Zoot Alors .. Ou Est M. Kermogant ?

Dear Sir Chris , I wonder if it might be possible in future ( for end of season jollies only , you understand) to inform us in advance of what the team is going to be ?

You know ,I wouldn’t normally ask but in the event that we have spent all week learning the words to the Marseillaise ,belting it out pre match in the pubs of Preston to the collective bewilderment of all those pigeon fanciers, cutting out flags of Brittany , sourcing berets and tricolours , its a bit deflating to arrive in the ground having consumed cinq ou six demi-litres of seize soixante quatre to find that M .Kermogant.

Il n’est pas ici !!

Despite our best efforts to reinvigorate the French theme with Messieurs N’Guessan and Evina , they were frankly having none of it and really by that point , we had lost a considerable percentage of our overall joie de vivre.

So Chrissy in the interests of the old entente cordiale between club and fans , would it be OK if I called you for a sneeky teamsheet peak before next years jolly day out .

yours………..la plume de ma tante

Where were you ?

I thought the crowd yesterday at 18,539 was very disappointing considering that promotion had already been achieved and a title was likely to be earned . It got me thinking about where I was when previous achievements have been crowned . In 86, I was at Carlisle to enjoy the day and night and after the game we gave Lennie Lawrence a magnum of champagne to enjoy on the bus back . I couldn’t remember where was I in 81 ,couldn’t understand why I wasnt at Carlisle then too , until my mate reminded me yesterday that it was his wedding day . I missed last Sat at Carlisle because we were putting our daughter on the plane for her gap year travels round NZ & Oz.

Of course I made the Wembley play off final and a couple of years later I got to Notts Forest

What about 74/75 as I watched the guy run on the pitch yesterday and display swerves that Gareth Edwards would have been proud of and I muttered ‘stupid boy’ under my breath like Captain Mainwaring.

Well do you know what I was about to do back then ?  and do you know what ,the grass is still a bit green almost 40 years later ………………..

          

 

Stupid Boy …………………………………………

 

By the way . next years signings are all going to be like this bloke

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eGGgQW2V-k&feature=player_embedded

Never in doubt

I can’t say that I felt that , but on the back of 3 successive 1-0 wins , I suspect the players were more confident than us .

Fantastic result at the weekend on the back of a fantastic season , nothing to add to the general delirium , except I wish I could have made it up to Carlisle ( as I did in 86)  .

I then turned my thoughts to the manner of our all conquering season . Although we have done fantastically well , despite the huge turnaround in playing staff , pretty much all the games I have been to have felt tight . Once we get 1-0 up , it rarely feels like we are going to get a hatful ( Carlisle & Preston at home excepted), although we generally ride any storm and grind out the result. There is a feeling that SCP ‘s team is very curbishleyesque in nature .  Basically ( and I am ignoring Man U and Man City who have both played 9 games less than us ) , apart from Swindon , we have the best defensive record in all 4 divisions , having only conceded 31 goals .

He definitely knows how to drill the defensive unit.

If you divide the team into two parts , the back 6 , Hamer, Solly, Wiggins , Cort/Taylor , Morrison and  the defensive midfielder Hollands/Pritchard , I would suggest that is the best bit and needs less strengthening .

The front 5 seems less convincing , Central attacking midfield Stephens /Russell/ Hughes,  Right Wing  Green/Wagstaff ,  Left Wing Jackson /Cook/nGuessan,  Central  Wright Philips/Haynes , Kermogant.  Apart from Kermogant , there are probably a few question marks against all of others in one sense or another .

It will be an interesting close season conundrum for our hero to solve !

Miguel and the heebie jeebies

There is no doubting that Miguel Llera is a lovely footballer , a cultured player . After watching him careering down the wing on Saturday to deliver a pinpoint cross for Gary Madine to score and then following it up with a brave headed goal of his own , fans of the Massives may be wondering why we gave him away . Sometimes , I wonder too. Certainly when you recall the subtlety of his first touch and sublime finish against Swindon on Boxing Day 2 years ago , it is difficult to fathom his release .

But wait , I here you say , I was at the Weston Homes Community Stadium  that fateful night 3 years ago . Oh yes, I remember that night , we were all expectant that our good start under Parky would continue. It started OK , we looked solid and then we watched as Miguel Llera kind of disintegrated in front of us , Kayode Odejyai , a bull of a centre forward , pushed , bullied and dominated our Spanish hero into complete surrender . A hatrick for Odejyai, he could have had 6. Poor Miguel was substituted early in the second half and Sam Sodje started to compete , no more goals. It was really one of the most complete confidence collapses of a centre half I have ever seen

As the Team bus pulls in on Saturday is it too much to hope that Miguel has  a sudden attack of the heebie jeebies ?

Tennis players like me were disappointed to see that the LTA lost £500k funding this week because of unfulfilled participation figures . But tennis fans , don’t despair because LTA President Peter Bretheren is the guy in charge . Asked to explain last weeks Davis Cup defeat to Belgium , he said ‘ The Board has a strategy . We know what the strategy is. The putting into practice of the strategy is part of that strategy and the board is satisfied with the strategy and the way its been put into effect. Until the board decides otherwise , thats where we are ‘ ………………….. , no need for us to worry then , UK tennis is in safe hands .

Ched Evans and the omnipotence of one

Some of you will no doubt have picked up on the current trial ( for rape) of Ched Evans , Sheff Utd’s super striker . If not , see here http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/apr/11/ched-evans-clayton-mcdonald-accused

I have 2 questions here , firstly how does it work , you would have thought that being accused of such a serious crime would have resulted in a custodial sentence awaiting trial and secondly if he gets found guilty , I guess an immediate prison sentence , which if it happens next week is  likely to seriously affect the Sheff U promotion run in.

I don’t know how many of you saw the Ken Livingstone PPB last night , which regardless of your political stance, was really very good. The thing that strikes me about senior politicians now and Ken is a huge exponent of this , is the tendency to say that I did this , I did that , I’m going to do the other.

Am I the only person who finds it a bit worrying/alarming  that Ken says ‘I will reduce fares by 50% ‘ , ‘I put hundreds of police back on the streets’ ‘ I made it safer for cyclists ‘ etc , you get the drift .

Does he actually work with anyone else or does he make all these decisions single handedly , what shall I do today ?  I know I think I’ll order a few new bendy buses ……. and then tomorrow , who knows , maybe I’ll declare war on Ashby De La Zouch.

A NEW DAWN FOR ME & CAFC ( HOPEFULLY !)

Ive really been wanting to do this for ages and never got around to it or decided that noone would be that interested . However , I just decided today that a new dawn has arrived and that frankly who cares , I’m just going to get on with it.

There are lots of excellent CAFC blogs already and I’m afraid on the whole thats what mine will be about , but with some other opinionated stuff along the way about politics, economics , education , the UK and anything else I fancy rambling about.

I’m sure you will tell me if you don’t like what I say , but hopefully if you bother to read it , it won’t be boring.

My first point is about the Player of The Year voting on Saturday . As I looked over the tellers shoulder on Sat , it looked very much to me like an avalanche for ”five foot three he’s better than John Terry” , although I voted for our favourite Breton . The guys near me have already decided that I have some kind of homoerotic thing going for the Frenchman which I vehemently deny. However , despite the fact that Chris Solly is absolutely brilliant and definitely destined for great things ( a la Paul Parker if you remember him) , you don’t win leagues with the best right full back in the division, so surely people , it has  to be Kermit , the best header of the ball I have ever seen at Charlton , including  2) Matt Tees and  3) Shaun Bartlett