Labouring To Victory

Charlton transfer target Samir Carruthers seen here enjoying a  day at the races !

Finally, a win but how awful was that ! There has been some dire football at The Valley this season but that really takes the biscuit !

Forget all the injuries and talk of not bringing anyone in, that we struggled so badly to beat a really poor team in Oldham speaks volumes.

How the Latics would love most of our players. They were best summed up as “ an honest team “ by someone I spoke to at half time. Indeed they were and let’s be honest at the end they deserved something from the game.

I particularly felt for their No.10 who seemingly won every header and played really well. Rather like the Gills No.9 it’d be great to have him in our team. I do wonder if Magennis ever studies what these players do.

That Robinson couldn’t organise our team to do better than this tells you all you need to know about his ability as manager. Yet again he watched and did nothing as Oldham camped in our half during the second period.

How on earth did Marshall stay on ? He was truly awful. How did he keep his place in the side anyway ? Robinson later described him as hard working ! I’d say runs around a bit to no great effect !

Marshall is like another Robinson recruit in Reeves who has also done diddly squat to date. On this evidence perhaps it’s just as well if the manager isn’t allowed to recruit more players !

Again KAG didn’t start and that’s a mystery. Kashi was so deep he almost behind Amos at times. It was so painful to watch at times as Kashi just slowed down the play even more and his passing over a distance of more than @ 10 metres was woeful.

We just sat back in the second half and invited pressure. Robinson acknowledged it after the game ( who told him I wonder !! ) but yet did nothing about it ! Why didn’t he pass on a message or get someone on ( Jackson maybe ) to get them to do things differently.

We were so lucky to get the 3 points we really were.

As for Robinson moaning, well, give me strength. He knew full well what he was getting into coming to us and up to now has been gushing in his praise of the owner and CEO. Crying to the fans now doesn’t cut it I’m afraid.

Chris Powell had to suffer much worse yet he just got on with it. You didn’t see him moaning in public. The manager is well rewarded and if he doesn’t like it he can always walk. He won’t of course because he won’t want to lose out financially and he knows he’ll not get a better job than this.

Surely none of us expected that Roly would be putting his hand in his pocket now ? He didn’t in the past when he had a scintilla of interest in the club so it’s not going to happen now is it ?

It was quite revealing that Robinson referenced his interest in Carruthers. The general feeling is that he would only be coming to us if long term Sheffield United target Holmes was going the other way. A great way to unsettle Holmes who isn’t playing anywhere near his best anyway.

Aside from all that we don’t need Carruthers although at least he won’t be able to distract the lads by taking them off to the races eh !

The remaining January games all look relatively easy but given the way we're playing at present then it’s hard to see us getting much from them. If we are to do so then it’ll take a massive turn around.

In the meantime, tomorrow night we face Oxford in the Check-a-Trade trophy. Realistically this represents our best chance of any success this season. On that basis we might as well put out our strongest available side. 

Quite what Robinson will do remains anyone's guess as always. If have little faith in him managing to sensibly direct the game to a win whatever he team he selects. 

In the meantime we can only sit back and hope this takeover is concluded soon. However, the more January disappears the less likely it is that anything will happen before the summer. A far from ideal scenario.

Lesson Learned ?

Karl Robinson seems to quite like saloons indeed he met a few fans in one I recall when he first started. However, one suspects he draws the line at the last chance variety where he really ought to be imbibing now.

Defeat on Saturday at home to Oldham would surely be a point of no return. Some will question who we’d get in to replace or who could do better ( plenty would be my reply to that one ! ) but not changing anything and carrying on regardless really isn’t an option.

Injuries have played a part in our recent awful run but they alone are not the only reason. In any case there must be some reason for us suffering so many injuries. Clearly some players being rushed back too soon is a part of that. For that alone one must look to the manager for being culpable.

I referred in my last piece to our much heralded pre-season and how hard the players were working to get fit. All of that has counted for nothing as I can’t see any benefit mid-way through the season, in fact, exactly the opposite.

Robinson’s continued adherence to his one way of playing certainly hasn’t helped matters nor his ability to manage games as they unfold.

Now, to no one’s surprise save perhaps for Robinson himself we may not have any more money to fund transfers or loans in this window. He’ll have to make the best of what he’s got which doesn’t bode well because he hasn’t been good at that of late.

Fans of Robinson will use the news that there's little to no money for transfers as further excuse on his behalf. I'm not sure he really has 6 lined up with 4 that would walk into the club tomorrow under different circumstances. 

I will acknowledge that it can't help of course. However, if he's going to stay he needs to be as positive as he can and make the most of the situation. I couldn't believe he even referenced KAG not going out on loan if he doesn't get others in.

KAG has done enough to be here anyway but if Robinson's alleged targets don't arrive he's going to need KAG and there's not much chance of him feeling all that wanted with talk like that !

However, the delayed takeover is probably working in Robinson's favour. Roly has no need or inclination I guess to take any action not unless another relegation seems likely to impact the asking price should it all drag on even more.

There's an excellent piece on that subject by Albury Addick at https://alburyaddick.wordpress.com.

As he suggests if the takeover isn't completed before the end of January then it might not happen until the summer. Great !

In the meantime surely even Robinson can't fail to put together a team to overcome Oldham on Saturday. Should we fail to do so then we'll be going through the motions for the rest of this season which will condemn it to be as miserable as the last two or three.

Come On You Reds !

It's A Funny Old Game........

" not if you're a Charlton fan, Jim ! "

New year but same old Charlton as the Addicks moved seamlessly into 2018 with apparently nothing learned from the previous winless games where we lacked a cutting edge.

The first half yesterday was truly dreadful as the team showed no desire whatsoever and appeared clueless in a totally disjointed and ponderous display.

Marshall looked totally lost and devoid of any confidence or indeed ability to trap or control a football – basic skills for which he is handsomely rewarded.

Holmes poor form continued as he showed no inclination to run at defenders nor have the ability to put in a decent cross or deliver a corner past the first man.

Reeves was truly awful and would have been subbed in an Under 11’s game for losing possession too easily alone.

Passes went astray and there was a total lack of communication.

The defence was all at sea. How Robinson could watch all that went on and do nothing until half time beggars belief. Clearly Aribo at the very least needed to come on after about 20 minutes.

Why young Joe was dropped from the starting eleven in the first place is a mystery. As was the absence of KAG who showed a greater desire to get the ball forward and drive at the defence.

Blame injuries all you want but Robinson’s inability to select the right team or manager the game is costing us. Clearly we have better players than Gillingham and no doubt on more money too but they were better organised and had a greater desire to win.

Their players showed that pride in the shirt that our manager talks about so often like not leaving anything on the pitch. Sadly that’s all it is from Robinson – hyperbole !

Game after game we’re witnessing very average Third Tier teams with smaller squads and budgets to match take points of us. The manager never learns and we go through the same slow build up play that either fizzles out or the chance is missed.

Week after week any reasonably competent manager organises their team and gives it the best chance to get something from the game. Allegedly Robinson went to watch The Gills on Saturday, looks like he’d have been better off going shopping in the sales for a new tank top !

On the flip side we learn that Lovell watched us and soon sussed out how to get in behind us. That was evident in the opening few minutes. That's the problem Robinson it's all so predictable with tactics that almost come off the back of cereal packet !

How can it be that our players repeatedly miss chance after chance ? It can’t be coincidence as neither can the ridiculously high level of injuries. Something must be rotten in the State of Greenwich !!

Wasn’t our tough pre-season meant to leave us with the fittest team in the league ? If it did that has all evaporated. The only player who escapes injury is Magennis which is incredible given that he’s never dropped or subbed.

Robinson debates the finer points of the game post match ! Do you want some ?

There are rumours of the manager offering out one or two fans who dared to suggest that he might adopt a different approach to games. Great ! How dignified if so !

The Gills no.9 ( Eaves ) looked world class compared to Josh yesterday. He gave a masterclass in how to operate in that role.

The second half was better but by then the damage was done and the Gills weren’t as naive as Peterborough to concede two goals late on. I don’t think we have more than about 20 to 30 minutes of decent play in a game all season.

How much longer Robinson has is anyone’s guess. Partly it will depend on whether he ever sits down and looks at what he’s doing and thinks “ you know what I ought to change things “. My guess is he won’t as there’s no evidence of that to date.

Automatic promotion has gone and it appears there’s only the 6^th play off spot left as a possibility now. In any case that would seem a futile exercise under Robinson as you can’t see us beating almost any team over two legs leaving aside the Manager’s appalling record in them.

Any kind of repetition against Oldham on Saturday and it’s hard not to foresee a vocal backlash directed at the manager. Bluster and faux passion can only carry you so far. Should we win please spare us the group huddle and associated lap of honour as though we’ve won the league.

I think Robinson now needs to go as everything I feared he would be has been played out. Nothing changes and I simply don’t see any evidence to suggest an upturn in fortunes is on the cards no matter who we get back from injury.

At a time when we should be very optimistic the short term outlook is very grey indeed. Defeat again this Saturday doesn't bear thinking about. We could soon be facing a relegation battle.........how about that.

Given all the goings on lately and seeing ineptitude rewarded it'd be no surprise to see Robinson sacked only to resurface in March as El Supremo at the Camp Nou !

It's a funny old game, Saint !

Happy New Year !

It's got to be a good one hasn't it ?

Following the departure of our CEO and the stories that a takeover from Roly is imminent then Addicks everywhere can start to look towards this new year with greater optimism than for some time.

A lot to happen before then of course but we're getting there. A huge amount of damage to be repaired and it will take a long time but we've bounced back from worse before.

A much needed point was gained at Wigan on Friday. A backs to the wall job as Robinson appreciated than any other approach wasn't going to get a result of any kind.

I can't join one or two in praising the manager for any great degree of tactical insight or even a long awaited Plan B. This was just a manager being pragmatic at best in recognising a poor run of performances and a lack of bodies.

Accusations of parking the bus from Latics fans and I'm sure they're right. We're quick to condemn other teams when they do it so have to accept the flak that goes with it.

That's not to ignore the tremendous effort of the players involved. They had to dig deep to earn that point and it's a point that will count for nought though if we don't now go and win against the Gills and also Oldham on Saturday. Time for the manager to earn his corn. Time for the players to do what they were recruited to do - play some decent football and score some goals.

I don't think I'm asking too much in that after all Robinson likes his reputation whether it's right or wrong for the expansive game. The problem is that expansive seems to be a euphemism for a method of play that involves a lot of possession with little cutting edge or return in the goals for column!

If Robinson has serious aspirations about staying at our club then he needs to start winning games now. Following a tough December a very much easier January looms ahead and a decent haul of points is the minimum expectation. He could hardly ask for a better set of fixtures to do so.

The manager needs to get this transfer window right which is a big ask as it doesn't usually provide any gems. If he is supported then there is a possibility a couple of decent recruits giving some impetus.

Thank you for taking the trouble to read my nonsense this year and if you have commented too. Whilst there's been no shortage of things to write about given the depressing decline of the club it's been hard to be positive and to motivate oneself on occasion. Hopefully that will change with new ownership.

If the manager can improve things ( and stop talking so much ) may be I can be positive about him too !

Thank you to Ketts at Doctor Kish for his support, encouragement and snippets of news allied to good company at matches.

I wish you all and your families a happy new year. Let's hope it sees a significant move forward for our club - the thing that unites us all. Hopefully we can again be as proud as we ought to be of our great  and unique club. 

Come On You Reds ! 

The Beginning Of The End ?

Addicks in sombre mood after learning that the CEO is leaving the club.

Some rare good news yesterday as it was confirmed that Katrien Meire is leaving the club. Never mind the seemingly endless appointment of inept managers Katrien's employ as the cloob's CEO is the one that really typifies Roly's inability to make the right decision when it comes to running a football club.

There's little point in going over her many errors and awful decisions. In conjunction with Roland she has inflicted a great deal of damage on our club. We have to hope it's not irreparable. It's a long way back but her departure is at least a start.

Reports that Meire is lined to join another football club is simply staggering. I'm sure we can all think of one or two where she'd be a perfect fit. However, it's no longer our concern.

Of course I'm sure we would all like to express our sympathy to a2c. He'll be at a loose end without his heroine. If those reports are true then a2c can follow her to wherever she now ends up.

Aside from having little to no understanding of how to run a football club or oversee senior management Miss Meire simply didn't get that fans general mistrust of her arose directly from her incompetence. That bottom line is that she simply wasn't fit for the role. Misogyny and racism were lazy accusations that came from her apologists.

Having managed to make one decent appointment in Mel Baroni it was Mel's resignation only a few days into the role that spoke volumes about Katrien and the regime. It was something, like many other issues, that she failed to learn from.    

Hopefully the formal sale and takeover of our club by a decent owner is just around the corner. It is only once that has been achieved that we can truly start to celebrate.

In the meantime, the players travel to Wigan as they face their hardest task to date. Robinson's response to defeat at Southend was inappropriate I felt. Aside from the fact that he should accept some of the blame, dragging the players in at 7am the next day was never a good idea.

The manager gave himself little time to plan any response and it was a knee-jerk reaction. The players needed a telling off ( words chosen carefully note !! ) but Robinson needed to do something different but he hasn't allowed himself the chance to do so. 

Mind you there's little evidence to date that Robinson has an alternative approach to anything. Whether any new owners would retain his services remains to be seen.

The naming of only 6 subs at Southend was rather silly and also damning other players at the club. He has previous in this regard as he did the same at MK.

Robinson's argument appears to be that anyone he could have selected would add nothing and not be up to the task. If that's the case then why has he repeatedly put Dodoo on the bench when it's quite clear he's not going to get on ? Again it's another question that I'd love someone to ask.

The chance of us getting anything from tonight's game is highly unlikely but football's a funny game and Charlton aren't an ordinary club so you never know !

Come On You Reds !

Merry Christmas ?

Forget about CAFC and enjoy the festive period !

Here we go then.....................injuries or not that was awful yesterday with only a couple of players coming out of the game with any credit.

As ever please don't use injuries as an excuse - make no mistake about that was truly dreadful from manager to players. Robinson asking for our support reminded me of Pardew and the famous Blackpool game. Both games have ended with embarrassing results.

Blackpool were the worst visiting side we've seen this season. You had to be there to know just how bad they were. it was a case of deja vu as we all knew that 1-0 or even 2-0 had we got there was never going to be enough. On occasion this season that has been forgivable because we were playing against a decent team. Not yesterday though - there simply is no excuse for missing golden opportunities or poor decision making both on and off the pitch.

I said at half time the best chance the Seasiders had to score was from a set piece and how right I was. Our defending of late has been truly shocking. It was against Blackburn for their two goals and yet the manager was keen to say how well we'd played. Eh ? We lost against a team that had played a tense cup game the Wednesday before. We'd had all week to prepare.

Robinson rather predictably went back to blaming the officials again.......it's so tiresome. He even went on to suggest our players should start going down easier. Great ! That's what it's come to now is it ? That's the best he can come up with !

I read some people expressing how sorry they feel for Robinson. He's got a small squad, no backing from the owner, injuries etc. etc. No one made him take this rather well paid job. Even Robinson isn't that naive to not know what he was getting into.

I felt he was rather well backed in the summer. Unless I'm very much mistaken I don't think the regime forced Ben Reeves on him. I doubt that Roly has heard of Vic Reeves let alone Ben !

Robinson told he's only spoken to Roly once since taking the job so I'm can't believe he's being told what do in the same way Powell was. 

Chris Wilder decided not to take the job. I doubt that was all down to a desire to stay up north. He knew his ability meant he could choose the job he wanted and wasn't desperate to come to us. Robinson was like a kid in a sweet shop when he came to us. I don't think he could believe his luck.

Living in MK I am all too aware of what Robinson is like. It was in the local paper every week and MK fans I know would tell me as they expressed their frustrations. You'll never guess what they said ! I spoke to one on Wednesday. " Is he still blaming the officials when he loses ? "

A rather superior manager in Mourinho yesterday responded to United's defeat by publicly criticising the players. Robinson should have done the same. The missed chances were dreadful and we see it in every game. We never put sides away even when we are playing well.

Clearly the manager is never going to change his system nor have Magennis play anything other than the full 90 minutes game after game. Play can one journo ask him why that is the case!!

His game management is dreadful. Blackpool's subs actually made an impact and I was questioning Bowyer's decision not to get Spearing and Delfouneso on for them - two good players as I recall. Clearly he knew what he was doing as they made an impact.

The Valley faithful could see what was going to happen but Robinson failed to do the right thing. Marshall was woeful and I think he'd struggle to beat an egg at the moment. He may have had a purple patch with his previous club and that's looks unlikely to repeat itself at the moment.

He should have been off at half time. Again Dodoo sat on the bench. Is he any good ? I've no idea but I bet he couldn't do much worse than the others did yesterday. 

Are we unlucky with injuries or is there another reason for them. Robinson openly admitted some players had been playing carrying injuries. If so, why let them ?

Clearly a number of players are rushed back into the team too soon. That was happening before our current injury situation.

He likes his reputation for blooding young players yet his refusal to play Aribo earlier than he did belies this. I've read he may yet go out on loan ! If true that's clearly ridiculous.

Robinson game by game is resembling his last days at MK and everything that typified it. Sadly neither of his right-hand men have the experiences or perhaps feel confident enough to tell him otherwise. He really ought to have got more experienced sidekicks. In MK he had the experienced John Gorman to assist him and I think he played a large part in any success.

Some folk love all Robinson's bravado and talk of " we're a strong group, we're all together " etc.etc. That might be true off the pitch, I've no idea but on the pitch it looks the opposite. 

I'd rather 4 or 5 turn up to the Christmas do if we start winning games ! I'm fed up of hearing all this nonsense. I truly wonder if the players are behind him and his way of playing ? Do they. like me. see a manager who wants to be everyone's mate?

Given all the dismissals we've had another wouldn't be good but sadly if we carry on like this it might become inevitable. A top two place is clearly beyond us and a play-off berth is fast disappearing. Even if we did get in the play-offs I wouldn't hold out much hope. 

I don't need to look up Robinson's record in those. If you don't then just don't worry about delaying your holiday plans in late May !

I'll wager that Robinson won't be a success at any club after he leaves us. In the meantime we have to hope he somehow improves should he stay.

On a more cheery note...............I hope that you all have a great Christmas and will wish for better things for CAFC in 2018 !

Come On You Reds !

No disrespect..............

Some while back and it will be a while back because Charlton were in the Championship, we played and beat Middlesbrough. Their then manager, a certain Anthony Mowbray, was not best pleased.

Post match and he famously remarked that " no disrespect but we shouldn't be getting beaten by teams like Charlton ". It's understood that temporary amnesia caused Mr Mowbray to forget that he was managing a fairly average club in Smogland and not Barcelona !

The ex-Boro man is now managing Blackburn having left Barca er..... Boro presumably because he kept losing to rubbish teams like ours.........no disrespect of course.

All that aside he is doing a pretty good this season with Rovers after a sluggish start. As such we face a tough task in getting anything from the game.

It's one we go into in poor form but our boys seem to like it oop north so maybe there's hope. We may have one or two players returning from injury. Let's hope so because we need some impetus from somewhere and if the manager is not going to offer any cause for hope then it must come from the players.

Robinson needs to have a good look at who and who isn't letting him down at the moment. Review what is and isn't working. Surely even he can see the Magennis just isn't cutting the mustard. Clearly he is capable at this level but he needs some help of the kind that a fellow strike partner can offer.

That or Best and KAG need to be paired up. Since the goals and especially those from open play are drying up it makes sense to change things. Continuously banging the ball in from wide areas isn't doing the trick is it ?

The fixture list has conspired to throw up 3 consecutive opponents who've suffered from bad stewardship in recent years. Pompey and Blackburn with Blackpool completing the trio on Saturday week.

There's no further news on any takeover of late but we live in the hope of receiving the best Christmas present that we can get.

In the meantime, let's hope that come 5pm Mr Mowbray is again " no disrespect but........! "

Come On You Reds !