Can we please stop saying that Pritchard played up front? He played as an attacking midfielder off the front man, which was mainly done to nullify the quality of the short passing they do in midfield.
If that was the case then its even worse - not to play with a single striker at home defies logic. For f**k sake, play 4-4-2 and go for it !!
and before you say that would be madness I ask you to look at the final score today ! WE LOST - so that worked well didn't it !!!
What are you on about? Kermorgant played as a lone striker.
Maybe stick to golf?
Don't be bl***Y daft - Kermy plays deep and always has done - or perhaps you didn't notice that he hardly got into the box as a striker is supposed to do and spent most of his time about 25 yards out flicking the ball onto no-one.
Powell has limited choices and as Pardew and Parky did in our last relegation season he's trying different options knowing in reality he doesn't have the quality and depth required.
Unlike Powell, Pardew actually had too many choices which contributed to his inability to find what his best side was. He brought in so many bodies, whether permanent signings or loanees, that I think we ended up breaking the club record by fielding something like 39 different players in a season?
Few of them had any quality it is true; but he had a much larger squad than Powell has to work with and was supported in the boardroom every time he said he needed to freshen up the squad with new faces. So I think the comparison breaks down right there.
Yep, agree. Just our recent run has a feel of that season - not really having a strongest team, losing games by a goal or two and lacking quality going forward.
For what they're worth, my thoughts are that we worked hard, had zero luck ( again) , another poor ref and zilch in front of goal where it really matters. But more worrying is that without investment to strengthen this honest but thin squad of lads, we will struggle to gain enough points to survive in this league.
With JJ out of contention, the midfield had to be rejigged and I wasn't surprised to see Pritch starting, and, although not a great fan of DG, felt he could be given another opportunity to show what he can do. But, as most have already stated on here, the former, playing out of position was clearly too lightweight and even slow to take advantage of his inclusion - a halftime substitution wouldn't have been a surprise.
We clearly needed to play 2 genuine strikers up front & I would liked to have seen Sordell given more time but as always, it's easy to play Manager from our seats on the sidelines .....However, my positives were Wiggins, Stephens and, MOM, young Jordan Cousins...and boy, do we need some positives to focus on at this moment in time. A fully fit POTY and the inclusion of Woody would make a difference too IMHO - maybe next Saturday ?
It's very hard to feel upbeat about our current situation, both on & off the pitch and my heart goes out to the gaffer and the limited options he has to work with. OK - he's not above criticism but he's the best we're likely to have at the helm for some considerable time. He knows and loves this Club & HIS players have total respect for him .....but with no contract talks seemingly imminent, who knows what's around the corner?
SOMETHING must change & the sooner the better. Our beloved Club is slowly slipping away from us whilst those holding the purse strings appear to care not a jot. It is a gut wrenching feeling & one of utter helplessness- bar giving our team and our Manager our full support from "the terraces", what more can we do ?
If anyone needed a big, bright, shining star to lead the "3" Wise (Money) men their way, it's us. I'm not naïve enough to think that money can fix everything, but in this case, it could be the difference between surviving in the Championship and sinking down to Div 1 again ....how many of our supporters would stay loyal if this happened again ?
just got in, posting without reading. Great service in The Royal Oak and a nice pint, if it wasn't for the fact that I spend a good few hours with my eldest son think I would knock it.
Good lively start, Danny G looked up for it, neither keeper had many saves to make, after 30 mins - men against boys
When the half time entertainment is better than the main event that says a lot. Watching Alex Dyer walk off at the end of the game it made me think " get rid". Team and coaching staff are pony.
Thoroughly unimpressed with Derby. Thought we were the better side and then they scored a lucky goal. They gained confidence and our heads dropped but we did give it a bit of a go in the second half. But we are toothless and lacking flair so when we go behind we don't look capable of getting back on terms.
just got in, posting without reading. Great service in The Royal Oak and a nice pint, if it wasn't for the fact that I spend a good few hours with my eldest son think I would knock it.
Same for me Sunbury. Sometimes i feel terrible about getting my son to support Charlton!!!!!
just got in, posting without reading. Great service in The Royal Oak and a nice pint, if it wasn't for the fact that I spend a good few hours with my eldest son think I would knock it.
Same for me Sunbury. Sometimes i feel terrible about getting my son to support Charlton!!!!!
You should be proud, from a young age you have taught your son to be able to cope with the every week knocks of life, the big clubs fans don't understand what real adversity is, so will never be able to handle it, your son will manage adversity with ease ... I salute you as a man and father
Tutt-Tutt Member 8:07PM Right formation and defensive tactics - we stopped them playing through midfield really well ( helped by the absence of Will Hughes).
Wrong team selection - Derby's weaknesses at the back are, a lack of pace in the central defence and left back areas. They will struggle against passes played in behind and any pressure on the left back Forsyth will open up their left side. What did CP do? He picked a lone CF who is static, lacks pace and doesn't run in behind; a Right Winger who looks to hit early crosses, rather than take on his opponent; and an attacking midfielder who gets a nose-bleed inside the box. Strange.
I would have liked to have seen Sordell / Church as a double sub in the second half, to throw a different problem at the Derby Centre Backs. With Sordell dropping off and Church running in behind, as they did so well at Blackburn earlier in the season, we could have split them. They were comfortable defending against a lone CF.
Chris Martin dived to win a penalty last week and threw himself to the floor on 5/6 occasions to win free kicks in this game. Why do we not learn and continue to fall for it? It's no surprise, that was how he played alongside Grant Holt at Norwich when we played them in League One.
Flag Quote I really wish you could have some input at the club, Tutt-Tutt, I really do.
just got in, posting without reading. Great service in The Royal Oak and a nice pint, if it wasn't for the fact that I spend a good few hours with my eldest son think I would knock it.
Same for me Sunbury. Sometimes i feel terrible about getting my son to support Charlton!!!!!
You should be proud, from a young age you have taught your son to be able to cope with the every week knocks of life, the big clubs fans don't understand what real adversity is, so will never be able to handle it, your son will manage adversity with ease ... I salute you as a man and father
Thanks Kap, that's nice. I probably should point out..................he's 28
Kermorgant might have to be dropped to the bench and I'm not really sure what Pritchard's role was meant to be....at best, he was a nullifier of space for Eustace. Jesus...we're were at home and we've got to stop worrying about whether the opposition play 4-3-3 or 4-4-1-1. Play the best players and try to get as many of the (few) goalscorers we've got, on the pitch at the same time. Save the conservative tactics for the away games.
Trouble is that our best players aren't good enough to line up pound for pound against most other teams, therefore we have to consider the opposition tactics. I think the formation was correct today and that showed in how Derby played for the first half hour.
I think we've seen enough powder puff home performances to suggest that maybe we should just try being a bit more positive rather than worrying about what the opposition have got all the time. I know we're limited but so were Lennie's teams and they still managed to have a go.
Our team are showing what they really are - a League One outfit playing in a division that's too good for them. We fight hard but lack the quality to do enough. Last year we were only saved a relegation scrap due to a good late surge.
Powell and the team are doing their best, we just lack quality. The fact that there has been zero investment since being promoted is the reason for all this. Graft only gets you so far.
It does seem that a lot of people talk consistently about the owners and lack of investment. What about tactics, gameplan, picking the right team, formation, substitutions etc.
CP knows more than me. However, Sordell should get a chance, Kermongant should be dropped and Pritchard shouldn't play. Everyone else can see it for ffs.
Thought we played well, no end product. For a team that won 5 in a row, Derby were poor, then again they didn't need to be good to beat us with our scoring record. We don't seem to be getting the rub of the green, not just the first goal. I lost count the number of times the ball deflected / ricochet to the feet of a opposition player, still you make you own luck. As for the ref, he was crap. In the second half we had a corner by the east stand. Yann had two men marking him, one with his arm around Yann's neck, ball comes in, Yann and his strangler hit the ground. Ref gives them a free kick.
Thought we played well, no end product. For a team that won 5 in a row, Derby were poor, then again they didn't need to be good to beat us with our scoring record. We don't seem to be getting the rub of the green, not just the first goal. I lost count the number of times the ball deflected / ricochet to the feet of a opposition player, still you make you own luck. As for the ref, he was crap. In the second half we had a corner I've by the east stand. Yann had two men marking him, one with his arm around Yann's neck, ball comes in, Yann and his strangler hit the ground. Ref gives them a free kick.
Agree the ref was pretty poor yesterday. The strangler decision was especially baffling.
Derby were very solid at the back (as were we) and once they'd taken the lead, we struggled to create. Yes, we played ok and the midfield weren't bad but we just couldn't sustain any pressure at all. Derby had to be patient but once they closed the gaps up in midfield, we were beaten. The mind-set has to change...it's the one thing we can do something about. Otherwise, our home form will see us relegated.
i thought we were the better team, but we have trouble scoring goals with 2 strikers so one isn't the way to go. We were unlucky though - deflected free kick and rubbish ref. Derby are a tidy niggly side - not as good as I was expecting, but the fact they are doing so well confirms my theory about refs in this division. Little fouls all the time to break up opponents rythym, a decent ref starts getting the book out to stop what is effectively cheating! Early foul on Kermogant det the tone and was let off - I don't know where these clowns come from!
Stewart was a problem - Powell keeps him in because he scores goals but when yesterday's ref was deeming the robust challenges on him were not fould, it should have been clear he needed to come off.
We are a decent pacy striker away from being a good side, but if you don't score you don't win! Worrying. Thought Stephens was excellent.
1StevieG Member (said) December 14 After Chris Martins performance today and last week against Blackpool I fully expect to see him appear on ITV's celebrity diving show Splash next year.
Agree with you 100%. The incident appeared almost in front of me (Lower West). Martin threw himself deliberately on to the ground, 4th Official and Linesman should have seen. What pissed me off Steve Maclaren laughing his head off at a diabolical decision. To me this was the highlight of another dismal performance. Unless SCP is given a chance to get 2 new strikers in I fear that we are relegation bound. Come back Fuller, Haynes and Waggie!
What really annoys me - is that there is a ref's union - even on here that when you highlight these clowns they spring to their defence. For me it is a major issue, We have to have ex players reffing games who understand football, not some pratt who doesn't know what goes on on a football pitch and has been reffing since he was 12 because he doesn't want to get hurt with the other boys and likes the power!!!!!! I hate refs!!!!!!
I'm not sure getting ex players to ref is a good idea. Will be many accusations of cheating, favouritism and bias. Much more than there is now when it is mainly down to incompetence.
oh for a cameo from danny haynes of ricardo fuller.Pace and power is what we lack.Unfortunately we wanted/needed to save wages[skint/stupid owners] .This run of 1-0 and 2-0 score lines is the direct result of getting rid of these two and replacing them with an uninspiring work horse[church]
While I agree the ref was shocking and almost all Champ refs hate Charlton, poor referees aren't stopping us from scoring - that is the calibre of our strike-force.
Not enjoying going to the valley lately. It's almost always awful. Unimaginative hoofball once we are closed down. Far too much head tennis. Substitutions too late - always bang on 60 mins. Not enough passion on the pitch. Not enough ideas. Not enough quality.
I love Powelly as much as the next man but think someone like Neil Warnock could squeeze another 10% out of these boys. I hate myself for saying it but I want to see more passion on the bench. I want to see us kicking a few players up in the air. We need to stay up and at present it's not looking likely
I think Chris Powell is like a man doing a puzzle with no solution. He'll keep trying different things and some will appear promising then fail, while others will go nowhere. There is no solution within his grasp, so he will never find it and it's endlessly frustrating to watch, but he has no other choice but to walk away. And his loyalty to his staff and to the fans have prevented him doing that - so far.
The simple truth is that if we had better strikers we wouldn't be in this position, as the goalkeeper and defence are OK, and the midfield is adequate. This was obvious all summer long and nothing was done until the last possible moment when the options were limited. Nobody can possibly imagine that was the manager's choice.
Any alternative manager who is not desperate for a job - and therefore not in demand elsewhere - will want to know what has been going on above Powell, who has a huge amount of respect within the wider game as well as the club, before they go anywhere near Charlton. Football people will know, even if supporters don't, and if they don't they will find out. Nobody of quality with experience is likely to come to Charlton for anything like Powell's salary.
Further to that, it is convenient to the board to have Powell as a scapegoat for the minority of supporters. Sacking him would attract some media attention to them, which as we know they don't enjoy, and leave them exposed as the underlying cause of the team's failings, since they couldn't credibly blame a replacement, as well as alienating a further tranche of people who insist on giving them the benefit of the doubt.
CP can't make a silk purse out of a pig's ear, for far to long he hasn't been backed with better players on the pitch, the side gives its best I think but a few are found wanting.
Pritchard alongside yann? why? Pritchard can't score, he's best position is in the middle were he breaks down play. He has move harriot in that position earlier in the season and harriot couldn't adjust either. he drops harriot, which was poor. the guy is young give him support. Play him the right position, same goes for Pritchard.
we now have green? who we know is not up to championship level. harriot is the man who at end of last season helped a lot to achieve our high position in the league by playing on the wing!!
subs made too late yesterday. reacting to them hitting the post. he should of made a sub at half time. getting church up front and sticking Pritchard back in the middle. if Pritchard continues to have a poor game take him off after ten minutes.
those two subs were just trying to fix a problem that he had already created by his team selection and formation.
the last sub. probably the worst mistake. taking our only threat down the wing who just seconds before delivered a great ball into the box. Wilson comes off. leaving that side without any attacking threat and also exposed at the back. which helped them get their second goal and kill the game off.
sordel comes on - what's the point of having all these players including wingers standing in the box? who's ment to be delivering the bloody ball to them??!!
overall it was harsh to lose as derby weren't all that and though we struggled our players did ok on the most part. it was those mistakes by powell that completely ruined it for us on the day.
I'm angry even a day after. I don't want powell to be sacked, I just want him to see these mistakes and learn from them. the problem is this is not the first time. some of the mistakes have happened before.
Overall I thought we were unlucky. We had the first 30 minutes until they scored, that from a deflection, the 2nd two games running. We came out sharp and up for it early part of the second half and I thought, Derby whilst obviously more clinical, weren't in the game for long spells, albeit when we had possession we were seemingly not much of a threat to Derby. Interesting to hear McClarrens comments on the drive back and he was pretty complimentary to us. For me, Pritchard was the weak link. He had little or no impact, seemed tired and not up for the fight and generally didn't look like someone trying to fight his way back in the team. I'm not suggesting we lost because of him but we may as well have been playing with 10.
Sordell.. why are we not playing him ? I don't understand why you loan a player and then don't give him a real chance. CP should say, injuries preventing, his name is on the team sheet for the next 3 games, not sure if he's permitted to play next week. Give him an opportunity now, before he loses all his confidence.
Comments
a long way untill the "fat lady sings" but i feel she is geting her music ready.
With JJ out of contention, the midfield had to be rejigged and I wasn't surprised to see Pritch starting, and, although not a great fan of DG, felt he could be given another opportunity to show what he can do. But, as most have already stated on here, the former, playing out of position was clearly too lightweight and even slow to take advantage of his inclusion - a halftime substitution wouldn't have been a surprise.
We clearly needed to play 2 genuine strikers up front & I would liked to have seen Sordell given more time but as always, it's easy to play Manager from our seats on the sidelines .....However, my positives were Wiggins, Stephens and, MOM, young Jordan Cousins...and boy, do we need some positives to focus on at this moment in time. A fully fit POTY and the inclusion of Woody would make a difference too IMHO - maybe next Saturday ?
It's very hard to feel upbeat about our current situation, both on & off the pitch and my heart goes out to the gaffer and the limited options he has to work with. OK - he's not above criticism but he's the best we're likely to have at the helm for some considerable time. He knows and loves this Club & HIS players have total respect for him .....but with no contract talks seemingly imminent, who knows what's around the corner?
SOMETHING must change & the sooner the better. Our beloved Club is slowly slipping away from us whilst those holding the purse strings appear to care not a jot. It is a gut wrenching feeling & one of utter helplessness- bar giving our team and our Manager our full support from "the terraces", what more can we do ?
If anyone needed a big, bright, shining star to lead the "3" Wise (Money) men their way, it's us. I'm not naïve enough to think that money can fix everything, but in this case, it could be the difference between surviving in the Championship and sinking down to Div 1 again ....how many of our supporters would stay loyal if this happened again ?
Keep the faith !
Good lively start, Danny G looked up for it, neither keeper had many saves to make, after 30 mins - men against boys
Team and coaching staff are pony.
Powell and the team are doing their best, we just lack quality. The fact that there has been zero investment since being promoted is the reason for all this. Graft only gets you so far.
CP knows more than me. However, Sordell should get a chance, Kermongant should be dropped and Pritchard shouldn't play. Everyone else can see it for ffs.
We don't seem to be getting the rub of the green, not just the first goal. I lost count the number of times the ball deflected / ricochet to the feet of a opposition player, still you make you own luck.
As for the ref, he was crap. In the second half we had a corner by the east stand. Yann had two men marking him, one with his arm around Yann's neck, ball comes in, Yann and his strangler hit the ground. Ref gives them a free kick.
Derby were very solid at the back (as were we) and once they'd taken the lead, we struggled to create. Yes, we played ok and the midfield weren't bad but we just couldn't sustain any pressure at all. Derby had to be patient but once they closed the gaps up in midfield, we were beaten. The mind-set has to change...it's the one thing we can do something about. Otherwise, our home form will see us relegated.
Stewart was a problem - Powell keeps him in because he scores goals but when yesterday's ref was deeming the robust challenges on him were not fould, it should have been clear he needed to come off.
We are a decent pacy striker away from being a good side, but if you don't score you don't win! Worrying. Thought Stephens was excellent.
December 14
After Chris Martins performance today and last week against Blackpool I fully expect to see him appear on ITV's celebrity diving show Splash next year.
Agree with you 100%. The incident appeared almost in front of me (Lower West). Martin threw himself deliberately on to the ground, 4th Official and Linesman should have seen. What pissed me off Steve Maclaren laughing his head off at a diabolical decision. To me this was the highlight of another dismal performance. Unless SCP is given a chance to get 2 new strikers in I fear
that we are relegation bound. Come back Fuller, Haynes and Waggie!
Substitutions too late - always bang on 60 mins. Not enough passion on the pitch. Not enough ideas. Not enough quality.
I love Powelly as much as the next man but think someone like Neil Warnock could squeeze another 10% out of these boys. I hate myself for saying it but I want to see more passion on the bench. I want to see us kicking a few players up in the air. We need to stay up and at present it's not looking likely
The simple truth is that if we had better strikers we wouldn't be in this position, as the goalkeeper and defence are OK, and the midfield is adequate. This was obvious all summer long and nothing was done until the last possible moment when the options were limited. Nobody can possibly imagine that was the manager's choice.
Any alternative manager who is not desperate for a job - and therefore not in demand elsewhere - will want to know what has been going on above Powell, who has a huge amount of respect within the wider game as well as the club, before they go anywhere near Charlton. Football people will know, even if supporters don't, and if they don't they will find out. Nobody of quality with experience is likely to come to Charlton for anything like Powell's salary.
Further to that, it is convenient to the board to have Powell as a scapegoat for the minority of supporters. Sacking him would attract some media attention to them, which as we know they don't enjoy, and leave them exposed as the underlying cause of the team's failings, since they couldn't credibly blame a replacement, as well as alienating a further tranche of people who insist on giving them the benefit of the doubt.
Pritchard alongside yann? why? Pritchard can't score, he's best position is in the middle were he breaks down play.
He has move harriot in that position earlier in the season and harriot couldn't adjust either. he drops harriot, which was poor. the guy is young give him support. Play him the right position, same goes for Pritchard.
we now have green? who we know is not up to championship level. harriot is the man who at end of last season helped a lot to achieve our high position in the league by playing on the wing!!
subs made too late yesterday. reacting to them hitting the post. he should of made a sub at half time. getting church up front and sticking Pritchard back in the middle. if Pritchard continues to have a poor game take him off after ten minutes.
those two subs were just trying to fix a problem that he had already created by his team selection and formation.
the last sub. probably the worst mistake. taking our only threat down the wing who just seconds before delivered a great ball into the box. Wilson comes off. leaving that side without any attacking threat and also exposed at the back. which helped them get their second goal and kill the game off.
sordel comes on - what's the point of having all these players including wingers standing in the box? who's ment to be delivering the bloody ball to them??!!
overall it was harsh to lose as derby weren't all that and though we struggled our players did ok on the most part. it was those mistakes by powell that completely ruined it for us on the day.
I'm angry even a day after. I don't want powell to be sacked, I just want him to see these mistakes and learn from them. the problem is this is not the first time. some of the mistakes have happened before.
Sordell.. why are we not playing him ? I don't understand why you loan a player and then don't give him a real chance. CP should say, injuries preventing, his name is on the team sheet for the next 3 games, not sure if he's permitted to play next week. Give him an opportunity now, before he loses all his confidence.