Charlton Athletic v Accrington Stanley
Saturday 19th January 2019 … 3pm Kick-Off
Referee: John Busby
IntroductionWell it’s not been a bad start to 2019 has it!!... It’s certainly a contrast to the end of 2018 which saw back to back defeats on the road and so leave the majority of Addicks fans thinking that the Play-Offs were our best option for promotion. This Saturday will see a return to the Valley after an impressive 3-0 win at Shrewsbury, for the first time in a while our home has become a fortress, and with just one defeat and one draw since October this is a place that teams wont like visiting – Accrington Stanley are next up to visit, lets hope that we can send them home to the Greater Manchester area with their tails between their legs, just like everyone else!!
The OppositionName: Accrington Stanley |
Manager: John Coleman
Ground: Crown Ground
Of course there are no givens in Football and tomorrow will be no different… As mentioned in the match preview for this reverse fixture; Accrington are a side who know how to battle back from adversity…. Yes it’s a line you’d expect on something like the X-Factor yet when you support a side that are in their third existence, the fact they’ve been able to battle back and reach the heights they have done this season is no mean feat.
Naturally its nearly always the case that the size of a clubs budget will determine whether a side is competitive or not yet we all know that’s not always the case, determination and desire play just as big a part and for the first quarter of the season it looked as though Accrington would be the surprise package and so be challenging for the Play-Offs.
Unfortunately for the Stanley, a poor November has seen our opponents drop into mid-table… With still a while to go till the end of the season you’d hope that they wont drop into the relegation spots (especially when you take into account the way they’re ran), yet the loss of Goalkeeper: Connor Ripley, recalled by his parent club and then sold to Preston North End will hurt Accrington, their current inexperienced ‘keeper: Jonny Maxted will certainly need to be at his best to keep out one of the deadliest strike duo in England at present.
Charlton Team NewsThe fact that Charlton have remained competitive throughout their injuries is a huge credit to Lee Bowyer and his backroom staff – So impressive it meant that Johnnie Jackson would be on the receiving end of some false rumours which saw him linked with the Luton job… Thankfully those were quashed by Bowyer after Shrewsbury and so we all move on together to continue the sole aim this season… Promotion!!
With the Addicks just three points off second they could find themselves in the automatic spots come 5:10pm tomorrow – They would of course need to overhaul a goal difference of ten goals, yet as we welcome back Josh Cullen and Ben Reeves from injury anything is possible, although both players may need to be consigned to the bench after layoffs, especially with Darren Pratley now returning to some kind of form in recent weeks
Phillips
Solly | Bauer | Sarr | Purrington
Cullen | Bielik | Pratley
Williams
Grant | Taylor
Substitutes Bench: Maxwell | Dijksteel | Lapslie | Reeves | Fosu | Marshall | Hackett-Fairchild
PredictionWith form being better at the Valley than it is on the road you’d certainly hope that the hosts can record another three points… With our rivals playing big matches (Luton v Peterborough) this is a chance to close the gap even further; Accrington will enjoy tomorrow as playing at grounds like this will be a reward for their promotion efforts last season, don’t expect them to simply turn up and roll over though, they’ll want to record another famous win themselves!!
Comments
It'll be interesting if Cullen and/or Reeves start, and will Bowyer play Cullen alongside Bielik in midfield as he might consider that too defensive for a home game?
Love their Chairman for the frankness and honesty that he provides
With them on a poor run of form and without a first choice 'keeper I think they're there for the taking
Yet like I felt in the away fixture... We have to be aware of Sean McConville, think he'd be a great addition if we didnt need anymore Midfielders
We will get an early goal to settle any nerves and go on to record a comfortable victory.
As Happy Valley would say
4.0 Charlton.
2-0
Cullen will start from bench and get about 25 minutes depending on situation.
Reeves will replace his ex doppleganger Williams with 10 minutes to go.
The reality of our life is we have the mighty Accrington Stanley as our opposition tomorrow representing Lancashire and not Manchester United. A lot can change in 12 years.
3-1
I could also see Williams starting on the left side of the diamond and Fosu starting as the 10.
3 - 1 win
Taylor booked so misses two games.
Williams runs the game and Grant scores one on one.
Accrington score with one of their two chances.
Phillips
Solly, Bauer, Sarr, Purrington
Bielik
Pratley, Reeves
Williams
Taylor, Grant
Maxwell, Dijksteel, Lapslie, Marshall, Cullen, Fosu, RHF (Harsh on Morgan)
Professional 2-0 win. Williams, Taylor in the first half.
Bit of a strange one as he was signed on loan by Ipswich in the summer with the deal becoming permanent this month
Be a good option for them tomorrow
Concerning this match, after receiving sarcastic, rude remarks about another article I posted a couple of days ago that I thought some people would find as interesting as I did, I realised, at my age, I do not need this, so have decided not to continue doing the matchday commentary or post any other articles. Sorry for those that rely on it and thanks to all the "likes" I have received in the past. I am sure there will be someone more than capable to do this from now on.
I am confident that everyone would say the same.
Don't take a few thoughtless comments to heart.
I'm sure I've made more than a few myself.
2-0 to Charlton.
0-0