Or Going Down?

Charlton 1 Sheffield United 1


Talal el Kharkhouri puts Charlton ahead, but sadly they didn't stay ahead

Quite a long time after Charlton had beaten Newcastle, I finally got round to writing about it, citing as the reason for the delay that my only feeling about the game had been one of great contentment, and thus not much of a reason for writing, as anyone might have known I'd be pleased; and I again criticised the BBC and similar online football sites for their "Mourinho hails Chelsea victory" attitude to news stories which are entirely self-evident.

And now again, I imagine the more ghoulish among you will have been eagerly awaiting my reaction to this 1-1 draw, maybe to see how I propose to get Charlton out of this one, but in fact my reaction was precisely what you would have thought. Charlton had to beat Sheffield United to vault over them in the table, and would then be masters of their own fate, but still with a difficult run-in. And they did not even get over the first hurdle.

As The Observer's Stuart Barnes pointed out, Charlton looked very much like a Championship side , and even Frankie was so disgruntled as to say that if that kind of play was all that Charlton could offer the Premiership, then we might as well be a division lower, and get a bit more enjoyment out of our results.

The fact that Charlton did not win, and thus have to depend in part on others losing, and still complete the tricky run-in, makes things look much more difficult, especially when you consider that two of the remaining games are away in the north west, a region which has been most unpropitious for Charlton in the last two or three years, and today it is yet another encounter with one of my least-favourite teams, Blackburn Rovers, who are not likely to be in the mood for giving much away, as no doubt they fancy more outings to far-flung new European nations in the east of the continent in the UEFA Cup again next season. Then it's Spurs at home, and the season, and possibly Charlton's Premiership career, for the present, will probably end at Anfield on 13 May.

Talking of dates, Thursday 26 April was a memorable one for Charlton, being the 60th anniversary of Charlton beating what would become my other team, Burnley, 1-0 in extra time, in the FA Cup Final. And 49 years ago on Thursday, Charlton lost 3-4 at home to Blackburn in the old Division Two, thus missing the second promotion place (and there were only two in those days), which instead went to Blackburn, and when Charlton only needed a draw, too.

Propitious or what?