Just home following a nice lunch with fellow Addicks in Rochester .
Oh yes ! And then there was the football to "spoil" a good afternoon....
Lots of familiar faces in the loooong queue that snaked down the road to our turnstile ( note - just 1 open when we arrived at 2.15pm) Can't believe too many were smiling as they retraced their steps at 5.10.
Without referring to any particular incidents in the game, my take on the 110 or so minutes we watched was that the height & strength of opposition players is once again highlighting our weaknesses. The Gills' goal scorer is an Andy Carroll look alike, their 'keeper, in the mould of Schmeichel Snr to name but two.
Maybe the quality of our crosses into their box today was depressingly poor due to the effort of trying to put the ball beyond their reach - not surprisingly most were beyond the reach of our forwards ( or should that be forward ?)
Hand on heart, I've never played The Beautiful Game ( what gave it away?) but as I've posted before, I just say what I see. Today, it appeared to me that we needed to keep the ball on the ground / to cross it low & hard into the box from the wide areas so that the undoubtedly superior skills of our lads could at least test their 'keeper. On the whole, this didn't happen & we continually pumped high balls which told me that there was no plan B to take the Gills' aerial advantage into account.
OK .This is probably far too simplistic an excuse for today's disappointing performance & there are others far more adept than myself in pinpointing our deficiencies on the pitch. One thing I will add though, is that we appear to struggle to deal with conceding the first goal, and not for the first time this season. There was no hard evidence to show the players' heads dropped but something undefinable out there happened - possibly the determination of the home team to hold their lead & in fact win their first game of the current term. And once again, that alternative plan went AWOL.
Earlier posters will have likely confirmed whether our main man, Rickeeee will miss the next game due to his yellow card today. And it's no secret that his absence will be HUGE. He IS our Duracell Bunny. He IS the player that others seek to play in because they know he has the skill, speed & guile to fashion a goal opportunity. No other player in the current squad has this unique ability and at present there is certainly no -one on the bench who can enter the fray & make a difference in his mould. Next Saturday will give KR a dilemma but also an opportunity to make some changes ....it's a case of now or never in my book. I'd like to see Kashi with a role to push forward more often & being involved in putting balls into the box, or indeed taking shots as he did spectacularly at Peterborough many months ago.
IMHO, the Gills' win was deserved albeit that we fought hard to stay in the game. But we've now witnessed 3 + hours of football from our lads, with no goals scored and with 4 conceded. Maybe this lends itself to more than usual in-depth questioning of the manager's tactics, of his reluctance to refresh the starting line up and of Roland's reluctance to ensure the squad is fit for purpose which, he "states" is promotion. The latter is invariably questioned by many Addicks...
So, a week before our next test. Plenty of time for the gaffer to regroup, to rethink his strategy & to galvanise his men towards a much needed 3 points in front of the Valley faithful. I'm certain those in attendance will get behind the boys but there will inevitably be many crossed fingers & bitten nails, especially if the lads from Bury get that first goal. Anything less than a win and our perceived push for promotion will be seriously questioned.
To steal the phrase that inspired generations of Englishmen ...
Scum are beating top of the Championship and we're losing to the bottom of League One side , shameful times to be an Addick , thanks Roly now piss off .
It's still a shit League and ATM we don't look out of place in it .
Scum are beating top of the Championship and we're losing to the bottom of League One side , shameful times to be an Addick , thanks Roly now piss off .
It's still a shit League and ATM we don't look out of place in it .
Not sure you can blame the elderly for Millwall for beating top of the Championship. But you can blame hime for us being in a position where we lose to bottom of League 1. We should still be Championship minimum. He may have relented a bit and is now letting the gaffer get on with it. But it's too late. He should have done that when we were still back in the Championship. He has seemingly locked the stable door after the horse has run off.
I've been fortunate so far in life, despite many ailments, never to have suffered from premature ejaculation. I imagine this season is how that affliction feels.
On the contrary... Aimed properly, one of them could have resulted in the breeding of a quick finishing striker who's lethal around the box.
Another false dawn start to the season under this regime? Or is this team still "the real deal?"
I wasn't there today so won't comment on the game but those who were getting over excited about the start need to have a look at themselves. And that is not me writing off the season but it lasts 46 games! A decent six games means nothing-we need to be consistent for a long stretch and the signs shown this week ain't great. Also, with the state of mind in the stands, the league we are in and the trigger happy owner, we are only a couple more defeats from the toxicity returning-KR needs to turn this around double quick......
Not really. It's in the nature of fans to get over excited after a good run of wins. Bit odd if you don't really. Whenever you're positive you know it can still go horribly wrong at any moment, especially with a thin squad, and no proven goalscoring striker (Josh is almost that, but not quite).
Now, can we beat Bury without Holmes, Reeves or Marshall?
Lots of things I could say, but too fed up & tired to list them all. Reading the various posts on here the predominate point that stands out is that we have no plan B. I take no joy in saying that I have been banging on since July about the lack of a decent striker, and the fact that we let Vetokele, Ajose, Watt & Novak to leave & replacing them with a Rangers reserve is criminal in itself. Not saying that the above 4 strikers would have set the world alight, but it would have least given us an option from the bench. The sight of seeing KAG & Dodoo coming on with 15 mins to go in the last 2 games & not affecting either game at all feels me with dread for the coming months ahead. Unless we somehow find an answer to this, either by chance, changing the system or bringing in a freebie (Rickie lambert ?) then not only do I see a top 6 place slipping through our fingers but another season of mid-table mediocrity (undispersed with fears of relegation) is very much likely.
This may sound a bit extreme or OTT, but from the games I've seen this season (3 defeats & 2 wins - 1 in the cup at Exeter) it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work us out. Just score before we do & then sit back & let us pass into oblivion. Today was just like Plymouth - they got everyone behind the ball & knew we couldn't get in behind them. Dodoo may have pace but he wont be able to score if he is faced with 6 players strung across their 18 yard line. His goal at Oldham came as they were pushing up & he exploited the space behind them. He wont score many coming on when we are behind & needing to break down a defence. You can have as many attacking midfielders as you like but they are no good if they are faced with 10 men in front of them & no outlet. The best cross all game came from...... Big Josh - low & hard and their defender nearly put it into his own net. Just a shame we had no striker there to finish it off - but that's what happens when you play with just 1 up front. He can't be in 2 places at once !!!
So, we turn to next week. Bury at home. They are currently lying in 22nd place with just 1 win in 8 games. I'm going for another loss & don't see anything changing until KR does. As they say "if you do what you always did, you'll get what you always got"
SORT IT OUT & CHANGE IT.
PS - He'll have to with Holmes missing - but I'm expecting something like -for-like, with KAG coming in to play wide. If he does then don't be surprised if we don't win.
Only listened to the commentary, but sounds much like a lot of what we'd feared, one dimensional, one plan, not enough physical strength and a bench full of youngsters, a legend but aged pro and inadequates for even this division.
I can see us getting turned over by Bury at home next week and Walsall/Fleetwood away will be difficult matches anyway let alone when confidence is low. No goals in two games says it all.
Holmes out for the weekend and not a lot to replace him with, who from todays bench will start......... need a win soon or squeaky bum time for Robinson...
I didn't spend a fiver on the iFollow stream this week. It wasn't because I was too tight, it wasn't down to the midweek defeat, it was because the likelihood of being interrupted by drunk Swedes, Chinese tour guides and an over-excited dog were too high. Yes, I had to look after the guesthouse while the missus was in Bangkok.
I followed the match thread on and off during the game and although not necessarily expecting a big win, I certainly didn't anticipate a defeat. The only consolation is that five wins and three defeats is better the succession of draws we were getting not too long ago. Annoying that Holmes was booked but he wasn't going to get much further without a fifth yellow card.
The good news is that I'll be at the Bury game next week and will be looking to extend the four match winning streak that I'm on at the moment, with 12 goals scored and two conceded.
Wasn't at the game. Was fuming after Tuesday and still fuming this morning. Tuesday was shit because I truly believe we didn't put 100% in, yesterday, from what I could pick up from reports on here was shit because we had more shots on goal etc and in my mind, Gillingham are a team that will finish near the bottom, so we should be winning
KR needs to have a big week this week because Bury is a must win game for me now. We can't be going 3 defeats in a row
I would say after a bright start to the season we have been worked out, as I expected. Squad not big enough or good enough. Same old winter coming along I think.
You're right @cabbles Charlton should be beating teams like Gillingham.............oh wait someone said that about us once except we weren't bottom of L1 with players on £200 / £400 per week.
We need to get a freebie or two in ASAP to provide different options but I'm not holding my breath with the megalomaniac puppet master in charge and the puppets who dance to his tune.
Hope I'm wrong and it's just a blip otherwise my observation last week will ring true that peaks and troughs will be a regular feature at least until January and probably thereafter. Especially if we have slipped into mid table mediocrity with no transfer window additions and possible outgoings.
Rubbish result , in a terrible week . If we beat Bury , we could go second so we live in hope . Having no goal threat on the bench is going to be a huge problem, January is a long way off .
Comments
Oh yes ! And then there was the football to "spoil" a good afternoon....
Lots of familiar faces in the loooong queue that snaked down the road to our turnstile ( note - just 1 open when we arrived at 2.15pm) Can't believe too many were smiling as they retraced their steps at 5.10.
Without referring to any particular incidents in the game, my take on the 110 or so minutes we watched was that the height & strength of opposition players is once again highlighting our weaknesses. The Gills' goal scorer is an Andy Carroll look alike, their 'keeper, in the mould of Schmeichel Snr to name but two.
Maybe the quality of our crosses into their box today was depressingly poor due to the effort of trying to put the ball beyond their reach - not surprisingly most were beyond the reach of our forwards ( or should that be forward ?)
Hand on heart, I've never played The Beautiful Game ( what gave it away?) but as I've posted before, I just say what I see. Today, it appeared to me that we needed to keep the ball on the ground / to cross it low & hard into the box from the wide areas so that the undoubtedly superior skills of our lads could at least test their 'keeper. On the whole, this didn't happen & we continually pumped high balls which told me that there was no plan B to take the Gills' aerial advantage into account.
OK .This is probably far too simplistic an excuse for today's disappointing performance & there are others far more adept than myself in pinpointing our deficiencies on the pitch. One thing I will add though, is that we appear to struggle to deal with conceding the first goal, and not for the first time this season. There was no hard evidence to show the players' heads dropped but something undefinable out there happened - possibly the determination of the home team to hold their lead & in fact win their first game of the current term. And once again, that alternative plan went AWOL.
Earlier posters will have likely confirmed whether our main man, Rickeeee will miss the next game due to his yellow card today. And it's no secret that his absence will be HUGE. He IS our Duracell Bunny. He IS the player that others seek to play in because they know he has the skill, speed & guile to fashion a goal opportunity. No other player in the current squad has this unique ability and at present there is certainly no -one on the bench who can enter the fray & make a difference in his mould. Next Saturday will give KR a dilemma but also an opportunity to make some changes ....it's a case of now or never in my book. I'd like to see Kashi with a role to push forward more often & being involved in putting balls into the box, or indeed taking shots as he did spectacularly at Peterborough many months ago.
IMHO, the Gills' win was deserved albeit that we fought hard to stay in the game. But we've now witnessed 3 + hours of football from our lads, with no goals scored and with 4 conceded. Maybe this lends itself to more than usual in-depth questioning of the manager's tactics, of his reluctance to refresh the starting line up and of Roland's reluctance to ensure the squad is fit for purpose which, he "states" is promotion. The latter is invariably questioned by many Addicks...
So, a week before our next test. Plenty of time for the gaffer to regroup, to rethink his strategy & to galvanise his men towards a much needed 3 points in front of the Valley faithful. I'm certain those in attendance will get behind the boys but there will inevitably be many crossed fingers & bitten nails, especially if the lads from Bury get that first goal. Anything less than a win and our perceived push for promotion will be seriously questioned.
To steal the phrase that inspired generations of Englishmen ...
"Fanny expects that every man will do his duty."
It's still a shit League and ATM we don't look out of place in it .
5% Automatic promotion ........ 45% Play offs ........... 45% 7th-12th ....... 5% 13th-20th ...... 0% Relegation
100% Roland Out
You'll be in big trouble.
Chaaarlton Chaaaarlton Charlton Charlton
Aimed properly, one of them could have resulted in the breeding of a quick finishing striker who's lethal around the box.
Now, can we beat Bury without Holmes, Reeves or Marshall?
This may sound a bit extreme or OTT, but from the games I've seen this season (3 defeats & 2 wins - 1 in the cup at Exeter) it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work us out. Just score before we do & then sit back & let us pass into oblivion. Today was just like Plymouth - they got everyone behind the ball & knew we couldn't get in behind them. Dodoo may have pace but he wont be able to score if he is faced with 6 players strung across their 18 yard line. His goal at Oldham came as they were pushing up & he exploited the space behind them. He wont score many coming on when we are behind & needing to break down a defence. You can have as many attacking midfielders as you like but they are no good if they are faced with 10 men in front of them & no outlet. The best cross all game came from...... Big Josh - low & hard and their defender nearly put it into his own net. Just a shame we had no striker there to finish it off - but that's what happens when you play with just 1 up front. He can't be in 2 places at once !!!
So, we turn to next week. Bury at home. They are currently lying in 22nd place with just 1 win in 8 games. I'm going for another loss & don't see anything changing until KR does. As they say "if you do what you always did, you'll get what you always got"
SORT IT OUT & CHANGE IT.
PS - He'll have to with Holmes missing - but I'm expecting something like -for-like, with KAG coming in to play wide. If he does then don't be surprised if we don't win.
I can see us getting turned over by Bury at home next week and Walsall/Fleetwood away will be difficult matches anyway let alone when confidence is low. No goals in two games says it all.
Holmes out for the weekend and not a lot to replace him with, who from todays bench will start......... need a win soon or squeaky bum time for Robinson...
I followed the match thread on and off during the game and although not necessarily expecting a big win, I certainly didn't anticipate a defeat. The only consolation is that five wins and three defeats is better the succession of draws we were getting not too long ago. Annoying that Holmes was booked but he wasn't going to get much further without a fifth yellow card.
The good news is that I'll be at the Bury game next week and will be looking to extend the four match winning streak that I'm on at the moment, with 12 goals scored and two conceded.
We looked to rely on Holmes and the left hand side too much, with nothing going through the middle. F*** knows what happens if Magennis does not play.
On yesterdays showing, and against a team in the bottom three as well, we'll be lucky to make the play-offs.
Seems a repeat of the bob peters season at the minute.
KR needs to have a big week this week because Bury is a must win game for me now. We can't be going 3 defeats in a row
Sort it out
Same old winter coming along I think.
We need to get a freebie or two in ASAP to provide different options but I'm not holding my breath with the megalomaniac puppet master in charge and the puppets who dance to his tune.
Hope I'm wrong and it's just a blip otherwise my observation last week will ring true that peaks and troughs will be a regular feature at least until January and probably thereafter. Especially if we have slipped into mid table mediocrity with no transfer window additions and possible outgoings.