The Reading game came on the back of a stimulating pre-season remember and a couple of behind the scene friendlies is not going to cut it and this concerned me.

Secondly by the looks of it, Preston put out a very strong team and without knowing I would hazard a guess that the Lancastrians were much more physical than a Reading team who came to pass the ball.

Charlton Athletic 2 Reading 1

Well I talked yesterday about Charlton’s ‘reserve team’ but has anyone seen a better performance by one? I am really pleased Powell made the changes for last night’s game and for those in attendance, they were rewarded with a fantastic display from some of the yet seen new players plus those on the outskirts of the first XVI.

Of course I was doubly pissed off that I missed the game as I had a ticket – although I wouldn’t have thought that Powell would have made as many changes that night for what would only have been the second game of the season.

Nonetheless the game was a joy to listen to on the radio, mostly because co-commentator Steve Brown was gushing about not only the performance but also the spirit and togetherness in the Charlton camp under Powell and Dyer. This from a proud man who was audibly depressed and dissenting about the club under both Parky and Pardew when on the radio previously.

Reserve football

According to the font of all knowledge the Daily Mail, Newcastle plan to pay Robbie Elliot £12,000 a week to be their third choice goalkeeper. Charlton fan or not, you look me in the eye and tell me you wouldn’t move job or town for that kind of pay increase.

Pardew was always very good at spending other people’s money and it looks like he’s convinced Newcastle’s board to return with a more realistic offer and hopefully they will be embarrassed into paying us a bit more than what he’s actually worth. I’m thinking in the realms of £250,000 although that might include add-ons.

I see also that French club Sochaux have also reported the Geordies after an alleged illegal approach for their forward Modibo Maiga. More reason to come to terms with Charlton and for us to discreetly withdraw our complaint.

Elliot has been in his best form this season and of course not many of us have ever seen Hamer play, but we need to move on and now use this money to invest in more needy positions in the squad. Rumours persist that Paul Benson and Simon Francis will leave before the deadline. Benson to either Gillingham, Leyton Orient or his home town club of Southend United and Francis on loan.

A proud defeat, but what’s next?

Tottenham Hotspur 3 Charlton Athletic 0
Well much better than we’d all dreamt of this week. My son was expecting 10, I was more like half of that. It was three in the end but it was the performance and belief with which the team played for Keith Peacock, Damian Matthew and the noisy travelling Addicks that gave us back some pride following a week when that word was very scarce indeed.

We played excellently in the first first half and came closest to scoring and it was a joy to hear Charlton songs blasting out on the radio. The BBC Radio commentary team were very complimentary. However within a  20-minute spell at the beginning of the 2nd period we were dead and buried as substitute Luka Modric turned the screws and that annoying individual Jermain Defoe scored his customary goals against us.

Admittedly Spurs took their foot of the gas but we continued to have some good possession and both Sodje and Doherty came close to beating Cudicini near the end but a late consolation wasn’t forthcoming.

It wasn’t long ago that Spurs was a regular fixture and we nearly always finished above them in the table but ignoring our troubles, under Redknapp Spurs have come on bundles since we left the Premier League and it was the expected defeat, but for anyone disappointed then let me point you to managerless Ipswich, who were hammered 7-0 by Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

A tough week over then. We all wait now to see what happens next. Keith Peacock seemed pretty convinced he wouldn’t be needed next week at Hillsborough. Now either Slater and Jimenez will surreptitiously reveal Dennis Wise to understandable indignation from Charlton fans or it will be someone else. Or potentially Wise and someone else, like Ray Wilkins or less likely Gus Poyet.

It was rumoured that Eddie Howe was at White Hart Lane today, perhaps consulting old mentor’s Kevin Bond and Harry Redknapp but by all accounts the Bournemouth manager is due at The Valley tomorrow to meet the board.

Also mentioned is Steve Clarke (very popular with the Charlton Live crew tonight) and Chris Hughton. All we can do is wait and see but the appointment will tell us a lot about our secretive new owners. In lots of ways.

Addicks at White Hart Lane: Charlton Casual; New York Addick; Drinking During the Game; Hungry Ted; Mike’s Meanderings.
CA fact: That is 9 goals for Judas Defoe scored against us in his career.

No Wembley Way

Brentford 0 Charlton Athletic 0 (Brentford win 3-1 on pens)
We’re not very good are we? Throughout the 90 minutes we were always second best and I thought it a very disjointed performance with too many passes going astray preventing any type of momentum. Watching us is certainly not pretty and the 900 Addicks behind one of the goals deserved better.

Penalties are always a farce of course, but if you miss three of your four kicks then you get what you deserve. Strange however with Dailly lined up for the 5th that neither Benson nor Anyinsah didn’t fancy it.

Fortunately I missed the penalties as I was on the nursery run tonight and instead followed the finale on Twitter whilst driving along the narrow and windy Bermuda roads home. Brentford certainly finished the stronger and I don’t expect for a minute extra time bringing a different outcome.

Reid was our best player (I understand he won MoM), I know often he runs down cul-de-sacs but at least he is direct and causes the heart to flutter. I like Martin too, but he seems to be too clever for this division, too clever for Russ Abbott anyhow.

The back four was more solid and Carl Jenkinson had a fine debut at right back and deserves to start on Saturday over Francis especially if Francis is as crap as everyone says he is. Of course he won’t though.

Despite the fact I ordered the pink goalkeeper’s jersey for my son yesterday, maybe it is time that Robbie Elliot reverted back to the yellow.

Addicks at Griffin Park: Addicks Diary;
CA fact: Brentford keeper Richard Lee has saved 10 penalties this season!

Bothered?

Back on the front line tonight and in front of the camera’s to boot. Sky Sports 1 show our JPT cup game at 7.45, which is 3.45 here. Despite this and the desperate result on Sunday close to a 1,000 Addicks are expected to frequent one of Griffin Park’s four pubs and may even be bothered to stand behind the goal in the cold later.

18-year old Carl Jenkinson maybe given a start. Parky you would have thought will remember how Myles Weston gave Simon Francis the runaround in the league defeat earlier in the season. I remember and I wasn’t even there. Abbott and Martin may get the nod up front and captain Dailly makes a welcome return from suspension.

Of course we have now reached the stage of the competition where defeat will be met by disappointment, unlike any of the previous rounds. Although I remember very well not being that bothered when we played Norwich in the semi-finals of the Full Members Cup in 1987 at Sellout. In fact after going 1-0 down in the 89th minute, I’ll be surprised if more than 3,000 odd fans witnessed the extra-time victory. Here’s hoping for as much excitement tonight. Come on you reds.

Parky collects his Spurs

Luton Town 1 Charlton Athletic 3
Well that was a turn up for the books. I didn’t see that coming and the snippets I managed to watch on a feed on my computer at work didn’t put us in a good light, especially the first half giving away a lot of the ball and defending deeply but we got the goals at the right time and it is another fine away victory for Parky and the lads.

The win was all the more sweet after Parkinson picked up the Manager of the Month and Johnnie Jackson the Player award today, normally a precursor of a big fall but for once we came away from a potential banana skin with our pride intact. Parky deserves his little bit of television time tonight especially after his old boss has been hogging all the limelight today.

The Spurs game is something to look forward to, and a reminder of glory days past but there is a lot of league action before then.

The hardy few at Kenilworth Road: Addicks Diary;
CA fact: Wagstaff, Jackson and Anyinsah have scored all of our goals in this season’s FA Cup run.