Build A Bonfire

Franchise FC make a Rickett?

2005-11-04T14:11:00.000Z

The increasingly absurdly-monikered MK Dons have taken a flyer on the Addicks' (not so)youngster Mark Ricketts by taking him on loan after he apparently impressed in a trial with the club. In a further blow to the academy player's prospects of getting a run out for the Charlton first time any time soon, he has been cleared to play for the Dons in their FA Cup clash tomorrow, preventing him from getting a run-out in the cup for us should he return.

Those who have seen him play for the reserves wouldn't be too surprised to see him try and make the move permanent - as he appears to have little chance of shifting anyone from the Charlton XI and getting a run-out - The Division Formerly Known As Division Three appears to be his best prospect of carving out a career for him (just ask Michael Turner, who is now a regular for Brentford)

Blackburn Preview

2005-11-04T09:07:00.000Z

Another one of those games that we always seem to lose, I'm looking forward to this one as much as Bolton at home last week. Despite having, to all intents and purposes, a pretty crap team, Mark Hughes looks like he may have got them working as a coherent unit (no mean feat when your starting XI includes Bellamy, Tugay and Bentley) and, with the right injection of personnel in the transfer window, may even make a run for a European place. In contrast with previous seasons, Blackburn appear to have some goalscorers - Pedersen, Bellamy and Kuqi are all capable of scoring and there is always a threat from midfield.

Charlton's problems at the moment appear to be solely related to home form - the 5 man midfield works superbly away from the Valley, and Curbishley is highly unlikely to change it for what promises to be an arduous trip up North. Hopefully Bent will be fit again after picking up a virus - he was badly missed against Bolton, and Thomas may push for a recall after being left out of the starting lineup for the last couple of games.

Gormless Tool Lawrenson is prediciting a 1-1 draw. For once I find it hard to disagree with him

Borelton Yawnderers

2005-10-31T22:38:00.000Z

Never been so bored at a football match in my life

Sheer, unadulterated drivel, not worth a match report

CAFC

Andersen - 7 - Good game. Excellent positional sense and little chance with the goal - forced to palm it away after a deflection. With a little more experience he might have palmed it out for a corner
Young - 7 - Another solid, consistent performance
Spector - 5 - Nervous. All those calling for Powell to be replaced need their heads examining after this performance
HH - 8 - Never stopped giving it all game. 100% effort, dealt with the agricultural challenges thrown at him with aplomb
Perry - 6 - OK, but didn't look as unflappable as he has for most of this season
Ambrose - 5 - Ineffective. Plenty of effort but never looked like a threat
Kish - 6 - Stout defending in front of the back four but never managed to link up with the midfield
Smertin - 6 - Not as classy as recent games. Pulled up with an apparent groin injury early in the second half, which is a worry
Murphy - 7 - Still looked fresh after sensibly being subbed against Chelsea to spare him the 120 minute grind. Unable to pick a way through the massed ranks of Bolton's back nine
Rommedahl - 7 - Looked a threat and was a bizarre substitution victim. His pace worried the pedestrian Bolton defence. Not a bad performance
Bothroyd - 4 - Now this WAS a poor performance. Didn't win a thing in the air, looked short of fitness and reminded me of Bobby Zamora (NOT a compliment!)

Subs

Hughes - 6 - Looked to get involved and unlucky not to score with a fine header which Jaaskelainen palmed away
Holland - 6 - Looked a bit baffled as to what was expected off him when replacing Kish but managed to exert some influence in the dying stages
Johansson - 5 - Anonymous

Bolton

Jaaskelainen - 8 - Commanding performance, three excellent saves
Jaidi - 6 - Big old unit at the back - no pace but effective in the air
N'Gotty - 7 - Impressive
Gardner - 5 - Average
Faye - 6 - Stifling
O'Brien - 6 - Another decent youngster from Bolton getting his chance (presumably due to a Moroccan, Japanese or Tibetan journeyman being injured)
Speed - 7 - Crafty veteran still likes getting forward - and does so to good effect
Nakata - 6 - An excellent player still adapting to the speed of the Premiership. Showed his class with some neat touches but tired toward the end
Nolan - 8 - Excellent performance. Big Sam's calls for an England chance are not unfounded. Has a knack of appearing the right place at the right time.
Diouf - 5 - Disappointing showing from the cheating, spitting, diving bastard
Davies - 6 - As skilful as a a bag of spanners, with the turning circle of an oil barge, he did his job well enough - although that 'job' consisted largely of getting his fat arse in the way of our centre-halves whenever a ball was lumped up to him

Subs

Borgetti - 5 - Useless on the ground, decent in the air. Should suit Bolton down to the ground when he acclimatises
Okocha - 5 - Cameo role late on
Ben-Haim - 5 - Ditto

Ref

Clattenburg - 7 - Not too card happy and tried to let the game flow

MOM

Hermann - no contest. Immense performance, especially from a man who played 120 minutes three days before

Quote Of The Day
"...it's disappointing for our home fans"
Curbs on our non-existent home form. No shit Sherlock!

Hughes He Is

2005-10-27T13:38:00.000+01:00

Chelsea 1 CAFC 1 (AET - CAFC win 5-4 on pens)

Blimey - is this the year we finally do something in the Carling/Coca Cola/Milk/Fray Bentos cup? Following years of baffling underachievement (even noted footballing giants like West Brom, Norwich, Swindon and Stoke have won it - fer chrissakes, ROCHDALE made it to the final) we achieved a victory at the most noteworthy of places - Stamford Bridge.

Incredibly, I am reliably informed that this is the first time we've made it to the last 16 for 27 years - the fact that the victory came at the hands of our nouveau riche neighbours made it even sweeter.

No time really for a proper match report, suffice it to say that Chelsea dominated possession, but for all that, didn't create many chances of note. The Addicks were content to hit them on the break, and could have got a couple themselves.

Terry's goal came about via a Robben corner - which he had won himself after running about with the ball tied to his foot for five minutes. El Kak's marking was lax - he lost Terry in the six yard box and that was that. The hapless Huth gifted Benty our equaliser with a feeble back header to Cudicini - credit must go to Darren though for a cool finish with the Italian advancing to narrow the angle.

The second half was more of the same - Chelsea bringing on Lumpalard and the Drog and exerting plenty of pressure but never really threatening Andersen. Indeed Bothroyd could have won it late on in normal time only for Cudicini to beat his effort away.

Extra time seemed to fly by in a flash - the only incident of note being Terry's ill-conceived clattering of Andersen, sending him sprawling into the net after he clearly controlled Drogba's low header. Escaping with only a yellow, you have to think that if it had been Bothroyd doing the same on Cudicini he would have walked. Oh well, C'est La Vie, as they say

Penalties? We shit 'em. After not bottling a single one against Sunderland in the play-off final, of course we were going to score all ours. Huth's was saved by Andersen, Hughes nervelessly despatched the winning spot kick into the bottom corner and we were through

Shalalalalalalala - we sent the Chelsea out!

Chelsea

Cudicini - 7 - A couple of good saves during the match. No chance with any of the pens, although unlucky with Bothroyd's - which squirmed under him after he guessed the right way
Ferreira - 6 - OK, but didn't get forward with much effect, apart from one effort early on
Bridge - 7 - Looked short of match fitness, but bombed up and down and put one peach of a ball into the box for Crespo which the cosmetically-challenged Argentine wasted
Terry - 7 - Immense at the back, well-taken goal. Marked down for stupid lunge on Andersen which should have seen him sent off.
Huth - 5 - Nightmare really - despite actually not playing that badly he gifted Benty our equaliser and missed the pen which sent them out.
Geremi - 5 - DEFINITELY not Makelele! Reasonable, but sadly lacking going forward
Essien - 6 - Thank Christ he wasn't as on form as he was at the Valley earlier this season. Quieter, and fell to the ground like a pansy far too often
Robben - 6 - In and out game for the little dutchman - plenty of skill but often little end product. Like Rommedahl. Only a bit better. (Obviously). On the telly later, it looked like he was shitting himself when Herman went for him after he fell over following a challenge
Wright-Phillips - 5 - Kept quiet all game by Chrissy Powell
Gudjohnsen - 6 - Wasteful, but has the knack of finding space for himself on the edge of the area
Crespo - 5 - Poor really - after his superb header at the Valley he never really looked like much of an aerial threat, and has a poor first touch

Subs

Lampard - 7 - Drove Chelsea forward after coming on - fired up the crowd with his penalty
Cole - 5 - Anonymous after replacing Bridge
Drogba - 4 - Guilty of a howler of a miss when planting his header straight at Andersen

CAFC

Andersen - 8 - Excellent performance - no chance with Terry's goal and stopped everything else they threw at him
Powell - 7 - 120 minutes from a man whose legs had supposedly gone. Kept Wright-Phillips in his back pocket all match
Young - 7 - Excellent at the back and marauded forward to good effect too
Hreidarsson - 8 - Immense. A tower of strength
El Kak - 6 - Tough one this. Still looks a mite short of match fitness and directly culpable for the goal. Other than that, he had a good game
Ambrose - 6 - Quiet
Hughes - 7 - Effective in midfield, and totally nerveless with the winning pen
Holland - 6 - Not able to exert any forward-thinking influence on the game and never liekly to win the tackling contest with Essien. Still did OK, considering his lack of first team football
Murphy - 7 - Never going to be an easy one for him with Chelsea's midfield swarming all over ours at times, but calm, composed and always looking for the killer pass. People often berate him for his workrate as well, but it was excellent tonight
Rommedahl - 5 - The one disappointment for me. Looked like he did last year and deservedly subbed
Bent - 8 - For sheer workrate alone. Ran his bollocks off all game, took his goal well (never look a gift horse in the mouth and all that) and didn't seem to tire at all

Subs

Thomas - 7 - Made a difference when he came on. Neat, tidy and not too many tricks
Bothroyd - 7 - Big ol' lump - extremely handy to have on the bench and the only player to worry Terry in the air all night
Kish - 6 - Effective stifling job after replacing the tiring Murphy late on

Ref

Wiley - 6 - Decent enough performance, but he should have sent Terry off for clattering Andersen

MOM - Has to be Andersen. Superb performance, which looks likely to keep Deano sidelined for the foreseeable future

Quote Of The Day
"Its nice to win two matches"
Curbs, after being asked by a patronising reporter whether this ranked up there with Charlton's best ever results. We ARE second in the league for f**** sake! It wasn't THAT much of an upset!

Shurely Shome Mishtake

2005-10-24T09:16:00.000+01:00

Player marks from The Times

I know Rommie didn't have his best game in a Charlton shirt, but thats a bit harsh, surely? And didn't Murphy set up both goals?

From Barnaul to SE7 (via SW6)

2005-10-24T08:49:00.000+01:00

An interesting piece on loan signing Alexei Smertin in today's Times. His pre-career training regimen sounds like something direct from the Mervyn Day school...

A game of three thirds

2005-10-23T13:35:00.000+01:00

The old 'two halves' cliche didn't really ring true yesterday, as the Addicks, little more than spectators for the first half an hour, completely turned the game on its head after 30 minutes to boss the rest of the match with another assured away performance, collecting three points in the process.

Much was made prior to the match about our inability to win a game after going a goal down - yesterday's second half put paid to that, with Murphy and Ambrose in particular outstanding and two very well-taken goals finally deflating Pompey to the extent that the last quarter of an hour was little more than a formality.

It was oh-so-different at the beginning of the match, as, with Portsmouth rampant going forward and the Addicks seemingly unable to string two passes together, it looked like we were in for a long, hard afternoon. Spector looked very nervous in his full debut, allowing players far too much time and space, and Hermann looked worryingly like he had at the arse end of last year (crap, for all those not in the know). Lauren 'Cheating Bastard' Robert brought a good save out of Andersen, tipping his fierce effort onto the post very early on, then made a good low save from O'Neil.

Little service from the midfield meant Rommie and Ambrose (recalled for the injured Thomas) offered little respite for the Addicks, resorting to humping balls into the channels for the tireless Bent to chase down. The game became a bit fractious, although there was nothing really nasty about it - yet Webb still managed to find excuses to book Hermann & Kish in swift succession. It was little surprise when Portsmouth took the lead. A long ball down the right was totally missed by Hermann, who slipped a little as he turned, allowing Dario Silva the time to collect the ball and forage into the box. Still there seemed little immediate danger as he appeared to take it a touch too far, but the Uruguayan smashed his shot low across Andersen and into the far corner - a superbly taken goal.

However, instead of trying to build on this, in a period where they were so obviously dominant, Pompey left Silva isolated up front and didn't really push home their advantage. Had they done so, perhaps the game would have turned out differently. As it was, Charlton grew in confidence and began to stroke the ball around midfield with more authority. Ambrose went on a mazy run before shooting straight at the Pompey keeper, then, about five minutes later, tried his luck from further out with the same result. There was one further scare in the first half, Perry's clumsy collision with Silva could have led other refs to assume the worst and point to the spot, but Webb for once saw it for what it was - a wily forward with bags of experience in the Spanish league trying to con a penalty out of him.

Clearly having given his team the hairdyer treatment at half-time, Curbishley came out looking like, for want of a better phrase, he had 'the right arsehole'. Whatever he said worked, as the Addicks started the second half in the ascendancy, their slick passing frustrating Pompey into rash challenges - one of which saw Vignal go into the book for upending Smertin, perhaps the only yellow of the day for either side which was truly worthy of a caution.

Despite being on top, the Addicks had a real scare on the hour mark, as the largely ineffective Vukic hit a low shot which brought a superb stop from Andersen down to his left. Minutes later, the Addicks were level. Murphy was now finding the room in the hole behind Bent and fed a lovely ball into Ambrose who coolly slotted under Ashdown's body as the Pompey keeper advanced to narrow the angle. This truly knocked the stuffing out of Pompey, and they were lucky not to conceded again immediately from the restart as a woeful backpass from Vignal almost saw Bent sneak in. Eventually being forced wide, he nevertheless sent a peach of a ball over for Ambrose, who had managed to sneak into the box unmarked but directed his header inches over the bar.

Webb again became the centre of attention as (thankfully for the Addicks) he brought play back with Pompey breaking dangerously for a non-existent head injury to the interestingly-coiffured Viafara.

This was to prove Pompey's last real chabnce of salvaging something from the match, however, as shortly after, Danny Murphy picked another gem of a through-ball for Rommedahl, who leathered a scintillating shot high into the far left corner of the net, giving Ashdown no chance.

Despite Vukic skying a good chance for Pompey, and Perrin bringing on two striekrs for the last ten minutes or so, it was the Addicks who looked most likely to score again, Ambrose inexplicably booked for diving by the useless Webb despite clearly being caught by Ashdown as he skipped past him, and JJ, on as a late sub, firing wide when well-placed.

Another excellent away performance (5 wins out of 5) which saw us climb to second in teh table again. Bring on the West London league of nations in the fizzy pop cup!

Pompey

Ashdown - 7 - No real chance with either of the goals and made some notable stops
Vignal - 6 - Reasonable, but wants too much time on the ball and made a real hash of a backpass shortly after our equaliser to almost gift us another
Stefanovic - 7 - Excellent job on Bent, despite being run ragged all afternoon he never really gave him a sniff
O'Brien - 6 - Reasonable
Taylor - 5 - Average - one decent effort in the first half but not the paciest
Priske - 6 - Lively
Robert - 5 - Not a threat, except for one effort that Andersen tipped onto the post early on. Still a cheating bastard as well as bone idle
Viafara - 6 - Ungainly, but good engine
O'Neil - 7 - Looks a very good player. Nice range of passing and inventive on the ball
Vukic - 5 - Can look good one minute, but absolutely terrible the next. No touch at all but a willing runner
Silva - 7 - Excellent strike for the goal. Wily after years of playing in Spain, he needs a partner up front for Pompey to get the best out of him

Subs

Hughes - 5 - No impact (introduced too late)
Todorov - 5 - See above
Mbesmua - 5 - See above (are you starting to see a pattern here, Perrin?)

CAFC

Andersen - 8 - His best performance in a Charlton shirt. No chance with Silva's goal and made three or four outstanding saves, including one from Vukic that was world-class
Young - 6 - Assured at the back, but little threat going forward
Spector - 6 - Looked poor for the first half hour but may just have been nervous as he was much better in the second half
Perry - 8 - Outstanding at the back again
Hreidarsson - 6 - Bad misread for Pompey's goal. Looked a little nervous playing with Spector
Smertin - 6 - Quiet, and gave the ball away far more often than usual. Looked a little tired and needs a rest
Kish - 7 - Tireless running, important tackles. Charlton's best player in the first half hour and held us together when Pompey threatened to overrun us
Murphy - 8 - His second half performance was inspirational. Even in the first half when things weren't running for him you could see him urging everyone on and never let his head drop. In a word, superb (again)
Ambrose - 8 - A menace all afternoon. Excellently taken goal, seems to have an almost telepahic understanding with Bent and not afraid to do the donkey work either
Rommedahl - 7 - What a strike for the winner! To be honest, his crossing was pants as usual, but he has developed an excellent ability to ghost behind full backs, inviting Murphy to find him with crisp through-balls
Bent - 7 - Ran all day long, hassled and harried the Pompey back four. The epitome of a lone striker's performance away from home

Subs

Johansson - 6 - Bit of an odd one this, as he offers no more defensive cover than Rommedahl (who he replaced). Had a good late effort but pushed it wide
El Kak - 6 - Brought on late to counter the two strikers Perrin introduced and won some important headers

Ref

Webb - 4 - A pain in the arse. Dished out 5 yellow cards when only 1 was warranted, and denied Pompey a clear opportuinty when whistle-happy for Viafara's 'injury'. Fussy and demonstrative throughout.

MOM

Tough one this week. Rommie, Murphy and Andersen all in with a shout, but it has to go to Ambrose for his tireless workrate, ability to change the game when drifiting inside and his well-taken goal

Quote Of The Day

"I put our team on the board at half-time and told them I've got just three players out there, eight weren't doing it. I told them if that carried on they would be sitting with me in the second half."

Alan 'maths not my strong point' Curbishley
so we would have ended up with six players on the pitch after your subs then Al?

Pompey Preview

2005-10-21T08:54:00.000+01:00

Always the friendliest away trip of the year (ahem), most teams anticipate their trip to Fratton Park with some trepidation. This surely holds for the Addicks as well as anyone - with a sketchy home performance against Foolham still lingering in the memory, a journey down the M3 to that most welcoming of football meccas wouldn't have been high on Curbishley's want list.

Having a tough time of gelling his team of European journeymen and nobodies from the far reaches of the footballing globe into a coherent team, Reggie Perrin's long lost brother Alain appears to be treading on some extremely thin ice. With a chairman not exactly noted for his patience or rationality, Perrin's motley crew better start winning soon or he will be back in France quicker than you can say 'Konstantinos Chalkias'.

There are signs, however, that things may be improving for Pompey. Their last two fixtures have seen creditable (if not exactly thrilling) draws away at Boro and at home to the Geordies, perhaps indicating a shoring up of the defence. However, a lack of goals seems to be Pompey's most pressing issue - looking at their front line its hard to see where the goals that will be necessary to keep them up are going to come from.

For the Addicks, getting a weak performance against Foolham out of mind quickly is a must if we are to maintain our excellent start to the season. Its a sign of how far this team has progressed from the dire performances that plagued last year that we now see a draw as 2 points lost rather than 1 gained. We've certainly been more effective away from home this year (witness the caning of Boro and the first 30 minutes against West Brom) so shouldn't expect any change against a struggling Pompey side.

However, with the atmosphere at Fratton Park likely to be as intimidating as ever, that prat ringing his bloody bell all game and the Pompey players perhaps starting to believe they can extricate themselves from the nether regions of the table, it won't be easy. My prediction is a hard-fought 1-1 draw.

Gormless Pillock Lawro predicts a 1-0 win for Pompey, stating that the game is one you'd prefer to 'take your Mother in law shopping' than watch. Twat

Ever heard of the Cauwich Cup?

2005-10-19T01:20:00.000+01:00

You will have after visiting former Valley Favourite Andy Hunt's blog about his new life in Belize. Its a fascinating read (largely non football-related, although he has written about the Foolham game) and shows that not all footballers are clueless pillocks fit for fuck all except kicking an inflated leather ball around a bit of grass.

Andy always was one of the more cerebral players around, and he seems to be enjoying his life immensely since his enforced early retirement. I know a few people who've met Hunty, and all have said he is a genuinely nice bloke. He seems to thoroughly deserve his happiness after footy and I'm sure everyone associated with CAFC wishes him well.

Not sure about his barnet now though...

Fooled

2005-10-18T10:03:00.000+01:00

CAFC 1 Fulham 1

Whilst last night's result could not exactly be described as a robbery, Charlton did enough in the first half to merit a three goal lead. However, chances were spurned and, perhaps more worryingly, gaps appeared with alarming regularity at the back. Indeed, had Fulham had a little more ambition, they might have ended up sneaking a win themselves - as it was, a draw was probably the fairest result.

The game got off to a poor start, but about ten minutes in, Rommedahl began to exploit Niclas Jensen's poor positional play and lack of pace (a recurring theme throughout the first half). A sublime pass slipped through by Murphy found Rommedahl's intelligent run in behind Jensen - the fleet-footed Danish winger cut inside the last defender and rifled a low shot against the foot of the post. Unfortunate in the extreme, the Dane wasted little time setting about Jensen again and beat him on numerous occasions, failing to create clear cut opportunities but worrying the life out of the Fulham defence with his pace and willingness to get behind the defence.

Despite Murphy pulling the strings in midfield, Charlton looked a little dodgy at the back, and Fulham could, and should have taken advantage on a couple of occasions before finally taking the lead. Collins John, already guilty of a poorly scuffed effort when well placed, made amends in spectacular fashion. Former valley favourite Claus Jensen took a quick free kick which caught Jerome Thomas napping, allowing Malbranque to smuggle the ball across the edge of the area. John swivelled and smacked a volley past Andersen with consummate ease. Fulham could have doubled their advantage just minutes later - Radzinski (on for the injured - and useless - Phillipe Christanval) fired across the face of goal and inches wide after the Addicks' back four failed to deal with a free kick.

Sensing that Fulham were establishing a hold on the game, Charlton began to assert themselves mor eon the middle of the park, and it almost paid dividends. Murphy fired wide after a surging run through the middle, Rommedahl skinned Jensen yet again but his attempted cross was blocked and, right on the cusp of the interval, a quick ball into the box from Smertin was diverted agonisingly wide by the marauding Hreidarsson.

It was, therefore, little surprise when Charlton equalised with the second half little more than a couple of minutes old. Powell put a low ball into the box which Fulham were unable to clear and Murphy took a touch, looked up and rifled the ball into the bottom left hand corner.

Instead of using this as a starting point to build from, inexplicably Charlton failed to capitalise. Substitutions were made which baffled most onlookers - despite the arrival of Bothroyd (which should have seen us go to 4-4-2 to chase a victory), Benty was pushed wide, with Rommedahl switching flanks (nullifying his threat completely). The game managed the neat trick of petering out with half an hour left to play, and neither side really looked loikely to get the winner.

All in all, it was a frustrating night for the Addicks' faithful - although optimists will point to the fact that we would most definitely have lost this last year as cause for comfort. Our home form is starting to become something of a concern for us - we look lacking in the necessary areas to break teams down, and show a worrying lack of concentration at the back. Following a poor performance from Chris Powell yesterday, Curbishley might think its time to give Spector a run-out at Pompey. Whatever the sqaud selection, its clear that Charlton will have to step performances up a gear to continue the fine start to the season.

CAFC

Andersen - 6 - Little chance with Fulham's goal, and had very little else to do of note
Perry - 6 - Stepped off John a couple of times and didn't look particularly commanding in the air. Missed a chance to win it late on, stretching to put his header over the bar
Hreidarsson - 7 - Mammoth at the back again
Powell - 5 - Run ragged by Malbranque at times. Needs a rest
Young - 7 - Got forward well and put a peach of a cross in late on which deserved better
Kish - 6 - Not bad, but dallied on the ball a couple of times and would have been punished by a better team
Smertin - 6 - Not as effective as usual. Quiet all game
Murphy - 7 - Fits and starts, but played some beautiful passes and took his goal very well
Rommedahl - 7 - Blinding first half, utterly anonymous second due to inexplicably being switched to the left
Thomas - 5 - Not a good game - his first poor outing of the season
Bent - 6 - Ran about a lot, but not the threat he has been so far this year

Subs

Bothroyd - 6 - Huge physical presence, and won almost everything in the air after coming on. Little direction in the knockdowns however, and looked isolated
El Kak - 5 - Stupid lunge on Boa Morte about 5 milliseconds after coming on which got him booked, and gave the ball away from a free kick. Needs a run in the team, but not as the holding midfielder
Hughes - 5 - Anonymous

Foolham

Crossley - 6 - No chance with the goal, handled everything else effectively
Volz - 7 - Got forward well, and handled Thomas nicely
Niclas Jensen - 5 - Exposed terribly by Rommie in the first half
Bocanegra - 6 - Reasonable performance
Goma - 6 - Looks a little unfit, but handled Bent well
Diop - 7 - Immense in midfield - blimey he needs to go to a better club
Malbranque - 7 - Terrified Powell by running at him with pace. End product often a bit sketchy, but genuinely quick and inventive. Fulham's best player
Christanval - 4 - Is a poor, poor player at the best of times. These aren't the best of times either. No coincidence that Fulham looked a threat when he went off with a knacked hamstring
Claus Jensen - 6 - Typical performance from Santa - very creative, but bone idle
Boa Morte - 5 - Lots of running. Little else
John - 7 - Superb finish for Fulham's goal. A handful all night, but not blessed with the best of first touches

Subs

Radzinski - 5 - Had a good effort just after coming on, but I genuinely thought he'd been subbed himself until 20 minutes from the end of the match when he put another chance across the face of goal
McBride - 5 - Probably seething at John's inclusion in the starting line-up over himself, but didn't look too fussed after coming on as a sub

Ref

Riley - 6 - Picky, but not as bad as usual

MOM

Rommedahl, on the strength of his first half alone. Murphy was too up and down and Herman didn't do quite enough

Quote Of The Day
"...we could easily have come away with all three points"
Chris 'Cookie' Coleman - Yeps. You could also just as easily have come away wi' nowt

Foolham preview

2005-10-17T18:05:00.000+01:00

Last year's preview of this fixture saw me 'dreading it' strangely enough, despite our victory in the game, Fulham's poor start to this year and our excellent opening to the campaign, nothing has changed. Why is it that certain teams get you nervous, regardless of their form or yours at the time? I hate Fulham. Fucking hate 'em. Doesn't matter how well we're playing, I still think they'll turn us over every time we play them.

This year is no different. Last time out for the Addicks (feels like about three months ago) we put in an impressive performance against Spurtz yet came up empty-handed. Perhaps some of the good luck we had from earlier in the season (the second half against Birmingham anyone?) is about to desert us big-style - the pessimist in me thinks if it happens it'll be against Foolham.

For Fulham, Coleman can call on Zat Knight once again, after suspending him for apparently breaking a curfew - strengthening his options at the back. The mercurial Legwinski is still absent through injury, however, but nearly everyone else is available - including potential gamewinner Steed Malbranque and former Valley favourite, tough-tackling (ahem) Claus Jensen.

For Charlton, whilst Ambrose and Bothroyd may push themselves onto the bench following returns from injuries, Curbishley's main selection dilemma will be in goal - with Kiely back from a broken finger to challenge current custodial incumbent Andersen. Opinion is spilt bewteen the Addicks faithful as to whether to recall Deano in place of Andersen. Whilst there is no doubt that Andersen has been very good so far this season, in the last two games he has been less impressive. Perhaps its time to give him a bit of a sit-down and see whether Deano is still up to the task. Personally, I would expect Curbs to give Andersen at least another game - and he may well stay in until he puts in a truly poor performance.

Whoever plays in goal, the rest of the team is unlikely to see any changes and hopefully, with Darren Bent 'fresh' from England duty (the only activity he saw was picking splinters out of his arse) we'll get about Foolham early doors, score quickly and be able to control the game

My prediction? A pessimistic 0-1 to Fulham

JT Scores in U-21s romp

2005-10-12T01:41:00.000+01:00

Jerome Thomas has scored his first goal in an England shirt - albeit at Under-21 level. Capping an excellent performance, he pounced in the 21st minute to fire into the far corner, doubling England's advantage at the time (they eventually ran out comfortable 4-1 winners)

Thomas' performance was the highlight of the match - although the excellent Aaron Lennon and C*rlton C*le also turned in decent showings.

If JT keeps up the form he is showing currently, surely Sven will take a look at him in the full squad as a potential answer to the 'problem' left midfield slot. Blessed with an excellent first touch, skills that baffle defenders and a deceptive turn of pace, Thomas would seem an ideal choice to replace the increasingly useless Joe Cole, and would form a devastating partnership down the left flank with one-time teammate Ashley Cole.

Of course, despite this making sense to all concerned, Eriksson is bound to stick with the hapless Chelsea misfit, just as he will persist in playing Crouch when Rooney & Owen aren't fit.

He's Behind you Darren!

2005-10-06T12:22:00.000+01:00

...but only in the picture

It looks increasingly likely that Eriksson will start with 'human head on a stick' Peter Crouch on Saturday against Austria. Despite clamour from (of all people) Rodney Marsh, it appears a consensus in the meedja that Benty will once again be forced to take his place on the bench.

It does seem odd that Eriksson whould place his faith in a man so obviously bereft of natural goalscoring ability rather than one who has scored at a rate of a goal a game thus far this season, especially since the Austria game is arguably the more important of the two (if England win they will be virtually assured of qualifying as one of the best second-placed teams, rendering the Poland game virtually meaningless)

No-one is expecting Bent to get a look in when Shrek is back, but, as Crouch won't figure then either, surely it would make more sense to throw in a man in goalscoring form?

Oh well - must be a tough old life being England manager (twelve games a year at 4 million quid)

Bartlett quits international football

2005-10-05T08:32:00.000+01:00

Its a decision he has already made once before, but he is unlikely to reverse it this time. Shaun Bartlett has announced his retirement from the Bafana Bafana, effective the end of Saturday's WC qualifier with the DR Congo. With South Africa already unable to qualify for next year's World Cup, and in a development likely to send shivers down the spine of Charlton Fans everywhere Bartlett says he has taken the decision in order to concentrate on 'winning his place back at Charlton'.

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Clueless pillock is at it again

2005-10-03T13:37:00.000+01:00

'Allo. Wanna buy a Rolex? 'free for a paaahnd

Once again, Simon Jordan is making an absolute arsehole of himself in the national press. It seems that every time he gets to voice his 'opinions' in his column in the Observer he uses it as an excuse to exercise his inferiority complex with another sly little dig at us.

This week's subject du jour is player's wages, yet somehow he manages to bring up the topic of the Valley Express in Kent and ponder the possibility of sending a coach to Brighton to pick up would-be Palace fans. The difference here would appear to be that, whilst we may be successful in attracting new or lapsed CAFC fans to the Valley due to the style of football we play and our (relative) success in establishing ourselves as a top-flight outfit in recent years, Jordan has as much chance of attracting new fans to Sellout Park with his 'product' (his words) as Palace have of being promoted again.

Reg has rebuffed his comments succinctly in this short but pointed piece on the official website, building the obvious enmity which exists between the two of them nicely.

The saddest thing of all for Jordan is that, whilst he concentrates on attempting to badmouth his rivals in the press, his team is slowly sliding down the table - their brand of tedious 'get stuck in and hump it upfield' tat being found out for the hollow, empty fare that it is, and in danger of losing the best manager his 'club' has seen for many a year.

Cheer up Simon, maybe you can berate Kit Symons on national television again - raise your profile as a hard-nosed businessman a bit more. Twat

What a surprise! Dangermouse overlooked by Sven

2005-10-02T21:04:00.000+01:00

Seemingly hell-bent on proving he actually knows nothing about Football, the (un)canny Swede has picked the next-to-useless Jenas and shit striker turned shit midfielder Alan Smith ahead of Danny Murphy for the two upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

The good aspect of this, of course, is that Murph won't get injured playing for/training with the national team, but it is surely an absolute disgrace that someone as out of form as Jenas is picked ahead of him (or, for that matter, Spotty Porker)

So much for Tord Grip talking up his chances during the week. We should have known there was no chance Eriksson would pick Murphy with Jenas 'fit'. Whats the betting, if England are 1-0 down against Austria with 20 minutes to go he throws on Crouch (goals this season = 0) and Defoe (goals this season = 3) instaed of Benty (goals this season = 8)

Pathetic

A well-read Red

2005-10-02T17:50:00.000+01:00

On-loan Chelsea midfielder Alexei Smertin gives a revealing interview in today's Torygraph. Talking up Dangermouse's chances of an England recall, expounding upon the work put in by Curbishley pre-season and waxing lyrical about his passion for reading, Smertin appears to be a well-rounded character.

Perhaps more worryingly, he states that he has a 'close relationship' with Kish on and off the pitch (ooer!)

Its an interesting read, and the mere fact that it was written highlights our excellent start, and provides proof that Charlton's star is in the ascendancy

Bent double - and mugged!

2005-10-02T16:13:00.000+01:00

Davids outmuscles Kish in midfield (a recurring theme)
An unimpressive Tottenham somehow waltzed away from the Valley with three ill-deserved points yesterday, managing four clear cut chances in the match yet scoring from three of them. This despite Charlton having numerous golden opportunities in what was an entertaining, if frustrating afternoon.

Spurs started the brighter of the two sides, and made a lot of the early running without really creating any clear-cut opportunities until Ledley King somehow managed to spoon the ball wide when it fell neatly to him in the six yard box following Stalteri's knockback from a corner. The lively Aaron Lennon was being given plenty of time and space to forage down both flanks, and Mido caused problems with his aerial prowess. However, Charlton clicked into gear after about quarter of an hour and slowly took hold of the game. The ever-impressive Murphy and Smertin bossed the lightweight Mendes & Jenas out of the game - only Davids offering any real bite in the Spurs midfield. Bent caused all sorts of grief with pace, strength in the air and workrate, and made a couple of runs that were flagged just offside.

Spurs' reliance on the offside trap was to prove their undoing, however, as Murphy floated an absolute peach into Bent's path, springing the offside trap and clipping the ball neatly past Robinson for the opener. The second half ended with an absolute siege on the Yids goal - and a contender for miss of the season by the mercurial Bent - making minimal contact when presented with an open goal following excellent approach play from Smertin and Rommedahl.

The Addicks faithful didn't have long to wait for Charlton's (and Bent's) second - three minutes after the break, Thomas slid an inch-perfect ball through for Bent who advanced on the Spurs goal. Robinson must have thought the chance had gone when Bent was forced to check back after having his angle taken away, but the striker simply looked up and curled a beauty into the far right corner of the net.

However, instead of consolidating the lead, the Addicks allowed Tottenham an almost instant reply - as Tottenham skipper Ledley King instinctively poked out a leg from Mido's flick-on. The deficit reduced, Tottenham came out of their shell and began to ping the ball around in midfield. As the heavens opened, drenching the Valley in a brief but tumultuous downpour, the slick surface aided both teams' passing and an already entertaining game became even more attractive. Murphy and Davids were having a real influence on proceedings at this stage, but it was another midfielder, Smertin, who made a costly error which led to the Spurs equaliser. Seemingly caught out by the slippery surface, he mistimed his clearance, allowing Spurs sub Tainio to slide a wonderful pass through for Mido to pounce and fire the ball under Andersen from a tight angle. Certainly at fault for the goal, Andersen has now made two mistakes in two games - and both have led to goals.

The Addicks were stung into life and Murphy cut the Spurs defence in half with a wonderful ball for Young, who inexplicably managed to fire wide from six yards - arguably as bad a miss as Bent's earlier in the first half. A betting man wouldn't have liked to put money on which team was the more likely winner, but the odds took a massive turn in Spurs' favour as Bent was forced from the pitch after a clash of heads - without the injured Jay Bothroyd, he was replaced by the supremely ineffective Bartlett.

Of course, it was written that the little Judas would have a say in proceedings at some point in the afternoon, and his moment duly arrived with about ten minutes to go, picking up a pass from Lennon, carrying the ball to the edge of the area and knocking it into the path of Robbie Keane, who planted it past Andersen from 10 yards.

The real kick in the teeth for Charlton came after this, as a succession of chances came and went - Young and Bartlett in particular being guilty of glaring misses when well-placed - and Tottenham somehow came away with all three points.

This is a setback for the Addicks, no question. Of perhaps more importance than the dropping of the three points, however, is their inability to kill teams off. For the last twenty minutes of the first half, Charlton absolutely murdered Spurs, and it wouldn't have been a travesty had they gone in 3 up at halftime. As it was, conceding so soon after doubling the lead will have worried Curbishley, and is something that needs to be put right if Charlton's fledgling European challenge isn't to peter out.

CAFC

Andersen - 5 - A poor game for Andersen. Didn't really have too much to do, and left wanting positionally on three or four occasions. Directly at fault for the Spurs equaliser. Two poor perfeormances in a row might leave Deano with a chance of coming back in soon
Powell - 5 - Never one to accuse of a lack of effort, Powell looked every one of his 36 years today, especially with Lennon running at him
Perry - 7 - Not at fault for any of the goals, and had a good old tussle with Mido
El Karkouri - 6 - Some nice passes, but looked rusty at times
Young - 6 - OK defensively, and got forward well, but only he will know how he missed from five yards. Also had a good chance late on
Kishishev - 5 - Not at his most effective, and gave possession away too frequently. Got a massive cheer out of the Addicks faithful when provoking Judas into a foul on El Kak
Smertin - 7 - All-action again. Strangled the life out of Jenas & Mendes, but poor clearance contributed to Spurs equaliser
Murphy - 8 - Genius again. Hasn't had a bad game all season, and his passing was sublime
Rommedahl - 5 - Ineffective. Poorest game this season
Thomas - 7 - Not as tricksy as usual, but did everything else right, and slid a beautiful pass through for Bent's second
Bent - 8 - Would have been a nine if not for his shocking miss min the first half. Has to be a contender for England's qualifiers against Austria and Poland and, if he keeps scoring at this rate, is a shoe-in to go to Germany next year

Subs

Spector - 6 - Had a go after coming on
Hughes - 5 - Ineffective really - didn't get involved enough
Bartlett - 3 - Useless. Is blatantly past it at this level, like Feeesh was last year, and should be punted on ASAP whilst we can still get a bit of cash for him

Yids

Robinson - 7 - Assured, good distribution and not at fault for either goal
Stalteri - 7 - Nice and solid at the back
Kelly - 6 - Looked like a rabbit caught in the headlights at times, but still looks to be a better bet at Left-Back than the Korean no-hoper whose place he took
King - 7 - Colossus at the back, got on the scoresheet as well. Missed a much easier chance in the first half though
Naybet - 5 - S-l-o-o-w. So slow he'd make Phil Chapple look rapid
Davids - 8 - Looked every inch the class act he obviously is. Covered every blade of grass and had a superb battle with Murphy and Smertin
Jenas - 4 - Two bob. Completely, utterly anonymous
Mendes - 6 - Poor in the first half, but came back into it in the second half. Good passer
Lennon - 7 - Livewire. Very good prospect
Defoe - 5 - The arsehole's worst game against us. F&*@er still managed to set up the winner though
Mido - 7 - A handful all game before being forced to withdraw through injury

Subs

Keane - 7 - A Handful. Needs to move on and play regularly - took his goal very well
Tainio - 6 - Excellent pass to set up the equaliser, and made a number of other contributions
Dawson - 6 - Put under pressure after replacing Mido and dealt with it well

MOM

Close-run thing between Bent and Murphy, but the fact that Bent has managed to score more in his first SEVEN games for Charlton than top scorer Bartlett got in THIRTY EIGHT games last year says it all. If Eriksson doesn't play him at some point in the internationals next week he wants shooting

Ref

Dowd - 6 - Fussy, prissy performance. Far too many freekicks given for very little

Quote Of The Day
"Its our problem. If Robbie wants to play for us, then he will"
Spurs coach Martin Jol on Robbie Keane's frustration. Not if you don't bloody pick him he won't!

Yids preview

2005-09-30T10:02:00.000+01:00

Saturday sees the visit to the Valley of North London's Finest/Worst (delete depending on where your own particular distates lie). This game represents an opportunity to test ourselves against a team which should be challenging with us for a top six spot - our (ahem) more illustrious opponents currently sit a couple of places below us in the table, after a pretty good start to the season.

Despite playing some pretty decent football in patches on monday night against Foolham, Spurs were distinctly apprehensive at times and unable to establish any real sense of superiority against cookie Coleman's pretty average side. This is the story of the season so far for the yids - they seem to lack any real killer instinct and, although they can look very neat and tidy going forward, their midfield appears to be a particular area of concern. Other than the outstanding Aaron Lennon, on Monday night Jenas looked less than useless, Davids was pretty average and Mendes is a pretty passer, but does little else. If they can sort out the midfield (Lord knows they have enough options, with Davis, Reid, Huddlestone, Brown, Routledge, Carrick and Taino in the equation), they will be a threat to the top six. Solid at the back and with (spit) Judas partnering Keane or the under-rated Mido up front, Spurs might finally have found themseslves a team that can mount a serious challenge for a European spot this season.

Most of Tottenham's return to viability as a decent side is clearly down to Martin Jol. An immensely likeable and clearly knoweldegable man, signing Jol looks to have been the best managerial decision Spurtz have made in years. The players clearly like him, he is aware of the pressure inherent in his role but seems to take it in his stride and is reasonably willing to give credit where its due after opponents turn his side over. That said, a worrying propensity for tinkering may be his downfall - it might well be time for him to find his best XI and stick with it - even if that means upsetting a few people.

Curbishley, on the other hand, is quite certain of his best XI and, bar injuries, seems likely to stick with the same team that beat West Brom last Saturday. The midfield trio of Murphy, Smertin and Kishishev is, on current form, second only to Chelsea in effectiveness so far this season. Benty looks likely to score in every game (despite drawing a blank in his last two league outings) and the threat from Rommedahl and Thomas on the flanks makes an absolute mockery of anyone who says 4-5-1 has to be boring. Couple this with the solidity of a back four and keeper that obviously complement each other well and you have the makings of a very, very good team.

Saturday's match is an opportunity to test ourselves against a team who are unlikely to come to the Valley and sit back - it should be an entertaining clash and I predict a 2-1 home win (with Judas obviously scoring for the Yids)

Root Vegetable Mark Lawrenson concurs with me this week - predicting a 2-1 Addicks victory

Osei off to Bristol City on loan

2005-09-27T15:08:00.000+01:00

Breaking news - Osei Sankofa has joined Bristol City on a month's loan. City Manager Gary Johnson is struggling for cover at Centre-Back - Matt Heywood has recently gone down injured - and this deal would appear to be good for both parties. City get an up and coming centre-half out to impress, whilst Curbs gets to run the rule over the lad following his recovery from a serious knee injury.

Hopefully, this loan will do for Osei what the loan to the yellow budgies did for Spotty Porker - bring him back leaner, meaner and hungrier.

Gripped by Danny's form

2005-09-27T12:43:00.000+01:00

Seems like Svennis' number two is enamoured of Dangermouse's early season form enough to recommend that the ill-humoured Swede pops down to the Valley for Saturday's thumping of the Yiiiidaaaaarmy.

Apparently, he is also recommending he takes a close look at Jerome Thomas for the 'problem' Left-sided berth in England's midfield - something we Addicks have been suspecting might happen for some time now.

This indicates that we are at least in with a chance of having four Addicks in the England squad for the World Cup qualifiers (Young is a shoe-in and it's pretty obvious he likes Benty). What were the chances of that last season?

Of course, its all moot - when the squad is announced, expect to see the usual toss like Hargreaves, Jenas & Johnson chucked in there - but its nice to think that we are at last starting to get some recognition for our achievements

A game of two halves

2005-09-25T13:11:00.000+01:00

Following a lacklustre first half performance against Hartlepool in midweek, the Addicks changed the formula slightly yesterday - steamrollering the hapless Baggies in the first half but putting in a far less impressive second half display. Still, three points is three points, and we are currently sitting pretty in second place in the league.

The game actually started pretty poorly - neither side looking too bothered about creating any chances. It burst into life in the tenth minute when livewire Jerome Thomas skipped past Watson with a lovely turn and hurtled into the box. The former Everton, Villa & Newcastle stalwart made a clumsy challenge which the ref correctly determined a penalty - subsequently coolly despatched by Danny Murphy. Penalties eh? You wait all season for one, then two come along at once...

This sparked the Addicks into life, and we simply romped all over West Brom for the remainder of the half. Unable to live with crisp passing and movement and the pressure our midfield put theirs under, we overran them and created numerous chances to score. Thomas in particular had a couple of efforts saved well by Kirkland, and has low stop to deny Danny Murphy's downward header from a Rommedahl cross was superb. Murphy wasn't to be denied his second for long, however, as some excellent passing down the right flank was rewarded - the ball breaking kindly for Rommedahl. Ghosting past Greening effortlessly, the Dane was inexplicably left all alone to loook up, almost stop at the byline and pull it back for DM to sidefoot neatly home at the far post.

Looking all at sea, West Brom did manage to eke out a bit of possession towards the end of the half and Campbell's fierce header might have caused some problems had it not been straight into Andersen's arms.

Hauling the utterly anonymous Johnson off at half time, Robson brought Diomansy Kamara on for the second half, and it instantly upped the Baggies' tempo. His pace and fancy footwork fashioned a couple of decent early openings before Curtis Davies - assured at the back beyond his young years - buried a header after Andersen came and got nowhere near a corner. 2-1 to the Addicks with 40 minutes to go - it looked like a rearguard action. So it proved to be. Gera and Greening pulled shots wide when well placed - Gera's in particular was poor, he certainly should have hit the target. Curbs replaced Rommedahl with Bothroyd, switching Benty over to the right, but this didn't help stem the flow of Baggies pressure. However, despite replacing one big old unit (Campbell) with another (Horsfield) and bringing on Nathan Ellington, if truth be told they actually created precious few clear cut opportunities. Davies headed an effort straight at Andersen from another corner, and right at the end, Andersen almost made another ricket as Kamara's downward header was not too convincingly shepherded over the bar.

All in all, another satisfying win - the only worry is whether we can play the same way at home when teams come to look for a point. At least that shouldn't happen next week against Spuds. Three points against the Yiiiiiids please!

Baggies

Kirkland - 7 - Couple of superb first half stops, especially from Murphy. Not at fault for either goal
Watson - 5 - Looks old. Murdered for pace
Robinson - 5 - Slow, championship player at best
Clement - 6 - Committed, strong in the challenge. Little skill, but bags of effort
Davies - 8 - Superb. Outstanding in the air, took his goal well (although it was gifted to him) and can play a bit too. Great buy by Robson
Johnson - 3 - An embarrassment. Poor, poor player, rightly subbed at half time
Wallwork - 4 - Average. Didn't make the grade at ManYoo, and not cutting the mustard for the Baggies either
Greening - 4 - Ditto Wallwork. OK, Rommie is rapid, but just giving up on it after he went past him to set up the second was unforgiveable
Gera - 6 - Not his best game, but committed, skilful and determined. Wouldn't mind him at the Valley
Earnshaw - 5 - Ran around a lot - but not much else. Gawd love him he's a trier, but definitely not a consistent goalscorer at this level
Campbell - 5 - Battering ram up front. Best days are behind him, but gave a lot to the cause

Subs

Kamara - 7 - Would probably have been higher had he started. Changed the complexion of the game after replacing the useless Johnson
Horsfield - 5 - Agricultural
Ellington - 5 - Rapid, but no first touch

CAFC

Andersen - 5 - Shaky performance following superb early-season form. Howler for the West Brom goal and almost let in an equaliser right at the death
Young - 6 - Unspectacular but very solid
Powell - 7 - Calm, assured and looks anything but his 36 years. Bringing him back was a stroke of genius
HH - 7 - Dealt effectively with the agricultural skills of Campbell
Perry - 7 - Sound again - no way this pairing should be broken up at the minute
Kish - 7 - Much better than against Chelsea. Broke up West Brom's attack nicely
Murphy - 9 - Oustanding yet again. Faded a little in the second half its true, but adapted neatly to the fact that he wasn't getting the ball as often and put in plenty of donkey work
Smertin - 7 - Box to box again all afternoon. Tireless and does all of Murphy's running for him. The perfect midfield pairing
Rommedahl - 7 - Blistering pace again. Hilarious to watch him skin Greening leading up to the second. Unfortunately, equally hilarious was his lack of commitment in the challenge. Still, who wants wingers tackling when they should be going past people, eh?
Thomas - 8 - Back to his best. Less of the stepovers, more direct running and did brilliantly for the penalty
Bent - 6 - Quiet game, but his ceasless running, ability to hold the ball up and prowess in the air make him a fantastic outlet when we're under the cosh. Glaring miss at the end though..

Subs

Bothroyd - 6 - Did a job after replacing Rommie
Spector - 6 - Excellent squad player. Were it not for the form of our back four he'd be starting
Hughes - 5 - Usual cameo role

Ref

Foy - 8 - Good performance. Got the penalty decision right, and let the game flow. Kish correctly booked

MOM

Has to be Danny Murphy again. On present form, without question the best midfielder in the country

Quote Of The Day
"It was a game of two halves"
Alan Curbishley
It certainly was!

Baggies Preview

2005-09-23T08:08:00.000+01:00

The West Midlands abounded with optimism prior to the start of this season. Following their 'great escape' at the end of last season, fans were quietly confident that this would be a year of consolidation for them - having been the first team in Premiership history to escape the 'bottom-at-christmas-means-you're-down' curse.

Unfortunately, they reckoned without the management of Bryan Robson - a man with all the tactical acumen of a house brick. Robbo might be a good man motivator. He might be a good bloke to go out on the piss with. He might even be a good after-dinner speaker. One thing he most definitely AIN'T, is a shrewd operator in the transfer market. Despite their obvious failings last season (whole-hearted, committed players, but very little real premiership quality) he spectacularly failed to attract anyone of any note to the West Midlands during the summer. Nathan Ellington, Darren Purse and Steve Watson wouldn't exactly have sent pulses racing amongst the Baggies faithful and, whilst on his day Diomansy Kamara looks a useful player, he is about as consistent a performer as Kevin Lisbie.

Lack of ambition in the Summer Sales might prove to be Robbo and West Brom's undoing. They have had a poor start to the season, and last week had to wait until the 93rd minute to equalise against possibly the worst team ever to play in the Premiership. Prior to this, they had been beaten by Wigan (outplayed by them for much of the game as well), hammered by Chelsea (no disgrace there) and, in maybe their best performance of the season thus far, lost by the odd goal in five in the midlands derby with Birmingham. They have managed to pick up a victory against a very poor Portsmouth side, and gained a creditable draw against the Massives.

Robson sprung something of a surprise on deadline day, snapping up the promising Curtis Davies from Luton to bolster the backline for the princely sum of 3 million quid. Only time will tell whether this is money well spent, but - admittedly having only seen him play three times - Davies certainly looks an impressive centre half with 'bags' of potential (geddit?)

Following both sides' decent wins in the League Cup this week, after fielding changed sides, the respective managers may have some food for thought selection-wise. For us, Lloyd Sam was very impressive and, although it may be too much to fling him in from the start, I expect him to make the bench. If Bothroyd recovers from a knock sustained in the reserve fixture against the CheeseRolls he'll be pushing for a bench place at the very least, perhaps even starting should Curbs want to try playing 4-4-2 - he certainly looks capable of forming a sound partnership with the mercurial Darren Bent.

Last season, we looked comfortable in victory (although only had the one goal to show for it) at the Hawthorns, but were hammered at home 4-1 after El Kak managed to get himself sent off for a reckless challenge. Tomorrow, after our excellent start to the season, I expect us to come away with a comfortable 2-0 win.

Self-Styled 'BBC Football Expert' Mark Lawrenson has us down for a 1-1 draw this weekend. Come on Addicks - gimme the edge over him!

Gislason nets for reserves in 1-0 win

2005-09-22T12:43:00.000+01:00

Gislason celebrates his winner - by affecting an impromptu piglet impression

Any win over Palace is a cause for celebration - be it in the league, cup, reserves or in a kickabout with your mates in the park. Last night's 1-0 win was sweetened by the news that Icelandic teenager Rurik Gislason netted the winner. If the hype about this kid is to be believed, it certainly looks like we have snared a future star.

Banana skin avoided

2005-09-21T10:39:00.000+01:00

Bent towers above the pool defence to notch his sixth goal in six games

A far from convincing performance in the first half against league one (thats 'third division' in real money) opponents would have had Curbs scratching his head yesterday - despite the inclusion of several first team regulars, it would be no inaccuracy to say that the Monkey Hangers matched us for the majority of the first half and deservedly went in front - Jon Daly crashing a low drive past Myrhe following some excellent approach play. However, an extremely dubious penalty, awarded only a couple of minutes later for a seemingly non-existent tug on the impresive Lloyd Sam and despatched coolly by the otherwise average JJ seemed to knock the plucky northerners sideways.

Prior to that, Antony Sweeney had missed a gilt-edged chance to give the visitors an early lead, but scuffed his shot wide when it seemed easier to score. Sam showed his pace all night, making numerous forays into the box - setting the tone early on with a run of about 60 yards but wasting the chance he had so impressively created for himself. Spector moved forward with menace on plenty of occasions and Jerome Thomas was his usual tricky self (at times so tricky he seemed to confuse his own feet) Hartlepool had other chances in the first half before taking their short-lived lead, but none as clear cut as the early one wasted by Sweney.

Nevertheless, they acquitted themselves well and certainly deserved to go in level at the break. The poor and, at times, languid-looking Bartlett was replaced by Bent at half time and we began to dominate - JJ and Holland both had good efforts well-saved by the 'pool keeper and Bent hit a scorching free kick which was equally well dealt with. Pool still looked dangerous on occasion - Myrhe made an outstanding stop to deny the seemingly cursed Sweeney at one point - but we looked far likelier to score than in the first half, especially after JJ's header came back off the upright.

It was the introduction of Danny Murphy which really turned the tide. Showing us what we had been missing in the middle, he dictated the game with the poise we have grown accustomed to seeing this season. A few minutes after his introduction to proceedings, Sam floated a ball into the box which dropped onto the head of Bent, who powered his header downwards and into the corner from about 15 yards. From that point on, the lower-leaguers were chasing shadows.

Jay Bothroyd was called on in the last quarter of an hour and showed that he may be a multi-faceted player within the first ten minutes of his debut. He was rightly yellow-carded for a shocking challenge on a pool player, but had redeemed himself within five minutes by unleashing an absolute rocket into the top corner from a fre-kick. One of the finest efforts seen at the Valley in recent years, it fair ripped a hole in the net, such was the ferocity of the strike.

Ample opportunities to add to the scoreline came and went and, despite their competitivenes, Hartlepool will have few complaints about the result. Maybe, just maybe, this is the year for a cup run. There can be little doubt that in previous years we would have lost this game - but this squad seems far better equipped for a decent stab at cup success. Real bonuses from the match were the performance of Lloyd Sam, the cameo from Bothroyd and the crowd performance - although pretty sparsely populated, there was a pretty good atmosphere. Millwall or Palarse in the next round, anyone?

CAFC

Myrhe - 7 - Some stunning saves (the one in the second half in particular, defied belief) and no chance with the goal. Not to commanding in his area though
Spector - 7 - Promising. Certainly looks a good player and would start in most other teams
Young - 6 - Quiet game, but not really troubled
HH - 7 - Commanding again - most consistent run of form for the big man since he joined us
Sorondo - 6 - Strong in the challenge, but not the fastest
Thomas - 6 - On and off performance. Tricky and, on form, unplayable. However his propensity for moaning when things aren't going his way is a worry.
Sam - 8 - Outstanding. Has everything - skill, pace, commitment and crossing ability. Will be pushing Rommedahl for a place in the side soon on the strength of this performance
Holland - 6 - Anonymous for much of the game, but had two excellent digs on goal and his lack of tackling ability wasn't shown up due to the presence of:
Smertin - 8 - What an engine! The best box-to-box midfielder we've had since Parker (and, arguably, better)
JJ - 6 - Poor for most of the game, but put penalty away well and unlucky to see his header come back off the post in the second half
Bartlett - 4 - Terrible. Looked uninterested, had no influence on the game and was deservedly subbed for the second half

Subs

Bent - 8 - Tireless, good in the air and a peach of a header for his goal. Best striker at this club since Mendonca
Murphy - 7 - Bossed the midfield after coming on
Bothroyd - 8 - an eight for the goal alone! Although he did blot his copybook with a shocking challenge, he should certainly be given a chance from the start soon - could develop a lethal partnership with Bent

Monkey Hangers

Konstantopolous - 8 - World-class saves from Sam (twice), Holland (twice) and Bent. Far, far too good to be playing at that low a level
Williams - 6 - Never been the most gifted of players, but very determined
Nelson - 6 - No disgrace
Collins - 6 - Performed well when under pressure
Humphreys - 5 - Fat and slow (as he always has been) but tried hard and made a good block to deny us a fourth. Lucky to still have been on the pitch though - should have been sent off for dragging Sam back in the incident which led to the third
Istead - 5 - A weak link - had no chance of dealing with Sam (although unlucky to have given away a penalty). Manager saw the problems he was having and hauled him off
Tinkler - 6 - Steady
Sweeney - 6 - A nightmare for him - missed a chance in the first half but only thwarted by the brilliance of Myrhe on two occasions in the second half. Other than that, worked hard
Butler - 6 - Another ex-Sunderland player. Performed well and set up the Pool goal with a nice pass Proctor - 5 - Pretty anonymous for much of the game. Last time we saw him he scored twice (for us!) but, other than a slide-rule pas for Sweeney early on, had no influence on the game
Daly - 7 - Big old unit, took his goal well and worked Sorondo & HH hard all night

Subs

Foley - 5 - Replaced Daly but had no effect as they were running around like headless chickens at that point
Turnbull - 5 - No real time to have an impact
Llewellyn - 5 - No better than Istead really, although he did set up Sweeney for a chance

Ref Hegley - 6 - Never seen him before - not a Premiership-standard ref

Quote Of The Day
"Bothroyd let people know he was around"
Alan Curbishley
(he certainly let Mark Tinkler know he was around)

No disgrace in losing to the champions

2005-09-18T15:17:00.000+01:00

Ooops! Kish robbed by the stellar Essien

On paper, we had little chance of turning Chelsea over yesterday - and thats exactly how it turned out - matching the champions for the first 50-odd minutes, then stymied by two quickfire goals around the hour mark. In truth though, Chelsea thoroughly deserved the victory - indeed, but for the athleticism of Stephan Andersen, the manner of victory could have been more comprehensive.

The first half started with Chelsea very much on top - plenty of chances created and our midfield overrun by the brilliant Essien and Makelele. Chelsea could even afford to have Lumpalard not at his best - Duff and Robben finally starting to show some form for perhaps the first time this season. Kishishev, who had a poor game all round, gave the ball away with alarming regularity and was unable to provide anything like the defensive shield required to allow Murphy and the puzzlingly called-up Hughes the time and space required to unpick the Chelsea rearguard. Crespo - a constant menace - rattled the post with a low drive after Essien robbed Kishishev, then Lumpalard and Duff were thwarted by Andersen. As the half wore on, however, we managed to establish ourselves a bit more - Murphy finally getting a bit more time on the ball to pick passes. Thomas and Rommedahl both had decent efforts, but the half finished goalless.

From the outset in the second half, Chelsea swarmed all over our midfield, and it was no surpirse when they took the lead. Gallas had already hit the post before the inexplicably unmarked Crespo crashed a superb header past Andersen from Essien's cross. Five minutes later it was game over, as Robben skipped inside and curled a beauty past Andersen's despairing dive - game over.

The mercurial Wright-Phillips came on as a sub and almost added a third but his effort waswell dealt with by Andersen. We had no more real chances of note as Mourinho shut up shop for the champions.

Overall, it was a disappointing defeat, but certainly not a disgraceful one. It was pointed out to me during the match that Chelsea's bench cost about 60 million quid - ours cost about 2 million! Still second in the league, we can be more than pleased with our start overall, and hopefully can continue it for the next few games to keep us right up there - starting with three points at the Hawthorns next week.

CAFC

Andersen - 8 - Excellent display - no chance with the goals
Powell - 6 - Worked a lot harder than in previous matches this season and his lack of legs showed at times
Young - 6 - Nothing spectacular, and unable to get forward as he has done so often up til now this year
HH - 7 - Superb in the air all game really - dealt reasonably effectively with the menace of Crespo
Perry - 6 - Steady, but lack of pace showed
Kish - 5 - First poor game this year from Kish. One of those players who, when not playing well, never goes missing. Unfortunately, yesterday, he should have done! Caught in possession too often
Murphy - 6 - Apart from a purple patch before half time, he looked out of sorts - mainly because Chelsea swarmed all over him for much of the game
Rommedahl - 7 - A threat going forward, and certainly tracked back more often than normal. Looks like he had a bollocking from Curbishley after being subbed against the Brummies
Thomas - 5 - Not at his best. Didn't look like he had the air of confidence that usually surrounds him
Hughes - 6 - Not bad, but certainly not the player to bring in when you are looking to give the rest of your midfield time & space on the ball. Embarrassingly lightweight in the challenge
Bent - 7 - Worked tirelessly with no service. Holds the ball up so well for someone not overly imposing in stature

Subs

Holland - 5 - No influence after coming on, but the game was over as a contest by then
Ambrose - 5 - Ditto
Spector - 6 - Looked useful and very composed

Chelsea

Cech - 7 - Little to do, but did it effectively
Ferreira - 6 - Competent, but little influence on the game
Carvalho - 7 - Untroubled
Terry - 7 - Steady and didn't look like he was carrying a knock
Gallas - 7 - Steady as a rock and almost scored when he hit the post in the first half. Hugely underrated
Makelele - 8 - Throttled the life out of the midfield
Essien - 9 - Man of the match. Drove them forward relentlessly and hassled & harried throughout
Robben - 7 - A menace, constant threat cutting inside
Duff - 6 - Started brightly but inexplicably faded - doesn't look the player he was last year
Lumpalard - 6 - Average. Overrated player IMHO, and certainly looked it today
Crespo - 8 - Mammoth presence up front. Makes Drogba look shite. Excellently taken goal

Subs

Cole - 5 - May as well not have been on the pitch when he came on. Anonymous
Wright-Phillips - 7 - Not too long on the pitch, but almost scored and looked lively
Drogba - 4 - Little more than a cameo

Ref

Webb - 8 - Good game from him - let the game flow where necessary.

MOM

Difficult to pick out the best Charlton player from this performance, but Andersen deserves it. Murphy's decent patch before the break and HH's performance at the back also deserve merit

Quote Of The Day

"It's like Formula One. If you see someone like Michael Schumacher winning a race every time it can become a bit predictable"
Peter Varney, on Chelsea's financial domination of the game

Top of the League? You're 'avin a larf!

2005-09-16T15:51:00.000+01:00

Tomorrow's top of the table clash betwen the early-season pacesetters has not exactly captured the imagination of the press. Very little has been said about our 100% start to the season (despite the fact that, along with Chelsea, the only team in the country to have done so).

Of course, tomorrow's match is the ultimate test of our mettle - the league leaders haven't even conceded a goal this season, let alone dropped a point. However, there are reasons to be a little optimistic ahead of this fixture. Duff and Robben have been, as my Chelsea-supporting nephew pointed out so succinctly the other day, 'Pooh' this season, Terry and Makelele are both carrying knocks and tehy are definitely not firing on all cylinders. Last week's performance against Sunderland wasn't exactly awe-inspiring, and they were less than convincing (in a half-empty stadium) against an extremely average Anderlecht outfit in the increasingly inaccurately-named Champions League on Tuesday.

At least Jose 'chuckles' Mourinho can't moan about conspiracy theories this time out - his side have been given a less than arduous trip across town after their latest European escapade. Whilst the arrogance of the man and the dullness of his team's football at times cannot be denied, neither can the effectivenes of his management. Yes he has more money than every other Premiership manager combined at his disposal should he want it, but that can often prove to be a problem - witness the ineffectiveness of Real Madrid in midweek (the richest club side in the world) in accomodating a string of superstars in the same team. Mourinho strikes you as the sort of man who is not exactly enamoured with the superstar status of some of his players - and seems to positively enjoy taking them down a peg or two.

We'll certainly have a tough time against them, and the league's enforcement of a rule that states loan players cannot play against their 'permanent' clubs means that our task will be made that much tougher by ensuring Alexei Smertin cannot play. Its no exaggeration to say that he has been a huge positive influence on the team since he arrived - the midfield trio of himself, Kish and the superlative Murphy have swamped the life out of opponents midfields this season.

Replacing him will be a tough task - Ambrose doesn't possess the drive necessary to deal with Lumpalard & Makelele, Holland is not match fit and Hughes is just too lightweight. Curbishley may decided to deploy El Kak in the role - providing his fitness is at a sufficient level following his layoff with a knee injury.

My prediction this week: An entertaining 1-1 draw!

 Gormless twat Lawrenson has gone for a 1-0 Chelsea win.

Lis scores for Canaries

2005-09-14T12:02:00.000+01:00

Kevin Lisbie scored last night for the Yellow Budgies in their 2-1 defeat to Watford and, by all accounts, played pretty well for them. Rumours abound that Curbishley may be in for Ashton again in the transfer window - if this is true, maybe a part-exchange deal with Lisbie can be agreed, bringing the price down.

Whilst I don't think Super Kev's commitment has ever really been questioned, I think few Charlton fans would say that he has the quality necessary to be a Premiership striker. He might have been able to carve a niche for himself as a wide player had he been played wide earlier in his career (he certainly has the pace to cause problems) but as there is little chance of this happening now, it would seem to make sense for him to move on (he's hardly likely to get into the first team at present).

3 million plus Lisbie for Ashton seem like a good bit of business to anyone?

Blimey!

2005-09-12T15:34:00.000+01:00

Back from holidays after a week, and in that time, England have won (poorly) against Wales, lost (utterly dismally) against Northern Ireland and the cricket has been up and down like it has been all summer.

One thing remains constant at the moment though - Charlton winning! Having only been privy to the briefest of highlights, it would appear that after starting well and getting an early lead (super goal - Thomas should be a no-brainer for inclusion in the next England squad alongside Bent and Murphy) we were pretty much battered for the rest of the game. Its heartening to see us strong enough at the back to withstand concerted, consistent pressure, and certainly bodes well for the rest of the season.

What a surprise then, that our climb to second in the table (with a game in hand on the leaders) has been almost universally ignored by the media. I wonder whether they'll be able to ignore us if we manage to beat Chelski? Doubtless if this happens it'll be considered a fluke, but Chelsea (whisper it quetly) look vulnerable at present. John Terry's 'injury' (funny how he was supposed to be out for a month yet came back only three days after the England game eh?) wasn't exactly tested against Sunderland - Darren Bent might prove to be a somewhat tougher proposition. The main worry is that, despite obviously not playing anywhere near their best, Chelsea have managed to win their first five games on the spin and only concede a single bloody goal!

Should be a cracking game in any case.

Lukes like Young will start for England

2005-09-02T20:28:00.000+01:00

Many media sources seem to be of the opinion that Svennis will start the game tomorrow against the Welsh with Luke Young lining up at right-back. This would appear to be likely, given the fact that spies at the England training sessions have reported on the increasingly besieged Eriksson deploying a 4-5-1 formation - which Luke has excelled in for us.

All he has to do now is recall Murphy (which should have happened this time out, had he even bothered to watch him or sent Grip to do it for him) and we've a real chance of getting three Addicks in the next England squad.

Unbelievable really, especially considering how dire we were for most of last season.

Bothroyd deadline-day signing

2005-08-31T23:08:00.000+01:00

The Addicks have seemingly purged themselves of one dressing-room troublemaker (see Jeffers loan story, below) and possibly recruited another in the form of Jay Bothroyd. Whilst Bothroyd is a 'Big Old Unit' in the style of old-time centre forwards, his disciplinary problems must have been a concern for Curbs ahead of signing him. He was unceremoniously ridden out of town at Highbury following run-ins with Arsey Wanker, spent a couple of so-so years at Coventry before moving out to Perugia - where his size and strength helped him deal with the more agricultural aspects of Italian football and he made a reasonable success of his stay there. Obviously homesick, he spent the better part of last season on loan to Blackburn - where his indiscipline once again reared its head, receiving a straight red for an utterly stupid kick at Norwich pest Mattias Jonsson.

Bothroyd has been on trial for a while now - Curbishley obviously likes what he sees in him - perhaps as a foil for Darren Bent or backup/replacement for Bartlett. Blackburbn fans are not particularly glowing in their praise of him - they seem to have the same relationship with him as we have with C*rlton C*le.

Personally, having seen him play on a few occasions, I feel he may be a useful signing - but only if his head is screwed on right. There is more than a touch of Collymore about him (not talent-wise, just attitude-wise) but he is definitely more than useful in the air, no slouch and has a reasonable touch for a big man.

Wingnut off to Jockoland

2005-08-31T20:48:00.000+01:00

News reaches us that Franny Jeffers has departed on loan to our erstwhile cousins north of the border - the two clubs agreeing a loan deal just hours before the transfer window slams shut for four months.

Whilst the jury is still out on Franny's ability, it certainly isn't on his attitude - often seeming to fall foul of the coaching staff, never able to keep his mouth shut when on the receiving end of selection/formation policies which didn't suit him and seen about the glitzier nightspots (well, the Venue in New Cross anyway) on a semi-regular basis.

It has to be said that Jeffers was one of Curbishley's more puzzling signings - seemingly made in panic at the beginning of last season after failing to convince other, more exotic targets of the benefits of a move to SE7.

Most who watch him play will agree that there is talent within Jeffers. Its just that eking it out of him might not be worth the hassle.

Gislason offer on the table?

2005-08-29T17:38:00.000+01:00

Anyone read Icelandic?

According to one sage on the Netaddicks messageboard, this page reports we have made an offer for the impressive Rurik Gislason, after the Icelandic youngster impressed during a trial with us. Touted as 'the next Gudjohnsen' (like every Icelandic striker is liable to be for the next 20 years), Gislason apparently looked mustard when training with use pre-season. He is highly rated back home and was formerly with Anderlecht, who released him after a string of injuries. Sounds exactly like a Charlton striker then.

Now all he has to do is sort out that barnet...

How the 'mighty' have fallen...

2005-08-29T17:20:00.000+01:00

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. From the UEFA cup to the arse end of the fizzy pop in a year.

It was all a dream...

2005-08-29T12:00:00.000+01:00

Like Bobby getting shot in Dallas...

Do they even watch the games?

2005-08-29T11:46:00.000+01:00

The BBC's 'Team Of The Week' feature on its website has never exactly been the most reliable of indicators of the weekend's performances - but this week they've outdone themselves. Its bad enough not having Murphy in the first XI, but not even including him for you in the 'email-your-mates-the-REAL-team' feature is plain criminal. Davids? Musampa? Cahill?

Pathetic

Young & Bent in England squad

2005-08-28T23:43:00.000+01:00

Luke Young has been recalled to the England squad, following Gary Neville's injury. Young would seem to have a real chance of playing, as, in a moment of clarity, Sven has dropped Glen Johnson (who is so shite the closest he should have come to the England side is watching them in the boozer with his mates). Young is the only 'specialist' right-back in the squad and would seem to have a better chance of playing than Carragher or Phil Neville, both of whom would be playing out of position.

Darren Bent's inclusion in a second consecutive squad is a reward for some superb early-season form. Perhaps with Owen not available, we might even see him get on the pitch for a debut against the Welsh.

The one glaring omission, going on this season's form alone, is Danny Murphy. He has been nothing short of outstanding for us this season and provided Eriksson has him watched, appears to have a great chance of getting into the side ahead of the World Cup next summer. On present form I'd certainly take him over Joe Cole, Richardson, Hargreaves and Jenas.

Boro bowled over by rampant Addicks

2005-08-28T22:03:00.000+01:00

Forgive the pun on one of the most glorious days in English cricket history - I couldn't resist it. Hours before England put themselves in the box seat to reclaim the Ashes, a rampant Charlton side dominated the Boro from start to finish - their third successive (and most impressive) victory.

From the start it was clear that the Addicks weren't about to let their fine start to the season come to a sputtering halt. The first ten minutes was contested reasonably fairly, after that it looked like men against boys. Time and time again Rommedahl destroyed the hapless Franck Quedrue for pace - the only worrying aspect was that he continued to frustrate with his final ball - at least three good crossing opportunities were wasted with balls flighted too high and drifting harmlessly across the box. Murphy and Smertin were seemingly everywhere - testament to the magnificent job the unsung Kishishev did of protecting the back four. Thomas was his usual bag of tricks - two superb runs from his own half had the Boro back four perspiring.

It was surprising that it took until over halfway through the first half for us to make the breakthrough, but the goal was worth waiting for when it came. Bent fed Murphy, whose assured touch in the centre of the park allowed him the time to look up and feed an inch-perfect ball into Rommedahl's path. The Dane's immaculately-timed run was complemented by a sublime finish, rifling the ball past Schwarzer with some aplomb.

Boro proceeded to enjoy their best period of the match prior to half-time but, one goalmouth scramble aside, never really threatened - indeed it was the Addicks who looked likelier to score - the ever menacing Bent causing old-timers Ehigou and Southgate plenty of problems in the air and Boro's very pedestrian midfield seemingly unable to cope with the triangle of Murphy, Smertin and Kishishev.

The second half was much the same as the first - although it was worrying that, after dominating the match so thoroughly it took us until ten minutes from the end to notch a second. Prior to that, Viduka had stung Andersen's hands with a well-struck shot and Maccarone's similar effort almost went in off the big Dane's arse after he fumbled it, but the result of the match was never in doubt after Murphy's cleverly-worked short, low free kick was picked up by Perry's well-timed run - the centre half becoming an unlikely but welcome scorer.

Boro faded away into nothing after that, Charlton's midfield imperious, and it was left to goal machine Darren Bent to notch the third (his fourth in three games), Bryan Hughes' perfectly weighted ball leaving him with the simple task of running on and placing the ball past the onrushing Schwarzer to add a more comprehensive look to the scoreline.

I know its early days, but this really is the best I have seen a Charlton side play since we demolished the rest of the Championship in 2000. All in all a superb start - lets hope the international break doesn't see us lose momentum and we can go to Brum and come back with another three points!

Boro

Schwarzer - 5 - Never really got near any of the goals. Didn't do much else wrong, but when you're a keeper you are judged on statistics, and 'shots on target: 3 - goals scored: 3' doesn't look too good
Quedrue - 4 - I have been impressed by him on other occasions but he looked dreadful today. Absolutely no idea how to handle Rommedahl and should not have been surprised not to come out for the second half
Ehiogu - 5 - Had trouble with Bent in the air all day and looks a shadow of his former self
Southgate - 5 - See Ehigou
Reiziger - 4 - A poor, poor player. Never been impressed with him - today showed why
Morrison - 5 - Gave the ball away a bit too much (especially guilty of this leading up to our opener) but showed a willingness to run at his man. Unfortunately, more often than not, that man was the superb Chris Powell...
Parlour - 3 - North London's very own Charlie Dimmock lookalike was so anonymous I thought he'd been subbed for the first ten minutes of the second half. Looks like his ex-wife took any footballing ability with her when she fleeced him in the courts. Very poor.
Boateng - 6 - At least he tried to take the game to the midfield. Very little support, but Boro's best player
Downing - 4 - England's 'Great White Hope' on the left? Do me a favour! Has no pace, couldn't trap a wet bag of cement if you dropped it on his foot and, on the strength of the majority of today's efforts, can't cross the ball for toffee either.
Viduka - 5 - Looks short of fitness (as usual) but still the most likely to score for Boro - decent effort in the second half on the turn
Yakubu - 3 - The less said the better really. 7 million quid for this sack of shite? Couldn't hit a cow's arse with a banjo, not overly quick and seemed to completely ignore Viduka for the whole 90 minutes

Subs

Pogatetz - 5 - Looked willing when he came on
Maccarone - 5 - Lively (well, livelier than Yakubu anyway)
Mendieta - 4 - Unfit, and it showed

CAFC

Andersen - 6 - A couple of good saves, but almost had a mare when he fumbled Maccarone's effort in the second half. A bit too eager to come for crosses as well on occasion. Good distribution though
Young - 8 - Deservedly won his place back in the England side for the next two qualifiers after Neville's injury. A rock all game and got forward to good effect late on too
Perry - 8 - Nervy first couple of minutes but superb after that - solid in the air, good in the tackle and an excellently taken goal
Hreidarsson - 8 - Another immense game. Won absolutely everything in the air. Stupidly booked at the end though
Powell - 8 - Is there a calmer man in England than Powell when he's on the ball? Totally unruffled all game
Kish - 8 - Superb performance. Not only broke play up well behind Murphy and Smertin but made some sublime passes as well and looked anything but a makeweight. Excellent
Murphy - 9 - Almost 10 out of 10 for our Player Of The Month. Made the first two goals, ran the midfield from start to finish and, after a slightly dodgy start to his Addicks career, now looks as good as Kins in his prime (high praise indeed)
Smertin - 7 - Not quite up to the standard of his first two games, but still looked superb today
Thomas - 7 - Frustrating at times, but no lack of effort and is deceptively quick. Never goes missing either and always does his bit tracking back
Rommedahl - 8 - Best game in a Charlton shirt by a country mile. Yes he gave the ball away, yes his crossing wasn't great but he scored a fantastic goal, ran his nuts off and even put in some tackles
Bent - 8 - A real menace. For someone not blessed with great height, he is amazing in the air - often winning balls today against Ehiogu and Southgate when he had no right to. Took his goal very well and looks to be an absolute bargain

Subs

Bartlett - 5 - No real time to make an impact
Hughes - 6 - another interesting cameo - 5 minutes on the pitch and he sets Bent up for a third goal (just like at Sunderland)

MOM

A bootle of bubbly for Danny Murphy - who, on current form, is the best midfielder in the Premiership. Bring him back Sven...

Ref

Mike Dean - 6 - an odd peformance this. Tried to let the game flow at times but often blew for free kicks unneccessarily. If I were a boro supporter I daresay his mark would be lower - often seemed to give us the benefit of the doubt

Quote Of The Day

"I'm shocked, angry and disappointed. I can offer no excuses for that display. It was unacceptable."
Steve 'credit where it's due' McLaren

Monkey Hangers in the cup

2005-08-27T14:38:00.000+01:00

So, we've been drawn against Hartlepool in the 'Fray Bentos Shield', handing the division 2 (or 1, or 3 or whatever its called nowadays) a nice easy passage into the third round.

Famed not only for Jeff Stelling's patronage but for an 'only in the North' type incident where the locals once hung a monkey for being a French spy, Hartlepool were contenders for promotion last season until Neale Cooper was inexplicably sacked right at the end of the season. With him disappeared Hartlepool's chance in the playoffs and they haven't started too well this year without him.

For anybody foolish enough to be interested, this year's ignominious exit against a lower-league side will take place on 19/20/21 September

History Repeating?

2005-08-26T21:07:00.000+01:00

My God this fixture brings back terrible memories. Every season (apart from the blip that was last season's reasonably entertaining 2-2 draw) it seems to produce the most dire 0-0 draw ever seen. This might have something to do with both sides cancelling each other out - neither manager seemingly able to find the key to unlocking the other's back door.

Nevertheless, Sky seem determined to show this match every season - for some unfathomable reason. As a result, our away support (admittedly not exactly rivalling the Toon Army at the best of times) at this fixture has been thin on the ground due to the stupid kick-off times (12:30 on a Saturday afternoon, 5:30 on a Saturday afternoon etc) and this year looks to be no exception. The poor sods attending this game will be setting off at around 6 in the bloody morning for a 12:30 kickoff - thanks Sky.

However, they may be more satisfied coming away from the Riverside than they have in recent years - this fixture looks set to be much more entertaining than it has proven in the past. Both teams look perfectly capable of playing attractive, attacking football and neither manager will be looking to rest on their laurels after good starts to the campaign.

Boro thoroughly dismantled a bedraggled -looking Birmingham in midweek - Viduka scoring an early contender for goal of the season - powering a ridiculously angled half volley into the far corner of the net Van-Basten style. They are a well-balanced side and the success of their youth team in recent years suggests that McLaren is building a decent platform for the future. Coupled with Steve Gibson's seemingly bottomless pockets, Boro's only real barrier to becoming a top six side would appear to be the less than glamorous environs of the town itself - Messrs Robson and Vegetables will attest to the difficulties inherent in convincing exotically-bred players of the delights of sunny Cleethorpes or the awe-inspiring spectacle of Captain Cook Square. That said, I'm sure that when convicing Di Canio and Smertin to come to Charlton, Curbishley avoided a sight-seeing trip to Powis Street's £££stores or Belmarsh nick.

Expect us to be unchanged and stick with the 4-5-1/4-3-3 we have been playing (where are the moaners from last season?) against the Boro and come away with a point - my prediction is an entertaining 2-2 draw.

Gormless twat Lawrenson reckons it'll be a 2-2 draw as well. Both of us got it wrong last time out...

Comfortable victory in home opener

2005-08-21T23:02:00.000+01:00

CAFC 1 Wigan 0

1-0 isn't usually a result that you can say was entirely comfortable - this match was an exception. So complete was Charlton's dominance that Wigan were made to look like not only a Championship side, but an ordinary one at that.

With last week's honourable defeat against Chelsea firmly a memory, the Latics did little at the Valley yesterday to cheer their meagre travelling support - suggesting that they might fall fouldof 'Charlton-circa-1998-99-season-syndrome' (i.e. putting in good performances against Arsenal, dire ones against Wimbledon)

However, if truth be told, it wasn't the paucity of class in Wigan's ranks that caused them to struggle but the quality of Charlton's performance. Perhaps for the first time in the top flight, we now appear to have a side capable of dominating teams as opposed to winning matches on sheer determination. Obviously there will be far sterner tests to come than Wigan, but, provided we keep the same nucleus of players fit and healthy for the whole year, we may even have a chance at finally getting the European spot which has eluded us for the past three seasons.

Yesterday's game was, first fifteen minutes aside, utterly dominated by a side obviously brimming with confidence. Murphy and Smertin were outstanding in midfield (THIS is how 4-5-1 was meant to be played), with Bent looking menacing up front, Thomas bamboozling opponents (and, it has to be said, on occasion himself), Kish spoiling nicely and a solid-looking back four.

Neither side was particularly quick out of the blocks, with the first quarter of an hour split between the two - Murphy put a free kick over the bar and Francis was just unable to connect onto a dangerous ball into our area. As the half wore on, Charlton steadily began to throttle the life out of the game. Following a sweeping move involving Young, Smertin and Rommedahl, the unlikely figure of Chris Powell headed against the bar when it seemed easier to score, and snatched at another headed chance 5 seconds later, putting it over the bar as the ball rebounded back to him from Luke Young's wayward snapshot.

Danny Murphy seeemd to be everywhere - putting a shot over the bar, winning tackles, exhibiting his excellent array of short and long passes. Even Rommedahl was tracking back after losing possession. Thomas had a blistering shot well held by Pollitt, befuddled a defender with a great flick for Smertin (then baffled himself with the same trick a minute later.

The only goal of the game finally came from Bent. Shortly ater cutting inside and rifling a shot straight at Pollitt, he latched onto a pinpoint cross from Murphy and rose high above Teale & Chimbonda at the far post to bury his header. Celebrations could have been doubled moments later when Henchoz seemed to go missing as Perry flighted a ball out of defence into Bent's path - the league's top scorer snatched at the chance however and drove the ball just wide of the far post.

The rest of the first half (and indeed the match) turned into one way traffic. Bent, Smertin, Murphy and others all had good opportunites to extend the lead, but a mixture of luck and solid defending saw Wigan prevent a pasting. Despite the inability to convert chances, Curbishley will have been well pleased with the display all round - Wigan never looked remotely like scoring and we strolled to victory.

An excellent start then, but we may get some idea of just how far this team can go next weekend, with the trip to the Riverside. Victory against Boro might just make some people sit up and take notice.

CAFC

Andersen - 6 - Never really troubled - some good distribution but worryingly pulled off a Deano with a poor kick halfway through the second half
Powell - 7 - Excellent. Never looked in danger at the back and good going forward. Unfortunate not to score with a stinging effort driven straight at Pollitt and desperately unlucky to see his header come back off the bar in the first half
Young - 7 - Solid and steady at the back and athreat going forward. A shame he only has one foot or he might have scored himself
Perry - 7 - Strong in the challenge and put a lovely ball directly into Bent's path to set him up for a chance he should really have taken
HH - 8 - Immense at the back. Excellent tussle with the beefy Roberts and superb in the air all game. Didn't put a foot wrong for 90 minutes and looks back to his best after his injury-related problems at the end of last season
Kish - 7 - Spolied play effectively and a couple of sublime reverse passes
Smertin - 7 - Does all the dinkey work allowing Murphy to pull the strings. Got forward well on occasion and unlucky not to score with a header in the second half
Thomas - 6 - Baffling defenders all game - a pity that sometimes he baffled himself! Nevertheless, good going up and down the flanks and creates space for others by dragging defenders out wide
Rommedahl - 6 - More of a threat than last week and tracked back after losing possession. Still gives the ball away far too often though and doesn't get to the byline enough - when he did, he looked threatening
Murphy - 9 - Another man of the match performance. Created the goal, worked tirelessly and Wigan couldn't cope with him at all. Everywhere for most of the second half. Superb
Bent - 7 - Superbly taken header for the winner, quick, aggressive and strong in the air. Missed a sitter after being put through by Perry but looks to be every bit the striker we've been missing since Super Clive and Andy Hunt

Subs

JJ - 6 - Looked interested when he came on, skinned chimbonda a couple of times
Bartlett - 5 - No time to make an impact
Hughes - 5 - No time to make an impact

Wigan

Pollitt - 7 - No chance with the goal and kept everything else out. A good performance
Chimbonda - 5 - Didn't look as good as last week against Chelsea. Reminds me of Babayaro (drifts in and out of the game)
Baines - 5 - Looked like a lost little boy (figuratively and physically)
Henchoz - 6 - Never had any pace, but still reads the game well
De Zeeuw - 7 - Inspired signing by Jewell. They will need to keep him fit if they have any chance of staying up. Committed display
Teale - 4 - A championship player
Bullard - 5 - Lots of energy from the unfortunately-faced ex-Gravesend man but very little skill - although he does have a good range of passing
Francis - 5 - Missed Wigan's only real chance of the match in the first half. Nerver stopped running but you need a bit more than that in the top flight. Latics will be hoping he can recapture the mid-season form he showed for the farmers last year
Mahon - 5 - Average, unspectacular
Johansson - 3 - Awful - utterly anonymous. Wigan need another striker, and quick
Roberts - 7 - Tireless display. Worked HH all game, put in two superb balls from the left flank and looked the only player remotely likely to cause us any problems

Subs

McMillan - 4 - Very lucky not to concede a penalty after the ball hit an outstretched arm in the second half. Never had a chance of dealing with Rommedahl's pace and must have breathed a huge sigh of relief when he was subbed
Taylor - 4 - Average - supposed to have a killer ball into the box but didn't show it today

Ref

Styles - 6 - A pretty good game, but blotted his copybook by failing to spot an obvious penalty

Quote Of The Day
"We gave Charlton a home in the 80s when they were bust"
Simon 'fuckwit' Jordan

That is one way of looking at it. Another (more accurate) way of looking at it would be that Palace fleeced us almost out of existence, treated us like shit and their 'fans' enjoyed every minute of it. Payback is a bitch.

Valley test for Latics

2005-08-19T12:40:00.000+01:00

For their first visit to the Valley, Wigan could have picked a better time to face a Charlton side who dominated last week's opponents, Sunderland, almost from start to finish.

However, as their more than creditable rearguard action in last Sunday's premiership debut against champions Chelsea proved, Wigan will be no pushover this season. Paul Jewell is clearly a superb young manager, adept at getting the best out of seemingly ordinary players (sound familiar?). Indeed, if Curbishley is ever tempted to move from the Valley, Jewell would surely be up there on anybody's shortlist to replace him.

That said, Wigan appear to be facing a striker crisis (not a good sign so early in the season), with the departure of the prolific Nathan Ellington to West Brom and this week's injury suffered by Henri Camara it would appear likely that Wigan will employ the 4-5-1 formation that so frustrated the Valley faithful for huge swathes of last season - with Jason Roberts employed as a battering ram up front. Wigan's midfield last week was quite impressive, managing to stifle the life out of Chelsea's quartet of overpaid nancy-boys. Bullard in particular, despite being possessed of a visage akin to the Elephant Man, seems likely to translate his excellent championship form to the higher level. Adding De Zeeuw from Portsmouth to bring some experience to a seemingly thin back line was a masterstroke. Should Jewell be successful in enticing the promising (and much-admired in these quarters) Ashton from Naaaridge, Wigan appear to have a pretty good chance of staying up.

As for the Addicks, an excellent start at Sunderland will count for nowt if this isn't followed up with three points over another newcomer to the premier league, which should make for an exciting game.

With Deano still injured, Andersen is a no-brainer to retain his spot - in fact, his performance at Sunderland should see keen competition for the keepers jersey when the toothless one is fit again.

No changes are expected in the back four either - all did well enough to retain their places for this week and, with Spector not yet fully fit, unless Curbs opts to put Fortune in instead of Perry (to counter Roberts' pace) the foursome will remain intact.

There is a debate as to whether 4-5-1 or 4-4-2 will be employed but, whatever the formation used, the only selection change will be the replacement of Ambrose, after his daft sending off against the Mackems. Expect the mercurial Jerome Thomas to slot neatly in, with the ever-infuriating Rommedahl - Ashley Cole's tormentor in midweek - retaining his spot.

My prediction? A healthy 3-1 win to the Addicks, keeping us (somewhat irrelevantly at this stage of the season) at the top of the prem.

Gormless pillock Lawrenson predicts a 2-1 win to us. Come on you Addicks, lets get my predictions off to a flier this year by putting three past Pollitt!

Feeesh Fineeeshed

2005-08-17T22:04:00.000+01:00

News reaches me that Feeesh has decided to retire from the game due to a 'persistent knee injury'. Whilst not a loss to the club on the evidence of his performances at the arse end of last season or in his 45 minute 'run-out' (ahem) for Piswich earlier this year, he was a good servant for us for a few seasons.

Despite not having much in the way of obvious skill, no pace to speak of and the turning circle of an oil tanker, he did read the game well and put in some decent performances.

Cheers Feeesh - and good luck in whatever it is you intend to do with the rest of your life.

Bent's gain could be Smith's loss

2005-08-16T13:08:00.000+01:00

The glory of being picked to play for your country apparently continues to wane. Alan Smith (gloriously referred to by one of my former Sunday league teammates as a 'little rat piss jockey') has turned down Sven's request to replace Andy 'England Quality' Johnson, apparently preferring the slightly less prestigious honour of turning out for ManYoo reserves against Bolton.

'Benty' (as I would imagine his teammates have already imaginatively nicknamed him) may now see this as a real opportunity to stake a claim for a squad place. Despite obviously not having a hope in hell of dislodging Rooney and Owen in the starting XI, with Defoe never really performing for England; Johnson stuck in the nether regions of the fizzy pop league and seemingly having to score 40-odd goals to even get a sniff; Vassell even more wasteful than Lisbie and Crouch being, well, just shit really, Bent might well harbour real aspirations of gaining a surprise squad place for the World Cup.

Of course, for these aims to become a reality, he has to continue to perform well for us and score more than the customary eight goals a season our regular top scorers get. Being a quarter of the way towards that target after one game is a pretty good start!

A good start to the season (for once)

2005-08-14T00:52:00.000+01:00

Sunderland 1 CAFC 3

Two months of endless tedium on Saturday afternoons has finished. No more trudging round DIY stores, painting garden fences or wallpapering the spare room. Even with the now ridiculously short summer break it still feels like six months since we saw any meaningful footie.

Finally, with the interminable ennui of pre-season friendlies dispensed with, it was back down to the real business of the Premiership today.

For once, we managed to avoid our traditional crap start to the campaign - we might have won the odd opener in previous seasons but we certainly can't have played as well and coherently as we did today, outclassing a Sunderland side who were determined and hard-working, but clearly lacking in quality and ability.

There would probably have been more than a few moans from the travelling faithful brave enough to risk the 6 hour jolly up the A1, the altogether more risky roll of the dice that is GNER or the lottery of a flight from Heathrow with 'the World's favourite outsourcer of catering' when it was announced that we would be starting this year with last season's much-loved 4-5-1, but the manner of this performance (far more comprehensive than the final scoreline suggests) shows that it is certainly possible to play attractive, attacking football, provided you are prepared to employ the formation with a decent holding midfielder and two attacking wingers.

Deano's injury forced Curbishley to start with the promising Andersen in goal, and the absence of El Kak led to another enforced change at the back, with Perry deputising alongside HH. Young slotted in at right back as usual, and it was a most welcome return for Chrissy Powell at left back (quite why Wet Spam wouldn't give him another contract is baffling). Kish was in his usual spoiling role in the middle, allowing Murphy and Smertin to act as a pair in midfield, with Rommedahl on the right and Ambrose on the left - leaving new boy Bent up front on his Todd.

Sunderland lined up in a traditional 4-4-2 - rumoured Charlton summer target Stead up front with Andy Gray - signed earlier in the week from Sheffield Utd.

From the outset we took charge of the match and had numerous decent forays into Sunderland's half without creating any clear cut chances to speak of. Murphy and Smertin quickly throttled the life out of the midfield and used the width offered by the excellent Ambrose and the (less-excellent-but-not-as-crap-as-last-year) Rommedahl intelligently. The first goal arrived on 10 minutes - Murphy got a good foot in in midfield, Ambrose flicked the ball through intelligently for Bent who had timed his run perfectly. Drawing Davis from the Mackem's goal, Bent checked back, waited for him to go down and, with the rest of the Sunderland defence seemingly haven given it up as a lost cause earlier on, had time to pick his spot and thump the ball home.

The next fifteen minutes should have seen us bury Sunderland completely, as they proceeded to stand off Smertin and Murphy in midfield, allowing the duo time and space to pick them apart. Straight after the goal, Rommedahl put a superb ball into the six-yard box but Murphy headed over when it seemed easier to score, Murphy turned to Mackems inside out in his own half then strode forward, sliding a lovely through ball for Bent who scuffed his shot at Davis, and Murphy's short corner was crashed against the bar from 20 yards by the impressive Smertin (via the fingertips of Davis).

Just before Smertin's effort, the Mackems had finally threatened when HH was harshly adjudged to have fouled the robust Gray - despite an obvious shove in the back by Hreidarsson, Gray seemed to be attempting to swap shirts with his marker a little early, having a handful of Joma cloth in his hand. Still, the niggly, pernickety Webb gave the free kick and Whitehead drove it low towards the goal - Andersen getting down well to smother the effort.

It must have seemed like last season all over again to the travelling faithful when Sunderland equalised - excellent work from tricky winger Welsh saw him check back and slide a good ball across the box, Whitehead's effort was somehow beaten out by a fantastic save from Andersen but Gray was on hand to crash the rebound home. Scarcely able to believe their luck, Sunderland were nevertheless unable to capitalise on what would prove to be the only period of the game when they were on top and the half ended all square.

Curbishley can't have been too pleased to have gone in level after dominating the half, and it is distinctly possible he exhorted the Addicks to press more when attempting to win the ball back. However, he surely didn't envisage Ambrose attempting to sever the unfortunately-visaged Stephen Wright's foot from his leg within ten minutes of the restart. Webb quite rightly issued a straight red and Ambrose had spoiled what was until then a promising debut. The infuriating Rommedahl was replaced by Thomas (unlucky to have been left out in the first place) but it made little difference to the pattern of the game - Murphy and Smertin looked a class above everything else on show and Sunderland's frankly Coca-Cola calibre midfield had no answer to them.

Ten minutes after going down to ten men, the Stadium of Light was stunned into silence. Bent made a surge towards the Sunderland box and was crudely upended by Wright. Murphy put the ball down and curled an absolute beauty past Davis, rooted to the spot as the ball nestled in the net. Any fight remaining in Sunderland went out of them, as despite much huffing and puffing they managed very few meaningful efforts in the 25 minutes remaining - Arca's ball across the box the only notable exception.

The Mackems' misery was complete when, deep into injury time, Hughes humped the ball forward and Bent latched on, ran straight toward the goal and, despite Caldwell arriving late (so late it was dark by the time he got there in fact), buried an excellent shot across Davis' body and into the far corner.

Game over then - and a super start to the season for the new-look Addicks.

MATCH RATINGS

Sunderland

Davis - 5 - Couple of good saves, but at fault for Bent's opener and in no-man's land for Murphy's free-kick
Wright - 6 - Good tussle with Ambrose, suffered a poor tackle and tired late on as Thomas bamboozled him on a couple of occasions
Arca - 5 - Disappointing - probably the one player in Sunderland's side who could be considered real premiership-class but showed very little today
Caldwell - 4 - Slow - they've got problems if he's a first choice centre half
Breen - 5 - Reads the game well but, if anything, even slower than Caldwell
Whitehead - 5 - Average - a Championship player
Miller - 5 - See Whitehead above
Robinson - 4 - Unimpressive
Welsh - 7 - Sunderland's best player - inventive, tricky and pacy. One to watch
Gray - 6 - 'ustle & bustle - all action but little guile
Stead - 6 - Worked very hard and holds play up well

Subs

Lawrence - 5 - Did OK without really threatening
Nosworthy - 4 - Good cross after coming on but outpaced by Thomas and showed a generally poor touch
Elliott - 4 - Missed a sitter late on, failing to get a meaningful touch on Arca's ball across the six-yard box

CAFC

Andersen - 7 - Good performance, commands his area well and excellent distribution. Fantastic save from point-blank range in the first half deserved better than seeing the rebound fall at Gray's feet
Young - 6 - Steady, if unspectacular
Powell - 7 - Seemed like he'd never been away. Consistent, thoughtful and intelligent play throughout
Perry - 6 - Steady
HH - 7 - A mountain at the back - seemed to relish his battle with the agricultural Gray
Rommedahl - 5 - AAAARGHHH!!!! - Just like last season - inconsistent and infuriating. Out of patience with him.
Ambrose - 5 - Blotted his copybook with a piss-poor tackle on Wright. Up until then a good performance and an excellent ball for Bent's opener
Kishishev - 6 - Broke play up well, but still hopeless at passing any further than ten yards
Smertin - 8 - Absolute class. Didn't put a foot wrong all game, some superb through balls, unlucky not to score with a fantastic effort that crashed off the bar and his skill in the corner which left two Mackems on their arses was a joy to behold.
Murphy - 9 - Man Of The Match, slightly outdoing Smertin on workrate and his goal. Totally bossed the game from start to finish - his best performance in a Charlton shirt.
Bent - 9 - Two goals on debut, away from home and an all-action performance. Did miss an easy chance in the first half though...

Subs

Thomas - 7 - Shouldn't have been left out. Must start the next game, if only for the joy of watching him baffle the shit out of another championship fullback
Hughes - 5 - Odd substitution, replacing Smertin when we might have been considered to be under the cosh somewhat but did get an assist by humping the ball forward for Bent's second

Ref

Webb - 7 - Often fussy and demonstrative, but Webb was pretty good today

MOM - Bottle of warm Tizer for Danny Murphy - a superb performance capped by the most sublime free-kick you're likely to see all season.

Quote Of The Day
"We are nowhere near the stage where we can simply turn up for football matches and expect to win"
Colin 'No shit, Sherlock' Lee, as Millwall crash to defeat at Stoke - leaving the Spanners rooted to the foot of the fizzy-pop league

I'm back...

2005-03-19T00:14:00.000Z

boing fucking boing

...but God knows for how long. Hopefully, now that I have (ahem) 'delegated some responsibilities' at work I'll be able to sit around all day on that t'internet again, spouting CAFC-related drivel.

Fresh from our sound beating of the yiiiiidaaaaaarmy (TM Spuds fans everywhere) we take on possibly the single most boring team ever to 'grace' the Premiership, West Brom. Since taking the sound management decision to sack possibly their finest manager since the 70s, replacing him with a mirthless, disingenuous twat with all the tactical acumen of a brick in a bag, it would be safe to say that the Baggies have not turned their fortunes around in the manner the board would wish. Indeed, despite the relative merit of holding the West London Branch of the United Nations to only a 1-0 victory on Tuesday, the Baggies were desperately poor on the night and, but for the profligate finishing of Drogba, would have been soundly walloped.

This is exactly the sort of fixture that, in years gone by, we would tank. I've lost count of the number of times we've beaten a decent team only to follow it up with a shite performance against a lesser side. This year promises to be different though. Our 4-5-1 formation (subject of much lively discussion on the Netaddicks forum), whilst not the most entertaining to watch, has certainly paid dividends in terms of results since we brought it in. Murphy has been outstanding as our midfield general in recent months, culminating in a magnificent display against Spuds, where he bossed the game from start to finish. With the spoiler role being played admirably by Konchesky in Keeesh's absence, the back four superb and Jerome Thomas looking like he is over a slight mid-season slump, the only two question marks would seem to be over Bartlett and the enigma-wrapped-in-a-riddle-inside-a-mystery that is Dennis 'ladyboy' Rommedahl.

Whilst the argument about Bartlett seemingly has no end to it, it is patently obvious to anyone with half a brain that we have no other striker who can fulfil the lone man role like Bart. We have tried before to replace him in a 4-5-1 with pretty shabby results (Wingnut and Euell have both looked desperately poor ploughing the lone furrow) so, like it or not, we appear to be stuck with him. Personally, whilst we're on a pretty good run, I can't see what changing things round would do anyway and besides, as Curbishley recently pointed out, our flair players are Thomas and Murphy. Quite rightly, any team that plays 4-5-1 needs decent, creative midfielders (Murphy) and atacking, inventive wide men (Thomas...) ... Which brings me on to Rommedahl.

I have almost run out of patience with Dennis. He will, of course, forever be a legend due to his one-man demoralisation job against Palarse earlier in the season at Smellhurst. However, aside from that goal, an outstanding 45 minutes against the Geordies and a few ten minute spells here and there, he just has not produced for us. Of all people in the side, Rommedahl has the least excuse when he is performing poorly. He is a wide player for fuck's sake, playing in a formation which is suited to players attacking from the flanks. His short passing is frankly, at times, piss-poor, and it isn't hard to see that he came to football late - often he appears completely lost in games. Whilst I won't get on his back about his utter inability to tackle (Santa got away with it for us for years), his workrate doesn't seem to be the best and he doesn't seem to have the skill to beat a man via any method other than pace. Add to this a crossing ability that rivals Newts and Tony Daley for inconsistency and it all mounts up against him.

This sort of game (at home, after a good win, against a poor side) should be tailor-made for Rommedahl. If I was Curbishley, I'd give him 90 minutes against them and, if he doesn't perform, drop him like a fuckin' stone for a month.

Interestingly, the Netaddicks board has been the focus of an invasion by the Baggies Warrior (keyboard division) Regiment in the past three days. God knows why, but I've never seen away fans giving it so large on there. Sadly for them, I fear their pre-match optimism is not justified. Prediction: 3-0 to CAFC - putting us temporarily into 5th place

Bewildered cretin Lawrenson reckons we're on for a 2-0 win. Last time out (many, many moons ago) I beat him, levelling the score at 2-2. Lets see if we can get three. Come on you Addicks!

Fortress Goodison

2005-01-22T08:55:00.000Z

"Gimme back my hubcaps!"

The Addicks travel north to face Everton today, for what seems, on paper, a daunting prospect to say the least. The Toffees will be looking for a sixth win in succession at Goodison Park - and have a record at home that is equal to any team in the country.

However, Curbs' side can take heart from the fact that in the reverse fixture (played not even a month ago), the Addicks finished on top - albeit with a little assistance from Duncan Disorderly. It will be interesting to see whether Moyes starts with 'Big Dunc', or whether his penchant for putting the heed (or elbow, or knee, or foot) on people necessitates another session picking splinters out of his arse riding the bench. Whatever the decision, Everton have clearly been weakened by the sale of their best player, with Thomas Gravesen departing for the sunnier climes of the Bernabeu. Gravesen has been outstanding for Everton all season, and his departure may well have the same effect as losing Spotty Porker had on us at around the same time last year.

Their big signing, James Beattie, has apparently resulted in a sharp increase in the number of replica shirts sold in the past month, although judging by his form at Southampton in the past six months it will be difficult for the club shop staff to fit 'Useless Lazy Fat Sack Of Shit' on the back of them. The Addicks were rumoured to be in the market for him at various points, but Murray and Varney were apparently put off by the thought of spending close to 6 million quid on a tub of lard.

But, I digress. Curbishley is likely to change the side this afternoon - Rommedahl had an absolute stinker against Brum last week and, with Konchesky impressing immensely in his last few substitute outings, he may well get his chance from the start. However, a word of caution for the travelling Addicks: The words 'Feeesh' and 'Pushing For A Recall' are currently being bandied about in the same sentence. This alone should be enough to temper any optimism and I predict a dire 0-0 draw.

Gormless Pillock Lawrenson matched my prediction last week, which still leaves him one up on me. Today he predicts a 2-1 victory for the Merseysiders. We'll see Lawro, we'll see...

Murphy's Law

2005-01-17T01:18:00.000Z

OK, Ok, I know.

In the past two games my predictions have been woefully inadequate. Last week I prophesied that we would struggle against, and eventually be defeated by, the mighty Rochdale. This week I foresaw a close-run thing against Birmingham. In reality, neither could have been further from the truth. Today's match was as much of a no-contest as the handsome win in the cup last week. Make no mistake about it, other than the constant menace of Email Heskey in the air, Brum were nothing short of inadequate against a Charlton side seemingly brimming with confidence, with Danny Murphy positively revelling in the absence of Wales' favourite son, Robbie Savage.

Indeed, despite a paucity of chances at either end, had we managed to turn our superiority into the number of goals more befitting our performance this could have been a cricket score.

The Brummies opened proceedings with a chorus of 'Robbie Savage - what a wanker', heartily endorsed by the Addicks faithful - ranks swelled somewhat by the ScallyBusters. Must be nice for them to be able to go back to hating the overrated prick as much as the rest of the world.

The first few minutes went by with scant incident, save for Thomas' usual trickery down the left. In the tenth minute we were somewhat fortuitously awarded a free kick, which El Kak floated into the box. Bizarrely, Upson left it for Taylor, Taylor left it for Upson and it nestled in the far corner. EL Kak is making a habit of scoring from ridiculous distances, but surely he can't have expected to net from almost the halfway line. This was borne out by his rather sheepish celebration. You can't help but long for Johnny Robinson in situations like that when it comes to celebrations - he would have probably still been running now.

Murphy, absolutely outstanding all game, made a superb run back, interception and forward foray, slipping the ball neatly to Thomas, but nothing came of it as Rommedahl gave the ball away (not for the last time). A super flowing move down the left involving Thomas, Murphy and Hughes saw the former Brum man loft the ball into the box, but Bartlett was unable to make contact.

Rommedahl hit a half volley well wide when he had time and space to bring it down, and Birmingham began to get a little bit more of a foothold in the game. Clinton O'Morrison and El Kak tangled on the edge of the box and the fussy, prissy Mr Foy awarded a dubious free kick to the Blues. Anderton's free kick bounced off the wall and fell to Clemence, who lofted it goalward, only for Bartlett to head off the line.

After the break, Brum came out stronger and got an equaliser, Melchiot powering home a header after leaving Hughes standing. Curbs obviously didn't like what he saw and the ineffective Rommedahl was replaced by Wingnut, with a switch to 4-4-2. Jeffers' introduction, together with the formation change, seemed to totally unhinge the Blues, as within three minutes we were back in front. Murphy played an excellent through ball to Jeffers, who fired the ball across the box for the waiting Bartlett to tap in from a yard out.

Continuing Birmingham's new found membership of the Keystone Cops APpreication Society was Tebily. Useless all afternoon, he somehow contrived to blast a half volley inches wide of his own post under no pressure at all. Five minutes later it was 3-1 and game over with the move of the match. Thomas flicked the ball past their full back, played a good pass to Jeffers, who smuggled it perfectly into the path of Murphy. Travelling into the Birmingham box, he waited for Taylor to commit himself before slipping the ball casually into the far corner.

All in all, a comfortable win. What made it more pleasing was the effect the change to 4-4-2 had on the team. Hopefully, with the team now starting to gel well together, we can stick with the 4-5-1 away from home, and revert to the more pleasing 4-4-2 at the Valley.

Ratings:

CAFC

Deano - 7 - Excellent distribution, made a good save early on
HH - 7 - Commanding at the back, dangerous going forward
Fortune - 6 - Steadier than of late, but didn;t win a single header against Email
El Kak - 8 - Scored a bizarre opener and almost bulleted in a second but Taylor prevented it. Immense as usual at the back
Young - 8 - Excellent, as he has been all season. Most improved player of the year
Holland - 7 - Didn't put a foot wrong - apart from giving the ball away in a dangerous position once at the start of the match
Rommedahl - 5 - Ineffective and withdrawn for Wingnut. The one disappointment of the day
Thomas - 7 - Superb trickery, and is still showing a willingness to do the dirty work as well
Hughes - 6 - Some nice touches, but never likely to repeat his performance from the week before. Ladies & Gents, we may well have found the new Morts
Murphy - 9 - Best performance by a Charlton player this season. Absolutely superb all game and, on this form, might be pushing for his England place back
Bartlett - 8 - Never stopped running and, for once, finished well from his best chance. ALso made a vital clearance from Clemence's shot in the first half

Subs:

Wingnut - 8 - What a contribution coming off the bench! Instrumental in both second half goals
Konchesky - 7 - After Rommedahl's poor performance it might be time to give him a run out from the start. Bags of energy and commitment
Kish - 6 - Did a job steadying the ship

Brum

Taylor - 5 - Great save from El Kak's bullet header but will relive the opener in his nightmares again and again. Even more so when an aging Ally McCoist and co take the piss on Question Of Sport in ten years' time
Melchiot - 6 - Superb header and looked assured at the back
Tebily - 4 - Two bob. Consistently unable to find a blue shirt with his passes and almost scored the best own goal in the history of the game.
Upson - 4 - A poor game. At fault for the opener, short of pace and should have been sent off for two tackles in the space of a minute in the first half
Cunningham - 6 - Decent game from a reliable pro
Carter - 5 - Showed energy and determination, but has no pace to speak of and little guile. A first division player
Clemence - 5 - Almost invisible for the majority of the game, but unlucky not to score in the first half
Anderton - Cultured skills, but never was the quickest and much of the game passed him by
O'Morrison - 5 - Ex-Palace toerag had a reasonable game, but never looked like scoring
Johnson - 5 - Ran about a lot but did sod all else
Heskey - 8 - Immense in the air all game. Titanic struggle with El Kak, but pissed all over Fortune all game long. Birmingham's best player by a considerable distance

Subs:

Gray - 6 - Another Palarse old boy who got a warm Valley welcome. Showed lots of skill when he came on and almost created a consolation when he fired across the box late on
Blake - 4 - Invisible after coming on but needs time to settle
Yorke - 3 - No such excuse, couldn't even be arsed to chase lost causes. Christ knows what his wages are, but I can't see anyone being daft enough to take him on

MOM:

No contest really. Murphy was a star all afternoon

Ref:

Foy - 5 - Had a decent game last time he reffed us, but was a pain in the arse today. Also, should have sent Upson off after he enacted a Mortal Kombat finisher on Thomas in the first half, just seconds after beeing booked

Quote Of The Day

"It's disappointing, because I think we'd done enough to win the game"
Steve 'shit in my eyes' Bruce

2005-01-14T23:16:00.000Z

Robbie's Geography Lesson

Addicks ready to Savage Brum?

2005-01-14T22:38:00.000Z

Aaah, the return of crap puns in headlines. Must mean a preview of this weekend's encounter. With the joys of not crashing out of the cup at the earliest opportunity put firmly behind us, we take on the Zulu Army in a less than mouthwatering clashe at the Valley on Saturday desperately seeking to avoid falling into our now-traditional post-Christmas rut. Three points against our exotically-accented chums from the Midlands would do nicely if we are to steer clear of the (almost) inevitable slump.

Without being too optimistic, now seems as good a time as any to be facing Birmingham as, despite their recent remarkable upturn in fortunes, they are unlikely to have the (ahem) 'unsettled' Robbie Savage in thei lineup. The ramifications of Goldilocks' proposed move to Blackburn notwithstanding, there is no doubt that Birmingham are a much stronger proposition with him in the team rather than skulking on the sidelines dodging abuse hurled at him by the Brum's vociferous following.

Hopefully we can let Robbie's peculiar grasp of the geography of these fair isles work to our advantage and nick a win from what will undoubtedly be a close, tedious encounter. Unlikely to make many changes from the recently successful league team, Curbs' only real issue seems whether to persist with Wingnut up front. He may surprise us and keep Hughes in the side at the expense of Rommedahl, but I can't see this happening as Dennis was beginning to run into a decent vein of form prior to being rested for the cup game.

As for Brum, who knows, or cares?

My prediction: A closely fought 2-1 victory for the Addicks!

This week, gormless pillock Lawrenson predicts a 2-0 win for us. Lets see if I can catch him up (last week, Lawro's predicition that we would be 'comfortable' trounced my nervous fear of a 2-1 defeat)

Banana Skin successfully avoided

2005-01-09T17:10:00.000Z

Well, this scribe was certainly wrong! Following my prediction that Rochdale would win and continue our pathetic cup record of recent years I am certainly glad to be proved inaccurate - even if the 4-1 eventual scoreline was somewhat flattering there is no doubt we deserved to win and finally showed our class against lower-division opposition in the cup.

In all honesty, we didn't start particularly well, and it was only Rochdale's inability to create clear cut chances that prevented us from having a truly sticky patch at the outset. Ten minutes or so into the game, however, we began to dominate proceedings. Thomas, surprisingly given the opportunity to continue his excellent form in the cup instead of having an anticipated (and much needed) rest, tormented his fullback - setting the tone for the rest of the match - put a fine ball into the Dale area which the keeper did well to save. The excellent Bryan Hughes then played a decent ball into Jeffers, whose single-midedness led to a corner - subsequently wasted by Thomas.

The breakthrough came on 20 minutes - Jeffers slid the ball across goal for Hughes, who smuggled the ball into the net for 1-0. Tait then put a good chance wide with his bonce for Dale and Deano made a good rushing clearance as Bertos bore down on him. At this point, it seemed as likely that Dale would get an equaliser as we would grab a second, but shortly before half-time their fightback prospects took a big dent with our second. Holland took a corner, JJ stooped to flick on and Fortune volleyed gratefully into the net from close range.

Shortly after half-time, memories of Dagenham & Redbridge, Walsall and countless others came flooding back, as El Kak made a terrible hash of a long ball, allowing Grant Holt to run through and slot the ball neatly past Deano to halve the deficit. Happilly, unlike previous cup ties, instead of capitulating at this point we took the game firmly by the scruff of the neck and killed it with two goals inside five minutes. First Thomas skinned his marker again with a quick turn and floated a wonderful ball into the box for Hughes to loop a header over the hapless Gilks, then Murphy, scorer of an equally bonkers freekick when playing for Crewe at the Valley some years ago, put a free kick into the box from wide out on the left which eluded everyone and bounced into the far corner for 4-1.

Game over, we settled down and were reasonably comfortable in the last 20 minutes - a few chances came and went for either side, with Deano notably making a good save from a Dale set piece and another from a corner, whilst at the other end Jeffers had a great chance to slot Thomas in for a tap-in but the greedy get took the shot on himself. Feeesh returned from injury to rapturous applause from the Valley faithful - then showed us how much of a liability he can be at times by making a stupid tackle in the area which could easily have led to a pen.

The game ended with Dale looking for a consolation, but we held reasonably firm and can be pretty pleased with the result - not just because we are through without incident, but also with the manner of the performance.

Of course, all thoughts of a decent cup run may be immediately squashed come the draw tomorrow lunchtime. Lets hope for a nice easy draw at home again!

Ratings:

CAFC

Deano - 7 - Called into action on numerous ocasions and equal to the task with the exception fo the goal, where he was left in no mans land by El Kak's error
Young - 7 - Marauding forward to good effect and never troubled at the back
HH - 5 - Quiet
El Kak - 6 - Comedy error, reminscent of El Calamity at his worst, but other than that very solid again
Fortune - 6 - Took his opportunity to score well but still looked unsettled by the Dale frontline. Injured at the end and replaced by Feeesh
Thomas - 8 - Skinned his marker all day long. People will no doubt moan about the showboating, but players are paid to entertain, and it sure was funny to watch the poor sod from Rochdale's legs turn to spaghetti. Excellent cross for Hughes' second
Hughes - 8 - Man Of The Match on his return to first team action. Good showing, lively and inventive. Can't see him retaining his place next weekend though
Euell - 5 - Unimpressive - but apparently picked up a nasty toe injury early on. Badly, badly lacking in confidence
JJ - 5 - Anonymous for most of the game, but got a good flick on for the second goal.
Holland - 6 - Quietly effective (Christ I'm getting sick of writing that.)
Wingnut - 6 - Difficult one this. Good ball across face of the goal for Hughes' first, but wasted a number of opportunites to square the ball when others were better placed - electing to shoot himself. Nice to see single-mindedness in one of our strikers - but not to the point of stupidity!

Subs:

Murphy - 7 - Introduced at half time as a replacement for the crocked Euell, showed his class and had plenty of time on the ball to carve opportunities out. Hasn't really had a bad game for us since the match at Old Trafford
Konchesky - 6 - Really starting to impress with his energy and determination in his recent cameo appearances. Might be time to give him a start or two
Feeesh - 6 - Showed us how effective he can be with some good clearances after replacing Fortune. Unfortunately, also showed us his less effective side (see above)

Dale

Gilks - 5 - Not a particularly good day for him - didn't play badly overall, but got his positional sense all wrong for both second half goals
Evans - 4 - Menaced at the back by Thomas, Hughes, Jeffers - anyone who got near him really
Burgess - 6 - Decent effort for Dale, but, like Goodall, unable to deal with pace
Goodall - 5 - Didn't seem able to cope with people dropping short, exposed by pace
Heald - 4 - Like Evans, had a torrid time
Bertos - 6 - Couple of good forays forward and tackled well in the middle
Clarke - 6 - Nice touches - didn't let himself down
Cooksey - 5 - Not a game the local lad will want to remember - largely ineffective, although did have a downward header on target
Jones - 5 - Donkey but showed bags of heart and chased everything down
Tait - 6 - Good effort in the second half and a nice first touch
Holt - 7 - Took his goal well and was the one Dale player who looked a threat all afternoon. Not enough pace to make it in the prem, but could easily play in the Championship and do a job for someone, should Dale look to cash in

Subs:

Atieno - 5 - Lots of effort after replacing the tiring Tait
Warner - 4 - No impact of note
McGivern - 4 - Introduced late on just to give him a run out

Ref:

Beeby - 9 - Excellent performance from Mr Beeby - let the game flow, no unneccessary bookings and allowed for the enthusiasm of the Dale players before making any harsh decisions

MOM

Bottle of Cup Champers goes to Bryan Hughes, for his super display - providing exactly what was needed against lower-division opposition.

Quote Of The Day

"We afforded Rochdale every respect"
Alan 'I've learnt me lesson' Curbishley

Oh dear. Its Cup time again.

2005-01-07T01:45:00.000Z

Whatever the situation in the League, whatever the form of the team at the time it has been my experience in 30 years as a Charlton supporter that we never, never progress beyond the numpty stages of the cup. And I'm not talking about the bloody Fray Bentos Shield or whatever it was called, where we got to the final and played out the most miserable match ever seen at Wembley.

No, I'm talking about the real cup here. You know, the glorious pastings of underdogs in the early rounds, the nailbiting draws away at bigger teams, the euphoria of beating them on your patch in the replay. Except none of that seems to happen for Charlton. With the exception of the championship season when we beat Coventry (remember them?) 3-2 at their gaff en route to the quarter-finals, I cannot for the life of me remember a decent cup run. I suppose there was the year we played Ipswich (top of the league at the time) as a third division side and didn't disgrace ourselves in defeat but that was 25 years ago for God's sake!

The list of humiliations is endless - from the utter despair of losing to Walsall at Sellout in the eighties, to mind-numbingly tedious exits at the hands of the likes of Fulham, Gillingham and Walsall (again) in more recent years. It seems that we just cannot get anywhere in the cup. The FA has kindly pointed this out to us on their website.

Which is why this year I am predicting another shocking, abject performance and an early exit at third division residents (division two my arse) Rochdale. Currently treading water slap bang in the middle of the basement division, they are exactly the sort of team that has turned us over in the past.

Never mind that the combined value of their squads wouldn't cover the scoops on a decent night out up West.

Never mind the fact that, of their current playing staff, not a single one has a minute of top flight experience.

Never mind that they hold the distinction of occupying a spot in the bottom echelon of the League for almost their entire history - spending just five seasons out of div four in the early-mid seventies.

Come Saturday afternoon it will be Rochdale's name in the draw for the fourth round, not Charlton.

For what its worth, Curbishley will probably chop and change the team a little. Andersen may well be given a game in goal at the expense of Deano - if only to have a decent look at him. Thomas looked knackered in the second half against Blackburn and, facing supposedly 'lesser' opposition, I feel Curbs may start both Wingnut and Jason Euell in a 4-4-2 formation, dropping Rommedahl in order to give both wingers a rest. This will undoubtedly lead to Murphy being overrun in midefield as he is harried by players a little more agricultural than he is used to.

As for Rochdale, I honestly have absolutely no clue because I know bugger all about any of their players. Thats no disrespect to them, in fact, with almost wall to wall sodding football on Sky nowadays its a travesty that I cannot ever recall them having a live game. This only serves to highlight the inequities rife in the modern game - but I digress.

My prediction? 2-1 to the Dale.

In an exciting new twist, I am starting to compare my predictions with gormless twat Mark Lawrenson's on the BBC site. Since this week he is predicting we will be 'comfortable' against Rochdale I'm sure I'll get off to a decent start

Youngsters loan moves squelched?

2005-01-05T19:10:00.000Z

According to Rushden & Diamonds' excellent unofficial site, their manager Barry Tippett has been turned down in his quest to being three Charlton youngsters into the club on loan.

Apparently, Tippett has been tracking the three for some time and has been informed by the club that they can go on loan but has been rebuffed by the players themselves on each occasion. I'm not sure I buy this, it sounds like PR talk for 'no you can't have 'em, what would we learn about them playing at the arse end of div two?'

It would seem that there are two reasons for young players going out on loan:

1) - Character building exercise (its all well and good showing your fancy skills on the training ground but can you cut it when nasty third division centre halves kick you up in the air for Cruyff-Turning 'em)

2) - Serious gauging of skill levels in a heated and challenging environment (think Beckham at Preston or our own dear departed Spotty Porker at Norwich)

With no disrecpect to Rushden - who are currently languishing near the bottom of the league - perhaps Curbishley has decided that, whilst the attitude of the three in question does not need adjusting, he is not particularly confident that they have the ability to play at the highest level. Maybe if Dario Gradi came in with an offer it might be more favourably received. Part of a deal for Ashton perhaps?

:o)

Gills getting out of their trolleys

2005-01-05T01:56:00.000Z

Paul Scally, about to offer another pearl of wisdom.
Probably.

Whoops

Seems as though the club's plans to target Kent as a catchment area for supporters are continuing to peeve our intellectually challenged chums from the Medway Riviera. A lively discussion or two has been taking place on the Rivals messageboards in the past few hours.

Whilst it would simply be churlish to say that the Gills measure little more than a blip on the radar, their chairman is beginning to get more than a little irksome. Perhaps before he voice concerns about us nicking their potential fans, he ought to concentrate on filling up his own poxy little ground.

Historically speaking, Kent has always been the refuge of Charlton supporters. Maybe Mr Scally needs this pointed out to him.

Addicks lack Ewood spark

2005-01-04T14:29:00.000Z

Another one of those teams we never seem to do well against, I wasn't looking forward to this game with any relish, and I was proved soundly right. Many thanks to The Red Red Robin on the Netaddicks board for sorting all of us out with a stream location for the match - cheers TRRR, but I wish you hadn't bothered now!

From start to finish, against a poor Blackburn side, we never really strung any decent passing together and could have no real arguments about the result, despite Blackburn looking distinctly average themselves.

The Addicks started reasonably brightly, Thomas fashioning a couple of openings with some neat footwork, but didn't create any chances of note. Dickov had an effort well saved by Deano and Dennis teased the Blackburn fullbacks with some pacy runs, but nothing much of note happened in the first 30 mins. Deano pulled off another wonderful save from Stead after another Dickov effort was cleared off the line by Murphy.

Blackburn broke the deadlock when Thompson found Brett Emerton in acres of space at the back stick, giving the otherwise useless Australian a simple header that left Kiely with no chance. Former Valley 'hero' Todd almost scored a second in short order but his header did the neat trick of hitting the ground and bouncing over the bar.

We really should have got back on level terms before half time as Thomas' superb run and through ball saw JJ gifted a reasonably easy opportunity which he fluffed - Friedel making the save to deny him.

The second half was a dismal affair - our only real efforts of note were a fizzing effort from Keeesh which sailed over the Rovers bar and a good shout for a penalty turned down after a foul on Dennis. Again pretty impressive throughout, Dennis blotted his copybook by firing into the side netting from an acute angle when Young was better placed and that was that.

A frustrating result - tempered only by the fact that I hadn't made the grim journey north and was able to watch the proceedings unfold from the comfort of my armchair (admittedly on a screen about four inches wide). It would appear now that we are desperately in need of a striker, as JJ looks a worse bet up front on his own than Bartlett.

Pleeeeeease go get Dean Ashton!

Ratings:

CAFC

Deano - 7 - Good display, apart from one errant kick which skewed out of play. Had no chance with their goal and made two excellent saves in the first half
HH - 5 - Unable to get going really and stupidly booked. Lucky to stay on after seeming to be more interested in pursuing a vendetta against the majority of Blackburn's midfield
Young - 6 - Reasonable display again. No worries at the back but unable to enegineer any threat going forward
Fortune - 5 - Looked comfortable for most of the game, but Emerton was his man and should have been marked closer for the goal
El Kak - 6 - Not as dominant as recent performances, but solid and dependable
Holland - 5 - Utterly anonymous
Murphy - 6 - Again, not the threat he has been recently, but has a knack of making goalline clearances and seemed fitter than his midfield counterparts
Keeesh - 6 - Good job spoiling again, and a cracker of an effort which almost dipped under Friedel's crossbar in the second half
Thomas - 5 - Good start, lovely skilful runs but faded badly in the second half. In hindsight should have been given a rest
Rommedahl - 7 - First MOM award for Dennis. Admittedly there wasn't much competition today but he was a constant threat and showed what real pace can do after skinning their full back a few times
JJ - 4 - At least Bartlett has a physical presence up front. JJ hasn't, and he fluffed his chance in front of goal as well.

Subs:

Euell - 4 - May as well have stayed sat on the bench in the warm
Konchesky - 6 - Again showed hunger when brought on to replace the tiring Thomas
Hughes - 6 - Late introduction almost paid dividends as a surging run into the box nearly created an equaliser. Even more lightweight than Rommedahl though

Rovers

Friedel - 6 - Good stop from JJ in the first half. Frustratingly given little else to do
Neill - 5 - Two-bob ex spanner
Matteo - 6 - Solid
Todd - 6 - Solid
Emerton - 5 - Useless otherwise, but scored their goal
Johansson - 5 - Neat and tidy, but hopelessly exposed by any pace
Flitcroft - 4 - Anonymous
Thompson - 7 - Lively and inventive. Has an aggressive streak in him as well. Excellent cross for Emerton's goal
Dickov - 6 - Pest. Not as irksome as usual but enough of an annoyance to unsettle Fortune
Stead - 7 - Lively, energetic and created some good chances. Unfortunately, on today's showing, he seems unable to finish a nice steak dinner

Subs:

Gallagher - 4 - Introduced too late to make any impact
Reid - 4 - Timewasting sub by Hughes, introduced in the last minute

Ref:

Wiley - 6 - Reasonable all-round performance, but booked Rommedahl for sod all and should have awarded us a pen in the second half

MOM:

A mug of ale to Dennis the Menace following another good showing. Granted there wasn't much end product, but he showed tantalising glimpses of what he can bring to our side

Quote Of The Day

"Perhaps I should have made changes and I regret not doing it but I've done it now and I can't look back."
Alan 'Degree in Statin' The Bleedin' Obvious' Curbishley

Arseholes!

2005-01-02T01:30:00.000Z

Surprise surprise, our excellent recent run came to a crushing, shuddering halt today at the hands of the Woolwich Rejects. London's most fashionable club - still seemingly having difficulty recruiting supporters able to muster anything above a low murmur in support of their undoubtedly superb side - did an old fashioned number on us today, for despite the scoreline we were undoubtedly the better side in the first half.

Perhaps mindful of previous games against the Arse where we have often been panelled in the first ten minutes, we came out today meaning business, Rommedahl taking advantage of some generous defending to fizz a shot at Almunia which the cosmetically challenged Spaniard did well to save. Following an Henry effort, we took a stranglehold on the game and Bartlett (yet again) and Murphy had chances before Fortune fluffed the best. Another excellent effort from Rommedahl should have seen Fortune convert but his effort was poor.

Inevitably, following a period where we dominated the game, Arse took the lead. Slick passing down the flank from van Persie and Vieira saw the ball smuggled inside to Ljungberg, who crashed the ball home. Credit to us though, we kept at it, and continued pressuring, with Rommedahl and Murphy both showing flashes of class. It seemed that we would go in one down at the half, until the otherwise fussy, demonstrative Mr Halsey awarded us a free-kick smack in the centre of the park, 35 yards from goal. After a lot of pissing about trying to get the ArseWall to move back the requisite 10 yards, eventually Halsey let the kick be taken. Holland tapped it to the side for the onrushing El Kak - who promptly buried an absolute howitzer past Almunia's outstretched hand.

1-1 at the break and optimism for the second half quickly turned to 1-2 and resignation however, as before the second half was five minutes old we were behind again. This time it was Fabregas who provided the spark for the Arse, a good ball from van Persie was followed by a superb backhell from the mercurial youngster. Ljungberg still had a lot to do to convert the chance. That he did owes as much to Kiely's inability to stop his effort as it did to the power of the strike.

We continued pressing forward, but without the fluency of the first half performance and it was little surprise when the Arse sealed the win with a third. The manner of the goal, however, will have pissed Curbishley off, as a hopeful punt upfield from Almunia was allowed to bounce, before being horribly turned into the path of the impressive van Persie by Fortune. The Dutchman controlled with one touch before burying an excellent finish across Kiely's body and into the far corner.

The game petered out into a dull affair, enlivened only by the gasps of horror from the Highbury Library as Campbell twisted an ankle after falling awkwardly. Early indications are, apparently, that Campbell will only be out for a couple of weeks - so Arsenal might yet be able to cling on closely enough to Chelsea's coattails to sustaing a meaningful challenge for the title.

For us, however, this result indicates that talk of once again challenging for a European spot would appear to have been premature. We can take comfort in the fact that Arsenal only really managed to create four or five decent chances all game, a total we easily exceeded, but this just highlights our need for a decent finisher. Perhaps Curbishley will step up rumoured interest in Dean Ashton or Darren Bent during the next couple of weeks. Of the two, it seems Ashton would be a better bet as he seems more suited to playing the lone striker role.

Anyways, a trip to Blackburn awaits on Monday - I reckon we'll keep it tight with 4-5-1, frustrate 'em and nick a 1-0 win.

Ratings:

CAFC

Deano - 5 - Culpable for the Arse's second goal, and didn't really have much else to do to be honest. Kicking was crap again. Might be time for a change
Young - 6 - Decent game again, hasn't really put in a bad performance all season
HH - 6 - Unable to maraud forward as he has of late, but not really culpable for any of the Arse's goals. Strong in the challenge
Fortune - 5 - Poor. He definitely needs dropping when Perry is fit. Froze on a couple of occasions when confronted by Ljungberg running at him and directly responsible for the third goal
El Kak - 7 - Immense at the back again and what a free kick!
Kish - 6 - OK, covered every blade of grass as usual and shackled Vieira reasonably well
Murphy - 7 - Another strong performance. Cannot be blamed for any of Arsenal's goals and showed a nice touch and a willingness to get stuck in.
Holland - 5 - Average performance today, not his usual efficient self.
Rommedahl - 7 - Easily his best performance for us yet. Menaced Cole all day, put some telling balls into the box and was unlucky not to score with a couple of great first half efforts. No doubt people will moan at his reluctance to tackle, but that is neither his forte or his job. Santa got away with it for three years fer gawd's sake!
Thomas - 5 - The lad looked tired today - might be time to give him a rest against Blackburn
Bartlett - 6 - Gets a six by virtue of his strength in the air. It can't be easy playing against Campbell, but Bart won more than his fair share of headers in the first half. Cleared off the line from Henry's free kick. Should have scored (again) though.

Subs:

Euell - 6 - Bustling performance after replacing Kish, but never really threatened
Konchesky - 6 - Again impressive after coming on, as against Everton. Didn't have the same impact today but looks to have knuckled down and started fighting for his place in the side
JJ - 6 - Nice to see him back, and he gave us a fresh pair of legs when he came on but introduced too late to change the result

Arse

Almunia - 6 - Jim Tavare with hair. Ugly fecker, but seems to have settled in a bit better for them now. No better (or worse) than Lehmann.
Cole - 5 - Run ragged at times by Rommedahl. Booked for a WWF move on him in the second half
Hoyte - 6 - Calm and assured. Looks a reasonable prospect
Toure - 7 - Looks like a cab driver but doesn't play like one. Very impressive, as was...
Campbell - 7 - A rock at the back for them. Good tussle with Bartlett in the first half, mopped up well when Toure couldn't spoil initially
Clichy - 6 - Can look as good a player as Cole on his day, but not great today. Did OK, but didn't spend enough time in our box to be a real threat
Fabregas - 6 - Some nice touches and gets about a bit. As useless as Rommedahl in the tackle, but a lovely backheel to set up the second
Ljungberg - 7 - Can't argue with two goals, but in truth he really didn't contribute much else. Still, if you score twice, you don't really have to...
Vieira - 6 - Decent performance from Mr Consistent for the Arse
van Persie - 7 - Probably the pick of the Arsenal players going forward. Deft touch and a superb strike for their third
Henry - 5 - How often can you say that Henry had a poor game? Not very fucking often against us, but he was pretty crap today

Subs:

Pires - 5 - Did nothing after coming on
Senderos - 6 - We didn't pressure him enough, but made no mistakes after replacing the crocked Campbell
Pennant - 5 - Too late to make any impact of note

Ref:

Halsey - 5 - Fussy, annoying performance. A couple of decent advantages played for both sides, but showed some 'big three' bias towards the Arse in the second half.

MOM:

A flask of lukewarm tea goes to El Kak. Pushed hard by Rommedahl, his wonder strike sealed it in the end. Difficult not to give the award to a man who has hit a 35-yarder against the champions!

Quote Of The Day:

"I thought overall it was a good game. Charlton deserve a lot of credit. An average Arsenal side would not have won this game."
Arsene 'gracious in victory for the first time ever' Wenger

Half-Term report

2004-12-30T10:21:00.000Z

Well, half the season gone then and we finish 2004 in exactly the same position we finished 2003. This season appears to be a considerably more impressive feat, however, as anyboy who witnessed our start can attest. If you'd told me at the end of September that we would finish the year in the top half of the table, let alone top seven, I would have laughed.

Full credit for the remarkable turnaround in fortunes must go to Curbs, who spotted an opportunity to change our formation to suit the abilities of the team. A Staunch proponent of 4-4-2 up until this season, it became apparent that our strengths this year were going to lie in using our wingers to greater effect, and a switch to 4-5-1 in October has really made all the difference.

Everyone's opinion will obviously be different, but I reckon the marks below are a fair assessment of the players' performances thus far this season

Deano: B-
Steady if unspectacular for the most part this season. A couple of poor games earlier on in the year have been offst nicely by an improvement in recent games. Still needs to work on his distribution and I would like to see Andersen given a run out to see what he can do.

Young: B+
Steadily consistent, always reasonably dependable at the back and starting to develop into a real threat going forward

HH: B+
Probably our most consistent defender over the course of the season. Never goes missing, and must be a nightmare to play against

El Kak: B+
Started the year in midfield (when he played) but since coming in at the back has been a revelation. Looks to be a superb signing

Feesh: C-
Looked suspect before getting crocked and desperately short of pace. Big question mark when he comes back - at his best he is the best ball playing centre half at the club, but at his worst is a liability

Perry: B+
Bizarrely started the season out of the side (must have had a ruck with Curbs) but after forcing his way back in we looked a much more solid unit at the back. No coincidence our upturn in fortunes happened at the same time

Fortune: B-
Has done a solid job covering for Perry, but is not in the same class and should be dropped again when he's fit

Konchesky: C+
Not really figured enough to have earned a decent rating, but has shown enough in the last few sub appearances to suggest that he could be challenging for a starting place should HH have a dip in form

Stuart: C+
In and out of the side, but still looks hungry when he plays. Needs to be playing regularly to get the best out of him though, and, on current form, is unlikely to dislodge anyone from the middle

Kish: C+
Has begun to carve a niche for himself as the spoiling midfielder our 4-5-1 formation requires, but some hideous early season performances mean his mark is low. His mark would be a B if the season had started in October

Murphy: B
Awful start, but has been so good in recent matches that these performances alone merit a decent mark. Looks to have found his feet, and the formation we are using accommodates his talents perfectly

Holland: B-
Quietly effective as usual. Nothing spectacular, but solid and consistent. Just wish he would chuck himself about a bit more when tackling

Thomas: A-
Find of the year. Has only really had two crap games since coming in against Palarse in the cup (ManYoo and Chelsea). Dazzling skill, decent crossing ability and willingness to track back make for a superb package, and Thomas has all these qualities and more. Player of the season so far

Rommedahl: C
Frustrating as hell. Early performances were, to be brutally honest, shite. However, in the last four or five games he has started to look more of a threat and his winner against the CheeseRolls will make him a cult hero. Next two months are key to his career at CAFC

Hughes: C-
Has not done enough in his appearances to suggest he will be anything other than a squad player at the Valley

Euell: B-
Unfairly copped all the flak for our dismal early-season performances but has undoubtedly suffered a drop in form. If you believe all you read, he might be on his way out in the transfer window, but I hope not. Even if not starting, he is a useful squad member and is still a much better finisher than Bartlett

Jeffers: C+
Has not really shown his quality (apart from a superb brace against Villa) as yet, but hopefully will be given the time he needs. Our formation doesn't really suit him at present, but if we switch back to a 4-4-2 he will be an ideal foil for another striker

Bartlett: B-
Tough one this. As a striker his mark is a piss-poor D, but you can't ignore his workrate and there is undoubtedly no-one else at the club who can play up front as a lone forward. Two quality goals against the Red Sea Pedestrians show that he can finish, but he will never be prolific

JJ: B-
Performances at the start of the season were no better/worse than the whole of last year, but being shoved out to the wing really seemed to help him. Deserves a run in the team when fully fit

Lisbie: C-
Last and, on form before he was injured, definitely least. Whilst he works nearly as hard as Bartlett, if anything he is an even worse finisher. In addition, he doesn't have all the tools that Bartlett has (is crap in the air, can't tackle). Time to punt him on to a Championship side methinks

Head over heels!

2004-12-29T08:58:00.000Z

Third in the league? - you're 'avin a larf!

Yesterday's visit of Everton provided possibly the greatest indication that the quality in the Premiership is on a distinct downward slide.

Until a couple of weeks ago, Everton sat proudly in second place in the league - a massive achievement, considering Moyes only added Cahill and Bent to his squad during the summer. Remember this is the team that barely escaped relegation last season.

Today, however, they were stupendously average - posing very little threat up front but possessing a stifling midfield seemingly hell-bent on suffocating the life out of the game. Their 'safety first (and second, and third, and... etc etc) approach made for an uninspiring first half, with Murphy and Rommedahl perhaps the pick of the bunch for CAFC. Bent had a good effort for the toffees which Deano did well to tip round the post at full stretch, and Bartlett missed another sitter, heading over after a superb cross from Hermann.

Honours even at the break then, but Charlton slowly asserted themselves in the second half, with Murphy beginning to control the game more and more. Kish did a superb spoiling job in midfield, matching the excellent Gravesen, and Holland was his usual quiet, effective self. Thomas was quieter than usual and was replaced by Euell with about 20 minutes left as we looked for a breakthrough, and Konchesky replaced the ever-improving Rommedahl 10 minutes later. Kish had a howitzer well saved by Wright before the deadlock was finally broken. Murphy swung in a superb corner which was only half dealt with and Konchesky floated a beautiful ball back into the box which El Kak duly nodded downwards and into the net.

Everton were visibly deflated by this, none more so than Duncan Disorderly - only on five minutes before as a sub he threw his elbow into Hermann's mush and the excellent Riley correctly sent him for an early bath.

Seconds later another Murphy corner caused chaos in the Everton box, the ball dropping nicely for Hermann who capped a man of the match performance with a shot drilled past the hapless Hibbert at the near post. 2-0 then, and game over.

31 points at the turn of the year isn't bad at all, especially considering our pretty piss-poor start. The jury is still out on Rommedahl - who is getting better all the time but still doesn't quite have the confidence he needs, but, with the exception of Franny Jeffers and Bryan Hughes, Curbishley's other recent signings appear to be bargains. El Kak is a giant at centre-half, Thomas has been our best player since he came into the side and in the last two months, Murphy has looked superb. With the Premiership being much of a muchness below Arse, Chelsea and ManYoo, I think a European spot is definitely a possibility. Just don't mention the Cup...

Ratings:

CAFC

Deano - 8 - Didn't put a foot wrong and, as at Southampton, made an excellent save from the visitors' only effort of note
Young - 7 - Never troubled at the back and made a couple of good runs forward. Hang on, thats what I wrote against Southampton! A model of consistency
HH - 9 - Man Of The Match. Towering performance. Dealt with anything thrown at him by Bent and Ferguson, including taking a sly smack in the mooey from Duncan Disorderly. Capped it off with a sweetly taken goal to seal the win
El Kak - 8 - Close to HH for MOM, another superb performance from the Premiership's crappiest goal celebrator
Fortune - 7 - Quietly effective
Kish - 8 - Excellent. Has really found his niche in the side
Holland - 7 - Not spectacular, but didn't need to be. Ably assisted Murphy, allowing him to pull the strings in the middle
Murphy - 8 - What a difference two months makes. Totally ran the midfield today - give him time to pick a pass and he will destroy any team we face.
Thomas - 7 - Again, like at Southampton, quiet for long periods, but dazzling footwork and never goes missing when things don't quite come off for him
Rommedahl - 7 - An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, packaged in a conundrum. Tormented Pistone whenever he went past him and has obviously been told to get the ball into the box earlier, but still not showing his true potential. I'm much more optimistic about him now though.
Bartlett - 6 - Led the line tirelessly, but once again missed a sitter. We don't really have anyone at the club who can do what he does on his own though, so, unless we buy in the transfer window he'll keep his place

Subs:

Euell - 6 - Looked interested
Konchesky - 7 - Aggressive and energetic perfromance after replacing the tiring Rommedahl, and a superb ball into the box for the opener. Truly tipped the balance after coming on

Toffees

Martyn - 6 - Not troubled until being replaced shortly before half time
Hibbert - 5 - Average player, average performance. SHould perhaps have done better with Hermann's goal
Stubbs - 7 - Towering presence at the back
Weir - 7 - See Stubbs! The two form an excellent partnership and its not hard to see how they keep so many clean sheets
Pistone - 5 - Always rated him, but he was pretty ordinary today
Yobo - 6 - Spoiling job (like all Everton's midfielders really) but picked passes well early on. Faded badly in the second half though
Carsley - 6 - Average performance, strong in the tackle and extremely fit but little craft
Gravesen - 8 - Bundle of energy and hard as nails. If he hasn't signed a contract yet, go get 'im Curbs!
Kilbane - 5 - Poor
Cahill - 6 - Looks OK, appears to have made the transition from the Spanners quite well and not intimidated by Hermann
Bent - 7 - Similar task to Bartlett, ploughing a lone furrow up front. Super strike in the first half and unlucky not to score

Subs:

Wright - 5 - Did not look comfortable with any of our corners and definitely culpable for the second goal. Good save from Kish
Ferguson - 3 - Cheers Dunc! Sending off extinguished any hopes of an Everton revival
McFadden - 5 - No chance to make an impact

Ref:

Riley - 8 - WTF is going on? Four decent refs in a row!

MOM:

A bottle of Asda cola goes to Hermann at the back, for an immense performance, capped with a superbly executed drop to the deck following Big Dunc's forearm smash and a finely taken goal

Quote Of The Day:

"We did okay before they scored the first goal, and I thought it was going to be a draw"
David 'Blinkers' Moyes

Sunny Sarf Coast Stalemate

2004-12-27T23:43:00.000Z

nnnghhh....

No matter how many times I see us play S***ampton (with the possible exception of the 5-0 drubbing we handed out on our first home game back in the top flight) we never fail to unimpress.

Yesterday's game was no exception, with plenty of chances going begging, and much good toil in midfield unrewarded. Saints really looked a poor side, Harry Redknapp has a hell of a job on his hands keeping them up. Average in midfield and poor at the back, they really didn't have a single player who looked premiership class (with the possible exception of Niemi)

We started well, and should have taken the lead - the ever-impressive Murphy slotting Thomas in but the winger's finish weak and well dealt with by Niemi. A succession of corners quickly followed - from one of them Bartlett hit the bar when it looked easier to score after the rapidly imrpoving Rommedahl had knocked him in. Hermann went close with his head from a superb ball into the box and it looked only a matter of time before we would score. Sadly it proved not to be the case and, as the first half drew to a close, Southampton actually managed to put a couple of attacks together. From one of them Deano did well to save from his feet after the oxymoronically-named Crouch poked goalwards; from the other the returning Matt Oakley hit a shot from the edge of the box that eventually curled well wide.

Second half started much the same as the first - Rommedahl thumping a volley which Niemi did well to turn round the post. Totally dominating an overrun Saints midfield, Murphy and Holland provided Thomas and Rommedahl with good opportunities to run at the tiring Saints back four but we just couldn't find the breakthrough. Kish hit a decent effort which the impressive Niemi gathered comfortably down low and that was that.

Although its pleasing to see that another clean sheet was kept, this really should have been three points, which would have kept us above Spuds. As it is, we've now got two difficult fixtures on the bounce, with the Toffees and the Arse at home, and we may come to rue two points dropped, rather than one gained.

Ratings:

CAFC

Deano - 7 - Again much more consistent with his kicking - surely Day has had him working on this aspect of his game. Dealt well with the one decent Saints effort he faced
Young - 7 - Never troubled by Saints at the back and made a couple of decent runs upfield
HH - Solid as a rock, unlucky not to score with glancing header in the first half
El Kak - 8 - A rock at the heart of the defence - turning out to be one of Curbishley's best buys ever
Fortune - 7 - Dealt well with Beattie and Crouch, none of the cuddling that has seen him give away needless free kicks in the past
Kish - 6 - Quietly effective. Decent effort on target late on
Holland - 6 - Again, decent game but nothing spectacular
Murphy - 8 - Man Of The Match. Second in a row for Murph. Once again proving that class tells in the end. Pulled all the strings today, and, after a shaky start, now looks to be running the show in a five-man midfield
Thomas - 7 - A little quieter than of late, but his skill is incredible at times. What is most heartening about him is the willingness to do the nastier aspects of the game too. A gem
Rommedahl - 7 - Seems to be settling in at last - didn't put a foot wrong today, and superb pace almost got Thomas in after a break from our own box in the first half. I have a sneaking suspicion that sooner or later he is going to cut a team to bits at home - lets hope its the Arse!
Bartlett - 5 - The one disappointment. Whilst I commend the rest of what he brings to the team, striketrs are paid to score goals, and the sitter that he missed was inexcusable. Time for a change, methinks

Saints

Niemi - 8 - Superb display all round. He really does look one of the best in the league
Crainey - 6 - Not a bad display from the youngster, but would be utterly out of his depth against top five opposition
Lundekvam - 5 - Donkey
Jakobsson - 6 - Pick of the Saints back four. Didn't look flustered all day, despite being badly let down by his teammates
Telfer - 5 - See Lundekvam
Higginbotham - 5 - See Lundekvam AND Telfer!
Oakley - 6 - Deserves credit simply for playing after over a year out with injury, but looked short of match fitness
Delap - 6 - Nice touches at times and definitely has an engine. No pace though, and little guile.
Phillips - 4 - A shadow of the player he was. Needs a move desperately
Beattie - 4 - Utterly invisible. PLEASE don't waste money on this tub of lard Curbs!
Crouch - 5 - Saints' only real effort of note came from him, but looks like a bag of coat hanges falling down the stairs when he runs and couldn't trap a wet bag of cement if you dropped it on his foot

Subs:

Svensson - 5 - Average
Prutton - 6 - Put himself about when he came on and looks to have been a better bet to start in place of Telfer or Oakley
Ormerod - 6 - Lively, but see Crouch for touch and skill

Ref:

Dunn - 8 - Often a pain in the arse, but no complaints today.

MOM:

A bottle of leftover Liebfraumilch from xmas for Danny Murphy, who improves with every game. Now looks a shrewd signing after a pretty disastrous start as an Addick

Quote Of The Day:

"I told Harry not to speak because I did not want him to say too much, that is why I am doing the talking"
Jim 'saving 'Arry from an FA ban' Smith

Addicks Boxing Clever?

2004-12-24T22:27:00.000Z

Boxing Day sees us take a trip to the South Coast to take on a Southampton side desperately short on confidence, points and, seemingly, ability.

Cue a convincing away defeat then. Well, perhaps not this time. Whilst Charlton have, in recent seasons, shown an alarming propensity for doing reasonably well against the 'big boys' and the mid-table sides, we have often struggled against the lesser lights of 'The Best League In The World' (TM Sky)

This season, however, seems to be a different story. Whilst we have undoubtedly struggled against the bigger teams (Chelsea, Arse, ManYoo) we have tended to despatch most of the strugglers we have faced (Blackburn, Palarse, West Brom and, most recently, Foolham). I'm hoping that Boxing Day brings more of the same. Despite bringing in the 'Arry and Jim show to replace the hopelessly out of his depth Steve Wigley, Southampton appear to be so lacking in talent, so bereft of attacking prowess, so devoid of any steel at the back that they should be ripe for the picking. Indeed, football's most charismatic, likeable wheeler & dealer must be wondering what he has let himself in for after watching his hapless back four concede two late goals against Boro and ship five at Spuds last week.

Truth be told, the Saints have suffered more than most with injuries this season, with Michael Svensson and Matt Oakley not having played all year, former Addick triallist Antti Niemi suffering an injury which kept him out earlier in the year, and the enigmatic tub o' lard that is James Beattie either injured or, seemingly, just bone idle.

However, when Peter Crouch is your best player on show (as in last weekend's traumatic pasting at Shite Hart Lane) there are clearly problems.

We would appear to be well-positioned to exploit the inadequacies of the Saints defence, with Rommedahl and Thomas providing Murphy with plenty of options out wide and supporting Bartlett as the lone striker. We are also looking a lot more solid at the back ourselves at present, with Jon Fortune seemingly growing in confidence with every game he plays alongside El Kak - the partnership seems reminiscent of the one which developed when playing with Costa and Luke Young and Hermann as reliable as ever.

Bring 'em on!

My foolhardy prediction: 2-0 to the mighty Addicks!

Osei injury nightmare

2004-12-23T22:25:00.000Z

Young professional and England Under-20 international Osei Sankofa has unfortunately suffered a major setback in his embryonic career.

He ruptured the Patellar Tendon in his knee after catching his studs in the turf at Barnet's Underhill stadium playing for the Reserves on Tuesday. By all accounts, this is the same injury that put Ronaldo out early on his career. If Osei makes as successful a recovery as the Fat Nosferatu, we'll all be happy for the Lad. By all accounts, he is a genuine guy and the club have high hopes for him. We here at Bonfire Towers wish him a speedy recovery.

My heart bleeds...

2004-12-23T08:11:00.000Z

Spotty Porker's career has taken another nosedive, with the news that he has broken his foot and faces at least two months on the sidelines. Some might argue that he has already spent twice that long on the sidelines this season but, I digress.

Plenty of fans seem to be willing to offer Scotty the olive branch in the forlorn hope that he would take a massive cut in wages and return to the Valley with his tail between his legs.

Me? personally I couldn't give a toss about him. He's no longer a CAFC player, will never be a CAFC player again and treated the club disgracefully. Fair enough, the argument could be made that we cashed in on him, but the simple fact of the matter is that the club's hand was forced - we simply do not have the economic security of allowing our best asset to rot in the reserves.

The Times has a decent article on Parker, sympathetic in tone, highlighting the harsh realities of life at Chelsea (40k a week for sitting on your arse). It should serve as a salutory lesson to young players everywhere.

A Winter's Stroll

2004-12-21T08:40:00.000Z

Jerome Thomas was again the inspiration for a Charlton side seemingly intent on banishing their earlier season woes, as we ran out comfortable winners against a Foolham side looking devoid of any inspiration.

Don't let the scoreline fool you, but for some sloppy defending that allowed Radzinski to nip in with a consolation, Foolham never threatened at all, and were lucky the score ended up respectable. Indeed, had Murph and El Kak not both hit the woodwork, and either Jeffers or Euell managed to convert what would have amounted to a tap-in in the last five minutes, we could have thumped them.

The first twenty minutes were a scrappy affair - neither team looking able to string any sort of coherent passing together. Gradually we managed to get a foothold and it was no surprise that we took the lead - although the identity of the provider was something of a shock. Not noted for his crossing abilities, Shaun Bartlett managed to curl an absolute beauty over the six yard box which, literally, dropped right on Jerome Thomas' foot. The ink still fresh on his new contract, Thomas showed why he has been such a success since coming into the side by controlling the ball confidently and despatching it with aplomb past the helpless van der Sar.

Truth be told, save for a Foolham effort rightly ruled out for offside, Legwinski shot that Kiely gathered comfortably and a header from El Kak which was well stopped by van der Sar, the first half was a pretty low key affair. Rommedahl & Thomas looked dangerous, although Rommedahl still gave the ball away far too often.

In the second half, we began to dominate possession, Murphy in particular looking threatening every time he got the ball. One superbly worked move down the left flank involving Thomas, Hermann and Murphy ended up with the ex-Liverpool and Crewe man jinking his way into the area, turning the hapless Ian Pearce inside out before curling a shot against the far post. El Kak went very close with a shot from a tight angle which hit the woodwork but was well covered by van der Sar, and Thomas, who tormented Rosenior Junior (I've been waiting to use that one) all night, won a free kick on the corner of the area. It looked a dangerous position, but needed a quality ball into the box. Murphy duly obliged us with a deftly floated free kick which El Kak flicked goalwards. van der Sar was unable to react quickly enough to the change in direction and it was 2-0

From that point on the result was never really in doubt. The reasonably impressive Diop hit a fortuitously awarded free kick which skimmed the top of the bar and Fulham did pull a goal back from Radzinski after an alarming lapse in concentration defensively, but we should have had another ourselves. Euell, Konchesky and Jeffers replaced Bartlett, Rommedahl and Thomas and a superb ball across the box should have seen one of them poke the ball home for a third.

So, seventh at xmas - after a truly awful start to the season. That'll do nicely!

Ratings:

CAFC

Deano - 7 - Good stop from Legwinski in the first half. Much better coming to collect than of late and decent kicking.
HH - 7 - Spent more time going forward than defending, and looked a real threat every time he marauded forward.
El Kak - 8 - Consistently delivering fine performances. Well-taken goal, unlucky not to score with tight-angled effort and didn't put a foot wrong at the back
Fortune - 7 - Growing in confidence next to El Kak. Shackled Cole well
Young - 7 - Composed at the back, good going forward
Holland - 6 - Quietly effective, but disappeared for about 15 mins of the second half
Murphy - 8 - Man Of The Match performance. Not only did he create the second goal, hit the post with a superb effort, showed a great range of passing and didn't neglect defensive duties. Also provided a comedy moment when he went eyeball to eyeball with man-mountain Diop following a kerfuffle with JT
JT - 8 - Close to earning another MOM. Absolutely murdered Rosenior defensively and tracked back effectively too. Well taken goal, earned the free kick which led to the second. A real gem
Kish - 7 - Shit haircut, but good performance. Seems to be revelling in the role of spoiler in front of the back four. Ill-advised lunge on Cole late on earned him a booking.
Rommedahl - 6 - Frustrating, as usual. A peripheral player for most of the game, he appears intent on over-complicating things. Pushed off the ball far too easily, but showed nice touches and, unlike against West Brom, applauded the crowd's patience when he was replaced
Bartlett - 6 - Held the ball up well and brought wide players into the game but never threatened himself

Subs:

Jeffers - 6 - Looked interested when he came on, but should have scored
Konchesky - 6 - Enthusiastic when he came on and shored the side up a little defensively following Fulham's consolation
Euell - 6 - See Jeffers above! A useful sub to bring on, there's no way we should be punting him on

Foolham

van der Sar - 6 - Good distribution, but beaten too easily by El Kak's header. No chance with the first.
Rosenior - 5 - Difficult second game for the youngster. Looks threatening going forward but Thomas peeled him like a banana every time he ran at him. Gave away the free kick which led to our second
Bocanegra - 5 - Unremarkable
Pearce - 5 - Looks fat and slow, but positional sense still pretty good.
Rehman - 6 - Strong in the air, but a little lightweight for a centre-half. Pick of the Foolham back four
Diop - 7 - 'The Wardrobe' was Fulham's best player. Strong in the tackle and the air, he shows a remarkably good touch for such a big man and knows how to pick a pass
Malbranque - 4 - If Diop is 'The Wardrobe', Malbranque, on tonight's showing, was 'The Sock Drawer'. Absolutely useless all night - a much better player than he showed here.
Pembridge - 5 - Average
Legwinski - 6 - Good effort in the first half and got stuck into challenges well
McBride - 4 - Poor
Cole - 5 - Showed some hunger, but looks a shadow of his former self

Subs:

Radzinski - 6 - Looks overweight, but took his goal with customary predatory instincts
John - 4 - Ineffective

Ref:

Bennett - 8 - Often accused of being picky, Bennett had an excellent game here, letting play flow and dishing out bookings only where needed.

MOM:

A 1 litre bottle of Silver Spring Cream Soda to Danny Murphy for an accomplished performance in centre mid.

Quote Of The Day:

"After half-time we were 1-0 down but looked like a team hanging on to win"
Chris "call 'em as you see 'em" Coleman

Curbs puts the kibosh on splashing out

2004-12-19T18:11:00.000Z

Oh well. Looks like the Valley will be the usual hive of activity come transfer time

Curbishley has obviously seen the papers linking us with splashing the cash during the transfer window and mr Chuckles has come out and said we won't be buying anyone unless they 'improve the current squad'. Christ almighty, this is the same quote Curbs trots out every time someone mentions transfers - unless the ever-resourceful Football365 have just dusted off last year's pre-window interview.

For my money, although we've seen an improvement in recent weeks, the squad is still far from deep - the possibility of Feeesh coming in next to Fortune if El Kak gets a knock fills me with dread. I reckon we need at least one more striker (probably two), two midfielders and a centre half.

Come on Curbs, get your wallet out! Robbie Blake is going for under a million...

Foolham preview

2004-12-18T08:50:00.000Z

I hate this fixture. Every year its one that I dread - this bunch of nouveau-riche jokers always seems to turn us over, regardless of how well we're playing at the time. Now that the Egyptian Shopkeeper appears to have given up on using ownership of Foolham as a route to British citizenship he seems to have lost interest in the club somewhat - which could spell disaster long-term for them. A costly and, ultimately, futile recent court battle with former manager Jean Tigana will not have sweetened Al-Fayed's enmity towards the establishment and it remains to be seen whether this most paranoid of delusionals will pull the plug on the cashflow to his plaything before he provides them with the lasting legacy of a refurbished, or brand new stadium.

The Tigana episode was one of the more bizarre stories in the Premiership in recent years. It appeared that Al-Fayed's main beef with Tigana was that Steve Marlet proved to be crap and was hopelessly over-priced. Quite how this made Tigana responsible for some of the transfer fee I'm not sure, but if this case had been won by Al-Fayed, it might have led to more than a few managers looking nervously over their shoulders when the chairman was about. You can picture the scene:

GOLDBERG: "So, Steve, lets have a chat about Brolin"
COPPELL: "Where's me chequebook.."

But, I digress. Onto the game. Foolham have had a season of ups & downs (mostly downs), but with players of the quality of Malbranque & Legwinski in the side they can easily turn teams over on their day. Their dogged display against Manyoo last Monday is a testament to their ability to surprise people - no-one gave them much of a chance against United yet they managed to eke out a draw where better teams have failed. This was largely due to a wonder goal from the enigmatically-named Papa Bouba Diop, a man so large that he has his own MP. Nicknamed 'The Wardrobe', this giant of a man has possibly the most powerful shot seen in the top flight since Tony 'Cabbie' Yeboah. Unfortunately, he also has a first touch which rivals Jason Euell's and times his tackles about as well as Paul Scholes - qualities which might suggest that he won't be anything more than a fleeting success in the Premiership.

At the back, they have Police Captain Dudley Smith from LA Confidential (sorry, Edwin van der Sar) in goal, who is a decent keeper, although strangely prone to errors when collecting crosses (odd for someone who looks about 6 foot 15 tall)

Liam Rosenior, son of the non-legendary Leroy, made an impressive debut against United and looks certain to keep his place at right back, with the other fullback position being filled by Carlos Bocanegra - remarkable only for his name. Foolham would appear to be vulnerable at centre half. The hugely average Rehman has, of late, been partnered either by Zat Knight or Ian Pearce, neither of whom are likely to strike fear into the heart of any decent striker (which, of course, we currently don't have. Ooops)

Midfield is where their real strength lies, and, with Pembridge sitting in front of the back four and Diop, Legwinski and Malbranque given a reasonably free role to wander, they can definitely cause us problems. Malbranque in particular is a good player - wasted at Fulham, he would surely be a good acquisition for a team chasing a European place and I wouldn't be surprised to see him move on in the transfer window.

Up front, Andy Cole is looking a little past his prime, and Brian McBride does not look as impressive as he did when he first arrived. Fulham will probably opt for one up front, with perhaps another midfielder, but even if both play I can't see them causing us too much grief.

As for us, we'll probably be unchanged from the West Brom game - although it might be that Curbishley decides to opt for two up front I would expect one of those to be Rommedahl in a second striker role rather than bringing in Wingnut.

My prediction - 1-0 to us!

'tis the (silly) season to be jolly

2004-12-17T13:13:00.000Z

The usual slew of seasonal transfer rumours have reached me here at Bonfire Towers. Some of them include:

Lisandro Lopez (Racing Club)
Michael Dawson (Forest)
Andy Reid (Forest)
Darren Bent (Ipswich)
Porker - Loan (Chelsea)
Stephane Henchoz (Liverpool)
Dean Ashton (Crewe)

Of all these, perhaps the most promising one appears to be Dean Ashton at Crewe. Playing in a very poor side, he has managed to elevate himself to the top of the goalscoring charts in The League Formerly Known As Division One. Each time I've seen him play I've been impressed, not just with his skill and finishing, but also with his workrate and effort (without which there is no way Curbishley would sign him). He does appear to be a better bet than Darren Bent, and with Ipswich seemingly intent on asking daft money for him, might be a better alternative.

Of the others, Henchoz and Lopez are ridiculous rumours, Dawson & Reid are overrated and Bent is not worth the money Ipswich will want. The Parker rumour is, as has been said before, just wishful thinking on the part of a few misty-eyed dreamers.

If it were up to me, I'd get Ashton and Robbie Blake from Burnley. Exceptionally underrated player, scores goals, sets them up and can play equally well as an out and out striker or a link man - perfect qualities if the rumours about Euell leaving are true.

Go get 'em Curbs!

Powell off to Wet Spam

2004-12-16T16:53:00.000Z

In a sad day for Charlton fans, Chris Powell has left the club to join Wet Spam's push for automatic promotion from division one ('Championship' my arse). It became clear to Chris that he wasn't going to command a regular spot in the side this year, and rather than see out his career on the bench at the Valley, the lure of regular first-team football led him to seek pastures new.

Our beloved East London brethren will be receiving a committed, skilful player, who offers 100% commitment to the cause at all times. A fans' favourite at the Valley ever since he signed from Derby, Chris managed to squeak into the England squad during his time with us, and always conducted himself with grace on and off the field. In a similar vein to Johnny Robinson, Chris is genuinely one of football's nice guys - bearing witness to this fact are two events that stick out for me:

The fantastic reception given to him by Derby fans when we played them not long after signing Chris, proving that he his remembered fondly by former clubs

The fact that, when confronted by a grinning fan, unable to elucidate just how highly esteemed he was in that fan's eyes, he didn't seek an early exit, but politely thanked him and went on his way. (The fan concerned was me, and bumping into him at the refuse tip in Factory Lane, Croydon was, perhaps not the best of venues to show your appreciation!)

Cheers Chris, and good luck

Thomas signs contract extension

2004-12-16T02:32:00.000Z

Addicks will be pleased at the news that Jerome Thomas, who has been a revelation since forcing his way into the side earlier this season, has signed a contract extension that is set to keep him at the Valley for another three years.

Whilst we have had recent experience of how much modern contracts really mean in football, (step forward Spotty Porker), JT is certainly making all the right noises.

"I'm very happy to sign a new deal and I'm delighted to commit myself to Charlton for the next three years.

"I'm not the kind of player who tries to use clubs as stepping stones to bigger things.
Charlton have given me my chance in the Premiership and I'm very grateful for that.

"I think signing a new three-year deal shows that I want to remain loyal to this club and that I'm happy here."

I'm pleased we've managed to tie him down, and still find it hard to believe that Arsenal were willing to let him go for so little. Hopefully this will stop clubs sniffing around him - I'm sure a couple of premiership managers have been casting envious glances his way in the past couple of months.

Expansion of the Valley

2004-12-14T22:38:00.000Z

Valley of dreams

Clicking the above link will take you directly to the latest news on the proposed expansion of the Valley. It is heartening to see that no negative comments have been made on the plans, although this is somewhat tempered no doubt by the fact that the NIMBYs obviously have not had a recent Tenants' Association meeting in Floyd Road and as such have not had the opportunity to put their case against expansion.

Bizarrely enough, we were actually given a decent shout by BBC London on its light entertainment (sorry 'news') show yesterday evening. Once the editor had managed to drag his focus off of Emily Maitliss' tits long enough to run the VT it was a pleasant surprise to see the program present a generally positive view of our plans. Of course, this was offset by them dragging some local pondlife out for the cameras - droning on about 'it takes me 50 minutes to find a parking space after a game has finished' (try finding one BEFORE a game starts pal, that ain't exactly fun either) and 'they make so much noise' (here's a thought, if you're looking for a nice quiet life, try NOT MOVING NEXT TO A FUCKING FOOTBALL STADIUM).

Honestly, these people get right on my tits. I'd gladly trade a reasonably sized house in Floyd Road for my palatial mansion in sunny Croydon just to be closer to my beloved Addicks. In fact, fuck it, I might go round before the Fulham game knocking on doors and asking people to houseswap with me.

Now, where's me missus, I might need to run it by her first...

Football as a business - The future?

2004-12-14T09:31:00.000Z

Anybody disillusioned with the current state of football in this country might do well to take a look at the problems currently being faced by Ice Hockey in North America.

The latest in a long line of labour disputes has seen the owners of the National Hockey League's 30 teams 'Lockout' their players in an attempt to gain the upper hand in a dispute with the players' union that has been festering for nigh on 15 years.

Whilst the comparisons that can be drawn are not in any shape or form direct ones, many of the problems facing the sport of Hockey in the US/Canada are similar to those facing football in Europe - TV, growing gaps between the haves & have-nots, misbehaviour of athletes, substance abuse etc etc. The current parlous state of the lockout in the NHL should act as a stern warning to football in Britain.

The situation is far too complex to explain here in any depth, but to summarise:

The NHL has expanded with ridiculous haste into 'markets' that traditionally have no interest in Ice Hockey (whoever heard of Ice in Florida or Dallas?). As a result of this there are now 30 teams in a league which thrived for forty years with only six and, up until as late as 1991, had only 21.

Player salaries, driven by owners too dumb to see reason, have risen by an incredible amount. In 1990, average salary was c .$220,000, last year, it was $1.8 million. All this in a sport which lags a distant sixth in US viewing figures (which, as anybody who follows US sports knows, are the only figures that matter), behing American Football, Baseball, Basketball, Golf and Sports Car Racing.

In a situation that has eerie similarities to the collapse of ITV Digital, the television networks have told the NHL that the last deal they signed was massively overpriced and will be looking to sign a new deal at less than half the value to the league.

The owners want to resolve the issue by enforcing a 'salary cap' - an identical figure for all teams, above which owners are not allowed to spend anything on player salaries. The players have responded with an offer of a 'luxury tax' - whereby any team that spends over a set figure on player salaries has to pay a 'tax' to a central fund which will then be distributed to 'poorer' teams.

All this is only scratching the surface of the problem. There are some excellent articles on the net that explain it in more depth - just type 'NHL Lockout' into Google news - but the bottom line seems to be that a sport which is a marginal diversion for the majority of Americans has expanded into areas where nobody cares about it, diluted the talent pool, become stiflingly boring to watch, sold its soul to television and had millionaires desperate to buy success ruin the league financially.

Sound familiar?

No, not that... anything but that...

2004-12-13T18:03:00.000Z

Euell off to Palarse?

I hate it when we sell our players to Palarse or the Spanners. Even someone as two bob as Darren 'I want to play for a big club' Pitcher.

Please don't sell him to the Cheese Rolls. Please.

Euell-tide misery

2004-12-12T23:41:00.000Z

Jason Euell

£4.5 m, 128 Apps, 36 Goals

Apologies for the latest in a long line of exceptionally feeble Euell-related puns, but it looks like he may be on his way in the transfer window. However, Euell-lovers aghast at this news may well be comforted by the fact that this 'revelation' comes from The Millwall And Crystal Palace FC Fanzine (A.K.A. The Sarf Laandon Press)

Whatever the veracity of this rumour, its clear that Euell is not happy with his current situation, but the simple fact of the matter is that, at present, we are employing a 4-5-1 formation which does not bode well for him. There is no way he can play up top on his todd, and his lack of skill (sorry Jase) means he is unlikely to dislodge Murphy or Holland from the middle of the park. Personally, I think he's still a useful squad member, but perhaps if we can still get a decent sum for him it might not be a bad shout to let him go and add to our funds in the transfer window.

Whatever happens, I'm sure most Addicks will wish him well. I for one will never forget how quickly he came back into the side after the tragic loss of his baby daughter a couple of years back, and he has never seemed to me to be coasting through games. The one thing that can be said about him is that he always seems to be trying in games and his workrate is usually excellent.

Good luck Jason, whatever the outcome

Boing Boing Boing... three more points in the bag

2004-12-12T01:07:00.000Z

Far be it from me to say, but it looks like we're starting to put the same sort of run together that we did around this time last year and maybe, just maybe, we are in with an outside chance of getting a similar sort of finishing position this time around. With nobody above us bar the top three or four looking like they can put a run of any sort of consistency together, perhaps our new-found ability to get wins out of games we don't play well in will se us climb the table.

Certainly, looking at the ease with which we saw out the admittedly feeble challenge of the Baggies whilst never actually looking that clever ourselves you get the feeling that the consistency of squad selection is benefitting the players. At times today, we almost looked as fluent as we did during last season's superb run around Christmas/New Year.

Man Of The Match was, once again, Jerome Thomas. Fair enough, there was never much chance of him getting in at Arsenal, but I think Curbishley has unearthed a real gem. He never looks like he's flustered, has shitloads of neat footwork and can also put a decent ball into the box. The one thing he doesn't appear to be blessed with is pace, but when you are able to suck defenders into making challenges as daft as some of the ones the Baggies put in on him today, maybe that doesn't matter.

Rommedahl played probably his best game for us (although admittedly, that isn't saying much) and was apparently a bit pissed at being substituted. I don't have a problem with that, I think a lot will probably be made of it if he has thrown his toys out of the pram, but it shows that he wants to play for us, which is encouraging. Murphy looked excellent as well and its certainly good to see him start to put a run of consistently good games together.

All in all, a thoroughly professional job, and three points well deserved.

Bring on Foolham!

Ratings:

CAFC

Deano - 6 - Looked OK, but twice failed to come for crosses and punched one straight up into the air
Young - Decent enough, but no influence going forward
HH - 7 - Solid as ever at the back and a menace in the air in West Brom's box
El Kak - 7 - A giant at the back again. One customary row Z clearance must have travelled about 100 yards!
Fortune - 6 - Better showing than at Palace, but tendency to cuddle defenders gives refs no option other than to give free kicks against him
Holland - 7 - Just what you want from your skipper away from home. Marshalled the middle well and excellently taken goal
Murphy - 7 - Super range of passing, didn't see him give the ball away needlessly once
JT - 8 - Once again man of the match. Three games in a row now. Constant threat, and tormented Haas all day
Kish - 6 - Solid job breaking up Baggies' play in the middle, but two utterly woeful efforts on goal drop his mark from a 7 to a 6 on embarrassment factor alone!
Rommedahl - 7 - Much more like it. Confident enoguh to try two audacious flicks over Baggies and set up Murph in the first half. ALso, it would appear that Curbs has told our midfield to play to his strengths and get the ball wide early
Bartlett - 5 - OK, but guilty of an appalling miss from a superb JT cross in the second half

Subs:

Konch - 6 - Showed determination to get involved after coming on for Romm. Lucky not to get booked though
Hughes - 4 - Too late to make any impact of note

Baggies

Hoult - 6 - No chance with the goal and little else to do, if truth be told
Clement - 5 - Another one like Granville at Palarse - First division player playing in the Prem
Haas - 4 - Pissweak at the back, looked scared to death of Thomas at times
Purse - 7 - Good, strong centre-half. I can see why we were linked with him last year, he looks a Curbs-type player
Scimeca - 6 - Decent enough, but wasted as a centre-half
Greening - 5 - Made a superb challenge tracking back in first half, but, in all honesty, is another very average player
Contra - 4 - Fat, slow and useless.
Johnson - 6 - Always rated him. Had a decent enough game and ran tirelessly but lacked creativity
Gera - 6 - Lots of effort, and no little skill, but no end product. Puts himself about a bit
Earnshaw - 5 - At least he tried, but I'm glad we didn't buy him. First division striker
Kanu - 4 - Laughable. Captain!? You've gotta be kidding!

Subs:

Koumas - 7 - Looks too good a player to be sat on their bench. They looked a much better side when he replaced that fat pudding Contra
Horsfield - 4 - Or should that be Donkeyfield? I Doubt whether he's even a first div striker, let alone good enough for the prem. Should have stuck to bricklaying

Ref:

Foy - 8 - Seemed to let the game flow, no bookings and got all the decisions that mattered right.

MOM:

A nice cool bottle of Lidl lemonade goes to Jerome Thomas for another assured performance.

Quote Of The Day:

"We really put them under pressure in the second half"
Bryan "Where's me white stick?" Robson

Ah, what's that? a ruby BEFORE the game?

2004-12-11T03:25:00.000Z

Ahhh, West Brom. One of the best away trips of the year and I'm bloody missing it!

I love this one - how can you go wrong when the first time you visit you find a pub that serves the best food you can possibly imagine, where locals and Londoners mix without aggro and the beer is fantastic and reasonably priced?

The Vine is the place to be (link above), for intrepid travellers looking for the best pre-match piss-up you can get. I'm not envious, honest :o(

On to the game. Rumours have it that Franny Jeffers is likely to start in place of the (on last week's showing, at least) frankly ineffective Bartlett. Hopefully, we'll see Rommedahl start in place of the crocked JJ and maybe his goal last week against Palace will have given him the confidence that he so obviously needs. A reasonably obliging Baggies defence would seem to represent an ideal opportunity for him to stake his claim for a regular berth in the side. West Brom have only one once all season, and with their form not exactly setting the Premiership alight since The Most Overrated Manager In History (TM) took the reins it looks a good chance for us to continue our recently improved away form.

Expect line-up to closely resemble the following:

Deano
Hermann
El Kak
Fortune/Feeesh
Young
Holland
Murphy
Kish
Dennis
JT
Wingnut

My brave prediction: a 1-0 win for us!

2004-12-08T23:56:00.000Z

PaintShopPro is a dangerous tool...

Come home Scotty? Don't make me laugh

2004-12-08T23:21:00.000Z

Seems that Mourinho has thrown his toys out of the pram over Spotty Porker's failure to close down Diego in time to block Porto's equaliser against our esteemed West London chums.

Apparently the Premiership's biggest bundle of chuckles verbally berated him at length in the middle of Oporto airport. This seems to indicate to many that Scotty's days at Chelsea could be coming to an end, sometime before he has made his career there into a rip-roaring success.

Once again the rumour mill will churn into action as his agents desperately try to drum up some interest in him in order to snag another healthy payday. Scattered amongst the detritus will no doubt be some, more, or fewer stories linking him with a return to the Valley, so how likely is it we will be seeing Scott back in a Charlton shirt at some point in the future?

Not very fucking likely at all in fact.

Firstly, he is on vastly more wedge at Chelsea than we would ever pay him. Having him back on even half his current wages would probably make him the highest earner at the club - something that surely wouldn't go down to well with the poor sods he left in the lurch just after making his New Year's Resolutions last January.

Secondly, his best midfield partner at the club would appear to have been Santa. Now that he has moved onto pastures new, its difficult to see Scott being able to get as much leeway to play the 'midfield terrier' role when what we really need is a creative midfielder. Granted, he's better at it than Kish, Holland or El Kak, but whats the point in going out and buying someone who doesn't fulfil your greatest need - creativity?

Thirdly, his agents wouldn't make anything from him coming back to us on loan, and they'd make far more punting him on to another side

Fourthly, you don't cross Curbishley and come back for seconds. David Whyte anyone?

Fifthly, with the amount of time he spends in the bookies at Cobham he's probably built up a pretty sizeable debt - which won't be helped by coming back to us on tuppence ha'penny a week

So lets scotch the stupid rumours before they start this time, eh? It's tiresome, helps no-one at the club and it can't be good for the players who DO want to play for us currently battling for their places to read this shite every time Mourinho gets the arsehole with him.

Dennis, in the last minute

2004-12-08T01:39:00.000Z

GOOOOOOAL!!!!!!

Palace 0 Charlton 1
Rommedahl (90)

Words can't express how fantastic it feels to beat Palarse. In fact, my one overriding memory of the championship year is the away game at Sellout, standing all through the game and singing; "we'll never play you again", then laughing my arse off when Kitson slid the ball into the net with two minutes left.

History repeated on Sunday, although somehow it was even funnier this time when Dennis spanked the ball past their keeper with about 2 minutes of injury time played.

Ratings:

CAFC

Deano - 6 - Great penalty save but his lack of willingness to come for crosses in case he nauses them up is frightening at times
Young - 7 - Solid, mature performance from our most consistent defender this season
Fortune - 5 - Looks poor without Rufus or Perry next to him.
El Kak - 6 - Shackled Johnson well until giving away a stupid pen
Hermann - 6 - Solid, no attacking threat but defended well and not caught out of position once (which makes a change)
Murphy - 7 - One of his better games, but his lack of pace is comical. At least he showed some passion when having a word in Messias' shell-like after he ignored the lineo in the first half
Thomas - 8 - Again our best player. Consistently looks a threat every time he gets the ball and looks to be our best bet to unlock some of the dross in the Prem. 90 minutes against West Brom please!
Holland - 7 - Captain's performance and unlucky not to score with his nut in the first half
JJ - 5 - No impact before he got crocked
Kish - 6 - Useful in breaking up Palarse's play and decent long-range effor in the first half
Bartlett - 5 - Anonymous, but lack of support from midfield meant he had a thankless task

Subs:

Dennis - 6 - Goooooooooal!!!!
Wingnut - 5 - No chance to make an impact, especially since he was a straight swap for Bartlett

CheeseRolls

Kiraly - 7 - Decent-looking keeper. Good command of his area and two excellent stops
Boyce - 7 - Great tussle with Thomas all game. Looks a good prospect
Hall - 6 - Marshalled Bartlett well, but if I were Palarse I'd play him as a sweeper or punt him on
Popovic - 4 - Utter crap. Why they persist with this donkey is beyond me. Looks like Chapple on a bad day
Granville - 5 - Average. Never rated him at the Massives or Chelsea either
Routledge - 5 - No threat, from a player I was worried about before the game
Riihilati - 6 - Too many vowels - buy a consonant for God's sake! Steady in midfield and unlucky not to score in the first half
Kolkka - 5 - Another profoundly odd-monickered Scandinavian. Average
Watson - 5 - Average. Booked for a stupid tackle
Hughes - 5 - What's happened to the threat he had when he was at Franchise FC?
Johnson - 6 - Not in the game until he cleverly sucked El Kak into conceding a pen. Can't see them hanging onto him if the Scouse come calling in the transfer window.

Subs:

Lakis - 3 - Now where on Earth did they discover this little gem. He may as well not have gotten his tracksuit off he was so anonymous
Freedman - 5 - More impact in two minutes than Lakis made in twenty. A pest

Ref:

Messias - 4 - Never seen him have a good game. Baffling decisions that included bottling the sending off of Popovic in the first half and five or six decisions for either side that were questionable.

MOM:

This week's bottle of lukewarm Tizer goes to Jerome Thomas, for his silky footwork, attacking threat and new-found willingness to track back.

Quote Of The Day:

"Fuck Off. Just Fuck Off"
From a Palace ex-colleague, via text, less than a minute after the goal