POST-MATCH THREAD: Preston North End v Charlton Athletic: Saturday 4th October 2025: KO 15:00
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No, but the last game he played was against Millwall which was the same game that Ramsey got sent off. I'm suggesting that maybe NJ wanted to convert him to a wing back for the next match and he wasn't happy about it.Southbank said:
We play with two wingbacks. He is not one.jimmymelrose said:I see that people are windering why Apter’s not getting a look in. Probably he’s had a disagreement with NJ.
NJ doesn't like wingers, he always wants to convert them either to a striker (as with TC) a midfielder, or a wingback (as with Apter). Maybe this conversion is not working as NJ demands.
You can lol me as much as you like but it's a possibility and no-one else seems to have any other explanation for his mysterious absence since.
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Can we send TC and Leaburn down the gym, they both get brushed off the ball so easily. If they could just hold their ground more they would be a real threat.5
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Love Nathan Jones but he doesn’t help himself talking nonsense about throw ins etc for the first goal. We were well beaten by the better team, simple as that.6
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No arguments with the result, no matter how disappointing it was. Thought we were marginally the better side in the first half, but second best by quite a margin after the break. What is a worry is that that's twice in two games that we have wilted around the hour mark. Some observations:
- Docherty was our MoM. Hat's off to him for running himself into the ground. He has come on leaps and bounds since the beginning of last season.
- I thought Kelman had another good game too, despite not scoring again. The trouble was, every time I saw him he seemed to be playing closer and closer to the flank. I think we need both forwards in the penalty box so that they can support each other, but too often it's one of them in the middle with the other on the fringes. Perhaps that's an issue with wing-backs that they aren't getting forward enough to support the 'strikers'.
- I do wish Leaburn would stay on his feet more. He looks more intent on 'winning' a set piece than having a shot. It ain't working.
- I'm not keen on Knibbs coming on when we need to score. I've not seen enough attacking guile from him to have any confidence that he'll lead a fightback. I wonder if it might be better to put him on at the start and then swap him when we could do with some fresh legs. I would have liked to see Apter or Hernandez today.
- We got caught offside far too much today. Yes, I realise that Preston defended high up the pitch precisely to give us this problem but our forwards, especially TC, need to be aware of that and they need to look along the line. It's no good just dashing forward without checking, because they get caught out every other attack.
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I got home shortly before midnight after nearly 16 hours out of the house, most of it on bleedin’ trains - a great way to commemorate 200 years of the railway ! We went up via Manchester and a lady who’s a regular on that line was bemoaning how useless Avanti are. She said they didn’t have enough drivers and because they will almost certainly lose their franchise in a year’s time, they have no incentive to hire any more and train them up. The storm obviously created very real problems but the salvage job across the day as a whole left much to be desired. I was almost moved to respond to their “Tell us what you thought” survey.
My sons went up Friday afternoon and thoroughly enjoyed exploring Preston’s hostelries as well as the Harris Museum, replete with the Wallace & Gromit Exhibition from Nick Park and Aardman. I had hoped to get to the Grade II listed Black Horse and one other pub en route to the ground, but as we didn’t arrive until about 1:20pm, we were limited to a couple of pints in The Old Vic near the station before hopping on a local bus to Deepdale.
As for the game, I thought that Preston were a bit better than us in the first half but a lot better in the second. We became ragged as the game wore on and it felt like one of those games where Charlton could have played until midnight and still not scored.
We had a few decent breaks in the first half, but other than a couple of dangerous crosses, didn’t really threaten Preston’s goal. The Doc had a very strong first half but the opposition largely controlled the midfield and we found it hard to create any significant openings. We weren’t helped by continually getting caught offside - I can’t recall that happening before several times in one game. Preston are a well-drilled side, but our players should be capable of looking along the line and timing their runs.
If there wasn’t much between the teams in the first half, there certainly was in the second and it felt only a matter of time before Preston made the breakthrough. Kaminski made a fine reflex save from a close range header but the goal they had threatened arrived shortly thereafter from Thierry Small, who concentrated in getting his shot on target (as per Nathan's injunction) and had the benefit of a fortunate deflection from Ramsey to loop the ball past the keeper. The guy who put the cross in for the second found himself in acres of space down the left but maybe one of our defenders was playing him onside. Once that went in, the game was effectively done and dusted.
I thought we looked a bit shaky at the back throughout. Ramsey was not as comfortable as usual at left back, whilst Reece Burke looked a little slow and flat-footed to me. We were unable to achieve any semblance of control in midfield and the service to our forwards didn’t provide them with much to work with, especially against a very competent rearguard. We didn’t work their goalie at all - zero shots on target - and, with the exception of one excellent break and cross from Bree - who was impressive again - we didn’t really pose a threat.
It’s not the end of the world. Preston are a difficult proposition at their place and their manager has done a good job of rebuilding the side, utilising 3 or 4 Premiership loanees. 12 points is a respectable total at this stage and we now have an opportunity to regroup and come out with all guns blazing against Wednesday after the international break. If we can garner 3 points from that game, it will send us into the next two away games at Ipswich and Hull in a positive frame of mind.
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Mostly agree, but I would honestly persevere with Campbell and Kelman for a little longer. Kelman had a very good game, overall today, and Campbell was inches from putting in a sliding chance at the far post and just beaten to a near post cross by a defender. I genuinely don’t think it’s the personnel that are the issue, just continuing to build that understanding and patterns of play on the final third. We saw exactly the same last season as it was the last piece to fall into place.Fortune 82nd Minute said:
Believe me, I'm a very half-empty glass sort of guy when it comes to Charlton - a life time of disappointments gets to you eventually! But even so, some of the comments on here tonight about how bad we were are miles over the top.ElfsborgAddick said:Fortune 82nd Minute said:Not too disappointed.
Preston are a decent team with some good players. And 2 long trips in a week can't be easy even if the players aren't exactly travelling on a Megabus.
And just so typical that an ex-player scores against us. Why always us?
Thought Docherty had another outstanding game. And Kelman probably his best game for us so far.
Even so, we scarcely looked like scoring. And that is now one goal for our four main forwards in nine games. Something has to change soon because we can't carry on like that .Hmmm I think you may be in the minority in not being too disappointed. That was not a good watch.We did not have a shot on target.
Fact is we've lost to a good team who have some good players and who I suspect will finish a lot nearer the top than the bottom. Why can't we just admit we were well beaten by a better team rather than pretending we were absolutely hopeless which we weren't. And frankly we are going to get beaten by better teams in this league from time to time.
That said, at half time there was little between the 2 teams and in the end we've only lost to a flukely, deflected shot and a goal that looked offside.
What is worrying is the lack of goal threats. And with one goal between our four main strikers in 9 games it is surely time to try something else. And what better time to try it than in our next game against Sheff Wed.
Honestly not concerned tonight about our prospects of staying up comfortably although if we don't beat Wednesday next game I might reconsider!To me, the signs are there every week that things are moving in the right direction. Slower progress than we’d ideally like, but worth a bit more patience. Lets not forget - we’ve won as many as we have lost.7 -
Just got home. What an awful day from start to finish well done to all that made the journey that was a bad one.2
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The TC conundrum is a big one. We lose shape and defensive structure when he goes off, but he doesn't do what he's meant to do in the forward line, which is goals and assists.
I think that for all his skill, pace and endeavour, he has the ability to beat his man too, but he's not a intelligent footballer. He doesn't anticipate enough, or knows when to gamble, make runs to find space to receive inside the box, and that can only be taught to a degree.
We know NJ loves the lad, and he reckons he has a very high ceiling, but for me, his decision making is poor. If he can address this, he will be unstoppable.8 -
I can't work out if Leaburn is weak as piss or just loves to play act, because for a big lump he is always going down so easilySouthLincsAddick said:Can we send TC and Leaburn down the gym, they both get brushed off the ball so easily. If they could just hold their ground more they would be a real threat.1 -
Like a sack of potatoes.Croydon said:
I can't work out if Leaburn is weak as piss or just loves to play act, because for a big lump he is always going down so easilySouthLincsAddick said:Can we send TC and Leaburn down the gym, they both get brushed off the ball so easily. If they could just hold their ground more they would be a real threat.
I want to see King Godden back ASAP.1 - Sponsored links:
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He’s a winger, not a forward. That’s half the problem.ozaddick said:The TC conundrum is a big one. We lose shape and defensive structure when he goes off, but he doesn't do what he's meant to do in the forward line, which is goals and assists.
I think that for all his skill, pace and endeavour, he has the ability to beat his man too, but he's not a intelligent footballer. He doesn't anticipate enough, or knows when to gamble, make runs to find space to receive inside the box, and that can only be taught to a degree.
We know NJ loves the lad, and he reckons he has a very high ceiling, but for me, his decision making is poor. If he can address this, he will be unstoppable.7 -
We have a very good squad, and while im a big fan of consistency within a first 11, think we have to make better use of the squad during these 3-game weeks. If Jones can figure that out as season progresses, believe we will remain strong and continue to pick up more than enough points.7
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First time visit to Deepdale. Nice ground. Ok first half and but pretty much 2nd best in the 2nd half.Thought Doc was excellent again today. Great turnout (just under 1300) considering the chaos on the roads and rail.
12th after 9 games back in the Championship. I’ll take that.25 -
The point has been made but he does need to learn to rotate a bit. Coventry wasn’t on it yesterday and maybe could have been replaced by Costello or Anderson.stoneroses19 said:We have a very good squad, and while im a big fan of consistency within a first 11, think we have to make better use of the squad during these 3-game weeks. If Jones can figure that out as season progresses, believe we will remain strong and continue to pick up more than enough points.
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Amos on the wing said:
.......12th after 9 games back in the Championship. I’ll take that.
And ahead of Wrexham and Birmingham!16 -
Just a typical modern forward. Looking for free kicks and cards rather than relishing the battle. As he matures, the penny might drop.Croydon said:
I can't work out if Leaburn is weak as piss or just loves to play act, because for a big lump he is always going down so easilySouthLincsAddick said:Can we send TC and Leaburn down the gym, they both get brushed off the ball so easily. If they could just hold their ground more they would be a real threat.
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Two things that stood out:
1) They broke our lines really well, not seen a team have so much space and opportunities to shoot from just outside of our box
2) They genuinely have the worst home fans I've ever seen
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Out of curiosity, what is the definition of winning an aerial duel here? Is it simply getting the header in before the opposition player regardless of where it goes, or is it winning the aerial duel AND the ball falling nicely and intentionally for a teammate?Garrymanilow said:
According to Fotmob Leaburn has won 37 aerial duels this season, which puts him ahead of 92.7% of players in his position. But yeah, if you ignore that and the goal he created then he never wins anything, you're right.golfaddick said:
He's never been that good. Just like his old man. Split opinions although there were/are more for than against. At least his old man could attack the ball in the air (oh yes I forgot, he did get his head to a ball to flick onto Knibbs that set up our winner at Bramall Lane 🙄)SELR_addicks said:
He does look markedly slower than before his injury. Maybe I just have a poor memory but used to think he had a decent 5-10 yard sprint.Todds_right_hook said:
The thing that is missing affecting Leaburns game is service!!!gringo said:It's not that long ago that we worried that some club would come in and nick Leaburn off us. I think at the moment we would struggle to give him away. He doesn't seem to have pushed on (perhaps his injury has affected him longer term) but It seems there is something missing at the moment.
I'd start with Oloafe & Kelman for the next few games. Try that pairing & see how we fare.
Also, this 92.7% below: how many duels on the ground have they won? How do they compare?
Statistics can be twisted to suit an argument.
By the way, Leaburn senior never ’attacked’ the ball in the air until the 91-92 season.0 -
Was at the game yesterday and can say that it was not a great match.
First half I thought both teams cancelled one and other out with very few chances for either side.
I said at half time that I'd settle for a boring second half if it meant we would get a point.
Unfortunately second half Preston upped their game and we didn't.
The opening goal was always going to decide this game and even though it was a lucky goal Preston got it and that was effectively game over.
That is now 9 games where Kelman and Campbell have started up front together and neither of them have scored a single goal.
Not sure how much longer NJ will continue with this partnership but for me he needs to try a different starting pair as these two are showing no sign they are the answer.7 -
Just seen the usual 2 min highlights reel. All Preston. Not a single "highlight" from us. How can you play 90 mins of football & not have anything to show for it.1
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Due to family commitments I couldn't even follow the game yesterday but if there's one poster on here whose views I trust to be objective, balanced and accurate, it's @Blucher.Blucher said:I got home shortly before midnight after nearly 16 hours out of the house, most of it on bleedin’ trains - a great way to commemorate 200 years of the railway ! We went up via Manchester and a lady who’s a regular on that line was bemoaning how useless Avanti are. She said they didn’t have enough drivers and because they will almost certainly lose their franchise in a year’s time, they have no incentive to hire any more and train them up. The storm obviously created very real problems but the salvage job across the day as a whole left much to be desired. I was almost moved to respond to their “Tell us what you thought” survey.
My sons went up Friday afternoon and thoroughly enjoyed exploring Preston’s hostelries as well as the Harris Museum, replete with the Wallace & Gromit Exhibition from Nick Park and Aardman. I had hoped to get to the Grade II listed Black Horse and one other pub en route to the ground, but as we didn’t arrive until about 1:20pm, we were limited to a couple of pints in The Old Vic near the station before hopping on a local bus to Deepdale.
As for the game, I thought that Preston were a bit better than us in the first half but a lot better in the second. We became ragged as the game wore on and it felt like one of those games where Charlton could have played until midnight and still not scored.
We had a few decent breaks in the first half, but other than a couple of dangerous crosses, didn’t really threaten Preston’s goal. The Doc had a very strong first half but the opposition largely controlled the midfield and we found it hard to create any significant openings. We weren’t helped by continually getting caught offside - I can’t recall that happening before several times in one game. Preston are a well-drilled side, but our players should be capable of looking along the line and timing their runs.
If there wasn’t much between the teams in the first half, there certainly was in the second and it felt only a matter of time before Preston made the breakthrough. Kaminski made a fine reflex save from a close range header but the goal they had threatened arrived shortly thereafter from Thierry Small, who concentrated in getting his shot on target (as per Nathan's injunction) and had the benefit of a fortunate deflection from Ramsey to loop the ball past the keeper. The guy who put the cross in for the second found himself in acres of space down the left but maybe one of our defenders was playing him onside. Once that went in, the game was effectively done and dusted.
I thought we looked a bit shaky at the back throughout. Ramsey was not as comfortable as usual at left back, whilst Reece Burke looked a little slow and flat-footed to me. We were unable to achieve any semblance of control in midfield and the service to our forwards didn’t provide them with much to work with, especially against a very competent rearguard. We didn’t work their goalie at all - zero shots on target - and, with the exception of one excellent break and cross from Bree - who was impressive again - we didn’t really pose a threat.
It’s not the end of the world. Preston are a difficult proposition at their place and their manager has done a good job of rebuilding the side, utilising 3 or 4 Premiership loanees. 12 points is a respectable total at this stage and we now have an opportunity to regroup and come out with all guns blazing against Wednesday after the international break. If we can garner 3 points from that game, it will send us into the next two away games at Ipswich and Hull in a positive frame of mind.
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I just don’t understand how multiple people thought Kelman had a good game3
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You spent all of last season banging on about that and we seemed to do alright in the end didn’t we?golfaddick said:Just switched channels & caught 3 mins of the Derby v Saints match from the ITV highlights. Both keepers called into action countless times. If there had been no keepers the game could have ended 8-8.
If Preston hadn't played with a keeper today they would have still kept a clean sheet. 0 shots on target in 90 minutes is a disgrace. That will be our downfall. As I bang on year after year, clean sheets only get you so far. You still have to put the ball in the onion bag down the other end.4 -
Won 3, drawn 3, lost 3. Goal difference 0. Mid table.This is the Charlton I grew up with!9
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I’m usually pretty negative but think the comments from most are generally a bit over the top. Was very happy at half time with how we’d done given at the very least as good as we’d got, properly actually a better first half performance than the one against Derby overall. Tide changed soon after restart and A slightly fortuitous / scrappy goal but ultimately this is exactly how a lot (possibly even all!) of our games will go, no clear superior team and rely on getting ahead more often than we fall behind.golfaddick said:Just seen the usual 2 min highlights reel. All Preston. Not a single "highlight" from us. How can you play 90 mins of football & not have anything to show for it.Kelman continues to underwhelm but like most, thought he gave a better account of himself than most games, looked a bit more “up for the fight” trying to use his body a bit more etc4 -
Being the third ‘best’ team to get promoted we have done well to be competitive in every game so far but I do think we have proved we are good enough defensively to be able to play a flat back 4 and have a more attacking minded player in place of Burke for example, do we really need 3 centre backs against Sheff Wed up next? None of our strikers are scoring but nobody’s getting us up the pitch enough to supply them with any chances, TC & Kelman are constantly playing with their backs to goal & chasing shadows, I don’t think they’re exactly the problem & I don’t think it’s as simple as playing Leaburn / Olaofe either
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Thought his hold up play was quality. Wasn't in the box enough for my liking, but he had a decent gameAFKABartram said:I just don’t understand how multiple people thought Kelman had a good game8 -
He got in behind on the right a few times and put some threatening balls across goal. Was probably our biggest threat going forwards, though that’s a low barAFKABartram said:I just don’t understand how multiple people thought Kelman had a good game8 -
Totally agree. For as Good as they are, the middle pair understandably tail off late on.altrinchamaddick said:At the game, after a stressful journey, and I only travelled from Manchester! Got there in time, even had a pint in Wetherspoons, nicely positioned on the walk from the station to the ground!
Onto the game, not much to report that other posters have commented on. Our outstanding player was Docherty, his energy throughout the game was immense. I don't know if it's my imagination, but he seems to have gathered a yard extra in pace compared to last season. There was a point late on where he went toe to toe with Small, I was expecting him to be roasted, and he wasn't.
My concern, and I've stated this over the years, that games are won and lost in midfield. It's not about how good your forward line is, defense has to be sound, that's a taken. our midfield are excellent in protecting the back four, mainly Coventry and Docherty. Sonney Carey has more attacking licence, he is the one trying to bust a gut to support the front two.
For 60-70 mins this works, but I have noticed in the last 20 mins, we appear to lose midfield numbers. Against Derby, and again against Preston. My arguement in bringing on very attacking subs, today Leaburn, Tanto, and Knibbs, reduce the effectiveness of midfield. Whether it is bringing on Rankin- Costello or even Anderson (I know he wasn't on the bench), but we must retain midfield stability. My tactic does then limit the number of attacking subs, but time and time again, introducing more attacking subs diminishes our midfield strength, so we don't have the ability to create chances.
My advice to Nathan, a more balanced approach, yes, change up the forward line , but more importantly don't weaken the midfield, because, if you do, you'll never have enough posession to create the chances for the gamechangers to finish.
Docs loose clearance lead to the first goal I believe1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQLen5bBxEc
