Chris Powell

I am a big fan of Chris Powell’s management abilities . He has done a fantastic job in very difficult circumstances over the last few years.

Watching the QPR game on Saturday , the thing that struck me was that the QPR players didn’t really seem to be putting it all in for the manager and that’s despite having Harry Rednapp, Kevin Bond and Joe Jordan in the dugout – surely you would be scared stiff not to put it all in for Joe Jordan ?  The contrast with the Charlton players was evident and surely that is the litmus test for whether the manager is doing his job . Do the players give everything for the cause and it seems to me with SCP , they do.

I think the jury is very much out on Roland and CEO, Katrien ( although she is both clever and drop dead gorgeous which helps) . Apart from the strangely languid , but talented Astrid , the other foreign imports haven’t really added much , although its still early days and we hope for valuable contributions still from Reza , Polish Pete and the others.

SCP has achieved great things in the last week despite losing ( arguably) his 4 best players, Kermit, Solly, Stephens and Wiggins and by replacing all of them with home grown kids .

From a management perspective – how good is that ??

For God’s sake , sort out his bloody contract !

A whirl of inactivity at CAFC

I know I’m supposed to be enthused by the new regime and in terms of supporter communication Roland is already streets ahead of TJ and Cashy , recognising that the Huffington Post is not the newspaper of choice for most CAFC fans.
However , am I the only one that harbours deep concerns about Roland’s strategy . One of the biggest troubles with very rich , successful people is that they are more convinced of their ‘rightness’ than most other people and that confidence dispels doubters and makes them sound like heretics- even when the rich person is just plain wrong.
It is clear that SCP is going to have to continue with one of the lowest budgets in the Division. All things being equal , that will mean that we will have one of the lowest paid ( and therefore probably least talented) squads in the division . Barring some kind of managing miracle – from the ‘Chris will need to be creative’ stable , it will mean that we will remain uncompetitive. Investment in the successful youth set up is welcome and sensible , but growing your own is haphazard and does not consistently produce enough first team players at the same time to produce a winning team.

I like Roland’s stuff about being the heart of the community , regardless of colour , gender or creed , it will be a lovely place to meet friends, the matchday experience has to be first rate , etc, etc . Roland – mate- the point is that even if you put on half time entertainment which includes a troop of exotic strippers, the Chippendales, an Episcopal Gospel Choir and shooting vertically challenged people from a cannon if we lost 3-0 to Rochdale at home the week before , the only people left luxuriating in the new installed slumberland armchairs, sipping cocktails will be Katrien Meire ,Richard Murray and few other diehards like me ( probably ?).
People come to see winning teams . Its nice to see attractive football too , but if you replaced all the seats with park benches , stopped publishing a programme , stopped serving matchday food and banned alcohol ( I know I went too far, didn’t I ?) and we won 1-0 every week, The Valley would be humming .

Limited Ambition

I have just read Wynn Grants ( an excellent blog) Addicks Championship Diary piece about CAFC supporters ‘ Its being so miserable makes me happy’

Although I am always 100% behind the team when I attend matches , never have I or would I boo the team or players- I guess you could count me in the pessimists corner when it comes to the current situation at the club .
It seems to me that there are too many people who are accepting of the – we’re only Charlton, we’ve been generally useless since the war ( which we have) – we should count ourselves lucky to have an absent owner ( the 2nd on the trot) – at least we aren’t Coventry or Leeds or another basket case.

I don’t want to wait another 3 or 4 years while we try and bed in the youngsters and the Standard Liege reserves – possibly go back to League 1 – before Roland’s great ( as yet vague and uncommunicated) plan takes us back to the Premier League. Its all very well saying that people shouldn’t have to lose money when running a football club . That is , of course, correct and a admirable objective , but in reality football owners always lose money and if Roland turns out to be the only one who doesn’t , its going to be a pretty difficult ride for the supporters over the next few years
We should be a major London club – we have a huge catchment area and we need owners who have the right level of ambition for the club.
We should all be demanding that and if Roland can’t deliver , then tell him to move over and get someone else in who shares our vision.
There is no reason at all why we shouldn’t be competing at the top end of the Premiership.

Roland Relegation

At the end of our transfer deadline day business , I think we can conclude that Division 1 has just got very much closer . We have sold our best player by a country mile , Yann Kermogant , one of the best players I have seen in a Charlton shirt ( including the premiership years).in 46 years of watching.

We have also sold Dale Stephens , who , although not that good , did at least look like a championship player most of the time .

What are we left with – no discernible midfield – my pal who saw Astrid at Doncaster said he looked like a fat , slower version of Johnnie Jackson – Oh Whoopee . The bloke we brought in from Hungary couldn’t even get a game for Ujpest Dozsa and he got a 3 year deal .

The Goalie has played  once and been responsible for the 1-0 defeat .

Then we’ve got an Iranian who cant get a game for Standard Liege and a Polish bloke who has scored 20 odd goals in Charlton Park , sorry I meant the Dutch 2nd division.. Oh what joy !

Start booking your bed & breakfast in Fleetwood – Division One we are on our way back – thanks Roland.