Slump After All?

Fulham 2 Charlton 1


Towards the end of March, I celebrated Charlton's last win, over Newcastle United, by declaring that maybe the annual spring slump was not going to happen; even last week, on my arrival on Merseyside to be greeted with the news of the 0-0 home draw against Everton, I was still reasonably contented.

But now, nine days later, things look very different. I referred in my comment on the Middlesbrough cup-tie that Charlton were looking like they had done a year ago, when in the space of two months they achieved just one solitary league point. In saying this, I meant that Curbs was ignoring the younger talent he has available to him, and relying on players like Bartlett and Holland, who were of course key figures in that famous two-month slump of 2005.

For the Fulham match, and possibly in response to bloggers such as Frankie Valley, some changes were made, including the return of Darren Ambrose, though my personal favourite, Jerome Thomas, did not get a run out till 60 minutes had elapsed.

However, although Charlton gave a reasonably good account of themselves, they were no match for, nor yet had any equivalent of (and how useful it would be if they had) Luis Boa Morte, who scored both goals. The 2-1 scoreline was reached by half time and Charlton could have made progress in the second half, including an attempt at the end by Marcus Bent (showing disbelief that his attempt has failed, above). It was not to be, however, but not really that much of a disgrace for Charlton, who played quite well. Even the BBC were reasonably fair about this (but see below), though a better report appeared on the Telegraph web page.

This afternoon, Charlton entertain a resurgent Portsmouth in SE7. The last time we played them was the famous occasion when the absurd Lawro said that going shopping with one's mother-in-law might be preferable to watching it. On that occasion Charlton came back from 1-0 down to win 2-1. Today, following Birmingham's defeat yesterday at Aston Villa, Charlton are mathematically safe from relegation, and unlikely to qualify for anything you get for finishing higher up, apart of course, from the right to play in the Premier League next season, currently being celebrated by Sheffield United and Reading, and the loss of it, bemoaned by Sunderland. Portsmouth are by no means certain to be there, either, so this is what they will be playing for. Charlton's favourite goalie for the last six years, Dean Kiely, transferred to Portsmouth earlier this year, makes his first return to The Valley, too.

So with Charlton certain to finish between 7th and 17th, the prize for which, as I have said, is Premiership football next season, and Portsmouth not yet certain to be enjoying this, one wonders if Charlton will be able to rise to the occasion more than their opponents. Some bloggers say they don't mind what Charlton manage to achieve any more, but I do; I still want my team to win, and also to attain the highest position possible, as I don't see the Premiership merely as a stepping-stone to something else; it is an end in itself and the higher one can finish, the better.

One final point, which I omitted from my last report: as I was in the U.K., I learned about the Middlesbrough result from the BBC: on the radio news at ten o'clock on Thursday night as we drove back up the Wirral from North Wales, where we had been having dinner; and then a slightly longer account with a clip or two of some goals, on the television news during one of the breakfast shows next day. Both the radio announcer on the Thursday night, and the girl reading the news on Friday morning, read the news using the same tone of voice and general attitude as when an English side has knocked some Albanian or Moldovan outfit out of the UEFA Cup. "Middlesbrough are through to the semi finals of the FA Cup", drooled the girl, over clips of two of their goals (none of ours), for all the world as though London's Charlton Athletic were some bunch of no-mark filthy foreigners from the ghettoes of Eastern Europe, and the whole of the United Kingdom should rejoice. And yet Michael Grade, a non-executive director of Charlton, has something to do with the BBC, doesn't he? Maybe he has instructed his staff to knock Charlton at every opportunity in order to avert accusations of favouritism.

Favouritism for Charlton from the Beeb? You're having a laugh.