Charlton you gotta let me know
Should Parky stay or should he go?
If you say that he is ours
Then he’ll be here with reduced powers
So you got to let us know
Should Parky stay or should he go?

Always tease tease tease
You’re happy when I’m on my knees
One day is fine, next is black
So if you want me off your back
Well come on and let me know
Should Parky stay or should he go?

Should he stay or should he go now?
Should he stay or should he go now?
If he goes there will be trouble
And if he stays it will be double
So come on and let me know
Should Parky stay or should he go?

This indecisions bugging me
If you don’t want him, set him free
Exactly whom he’s supposed to be
Come on and let me know
Should he cool it or should he blow?

Should he stay or should he go now?
If he goes there will be trouble
And if he stays it will be double
So you gotta let me know
Should he stay or should he go?


Cheers Joe and Mick ;-)

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Strange birthday yesterday, starting on a flight from Singapore and landing back at Heathrow yesterday morning at 5.15 ... good time to use the M25, I was back home by 6.30 and working by 7.00 ... makes a nice change to later in the day!

Got some great presents including an anthology of George Orwell books ... it's years since I read them so very timely for my hols next week! Also got the Karine Polwart album Fairest Floo'er ... getting quite into this type of music lately along with artists such Cara Dillon and Alyth McCormack.

Talking of music the new Madness and Yusuf albums have been on my iPod a lot lately ... highly recommended.

So the OS shows the players and management returning to training ... except we can't tell who everyone is, there are not many there, and were the pics taken this week anyway? ... I like the conspiracy theory CA ;-)

Regardless, one point remains ... as supporters of this club, we have always been able to pride ourselves on the openness in communication between club and fans ... well, over the last 20 years or so anyway, wasn't so good in the Gliksten days when I first started supporting ... what has happened!

It would appear that Phil Parkinson ... and Mark Kinsella ... are still with us. Will that change before the season starts? To be honest, I can't see it ... even if takeover rumours are true (although personally I think that if anything happens it will be some form of investment rather than full takeover). Perhaps the last thing that is needed 6 weeks before the season starts is even more disruption ... but the contra-side is that if Parky continues with the run of results that we had since he took over, we may be in total freefall.

There is a fans forum meeting on 9th July, and the one down side of going on holiday next week is that I will miss the meeting ... however I am sure that Perry will give me an update from Charlton Life when I meet up with him at Floyds.

Well, hopefully one more post next week before I go to Portugal ... unfortunately I have a further business trip first, leaving on Sunday to Frankfurt ... but will be over fairly quickly.

My son is currently at Glastonbury and by the sound of the weather reports last night and today ... he may well be getting pretty wet! Not that he will care, a few good bands and a lot of booze and he won't notice lol

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Wow … is it really 8 months since I last posted? And also, incidentally, the same period of time since I actually attended a Charlton game.

Not that I had that many people reading this blog, but I guess it’s worth giving an explanation. Basically I have spent a lot of the intervening time coming to grips with the fact that in October I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis … not a happy time! I had been having problems with my legs, heaviness, and difficulty in walking very far, problems with stairs, etc., for about a year. To cut a long story short, after many months of being referred up the ladder from one doctor to another, having MRI scans, spending time in hospital being given steroid infusions, etc., the problem was finally narrowed down to MS.

My seat at the Valley was in the East Stand, 4 rows from the front, and there was no way I could continue to manoeuvre my way down the steepish stairs especially without a handrail, and the ascent back up the stairs made my legs so heavy that it was a problem getting back to my car … which was another problem as I normally parked up by Charlton Park, in Cemetery Lane, which was now too far for me to walk. Thankfully, it has not prevented me from driving although I have to admit it is now only for fairly short distances.

Fortunately my season ticket was not wasted as my son was able to take a friend with him most of the time.

I am writing this from Singapore as I have been here for a few days on a business trip and only returning later in the week. Those of you that know me are aware that I travel approximately 50% of my time, normally to Frankfurt, less often to Singapore, and then just about anywhere in between. In fact, working in that way is easier than travelling to my London office as I use taxis between hotel and office. The only problem can be walking through some of the larger airports such as Heathrow and Changi, but it can be done. I normally only have to get up to the London office once a month, which is good as it is quite an effort to do so … fortunately they have no problem with me working from home.

It is also quite surreal that I am now entitled to a disabled parking badge … I just can’t relate to myself in that way!

Coming back to Charlton, my saviours since last October have been the various excellent Charlton blogs, as listed in my links on the right (many of which I may need to re-check – let me know if any of your blogs are missing), and Charlton Life. Additionally, I have managed to listen to just about every game via CAFCTV – not the greatest at times, but a lifeline if you can’t get to the Valley!

So what about next season? I have been determined that I will be getting back down to the Valley and I have to give my sincere thanks to the staff at the ticket office who have helped in this regard … including one who was amongst those made redundant but still went out of her way to help. Even before swap week had started, they had re-located both my own and my son’s seat to a higher level in the East Stand which means I will no longer have to navigate the steps. And now they are looking into whether or not they can get me a parking space either behind the West Stand, or more likely in Lansdowne Mews. Fingers crossed that they will succeed otherwise I am going to have the same problem of getting to the ground! I had considered purchasing a parking space in the West Stand car park but at £720 per season, it is far too much especially as I cannot be sure I will be at every game.

Strange to be back in the 3rd division as I remember the last time with mixed emotions. Obviously there were a lot of bad times then, but I can recall lots of high-scoring games and some terrific away-days. Very unlikely that I will be able to attend so many away games this time, but I hope to get to some … however I will now have to restrict myself to coach travel rather than train or car, as walking any significant distance is too much of a problem.

So, will I be blogging on a more regular basis now I am back? It’s certainly my intention, but not for a few more days until I am back in the UK … and then I won’t bore you with explanations as to why I have been gone, but will concentrate on Charlton!

I’m off on holiday on 2nd July for a couple of weeks but should manage at least one posting before then, although I still have to arrange a day or two in Frankfurt once I am back. There is a Charlton aspect of my holiday that I am looking forward to … we are going to Portugal so it will give me a chance to catch up again with Perry and Karen at Floyd’s, the best Charlton bar in Europe!

Anyway, onwards and upwards!

Cheers to you all and it’s good to be back :-)

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Couldn't get down to the Valley today, so had to listen on radio and take part in the thread on Charlton Life.

Well ... I've heard of a game of 2 halves, but this definitely seemd to be a prime example. There was an early scare when Burnley appeared to have scored, but after discussion with the linesman, the ref called it as offside. Seemed that the ref got his first decision completely wrong.

The crowd started brilliantly and the songs were coming through loud and clear.

But it didn't take too long before Burnley did score and within a few minutes, the crowd was very quiet and a few boos came across on the radio. What is the point of that? This team needs confidence at the moment, and booing them only gives the away team confidence. OK, you have paid your money and you can do what you want, but why not wait until the end, and if you don't like it, don't bother coming back.

The impression given by Phil Parry and Steve Brown was that Burnley started very strongly, yet according to BBC stats, we had 55% of possession. Didn't sound that way on the radio.

The booing came across at a more frequent rate especially when Burnley were on the attack, and it appeared to be affecting the players.

At half-time, it seemed clear that a change in shape, and a change in players was needed to change the game. Good to hear Dave Lockwood do his part to get things moving when he played Valley Floyd Road and Into the Valley before the 2nd half started.

And it seemed to work! The crowd got going and the team improved ... good job, Dave! Toddy and Sam joined the 2nd half and both of them had a storming game. Our first shot on target came on 46 minutes and got an ironic cheer. Ambrose transformed himself after a rubbish first half and sounded excellent.

The crowd were very loud at this stage and we eventually received our just desserts for our 2nd half display with a great goal from Toddy. The rest of the game was all Charlton, apart from a couple of Burnley counter-attacks, and we were very unfortunate not to win. Having said that, I still heard a few boos at the final whistle, but the rest of the crowd proceeded to drown them out.

We need to go on from here, the confidence of the 2nd half has to be maintained. We have not turned a corner yet, but the signs are there. This squad is good enough to move up the table and challenge for the play-offs. Equally, with such a close division, we could be near the bottom. Confidence is all, and I hope that we now have enough to change it around.

Oh, and Josh Wright received a standing ovation when he was subbed - sounds like he had a terrific debut.

C'mon you Reds!


Stay Positive - The Streets

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Had a ticket but for various reasons had to resign myself to not attending so my son took one of his mates instead.

Took the opportunity to listen on the radio and participate in the thread on Charlton Life for the first time. Great start on Radio London ... apparently due to rights restrictions they cannot bring me the program!!! So had to use an old small battery radio.

5 corners for Palace in the first 5 minutes is not good when you are listening on radio! Now managed to get live commentary on the Palace site ... but very biased.

15 minutes gone, and it seems like Palace have provided most of the pressure, although we have managed a corner.

After 25 minutes, sounds like Charlton are settling down, and game much more even. Bailey sounds like he's having a good game. Charlton fans coming through loud and clear, Valley Floyd Road!

35 minutes, Palace 8th corner! They are getting on top, corner no.9! According to Palace commentary, good goal-keeping by Weaver, and Charlton are resorting to a long-ball game!

Half-time, sounded like we were outplayed, but we kept it at 0-0 so got to hope this bodes well for the 2nd half. Palace commentator reckons 0-0 slightly flattering for Charlton ... who cares, we are still in the game.

Phewww, Ifill nearly scored at the start of 2nd half. Sounds like it was easier to score! Palace seem to be way on top, now their 10th corner. Bailey still praised as best Charlton player. Charlton crowd still loud, and VFR coming through very clearly.

Crap, been on the back foot for ages and now Beattie scores 63rd minute, come on Pards, it's obvious that changes are needed, we are not creative at all!

70th minute, ZZ, Gray and Toddy, on for Ambrose (no surprise), Holland, and Sam. Why does Pards wait till Palace score! Now we have to settle again. Pards doesn't even look at the players as they come off. OK, I'm not at the game, but even remotely it seemed obvious that we needed to make changes 15 minutes ago. According to the radio commentator, it's 'chaos in the Charlton area'. 80 minutes, it's not looking good.

4 minutes of added time, this does not look good. As far as I can make out, we have not created anything in 90 minutes, so what chance now!

That was NOT good. Be interesting to hear from those who were there, but I am sure the subs should have been made much earlier.

Ipswich game on Saturday becomes even more important now.

C'mon you Reds!



We are the Pigs - Suede

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I wasn't able to make it for this game and after receiving a text from my son just before five yesterday afternoon stating the score, that was probably a good thing.

According to Pards the red card changed the game. He believes the card was over-harsh, but on the positive side praises Nicky Bailey on his debut. But more worrying is that Therry Racon may have fractured a metatarsal on his foot during the second half. Our team is down to 'bare bones' already and this is not going to help.

Kings Hill Addick also wasn't at the game, but highlights that, in current circumstances, losing a game 1-0 away from home to a team that was relegated from the Premier League with us and with ten men doesn't sound like a disaster ... fair point.

Dave Peeps was there and makes the point that we deserved something from the game but the red card 'by a poor refereeing decision aided by an inept Linesman' obviously did not help. I have to take heart from his summary that we showed enough belief to expect to get a win against Reading.

The Inspector also emphasises the inept ref and linesman but adds to that the 'tedious, time-wasting antics' of Watford.

New York Addick saw us as the better side but spoke about the lack of quality. Sounds like it was a bit of a long-ball game.

Dr. Kish relied on text message updates but makes an interesting point that Youga's red card was an accident always waiting to happen.

I will be away for the Reading and Preston games so will also have to rely on text updates as to what is happening ... both off and on the pitch. Back for the Wolves game and hopefully a couple more points on the board. I expect us to get a win against Reading, but we may come away with nothing from Preston as they are looking quite strong at the moment.

On a final point, I hope that ZZ is still with us when I get back ... although the signs are not positive. The Baggies have made an increased bid, and it's hard not to see him back in the Premiership. But Charlton should be aware ... his value is much higher than a pure transfer fee ... there are many intangible benefits to having him in the team. When I was in Singapore a couple of weeks ago, the first question asked by the taxi-driver at the airport, after checking my destination, was 'Would I be following the Olympics?'. I pointed out that I would, but had a particular interest in watching the football because one of the players of my local team captained the China team.

Ohhhh, he said, you support Charlton Athletic! And, the same conversation and result ensued on a number of occasions both in the office and outside. OK, this is not a direct financial benefit, but it is definitely something that can be leveraged in some way. My fear is that Albion may now reap the benefits.


Ain't no easy way - Black Rebel Motorcycle Club

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Well I got the score wrong ... my prediction was 3-1 ... but at least I had the 2 goal differential correct. This was always going to be a potential banana-skin game for Charlton, just as with Scunny last season, but a stronger defence ensured that this time we got through with all 3 points.

We had a dream start with the well-taken goal from Hudson, and despite a good passing game from Swansea, I didn't feel as if we were ever going to lose this game ... although I won't deny that the 2nd goal came as quite a relief. As can often be the case it is not always easy playing against 10 men, as we did from the 70th minute, and Swansea seemed to overcome the loss of their captain pretty well. I know that managers often tend not to see the truth of the matter with sendings-off, but Martinez should have been more accepting that Monk had to go, it was a bad tackle on Holland.

The Swansea fans did exactly as expected and were in full voice throughout most of the game ... there was a fair bit of noise from the Covered End but once again,the acoustics of a full Jimmy Seed stand drowned out our singing ... and I am only 2 blocks away from the Covered End in the East stand.

As for the team, there were a number of bright spots, but at times we did not look as comfortable as we should ... with a smallish squad, they will get a lot more time to play together and hopefully can gel and improve the confidence.

Weaver - reasonable game, not severely tested, and managed to scramble away a shot near the end with a strong punch.

Semedo - as previous readers of my blog are aware, I am a fan of Semedo, but he didn't seem at his best today. More to come, and I see him as a key player in the team

Youga - some excellent play at times, and good link-up work on the wing with Thomas.

Hudson - very good debut, well-taken goal, and looked strong. Cannot be a coincidence that our defence looked less vulnerable with him in the team.

Fortune - not convinced that he is the right player to take us through, but needs must in current circumstances. Perhaps I am too hard on him, as he should be good enough at this level. But he has under-achieved for a long time. As Steve Brown has said in the past, we should be seeing more from Fortune.

Sam - had a reasonable game, and I expect to see further improvement in the next few games.

Racon - liked him a lot. Made some excellent passes, and caused a few problems for Swansea.

Shelvey - I cannot say any more than the comments made by Pards, 'Jonjo worked very hard but he was caught in the headlights a little bit. He'll learn from that though.' Exactly as I saw it. But I am still concerned, for selfish reasons, that the press are building him up so much. If he can have a quiet game, and we still win, then that works for me. I don't want him to yet have a high profile before the January transfer window. I have just been re-reading Mick Collins book, The Rise and Rise of Charlton Athletic, and the reminder that West Ham took Jermaine Defoe a month before his 17th birthday has resonations that I do not want to see again ... Shelvey is 17 in February!

Thomas - had a good game, and I hope he continues like this. But he still has a lot of fans working against him ... there is a woman behind me who seems to spend most games slating Thomas ... OK, a lot of the time he deserves it, but yesterday she totally ignored the many bright spots, and as soon as he made one bad move, screamed abuse ... and she is not the only one. It doesn't help!

Varney - still not doing what we expect him to do ... he should have had a goal today, and I hope he can develop the partnership with Gray which will take us up.

Gray - still more improvement needed, but he is getting there ... and with a goal, I'm not going to complain too much.

As for the subs, Holland looked his normal industrious self, and will be a good player to have on the bench for certain games. Basey looks bigger and stronger each time I see him ... definitely a key player for the future. Too soon to comment on Bouazza, but he appears to be a good loan signing.

My original prediction for the season was very optimistic, and not in line with most fans, as I predicted we will finish 2nd behind Birmingham ... and our current position (admittedly after one game) is ... 2nd.

After yesterday's game, my revised prediction in 5th ... more realistic, and it will be interesting to see how my viewpoint changes over the course of the season.


These things take time - The Smiths

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