Some of the things we saw and heard cannot be repeated on a public forum...
What can be said though is that in the main there is a great spirit around the place. The youth team and the first team all eat lunch and interact together.
We were incredibly well looked after by Bob from the outset (and we'll be getting a few extra prizes for the end of season raffle). Chris Powell came over to us and spoke to a good 30 minutes and was genuinley interested in what we had to say and what we thought of the current situation. He has some visions for the training ground itself by getting a new gym in and redeveloping the Academy area. He admitted that he was a little taken aback by the sheer volume of tasks he has to do (he has been asked if they can get a new tractor for the training pitch) and is working 7am until late at night.
The players were split into two groups when we arrived and it was good to see Solly, Bessone (great character, high in spirits and obviously loves the game) and some of the youngsters really getting on well and enjoying their football (overseen by Keith Peacock). The first team training seemed to alternate between Powell, Matthew and Dyer with one of them being the lead at different times. After training, Semedo set up his own little drill by placing two boards 10 feet apart and simply passing, taking a touch and turning around and passing again. Chris Powell says he does this every day for 15 minutes.
At lunch, Scott Wagstaff came over immediately and noticed who I was and we chatted about everything from how 'crap' we were against Carlisle to Kolo Toure getting in trouble. He really is a nice down to earth bloke. We talked about loans and if players come in and they are in your position you get really narked (that being said, he got on really well with Lee Martin and they still speak). JJ came over and we had a natter (he commented that heroin_addick should be in The Office) and he seemed confident for tomorrow night - he's had an injection but not done much out on the training ground. The rest of the Twitter crew (McOxo, Francis, Benno) then came over and chatted about going to Hartlepool on a Tuesday night and how soul destroying it is going to places like that after having the luxuries of Charlton. We told them to buck their ideas up and get out of the league.
Damian Matthew came over and was a top top bloke - he has ambitions to be #1 at some point and I think he'll make a good one. He speaks eloquently and has a real vision as to how he wants us to play football - it bodes well. Dyer and Roberts also came over and we spent a fair bit of time and they all agreed with us that as fans we simply can't take being outworked and outbattled on the pitch.
Was great to see Youga there, Powelly has real affections for him and he didnt rule out seeing him in a Charlton shirt again.
Plaaayer and RedArmySE7 may want to add more.
All in all it was a great day and a massive thanks has to go out to the Community Trust, Richard Willgoss, Matt Wright, Gary Allen and everyone at Sparrows Lane who made us feel welcome and not out of place.
You probably cant say, but what was the training like? i.e. was you impressed with the training you saw and have you seen it translated on to the pitch yet?
Powell did say that the negative reaction in the stand does affect the players.
Saying that Damian Matthew said that the support this season has been superb. He said that compared to some of his old sides like Palace and Chelsea the supporters were allot more paitent with the side.
I just wanted to say that I was really impressed with how most of the players and staff happily came up to us to have a chat and you could actually have a laugh with them, Jackson especially just seemed like a bloke that you could happily have a few beers with.
Impressed with Damian Matthew, really knows his stuff and spoke to us for quite a while about the team and football in general. Lovely bloke.
I'm loving the 'soul destoying going to places like Hartlepool' comment. Surely you would think Benno would be used of facilities like that when he was at the Daggers!
Another thing that hasn't been mentioned is that half hour after training had officially finished Francis and McCormack were still crossing balls into Benson to finish. That desire and workrate doesn't go unnoticed. Like wise Bessone was doing some running drills for his fitness as training finished, Semedo and Racon came over and asked to join in. Racon was told 3 or 4 times what to do and still didn't get anywhere doing it right! Things like that though were really good to see as it's all too easy just to go and jump in the shower (especially on a friday) but staying out and doing that bit of extra work can be the difference.
As said by the others a massive thank you to Bob for really starting the day nicely with a cup of tea and a good laugh, he was an excellent host. Scott Wagstaff, Johnnie Jackson, Alan McCormack, Simon Francis and Paul Benson from the playing staff were absolutely fantastic in coming over and talking with at length. I'm sure it was a chore (especially as Plaaayer was there) but it didn't show.
The real stars of the show though were Chris Powell and Damian Matthew for me, the genuine interest they took in what we had to say and our views on the current situation not only at Charlton but on football in general was an absolute pleasure to behold. I cannot speak highly enough of both of them, this is not to belittle the efforts made by Ben Roberts and Alex Dyer either it must be said. This is definitely a management team that I want taking the club forward, no doubt about it.
The air of panic seems to have lifted a bit. The last 5 years have all been "we need to get back yesterday" (things like the free season ticket on promotion tell us all that), however now the message I'm getting from the club is we can maybe stop panicking a tad and actually build our way back the right way. The planned improvements to the training facilities will play a massive part in that.
Anyway, it was a terrific day that I'm really glad to have been a part of. Cheers to WSS for getting drunk and bidding away his cash!
Great reports from everyone. Think its fantastic that people take the time to sit down and write these updates. They are both informative and give those that weren't actually be there a real feel for what's going on behind the scenes - which I'm sure we're all interested in and want to know about. It all sounds very promising too.
One question I'd like answered is whether there were players doing extra shifts under Parky? It would be interesting to know
Thanks for the updates - sounds like a really good day was had!
Also to add I had the pleasure of Bob Bolder doing a guided tour as I was a match sponsor for a premiership game a few years ago - he really is a genuinely nice and funny chap.
Also to add I had the pleasure of Bob Bolder doing a guided tour as I was a match sponsor for a premiership game a few years ago - he really is a genuinely nice and funny chap.
Also to add I had the pleasure of Bob Bolder doing a guided tour as I was a match sponsor for a premiership game a few years ago - he really is a genuinely nice and funny chap.
Comments
What can be said though is that in the main there is a great spirit around the place. The youth team and the first team all eat lunch and interact together.
We were incredibly well looked after by Bob from the outset (and we'll be getting a few extra prizes for the end of season raffle). Chris Powell came over to us and spoke to a good 30 minutes and was genuinley interested in what we had to say and what we thought of the current situation. He has some visions for the training ground itself by getting a new gym in and redeveloping the Academy area. He admitted that he was a little taken aback by the sheer volume of tasks he has to do (he has been asked if they can get a new tractor for the training pitch) and is working 7am until late at night.
The players were split into two groups when we arrived and it was good to see Solly, Bessone (great character, high in spirits and obviously loves the game) and some of the youngsters really getting on well and enjoying their football (overseen by Keith Peacock). The first team training seemed to alternate between Powell, Matthew and Dyer with one of them being the lead at different times. After training, Semedo set up his own little drill by placing two boards 10 feet apart and simply passing, taking a touch and turning around and passing again. Chris Powell says he does this every day for 15 minutes.
At lunch, Scott Wagstaff came over immediately and noticed who I was and we chatted about everything from how 'crap' we were against Carlisle to Kolo Toure getting in trouble. He really is a nice down to earth bloke. We talked about loans and if players come in and they are in your position you get really narked (that being said, he got on really well with Lee Martin and they still speak). JJ came over and we had a natter (he commented that heroin_addick should be in The Office) and he seemed confident for tomorrow night - he's had an injection but not done much out on the training ground. The rest of the Twitter crew (McOxo, Francis, Benno) then came over and chatted about going to Hartlepool on a Tuesday night and how soul destroying it is going to places like that after having the luxuries of Charlton. We told them to buck their ideas up and get out of the league.
Damian Matthew came over and was a top top bloke - he has ambitions to be #1 at some point and I think he'll make a good one. He speaks eloquently and has a real vision as to how he wants us to play football - it bodes well. Dyer and Roberts also came over and we spent a fair bit of time and they all agreed with us that as fans we simply can't take being outworked and outbattled on the pitch.
Was great to see Youga there, Powelly has real affections for him and he didnt rule out seeing him in a Charlton shirt again.
Plaaayer and RedArmySE7 may want to add more.
All in all it was a great day and a massive thanks has to go out to the Community Trust, Richard Willgoss, Matt Wright, Gary Allen and everyone at Sparrows Lane who made us feel welcome and not out of place.
I'll be interested to see how things differ once the management team have a full close/pre season under their belts.
good report though
Love Semedo for doing extra work!
Did Wagstaff say why we were so crap against Carlisle?
Saying that Damian Matthew said that the support this season has been superb. He said that compared to some of his old sides like Palace and Chelsea the supporters were allot more paitent with the side.
I just wanted to say that I was really impressed with how most of the players and staff happily came up to us to have a chat and you could actually have a laugh with them, Jackson especially just seemed like a bloke that you could happily have a few beers with.
Impressed with Damian Matthew, really knows his stuff and spoke to us for quite a while about the team and football in general. Lovely bloke.
I'm loving the 'soul destoying going to places like Hartlepool' comment. Surely you would think Benno would be used of facilities like that when he was at the Daggers!
As said by the others a massive thank you to Bob for really starting the day nicely with a cup of tea and a good laugh, he was an excellent host. Scott Wagstaff, Johnnie Jackson, Alan McCormack, Simon Francis and Paul Benson from the playing staff were absolutely fantastic in coming over and talking with at length. I'm sure it was a chore (especially as Plaaayer was there) but it didn't show.
The real stars of the show though were Chris Powell and Damian Matthew for me, the genuine interest they took in what we had to say and our views on the current situation not only at Charlton but on football in general was an absolute pleasure to behold. I cannot speak highly enough of both of them, this is not to belittle the efforts made by Ben Roberts and Alex Dyer either it must be said. This is definitely a management team that I want taking the club forward, no doubt about it.
The air of panic seems to have lifted a bit. The last 5 years have all been "we need to get back yesterday" (things like the free season ticket on promotion tell us all that), however now the message I'm getting from the club is we can maybe stop panicking a tad and actually build our way back the right way. The planned improvements to the training facilities will play a massive part in that.
Anyway, it was a terrific day that I'm really glad to have been a part of. Cheers to WSS for getting drunk and bidding away his cash!
Behind the scenes everything seems really upbeat and in generally good spirits.
Well done chaps!
Thanks for the updates - sounds like a really good day was had!
Also to add I had the pleasure of Bob Bolder doing a guided tour as I was a match sponsor for a premiership game a few years ago - he really is a genuinely nice and funny chap.
It was a club punishment, they had to stay until he connected with one, and 4 hours later everybody went home :)
different Bob
Bob who then? Not a secret is it?
;o)