Seems the overall point to take from this is that Francis is probably a little too mentally fragile to be a professional footballer at any level where there's a decent amount of pressure. He's half man half panic button. Knowing this makes me even more surprised the fans boo him as it's only going to make him play worse. Having a crap season, losing his place in the first team, being kept out of the team despite of a good performance through no fault of his own and then being booed on his return before even kicking a ball wouldn't feel good to anyone. He even lost his first team number. I don't agree with booing players ever as it doesn't help the team play any better and it just makes you look a bit stupid. 'I don't like this! How do I express my distaste at this performance? NNAAAARGGHHH-NOISE!'
I wish no ill on the bloke. He won't be playing first team again, it was a cup match, we've got a right back on top form. Who even has the energy?
Simon Francis last night turned in one of the worst displays (in my opinion) 45 minutes I have ever seen from a Charlton player in the last 30 years. He simply never got near the Preston player he was up against and when the ball did go anywhere near him he gave it back to the opposition straight away.
The comment regarding Francis never hiding may have been true before last night, but there was no doubt that as the half went on he simply was not even looking for the ball (i.e. when Sullivan was looking for an outlet) and by the looks of it simply wanted out of there, this despite us being only 1 down.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
I was in the ground from about 5 minutes before the teams came out and was in sat in the West Stand in the half Francis was playing in.I did not hear any booing, a lot of groans when he gave the ball away (needlessly) and a bit of laughter with some of the defending (it was the comical).The point i am making for those who were NOT at the game is that the abuse Francis is supposed to have taken has been greatly exaggerated, mainly by people on this thread who have a clear agenda on this issue and in most cases were not within 100 miles of The Valley last night. Francis was not having a bad game due to the ‘abuse’ he was receiving as it was in real terms nonexistent, he had a bad game as that is the performance he put in.
Finally anyone who thinks the abuse Kim Grant took in the 5-1 win over Notts County in November 1993 had an element of humour clearly has no memory of that day whena large section of the covered end shouted off off off for missing a chance at 1-1.And to think we won the game 5-1 and was top of the 2nd tier and yet some on hear think abuse of players is a modern thing limited to The Valley in the last 5 years!
If Francis has played like that for the vast majority of the 92 clubs he would have received a lot more stick last night.
Anybody who thinks Simon Francis is the worst player ever for Charlton obviously never saw a certain Mr Amde Faye when when we were in the Prem. At least Francis does not run away from the ball like that lazy bastard did.
I thought Jason Euell had an absolute stinker tonight and only showed teamwork with the offside flag. Andy Hughes was also of no use after looking like he'd stand up to the physicality of Preston in the opening moments.
Spot on. Euell was not in the game. There was a moment in the first half early on when he could have put a pass out wide to Evina or Bover. By the time he had made up his mind what to do he had passed it straight into their defenders lap and lost possesion. And how many times did he get caught offside? To think Francis had a blinder against Reading and then thinking he was a different player! Shows how much I know........
Francis is a shit footballer - end of. No amount of decent crosses into the box (the only thing he's able to do with any effectiveness, and even those are infrequent) make up for his total lack of positional awareness, appalling first touch, inability to consistently pass a ball to a teammate less than ten yards away, absence of tackling ability and turning circle of an oil tanker. He is up there with Traore, Faye and El Khlaej as one of the worst players we've had in the last fifteen years.
I remember a dire period in the early 70's when the mere mention of the name of Gordon Riddick or Harry Gregory on the tannoy brought very audible groans around the ground pre-match.
Or another shite era in the late 70's when the whole covered end and more sang "We all agree Peter Shaw is a w*nker" to our young defender.
Can't put my finger on what's different now, but I hate the intolerance and stupidity of the crowd sometimes
(Not trying to be holier than thou, I was one of the people on at Peter Shaw)
LargeAddick12:44AMQuotesorry Liam but I disagree. He is one of the worst players I've seen at Charlton since I started supporting in 1972. He is hopeless. Everything he did tonight was wrong. He was at fault for the first goal. Like Marcus Bent I wonder how he's managed to make a living out of playing football. She wasn't. But happy for you to slag me off whilst you wait for another player to slag. Or have you started on Hayes already?
Scapegoat my arse. He's shit. I don't care if he is a nice bloke. I'm sure most people are. Unfortunately, we're not paying him money to be a nice bloke, we're paying him to play football - which he either cannot do at all any more, or cannot do for our team. I wouldn't boo him because I just don't see the point in doing it - and I didn't hear any boos last night before his name was read out, though there were certainly groans.
After Faye and Traore he's consistently the worst player (of those we've had who could be considered 'regular' players) I can remember us having since the mid nineties. If anybody else comes up with a name other than those three for that dubious honour I'd be surprised.
Look, the bloke's just rubbish, he needs loaning out somewhere just to get him out of the club - for his sake and ours.
Funny how the game Francis had Vs. Reading seems to have gone off the radar.
Scapegoat much?!
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Other than his crosses his performance against Reading was nothing special and he made a few defensive errors. I can't comment on the Preston game but saw a lot of him last season, he's a liability and needs to be gotten rid of.
Talking about the boo boys, might it be a good idea to try and get a feature in the Programme with comments by ex players of whom we have many still around, including our manager no less. Perhaps we could even produce a cartoon character of an obvious numbskull, and call him Booboy.
The boo boys only move on to someone else if he goes. A lot of us who had our doubts remember how Pardew was treated when he arrived at the Valley as manager. If you boo a Charlton player where we sit ( East, C - Row Q 26 - 29 ) we will make your life a bloody misery for the rest of the match/season.
The boo boys only move on to someone else if he goes. A lot of us who had our doubts remember how Pardew was treated when he arrived at the Valley as manager. If you boo a Charlton player where we sit ( East, C - Row Q 26 - 29 ) we will make your life a bloody misery for the rest of the match/season.
Can you have a quiet word with eaststandmike in that case
The boo boys only move on to someone else if he goes. A lot of us who had our doubts remember how Pardew was treated when he arrived at the Valley as manager. If you boo a Charlton player where we sit ( East, C - Row Q 26 - 29 ) we will make your life a bloody misery for the rest of the match/season.
Can you have a quiet word with eaststandmike in that case
Lol, I am beginning to warm to you DVDDD, Masicat is OK I dont sit in C block :-)
Funny how the game Francis had Vs. Reading seems to have gone off the radar.
Scapegoat much?!
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Did either of you go to the game last night?
Why is saying that a player is not good enough viewed as a scapegoat? Is that this seasons buzz word?
I thought maybe he just needed a preseason this year and would improve would it's blantently obvious he's just not a strong enough player mentally and not a good enough player physically, all this scapegoat stuff is just bollocks!
I was not at the game but was listening to the bbc London coverage and Steve Brown did say he was having a 'mare' and that was half way in the first half.
Never been convinced about his defensive qualities, but did put over some decent crosses last season, is that enough, No?
I think the guy's position is becoming impossible and I do not agree with the booing before he has kicked, or in his case not kicked a ball...........
I have given a few choice remarks to our players in the past, out of frustration and what I thought was a lack of effort, although in hindsight how can you really tell ?
I do not think players go out to play badly, and giving our own players a bollocking probably makes things a whole lot worse.
I would expect to be criticised if I did not put a shift in.
This seems to be a case of a very average player, having a very poor game, with a very low opinion of himself.
The Preston winger did seem a tricky individual, and from what was suggested on the radio Francis was lucky to make it to half time?
If he is trying to get in to the first team, which is what he should be trying to do then he has a mountain to climb
I have seen Francis have some good games. Possibly MOM against Reading He is especially talented going forward. But I tend to measure players by Curbs yard-stick. Are they consistent? No. in fact Francis is very inconsistent, as was Kelly Youga. So they would't get in Curbs team and wouldn't get in mine.
I hope Parky takes him on loan and does a good rescue job on him.
As for our crowd, it is shameful at times. I remember Nicky Bailey getting horrible stick because he would gamble too often on a long pass but really he was our best player.
But, big but, our crowd is no worse than Palace or Millwall. When Millwall go on a losing run the players and manager get it big time.
We need a visual protest against the booers and hoof it up merchants in the crowd - how about a 2 minute stand up and symbolic clap at a specified point during the game for everybody who opposes the xctions of these morons to shame them?
exactly plaaayer. the word 'scapegoat' drives me mad. if ur shit...ur shit. theres no other label for it. we arent picking on the player...we are just telling him how it is.
We need a visual protest against the booers and hoof it up merchants in the crowd - how about a 2 minute stand up and symbolic clap at a specified point during the game for everybody who opposes the xctions of these morons to shame them?
How about a small variant to the Red Robin " Shut up, shut up you booing Reds"
We need a visual protest against the booers and hoof it up merchants in the crowd - how about a 2 minute stand up and symbolic clap at a specified point during the game for everybody who opposes the xctions of these morons to shame them?
We need a visual protest against the booers and hoof it up merchants in the crowd - how about a 2 minute stand up and symbolic clap at a specified point during the game for everybody who opposes the xctions of these morons to shame them?
I'd still love to know where all this booing was happening? Where in the ground was you sitting to hear it all?
Well the other alternative is that we pick fights with them and both get banned from the ground but I am not going to put up with actions of idiots who are damaging the club I love for much longer. Everybody is entitled to their opinions about a player and they may be right but when a player wears the shirt, booing him is only going to damage the team. It is different to collective booing after poor team performances. opponents are targeting it, the manager has told us to stop it and the thought that a minority of lifers do it is extra sad. Happy to call the very few lifers who think this is acceptable that you are complete and utter ignorant idiots. Would be if some of the decent Charlton fans (part of the majority) echo this -we need to let them know that their behaviour is unacceptable. The manager picks the team we support the team.
It is in pockets and not that loud because it is a minority of idiots but players are hearing it.Listen and you will too when Francis plays. If we let him go they will move on to somebody else, especially if we have a few poor games.
As for our crowd being no worse than Millwall and Palace - that may be but we have in recent history had fans that were miles better than these and a strength of the club.
Comments
I wish no ill on the bloke. He won't be playing first team again, it was a cup match, we've got a right back on top form. Who even has the energy?
Simon Francis last night turned in one of the worst displays (in my opinion) 45 minutes I have ever seen from a Charlton player in the last 30 years. He simply never got near the Preston player he was up against and when the ball did go anywhere near him he gave it back to the opposition straight away.
The comment regarding Francis never hiding may have been true before last night, but there was no doubt that as the half went on he simply was not even looking for the ball (i.e. when Sullivan was looking for an outlet) and by the looks of it simply wanted out of there, this despite us being only 1 down.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
I was in the ground from about 5 minutes before the teams came out and was in sat in the West Stand in the half Francis was playing in. I did not hear any booing, a lot of groans when he gave the ball away (needlessly) and a bit of laughter with some of the defending (it was the comical). The point i am making for those who were NOT at the game is that the abuse Francis is supposed to have taken has been greatly exaggerated, mainly by people on this thread who have a clear agenda on this issue and in most cases were not within 100 miles of The Valley last night. Francis was not having a bad game due to the ‘abuse’ he was receiving as it was in real terms nonexistent, he had a bad game as that is the performance he put in.
Finally anyone who thinks the abuse Kim Grant took in the 5-1 win over Notts County in November 1993 had an element of humour clearly has no memory of that day when a large section of the covered end shouted off off off for missing a chance at 1-1. And to think we won the game 5-1 and was top of the 2nd tier and yet some on hear think abuse of players is a modern thing limited to The Valley in the last 5 years!
If Francis has played like that for the vast majority of the 92 clubs he would have received a lot more stick last night.
To think Francis had a blinder against Reading and then thinking he was a different player! Shows how much I know........
She wasn't. But happy for you to slag me off whilst you wait for another player to slag. Or have you started on Hayes already?
this
After Faye and Traore he's consistently the worst player (of those we've had who could be considered 'regular' players) I can remember us having since the mid nineties. If anybody else comes up with a name other than those three for that dubious honour I'd be surprised.
Look, the bloke's just rubbish, he needs loaning out somewhere just to get him out of the club - for his sake and ours.
The boo boys only move on to someone else if he goes. A lot of us who had our doubts remember how Pardew was treated when he arrived at the Valley as manager. If you boo a Charlton player where we sit ( East, C - Row Q 26 - 29 ) we will make your life a bloody misery for the rest of the match/season.
Why is saying that a player is not good enough viewed as a scapegoat? Is that this seasons buzz word?
I thought maybe he just needed a preseason this year and would improve would it's blantently obvious he's just not a strong enough player mentally and not a good enough player physically, all this scapegoat stuff is just bollocks!
Will he go?
I never make predictions, and I never will.
You are on a wind up right?
It is in pockets and not that loud because it is a minority of idiots but players are hearing it.Listen and you will too when Francis plays. If we let him go they will move on to somebody else, especially if we have a few poor games.
As for our crowd being no worse than Millwall and Palace - that may be but we have in recent history had fans that were miles better than these and a strength of the club.
Fight Fight Fight Fight Fight