Jun 29
I had one eye on the League Two Play-Off final tonight. Northampton Town who looked dead and buried after the first leg of their semi, shoved Exeter City’s feeble challenge aside to win 4-0.
Congratulations to the Cobblers and their fans tonight, who I’m sure are running around their gardens popping champagne corks, but my, what a real shame they could not be at Wembley to witness their team’s famous victory.
Lee, what have you done with our Charlton..
I was at Sixfields last season, it was one very depressing afternoon. It was last March, but it isn’t what difference a year makes, it’s what difference one man makes. The Lee Bowyer show blew through Sixfields this afternoon like a tornado. It was a performance of total domination and attacking devastation. Those there and from the radio said that 8-0 wouldn’t have been unrealistic.
Who needs strikers..
Will be the text from Roland to Katrien this afternoon after the owner would have doubtless watched on his iPad from his Flanders’ pied a terre Charlton’s demolition of Northampton. In fact Karl Robinson may have wished for own goals to help his cause in attempting to bring in another striker before the window shuts.
With Lee Novak looking as if he’d like an August move away from SE7, the need for a striker, or two, is paramount but let’s not take away from today’s four goal haul as the Addicks turned over an always dangerous Northampton side, who have now lost all three of their league games.
Part I, Lancastrians and Yorkshire folk here, Part II and the Manc’s here.
Onto Middle England then, which is a little sparse when it comes to League One clubs. Just Walsall the only proper Midlands side.
Last season was a whole lot of disappointment for Walsall’s supporters after the incredible campaign the year previous when they finished 3rd, but ultimately missed out on promotion in the play-offs. The man credited with that inspirational season was Jon Whitney, but last season he and his players were a million miles away from a repeat in what was a turgid if not relegation threatened season.
The Coalition Against Roland Duchatelet (CARD) wants to thank the hundreds of Charlton supporters who made the 500-mile round trip to Sint-Truiden to join Saturday’s Unity Protest march through the town, as well as the many other fans who spontaneously demonstrated their own feelings about the owner and his regime during the team’s 2-1 defeat at Northampton Town
On my way back to Bermuda now and having time to reflect on a historic weekend in Charlton’s history.
Roland Duchatelet would not have liked the fact that 300 ordinary men, women and children, not louts and irate ex-employees demonstrated against him alongside STVV fans on Saturday in the sleepy town of Sint Truiden, where the 70-year old has always felt he had some kind of power over the people of the town and it’s football club.
Stories and tales from those that made the trip out to Belgium are both heartwarming and of legend and memories made will last a lifetime, especially once we rid ourselves of Duchatelet and Pinocchio. There has been much media coverage both at home and in Belgium and the whole thing was beautifully organized, and perfectly executed and makes me proud to be an Addick. And the lazy and misguided PR men at the club should be embarrased.
After much deliberation my brother, my son and I will be at Sixfields this afternoon. My surgeon would not have been hp with me making a drive to St-Truiden so I called the club and bought three of the last available tickets.
Don’t get me started on my two hour drive to The Valley yesterday only to get to the Superstore and be told they had lost my tickets. Gone missing from the ticket office all the way around the corner to the store. Customer service at it’s best! So we now need to pick them up from Sixfields, which you and I know has ‘problem’ written all over it….
The only saving grace was Dave was at home and he makes a cracking cup of tea and brought me up to speed on the Belgium plans. He also reminded me, as if a plant sent by my surgeon, that I needed my head testing flying from Bermuda to go and watch them play. Fortunately I didn’t have my head operated on!
I am back in the UK down at my parents in East Sussex arriving early yesterday morning to a grey but promising South Downs day (photo). My trip back was to see family and join hundreds of other Addicks in Belgium this coming weekend, as it turns out it is now one of convalescing after recent surgery which came about very suddenly.
Belgium is still on my and my brother’s mind but we will make a late decision and as an alternative may go to Northampton instead. If my surgeon is reading this then I am at home in Bermuda, sat on the couch reading a book.
I expect the numbers going to Sint-Truiden to swell this week beyond the already committed 250. We were always going to go under our own steam and I expect many others will join up in the Grote Markt on Saturday unannounced.
Rivals, non rivals, I guess it depends where you live, but Gillingham under the growing reputation of manager Justin Edinburgh were one of the surprise packages last season, only a poor slide at the end seeing them miss out on a play-off place. Edinburgh will be looking to improve on a 9th placed finish and he has added well to his squad, although Lee Martin will miss the start of the season due to a bad injury picked up in a friendly.
Scott Wagstaff also joined from Bristol City and Paul Konchesky from Leicester, but who played 36 games on loan at QPR last season. Ex-Addick Josh Wright the captain at Priestfield. Has there ever been a time when the Gills has had no ex-Charlton players? They did lose centre-back Joe Egan to Brentford but importantly have kept the sought after Bradley Dack, at least until now.
Keeping Dack will be essential and Edinburgh may need to add to his squad before the deadline, but I expect Gills to be challenging for the play-offs again. Promotion 10/1. Relegation 7/1.
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“Charlton Athletic can confirm that following discussions with Northampton Town manager Chris Wilder and his assistant Alan Knill over the vacant managerial role at The Valley, the club has been unable to reach an agreement.” (more)
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That is what Chris Wilder has demanded from Roland Duchatelet as he and Alan Knill discuss contract terms with Charlton to be their 7th manager/head coach in just over two years. Today both clubs announced that permission had been given to Wilder and his assistant Alan Knill to open discussions, although it is thought that Wilder at least had a conversation with the Belgian owner last week.
Compensation on the year Wilder and Knill’s contract has to run has been agreed and those contracts have break clauses in them allowing a move. Wilder and Knill are the archetypical journeymen football people. Good people, but neither would be more than comfortable financially and they will feel they deserve their opportunity following recent success at Northampton and, for Wilder anyway, Oxford United. I don’t begrudge it them at all.
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Farewell Jose, see you around some time. Possibly after Chris Wilder sticks two fingers up at Roland Duchatelet due to team interference and replacement Nebojsa Vignjevic takes us dangerously close to the bottom four of League One. I’ll put you down for March 2017 Jose.
I know, I’m in that kind of mood.
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Chicago Addick 