Great to walk away today with three points. Henry got got it spot on earlier, in that we set up as we have done on our more successful away games. All Tangerines early on, but the injury break worked in our favour & Jacko's "screamer" knocked Pool's confidence. Really didn't see them as a threat after that, despite periods of possession.
Delighted with the way we pressed and harried and never gave them a moment's rest. Jacko had a great game & just seemed to be coming away with the ball every tackle he went in for. Feel great for Waggy, came in, worked his proverbials off and finished off a great move...Kerm's ball out to Wilson & the cross in were superb.
Really wish we could have had Phillips at some stage of his career. A real class act & very happy to applaud him off during that 2nd half.
Great few minutes for Harriot. Loved his enthusiasm & that first run and pull back were fantastic. Good for him and encouragement for some of the other academy boys.
Finally, just a couple of strange comments here about Stephens. Gave it away a couple of times, but worked bloody hard to win it back and made some great plays throughout the game. A good bit of steel in his game too.
You just have to see how much his teammates look for him, to realise how much they realise he makes them tick and what a good player he is. A few people really need to try a game without "beer goggles" on.
Excellent Tactical Plan by CP. Blackpool are still using Holloway's 4-5-1 to 4-3-3 system, with three narrow Central Midfielders. So CP matched up in Central Mid man-for-man, with Jackson-Pritchard-Stephens. Wagstaff & Wilson also had the role of stopping the full backs getting out, as the wide midfielders. The team were disciplined, each individual did their job and after an initial burst from Blackpool, we stifled them very effectively. When we had the ball, we played some good penetrating football along the flanks and took our chances well. The substitutions were also well timed.
Excellent 3 points, taking us nearer the 50 point target. Full marks to CP again, following on from Watford, although I still can't see why we couldn't have fielded a stronger team in the Cup. We could have won that one as well.
Our full backs also done really well in over-lapping at just the right moments, as Ince and Delfonso weren't interested in getting back at all.
Nice balanced team today with movement on both wings. Morro, Taylor and Hamer are a unit (apart from one cock up in 2nd half). Blackpool passed the ball well but never created much. Well done lads, more of this please.
Having watched the first 15/20 mins with our backs against the wall my old man said to me that he thought it would end in a 3-0 defeat and I couldn't agree more - I couldn't see where a goal was going to come from and we looked 2nd best all over the pitch. I don't know what was said during the 3 min injury break but it did the trick and we woke up.
Ist goal was made by Waggy cutting out a midfield ball and passing it to Solly - he then his goal although I was a bit gutted for Kermy as he also deserved one as well. I know it was only 1 game but anyone watching it must have thought where the hell has Waggy been hiding all season and if CP thinks that Kerkar or Cook deserved to be in the team instead of him then he needs to go to specsavers.
My MOTM was shared between Stephens & Solly with special mentions to Waggy, JJ and Kermy. Callum Harriott showed more in 10 mins than Kerkar has all season and although he maybe not the answer to our problems on the left he certainly caught the eye.
Just hope we can add a couple of quality players befotre the end of Jan - I don't think there are many teams in the Championship that can say that the entire starting 11 all played league 1 football last season.
Just to finish - at the start of the month I predicted 5 points for Jan (I thought maybe a win over Sheff W and draws againgst Blackpool & Bolton) and so my dreams have been surpassed already.
Every player on the pitch was excellent and did their job well, giving 100% for the shirt.
Wagstaff, alongside Wilson and Pritchard, gave us tireless running. We controlled the midfield for large parts of the game as a result and looked an accomplished balanced Championship level side.
Wasn't too fussed about the possibility of losing Stephens in the past but if he's going to put his foot in and make more excellent passes like he did today, I'll be sad to see him go. Jackson and himself dictated the tempo without sherking challenges and were tenacious when required.
Kermorgant was fantastic today. Not too much of a goal threat himself but played his role of target man excellently, holding the ball up well and using a good understanding with the midfield to thread well weighted balls. We got to Blackpool's byline numerous times because of it and he allowed us to turn defence into attack until he ran himself into the ground.
We tired in the last 5 minutes, the players were dead on their feet and it allowed Eccleston to score a well placed volley out of nothing. I don't think, once we were ahead, that the three points were ever in danger.
Think Tutt-Tutt sums it up very well, as usual. There is the proof today that 4-5-1 is NOT a defensive formation.
Finally, with regards to Blackpool's play. Aside from Phillips' header onto the post in the 2nd minute, found it very difficult to open us up. I felt it was a case of waiting out until we could impose our own game on them and so it proved. Tom Ince must've had an off day, I wasn't impressed by his end product, despite his fancy footwork.
Delighted with the way we pressed and harried and never gave them a moment's rest.
This is exactly why we walked away with three points. We didn't let them play usual game. Never let Ince and co to run at our defence as the midfield were always first to close them down.
Something that has certainly been missing from our midfield as of late is the lack of putting in some tackles and stopping opposition attack early. I thought Jackson and Stephens were absolute rocks in the middle today.
I'm far from a Stephens fan, but will give him the credit due today, some great long and short passes to players feet plus some crunching tackles to win the ball back when he or a team mate had lost it.
Wilson is fast becoming one of my favourite current players, a joy to watch on and off the ball, passion in abundance.
Very happy for Wagstaff, well deserved goal after his performance, fingers crossed he can achieve the consistency that's always been missing in his game.
Kerms was a force up front on his own and may have got himself a goal if Hamers kicks were where he was asking them to go.
Now looking comfortable with an 11pt gap to the bottom 3 and around 15pts from confirming our Championship status. Lets get 50pts on the board as soon as we can and see where we can go from there.
Powell got it bang on today, pack the midfield with energy and hit them on the break, played with away like tactics but happy with that if it gets a result.
Although we will no doubt have at least another 15 waggy v green threads he showed today exactly why I'm on his side. Long term he might not be the best option but he gives us so much energy and has a great ability of getting in scoring positions, really pleased for him today.
Every player put in a shift today and you can't ask for more than that and Harriott looks a star in the making.
We wont lose Stephens to Villa, if they try and escape the bottom three by bringing in mid table CCC players neither Lambert or Lerner would make it out of Brum alive.
I'm sure that today's improved performance had more than a little to do with the fact that 10 of our starting line-up were here last season and were all important members of our title winning squad. I thought you could clearly see the team spirit that was so obviously evident last season clearly shining through today.
What I love about this site is how fellow Charlton fans watch the same game as me and yet have completely different opinions to what I saw. Frankly shaking my head in despair at comments above saying Stephens had a poor game - as post but one above says " some great long and short passes to players feet plus some crunching tackles to win the ball back when he or a team mate had lost it". What more has he got to do for some people to get off his back?
And great to see Wagstaff back. SCP, I'm a great fan of yours but you've not treated this young man fairly this season.
agree with all the comments on here, was very hard working performance, but also watched stephens for a lot of the game and he got so many foots in where necessary and broke up the play well, as many said has added bite to his game, so in my opinion was up there with one of his most rounded performances, it wasnt just about his passing!
Also did anyone else see yann sprint one of the quickest ive ever seen him sprint towards the end of the game when they had a counter and he was trying to get back to right back - all i can say is legend
7 points behind Watford and we've played a game more but yes we can still dream.
Certainly better to be looking up than down.
Watford are on track for 76 points - assuming the team that ultimately finishes 6th reaches that tally, it implies we would need 40 points from 19 games, equivalent to 97 over a full season.
Nice to see the usual, less comments after a win than is normal after a loss. Only disappointment was conceding late. Well done boys. On wards and upwards.
Agree that we set up as an away side - exactly what Solly said had been getting us points away from home. I'd much rather watch football like that that is successful than playing beyond our means (trying to be exciting and expansive when we don't have the players) and losing.
An excellent win against a decent side. Blackpool dominated early on and thank goodness Matt Taylor played as if he had never been away and was in the right place at the right time to clear off the line from old father time Kevin Phillips. Charlton gradually got a foothold in the game and much of our best work was done off the ball with the energy of Pritchard, Wilson and Wagstaff in particular quickly closing down the Blackpool players and stopping them playing. The 4-5-1 formation helped too.
Skipper Jacko stepped up at just the right time with a goal that bred belief and Charlton slowly wrestled the initiative from Blackpool. Waggy, having made numerous runs into the box and also been denied a penalty, finally got his reward almost on the stroke of half time when he clinically put away a loose ball at the far post which eventually fell to him following a cross from Wilson.
Second half we sat back a bit too much early on but, rather as in the first half, came into it more and played in the Blackpool half although Gilks had little to do other than catch crosses and corners.
Waggy was substituted after running his wotsits off for 70 minutes or so and Harriott offered a pleasant cameo wth a few tricks. Fuller later came on for Stephens who had also worked hard and done more off the ball than he normally does.
The hard work had been done by the time of the substitutions and for me this win was about hard work in the best Charlton tradition.
Stand out players for me were Solly, Wilson, Waggy and Kermorgant. Young Harriott has been watching Jerome Thomas! Hamer needs to claim the ball and command the box a bit more. Seemed to be blaming Solly for giving a corner when he should have called and claimed the ball!
Not pretty, but a real battling performance. I think for the most part, ours was more of a 4-1-4-1 with Stephens sweeping behind the rest of the midfield; whatever it was, it certainly worked. Good to see Waggy back and in decent form. Solly was good as ever, but for me the man of the match was Wilson, he really looked up for it and was quite a handful for them to contend with. Enjoyed Harriot's cameo too - hope we get to see him more often.
Do we know when Cort is due back? Taylor played today like Cort did when he broke in last season- a defender who knew if he was to keep his place he would have to do it on merit. Not that that is a knock against either of them mind you, having genuine competition for positions is a very healthy situation.
Delighted - first game I've seen us win this season, good team performance, stand outs for me - Solly (so good), Pritch (energy) and Taylor (never been away)
Am I the only one who was distinctly unimpressed by Mr Thomas Ince? Offered very little and wasted what possession he did have.
Clearly has bags of class and was showing it until about 10mins in. We didn't let them play.
To me played as if he thought he was bigger than the team. Chose not to pass to team mates in better positions and preferred to shoot from unlikely distances. As such I think he let us off the hook.
There was a key, game changing moment in the game today. It was after about 12 mins when Matt Taylor and Osbourne had a a clash of heads and the game stopped for 3 mins. Before that it was ALL Blackpool, and Phillips should have given them the lead. Whatever was said in that break increased our energy and we turned it around. Hard to name a Man of the Match cos they all worked their socks off! COYR.
Comments
Delighted with the way we pressed and harried and never gave them a moment's rest. Jacko had a great game & just seemed to be coming away with the ball every tackle he went in for. Feel great for Waggy, came in, worked his proverbials off and finished off a great move...Kerm's ball out to Wilson & the cross in were superb.
Really wish we could have had Phillips at some stage of his career. A real class act & very happy to applaud him off during that 2nd half.
Great few minutes for Harriot. Loved his enthusiasm & that first run and pull back were fantastic. Good for him and encouragement for some of the other academy boys.
Finally, just a couple of strange comments here about Stephens. Gave it away a couple of times, but worked bloody hard to win it back and made some great plays throughout the game. A good bit of steel in his game too.
You just have to see how much his teammates look for him, to realise how much they realise he makes them tick and what a good player he is. A few people really need to try a game without "beer goggles" on.
COYR!
Blackpool passed the ball well but never created much.
Well done lads, more of this please.
Thought Kermy was amazing
Waggs wanted it today which was great to see
Thought solly was tested today more than any other time I have seen and he handled it well
Hamer gets a bit excited when bored
Morrow was great Taylor deserves a good mention for his solid performance
Pritchard needs to work on his first touch it will hold him back so much if not
Big big big shout for young Callum Harriet
Those step overs were great he has wonderful quick feet
Hats off to SCP as that was a brave sub
Really enjoyable game even if the quality was not always there
Blackpools movement off the ball is very good
Kevin Phillips still has so much class
Tom ince is a wonderfully gifted footballer who has learnt his trade the right way
Ist goal was made by Waggy cutting out a midfield ball and passing it to Solly - he then his goal although I was a bit gutted for Kermy as he also deserved one as well. I know it was only 1 game but anyone watching it must have thought where the hell has Waggy been hiding all season and if CP thinks that Kerkar or Cook deserved to be in the team instead of him then he needs to go to specsavers.
My MOTM was shared between Stephens & Solly with special mentions to Waggy, JJ and Kermy. Callum Harriott showed more in 10 mins than Kerkar has all season and although he maybe not the answer to our problems on the left he certainly caught the eye.
Just hope we can add a couple of quality players befotre the end of Jan - I don't think there are many teams in the Championship that can say that the entire starting 11 all played league 1 football last season.
Just to finish - at the start of the month I predicted 5 points for Jan (I thought maybe a win over Sheff W and draws againgst Blackpool & Bolton) and so my dreams have been surpassed already.
onwards & upwards !!
Every player on the pitch was excellent and did their job well, giving 100% for the shirt.
Wagstaff, alongside Wilson and Pritchard, gave us tireless running. We controlled the midfield for large parts of the game as a result and looked an accomplished balanced Championship level side.
Wasn't too fussed about the possibility of losing Stephens in the past but if he's going to put his foot in and make more excellent passes like he did today, I'll be sad to see him go. Jackson and himself dictated the tempo without sherking challenges and were tenacious when required.
Kermorgant was fantastic today. Not too much of a goal threat himself but played his role of target man excellently, holding the ball up well and using a good understanding with the midfield to thread well weighted balls. We got to Blackpool's byline numerous times because of it and he allowed us to turn defence into attack until he ran himself into the ground.
We tired in the last 5 minutes, the players were dead on their feet and it allowed Eccleston to score a well placed volley out of nothing. I don't think, once we were ahead, that the three points were ever in danger.
Think Tutt-Tutt sums it up very well, as usual. There is the proof today that 4-5-1 is NOT a defensive formation.
Finally, with regards to Blackpool's play. Aside from Phillips' header onto the post in the 2nd minute, found it very difficult to open us up. I felt it was a case of waiting out until we could impose our own game on them and so it proved. Tom Ince must've had an off day, I wasn't impressed by his end product, despite his fancy footwork.
Something that has certainly been missing from our midfield as of late is the lack of putting in some tackles and stopping opposition attack early. I thought Jackson and Stephens were absolute rocks in the middle today.
I'm far from a Stephens fan, but will give him the credit due today, some great long and short passes to players feet plus some crunching tackles to win the ball back when he or a team mate had lost it.
Wilson is fast becoming one of my favourite current players, a joy to watch on and off the ball, passion in abundance.
Very happy for Wagstaff, well deserved goal after his performance, fingers crossed he can achieve the consistency that's always been missing in his game.
Kerms was a force up front on his own and may have got himself a goal if Hamers kicks were where he was asking them to go.
CAFC
Although we will no doubt have at least another 15 waggy v green threads he showed today exactly why I'm on his side. Long term he might not be the best option but he gives us so much energy and has a great ability of getting in scoring positions, really pleased for him today.
Every player put in a shift today and you can't ask for more than that and Harriott looks a star in the making.
What I love about this site is how fellow Charlton fans watch the same game as me and yet have completely different opinions to what I saw. Frankly shaking my head in despair at comments above saying Stephens had a poor game - as post but one above says " some great long and short passes to players feet plus some crunching tackles to win the ball back when he or a team mate had lost it". What more has he got to do for some people to get off his back?
And great to see Wagstaff back. SCP, I'm a great fan of yours but you've not treated this young man fairly this season.
Also did anyone else see yann sprint one of the quickest ive ever seen him sprint towards the end of the game when they had a counter and he was trying to get back to right back - all i can say is legend
Only disappointment was conceding late. Well done boys. On wards and upwards.
I'll just say 'fugging good day'
An excellent win against a decent side. Blackpool dominated early on and thank goodness Matt Taylor played as if he had never been away and was in the right place at the right time to clear off the line from
old father timeKevin Phillips. Charlton gradually got a foothold in the game and much of our best work was done off the ball with the energy of Pritchard, Wilson and Wagstaff in particular quickly closing down the Blackpool players and stopping them playing. The 4-5-1 formation helped too.Skipper Jacko stepped up at just the right time with a goal that bred belief and Charlton slowly wrestled the initiative from Blackpool. Waggy, having made numerous runs into the box and also been denied a penalty, finally got his reward almost on the stroke of half time when he clinically put away a loose ball at the far post which eventually fell to him following a cross from Wilson.
Second half we sat back a bit too much early on but, rather as in the first half, came into it more and played in the Blackpool half although Gilks had little to do other than catch crosses and corners.
Waggy was substituted after running his wotsits off for 70 minutes or so and Harriott offered a pleasant cameo wth a few tricks. Fuller later came on for Stephens who had also worked hard and done more off the ball than he normally does.
The hard work had been done by the time of the substitutions and for me this win was about hard work in the best Charlton tradition.
Well done every man jack of them!
Got some 1st team games under his belt, playing in their top half Conference side.