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Ashford & Shepway Addicks Thursday 10th January Guests CHRIS SOLLY & SCOTT WAGSTAFF

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  • Before I do the post, I'll put you out of your misery. No mention of the antics roadshow at all and no news at all on Sols. Waggy said nothing definite but everyone present felt very strongly that we were saying goodbye to him.
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    The evening kicked off with Richard and Ken explaining about the trust. I sensed a fair bit of interest in the Trust. People do now seem to be feeling the general uncertainty and are aware that supporters have lost their links with the current board. Richard explained how important it was to gain a large membership as the larger the membership, basically the greater the influence.
  • Solly been taking fashion advice from Plaaayer by the looks of it
  • edited January 2013
    excellent work from the trust men, well done guys, and thanks to JC and Ashford for the invite, hope we can come to future meetings too
  • JT said:

    Solly been taking fashion advice from Plaaayer by the looks of it


    I thought it was plaaayer
  • edited January 2013
    The affection for both players was pretty evident, they were introduced as 'sons of Charlton'.


    Waggy has been with Charlton since he was 8 years old and he's 22 now. His first game for Charlton was away at Barnsley and he played with Jonjo. Sols joined when he was 12 years old when Arsenal decided that he wasn't big or strong enough to stay with them. He started out as an attacking midfielder but prefers RB as he feels it allows him to read the game better. Waggy likes to run at players and tries to get a few goals. He grinned and added 'I'm a bit of a glory hunter'.

    When asked about their long term ambitions, Robbie Elliott was used as an example. Would they be content to move for money and sit on the bench? Sols said that he had been with Robbie very recently and Robbie is loving life at Newcastle and enjoying his lifestyle. He likes being with Pardew and Woody and is being patient but fully expects to be no 2 and possibly no 1. Patience seemed to be a word that cropped up quite often.

    Waggy said he had played 130 games for Charlton, he loves being at Charlton but had been finding life very frustrating. He didn't know why he wasn't being picked, (there was no hint whatsoever of any discord between him and management). CP had told Waggy very recently that he remains part of his plans. Waggy said he trained very hard and always gave 100% but training, however good the set up, didn't get you fit to play games. His frustration and desire to play actual games was clear for all to see. There was no doubting his love of Charlton or his commitment, but the question of why he hasn't been selected will remain and opinions will probably remain divided. A definite question for CP at the next meeting.

    Both players understood why sometimes supporters got impatient with some loanees who 'don't put it in'. Waggy said he gave his all when he was on loan to Orient because he not only wants to play well but was also aware that the gaffer or scouts might be watching.

    Sols admired David Moyes as a manager as he does very well with not much money and is good at bringing in decent players. Waggy's favourite is Phil Parkinson and Phil had helped him a lot. On Chrissy Powell it was said that 'what you see is what you get'. He's lively and bubbly and Alex is the same. The players all enjoy the training sessions.

    They were asked how they felt to see foreign players brought in when there were good English players available. Sols agreed that there were some good English players but they were too expensive. He cited Michu as an example, bought for 2 mill. Had he been English, his price would have been between 10 and 15 mill.


    Back in a bit...............
  • JT said:

    Solly been taking fashion advice from Plaaayer by the looks of it


    I thought it was plaaayer
    I have actually got that jumper, it's a Reiss number.

    Also have it in rust, green and navy. No joke.
  • Good stuff SA
  • Plaaayer said:

    JT said:

    Solly been taking fashion advice from Plaaayer by the looks of it


    I thought it was plaaayer
    I have actually got that jumper, it's a Reiss number.

    Also have it in rust, green and navy. No joke.
    Nice of Solly to give you his cast offs
  • I think his are probably a small and mine are obivously a medium so they wouldn't fit.
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  • Plaaayer said:

    I think his are probably a small and mine are obivously a medium so they wouldn't fit.

    Obviously!
  • edited January 2013
    image

    Fashion parade over. What's Reiss BTW?

    Sols warmed to his theme and said that Watford only had one English player and he was on loan from Chelsea. Sols did not like Watford saying that they were horrible to play against, play acting, cheating, rolling around and diving. He became quite animated and indignant and didn't think much of Zola for setting the players up to behave that way.

    On the away form being better, they both explained that for the away games it was easier to defend because they set themselves up for defence, relying on set pieces and counter attacks to get goals. At home, supporters want the emphasis to be on attack but they have tended to get caught on the break. It is frustrating as they want to do well.

    Q - 'What is it with Charlton and cup games?'

    Why did we lose? Answer 'Cos me and Sols weren't playing'. Sols added that the atmospshere was a bit dead but that was no excuse. The gaffer had told them to go out and enjoy themselves and score some goals. CP was still fuming on the Monday and got all the squad in to tell them how he'd been hurting all weeked.

    They thought that most agents were OK, Sols liked his a lot and said that they had become friends. Not much lurv showing for Championship referees. Waggy said that they hadn't been great for Charlton but added that they were bad at Orient as well.

    Waggy felt his toughest opponent had been Paul Konchesky and for Sols it was Damian Duff.

    They all felt at the start of the season that the Champs would be an up and down experience and that's how it's proven to be. Sols felt that if we could consolidate and end up mid table then that would be a good result for us. Waggy said that the standard in the Champs was very much higher than L1 and it is difficult to get results.

    Given the chance to play for just one other team, Sols said it was an easy decision and opted for Arsenal. He's supported them al his life.
    Waggy opted for Man U 'I hate 'em but I'd love to be there for the atmosphere and the noise from the fans'.

    On diving; Waggy said that when you're running at speed and a bit off balance, just a tiny touch can send you down. Danny Hollands took some stick/banter. They both felt that he gets away with diving and he did it in training as well which annoyed the lads. Gaffer supports Spurs.
    Superstitions? Solly waits until everyone elose has put their boots on before he will put his on. BWP likes to put on his right sock first.
    On Frimpong; They thought he'd done well and they all got on well with him. He has invited the Charlton lads out on his birthday and not the Arsenal crowd. He tought that they were all mental and that the Gooners were boring in comparision. fancy dress night is obviously a much loved event. Salim Kerkar went as James Bond, but uinfortunately dressed up on the wrong day!
    Andy Hughes is one of the funniest guys they've met. On the training ground recently, he emerged from the bushes wrapped in bandages and hobbling in a medical boot to tell the gaffer 'I'm ready to go'. Sullivan is a character, very loud and funny and JJ also got approval.

    Favourite front pairing - Sols liked Haynes and Fuller. Waggy felt that BWP's confidence was low and said you need games to get the confidence back. Fuller up front was both creative and able to get goals.

    Up and coming youngsters to watch Nick Pope emerged as clear no 1. Apparently comparisons are being made between Pope and a young van der Saar. Diego Poyet looks brilliant and Callum is in there chasing hard. All the youngsters love Paul Hart. Sols said that enjoying your football was the main thing.

    Think that's about it folks.
    Sorry about grammar and long windedness, I didn't have time to make it shorter. A great evening and an ace venue.
  • Cheers Stilladdicted. Brilliant feedback - very much appreciated.
  • cafc-west said:

    Cheers Stilladdicted. Brilliant feedback - very much appreciated.

    echoed
  • Thanks still addickted from all at Ashford & Shepway Addicks.
  • And again. Thanks.
  • Cheers SA,
  • A great read - big thanks from me too....
  • I love Scott Wagstaff, you couldnt meet a more polite and balanced professional footballer. Nice lad.
  • Thanks so much for that, Anni.

    Pleased to hear it was a really successful evening.
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  • Hughes is a legend!
  • Thank you stilladdicted et al for such comprehensive reports of the proceedings.

    Good to read.
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    Aren't they the two hecklers from the muppets (Tatler & Waldorf?)
  • Don't want to moan but, despite the Kennington being a great venue with fantastic food, they really do need to invest in some kind of heating system - or turn it on. It was very cold in there, and I was, frankly, glad to get back in the car at the end of the evening.

    That aside it was a really good evening. One thing that I haven't read above (unless I missed it) was a detailed schedule of what the training week consists of. It gave a real insight into what a professional footballer's working day is like. From memory it was:

    Arrive by 10am - but most of the players get in for 9:30.
    The squad eat breakfast together then some of them will go into the gym before they start training at 10:45.
    On Monday, Tuesday and Thursday they train for 90 minutes, then another group will go into the gym.
    Wednesday seems to be a day off and Friday the training session is a little lighter (based on a game on a Saturday) lasts about 60 minutes before they practice set pieces and then have a meeting about the game the next day.

    On a Monday morning the starting eleven will have a session watching videos (or DVDs or whatever) of the Saturday game and discuss any issues that need addressing or highlighting positives. Interestingly, though not surprisingly, Chris Solly pointed out that sometimes they go into these after a bad result and expect to be told where they went wrong and they are praised to boost confidence.

    Overall, and most has been covered above, I was really impressed with the intelligence of both players. I don't want to sound condescending but their knowledge of the game (especially Solly with his tactical awareness), their language and their vocabulary was very much better than the generally perceived view of professional footballers. Many of those interviewed on Sky don't come across anywhere near as intelligent as these two lads. Now I guess that neither of them grew up in tough inner city areas and probably went to good schools, but I've worked with Graduates from Russell Group Universities that don't sound as bright as these two.

    I think It reflects well on the youth set up at Charlton that boys that have been with us since they were young (8 and 12 in this case) come out at the end as well rounded, well educated, individuals. Clearly these two have made (and will, hopefully, continue to make) a decent living playing football, but it's nice to think that those that don't make it are well equipped to do something else in life.
  • What great feedback - many thanks.

    And a special big thank you to StillAddickted, for such an in depth report.
    Almost like actually being there!
  • Don't want to moan but, despite the Kennington being a great venue with fantastic food, they really do need to invest in some kind of heating system - or turn it on. It was very cold in there, and I was, frankly, glad to get back in the car at the end of the evening

    I totally agree about the heating and will take it up with the owners. As you say, the Kennington is a great venue and one which we hope to be able to use for the forseeable future, dependent upon the number of people attending our meetings.
  • edited January 2013
    It was January - what do you expect. I didn't feel cold at all!

    Some major points left out of SAs and KHAs posts.

    Both players favourite colour was red.

    Solly doesn't like the Massive, though Hillsbrough is his favourite ground to date. He loved beating them up there last year.

    There was some bante on the Coach when the Arsenal V Spurs was on as a few of the team are gooners - SCP was going mad when Spurs scored.

    Solly loves his golf - handicap 22 and said that Taylor 'was a bit of a bandit' with a handicap of 22 yet only getting 7 over par earlier in the week.

    Waggy still lives at home but is looking to get his own gaff.

    Waggy's first room mate was SCP.

    The Vegas trip was fantastic and the team relly got some 'bonding in'. Evina took fake ID with him as at 20 wasn't sure he'd get into the Clubs. He got turned away on the first night and his ID confiscated. Being good team mates, they all started singing "Cheerio, cheerio, cheerio..." to him as he walked back to the Hotel on his own. Got in no problem after that though.
  • Thanks for the updates.
    In the picture is waggy thinking ' who stole my phone?'
  • Should have all worn a wooly like Chris
  • Great write up thanks.
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