Charlton v Leeds United | Sat 28 Sep | 3pm KO | POST-MATCH THREAD

A tremendously committed, disciplined and gutsy performance from our lads and the perfect antidote to the last two defeats. I’m sure that no Charlton supporter will have left The Valley without a feeling of great pride in the team after such a prodigious effort. A tactically smart game plan and a case of every man Jack.

Leeds had us on the back foot early on with their slick passing and movement but, save for a few squeaks at the end, they came as close to a goal in those first few minutes as they did in the entire game. Once we got our noses in front, we got a foothold in the match, with Darren Pratley slipping expertly in and out of the back five and our players competing effectively all over the field. The fact that Bielsa introduced two substitutes at half time speaks for itself.

Our defending was excellent, with countless blocks, headers and clearances and their runners were diligently tracked by our team as a whole. Lockyer has another fine game and he and Naby completely subdued the ineffective and petulant Bamford, who was hooked halfway through the second half. Nor did the introduction of Nketiah at half time make any impression on our solidity. I also lost count of the number of clearances made by Chris Solly in the second half, especially at the far post from a series of dangerous right wing  crosses. I loved his thundering tackle in front of the East Stand in the second half and this was a game where Chris drew on all his class, experience and nous to help get us over the line.

Our midfielders worked prodigiously hard to contain Leeds and, up front, I thought that both Leko and Macauley Bonne did well. The goal will do Macauley the world of good and I liked his pace and movement. Leko demonstrated his ability to turn defenders and burn them off with his pace, although he made a mess of one good opportunity on the break when they were desperately short handed at the back. He doesn’t function as well when he has too much time to think, although as Lee has emphasised, if he was closer to the finished product, West Brom wouldn’t have let him out on loan.

After that humongous collective effort, it  feels invidious to single out an individual for Man of the Match but I thought that Connor Gallagher had a magnificent game, combining huge energy levels with great determination and fight and real quality on the ball. This guy is surely going to have one hell of a future.

Let’s hope that the players have enough left in the tank for Swansea on Wednesday. I’m sure that Lee and Jacko will introduce some fresh legs where they can and they’ll be anxious to avoid an ‘after the Lord Mayor’s show’ performance in front of a smaller midweek crowd. Just how good would it be to hit 20 points after just 10 games ?

I left the North Stand Bar to catch the 18:30 train at the same time as the Leeds team coach - Bielsa must have had a lot to say to his team in the dressing room and to the press afterwards. As the bus was turning out past the Club Shop, some bloke ran out in front, dropped his trousers and bared his arse to the coach. I don’t know whether he was a Charlton supporter or one of theirs (they’re a demanding bunch) or, indeed, what old Marcelo made of it. It did, however, serve to reinforce the sense of joie de vivre. 

What a wonderful afternoon’s entertainment.