Exeter City 1 Charlton Athletic 0
During yesterday’s match I wasn’t anywhere near a screen and my phone was firmly in my pocket as I sat among 103,000 others at the Texas v Florida college game in Austin. Quite an awe-inspiring experience.
Unlike the one for Addicks at St James Park.
1,000 Addicks bore witness to another Charlton performance bereft of ideas, creativity and identity.
Among my group we have pinned this season as another dud, and I suspect other Addicks are having the same bad dreams.
We are really no better than the side under Dean Holden, the difference being that with Holden’s team there was always a tiny suspicion that we would burst into life.
I just don’t see that here. We are miserable to watch and if we are to score it’s more luck than judgement. Our play is predictable and blinkered.
Who do we blame here. Sacking another manager cannot be the answer, and the already muddied faces of the management team cannot suggest this to their pay masters.
Jones, like most of the under-performing or not-up-to-it players, are on long contracts. Talk of two or three transfers windows to find the recipe for success also sounds ludicrous.
Yes, we have injuries but this squad was ‘better than we had before’ so it should be able to cope, and other than Lloyd Jones, Kayne Ramsey and 20 minute cameo’s from Chuks, who are we really missing?
By all accounts we could’ve grabbed an equalizer second half, but we didn’t and that is now 2 wins in 11 league games.
🎙️”I thought we were nowhere near first half. I thought we kept giving the ball away and then they could put the ball in our box and get corners. There was no momentum really” – Nathan Jones
⭐️ Zach Mitchell
🏟️ 7,347 (914 Addicks)
📸 Kyle Andrews
surely missing Tyreece Campbell, who when on the pitch, things happen?
Yeah, maybe. No league goals, but he at least he wants to attempt to take a player on.
The two players we are missing most … Kayne Ramsey and Lloyd Jones… were already at the club when Nathan Jones joined… we also had George Dobson and Alfie May at that time?
Is the squad demonstrably stronger this season compared to last?
I’m sure the game you were watching was far better than the dross we were subjected to CA. We are now back in our usual position league-wise…..bottom half of the table and descending. Peterborough next, who can’t stop scoring !!!!!
l suspect NJ is already preparing his post match analysis for the media for next week’s game – it really is that predictable. I anticipate NJ saying “We were way off it in the first half. We sorted out some things at halftime and we showed some improvement in the 2nd half but ultimately we were caught napping a couple of times and it cost us”. Personally, I’m ready for a change of record.
I understand we have rather too regularly sacked managers. But why is it that Nathan Jones gets a free pass?
He is useless, has no idea how to set-up a team. Constantly rambles on about “basics” His big-headed incompetence is grinding me (and many others) down. How many more heartless, embarrasing defeats can you stomach?
I’ll never forgive him for hounding Alfie May out of the club. Then telling us “goals will come from all over the team” Comedy gold from the ‘Messiah’
He needs to be sacked before the January transfer window opens to give the new manager a chance of improving the bunch of misfits we currently have.
I suggest an approach to Sheff. Weds. their assistant manager is the man we need.
P.S. what happened to the wonderful new medical team assembled to reduce the constant flood of injuries to our players. That doesn’t seem to have gone too well …..
One day we’ll learn that the constant sacking of managers and dishing out compensation that could otherwise be invested in the playing squad just don’t work…we’ve tried it for the past 15+ years and that ain’t worked too well either.
I really struggle to understand any other perspective than time and patience when trying to turn around years of neglect and under-investment…and going from relegation dead-certs to play-off contenders in a few months seems a bit of a stretch.
The Nathan Jones effect is finally wearing off at Luton and look at them now.
Sadly I don’t think the lessons have been learnt and I’m not sure Jones will hang around to be sacked…queue more instability, more player turnover, more relegation battles…do what you’ve always done and get what you’ve always got.
When Chuks is available we get mainly wins and draws when hes not we get mainly draws and losses. Exactly the same under the last 3/4 managers.
I would not have sacked Holden and Jones is a bit annoying, but we’ve got to keep him now. For one thing all the ex Luton players would immediately become a liability as soon as he goes I suspect.
I would suggest the ex. Luton players are already a bloody liability, along with NJ.
Well we’ve had one positive result this weekend;
The Peterborough game is called off, phew ……..
Just postponing the inevitable I suspect.
I am what qualifies as an “ancient” supporter having come in during the days of Eddy Firmani (as a player) and Frank Haydock who I still consider as the classiest central defender who Charlton have ever had.
The question to ask with Jones has the team improved during his tenure; and i think the answer is definitely no. There is no midfield to talk of, and wingers have virtually disappeared up the windpipe; indeed, they have almost transformed into a 1980s long-ball Millwall side (possibly the most cutting edge insult I can thing of)..
Somehow I cannot see it getting any better; especially when the Exeter players where repeatedly allowed to play pass-the-bail just outside the Charlton area……….
Really like your posts; but then I have probably travelled even further from Charlton than you.
Brian
I am a similar vintage to you and, although Marvin Hinton was a little short for a centre back, he was an incredibly classy player.
It’s hard to keep being a Charlton supporter but at least we know what to expect from them. Brief moments of hope followed by the inevitable decline.
Malcolm Clift
Not sure wh
I come from the 1968 years even then in the old second did we had some good players Saturday’s. Full house of 10 thousands and you could say when you went home it was a good game we all went and our,based the evening standard to look for the league tables thoughts were the good days. Good old fashioned wingers strikes. defenders mid fielders and Bobby Curtis .😂😂😂.still have not heard from your remarks Bill Skudder down in the West country come say something.😁😁😁
Dreadful watch and how Jones can say we were much better in the second half beggars belief! This is the first time this season the commentors said after the game that there will be a lot of criticism as we are playing just like the previous seasons just a middle of the road 1st Division club going nowhere. Couldn’t be more true.
One of the first things Jones said when he joined I want a smaller squad with quality rather than quantity, well he’s still got a large squad and its still the same with quantity over quality, as many of the the players he has bought in aren’t up to the task of getting us out of this division, plus we still have the likes of Reg & Gilisphey etc in the same boat, who he retained!
I said on this blog at the start of the season we are not good enough then we one our opening games and I thought maybe I’m wrong and I wish I was this feels to me like Ben garner all over again with what was left of a average Swindon team and back room staff now we have Luton town vets and a £1 million quid striker who isn’t that great a goal keeper who was meant to be the 2nd keeper but is now the first I don’t like mr jones I’m fed up with his rubbish but I don’t have to like him I just want him to do his job and get us out of this league but I think the board need to look at the players they have let him get in and really find some good players in the next transfer window I thought we would get a better Dobson a better may but oh well this club has always had the best youth academy and I do think sometimes that is why some of these owners look at us to make money I can’t work out why Charlie keeps going on about ffp when Birmingham have spent a few quid oh well rant over another season in the mighty league one