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POST-MATCH THREAD : Charlton Athletic v Birmingham City: Saturday 5th October 2024: KO 15:00
Comments
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Thought the Alan Campbell booking was a bit tough, even after watching it again on video.30
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A Performance that was on a par with the Bolton home game and they got their rewards from it.Well played2
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Yeah, it looked like Brum were all over us.aliwibble said:
Anyone spot the mistake in the editing of the video?Callumcafc said:2 -
I was pleased to see 352 ditched, albeit I'm not sure we've seen the last of it. As for the return of the old fashioned 442 doing the trick as some posters have suggested, it was actually a very modern version of the 442 formation with the box midfield. It worked for us impressively yesterday but I still want to see width and pace down the flanks and us open teams up, especially as many teams come for the draw. Nevertheless, we seemed to play more though midfield yesterday, which was a real positive, with the Doc having his best game for us.
All considered, whilst a hard working gritty performance was pleasing, I'm not getting carried away like some. Especially as I think we've seen similar this season with Bolton and then followed that with defeat. If you change the opposition to Stevenage and we had that identical performance yesterday, would it be greeted with the same post match hysteria, probably not. It was only Birmingham that came to town ffs, not Real Madrid.
Finally, a big thanks to Kristian Bielik for doing NJ's team talk with his rather arrogant quotes midweek. I'm sure the result was a real kick in the bollocks for KB yesterday, and not his first at The Valley, I might add.7 -
After sleeping on it, I have to say I was losing faith in Jones. Not specifically with the results but more aspects of our play and him messing about with things. Starting Watson, who is one of the softest, along with Edun, players in this league was very disapointing in the week. The biggest issue was the amount of first and second balls we were second best to and the disapearance of our press. I also have to say, I am not a fan of his interviews and have decided it is best not listening to them.
But, yesterday showed there is a way forwards and that a) Jones hasn't lost the dressing room, even part of it and b) we do have the players to be successful at this level. Chance creation is still an issue and it does feel we can't go behind in a game. But to counter that, we prevented the best team in this league, which is what Birmingham are, getting even one chance. Alan Campbell was chalk and cheese from his previous start. Coventry looked a class act and Docherty and Anderson worked very hard.
The challenge is to get the strike force worrying ab opponent, as they did yesterday and they didn't do enough at Stevenage and until the game was lost at Bristol and to achieve that level of consistency. Leaburn coming back may help. My optimism has certainly returned.
Very excited about Ramsey who looks a level above. I suppose if we can see that, others are going to notice which is a worry. With a game off on Saturday, did he really need to be rested against Rovers? Maybe he had a knock. He looks stronger than any opponent too. Edwards had a good game and his long throws are a danger and led to our goal. When he came off I wasn't unhappy Small came on. He has that power advantage over opponents too and I think he did well. I can see it is a toss up who plays our of those two but Small should be an option from the bench and not dropped completely. And Watson and Edun should be for an injury crisis, not now.
Ahadme has qualities but has something missing from his game and he needs to find it IMO before getting back in, irrespective of his transfer fee.11 -
Only real disappointment yesterday were the home numbers. One of only two relatively high profile games this season but numbers wise it was very low, smaller than other homes this season. West and East quite noticeably.Don't thing the recent form + Cat A pricing would have helped, but I suspect better numbers were hoped.5
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Had we won on Tuesday I think you could have added a couple of thousand to that for a top of the table clash, probably more than that if we had beaten Stevenage too. Those results really knocked the stuffing out of a lot of fans. The biggest downside with Tuesday night was despite their victory, you could see Rovers were a crap side.AFKABartram said:Only real disappointment yesterday were the home numbers. One of only two relatively high profile games this season but numbers wise it was very low, smaller than other homes this season. West and East quite noticeably.Don't thing the recent form + Cat A pricing would have helped, but I suspect better numbers were helped.19 -
16,500 ish is what was said on commentary1
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Correct, Mitchell said something to Stansfield that kicked it off & then left the scene. Jones innocently walked into the aftermath. You can take the man out of Millwall but...golfaddick said:
I think Jones was trying to be peacemaker as I think a one of our players had a few words with Stansfield just after the whistleDazzler21 said:Anyone know what the Big Nath/Stansfield moment was?
Jones was on the pitch already to celebrate & just stepped in to break it up / calm it down.8 - Sponsored links:
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I couldn't believe the amount of people here predicting we had no chance and were going to get hammered. My prediction of a 3-0 win was a bit optimistic but it's what we do.AFKABartram said:Only real disappointment yesterday were the home numbers. One of only two relatively high profile games this season but numbers wise it was very low, smaller than other homes this season. West and East quite noticeably.Don't thing the recent form + Cat A pricing would have helped, but I suspect better numbers were hoped.
Cat A pricing is bollocks for 3rd division football.
Pensioners for a quid is the way forward
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It’s the what we do that’s the problem. There are more lower teams to lose to that top six to beat!Baldybonce said:
I couldn't believe the amount of people here predicting we had no chance and were going to get hammered. My prediction of a 3-0 win was a bit optimistic but it's what we do.AFKABartram said:Only real disappointment yesterday were the home numbers. One of only two relatively high profile games this season but numbers wise it was very low, smaller than other homes this season. West and East quite noticeably.Don't thing the recent form + Cat A pricing would have helped, but I suspect better numbers were hoped.
Cat A pricing is bollocks for 3rd division football.
Pensioners for a quid is the way forward0 -
I think there were 3 factors, the performance on Tuesday, the belief by most that we would get well beaten & the Cat A pricing.AFKABartram said:Only real disappointment yesterday were the home numbers. One of only two relatively high profile games this season but numbers wise it was very low, smaller than other homes this season. West and East quite noticeably.Don't thing the recent form + Cat A pricing would have helped, but I suspect better numbers were hoped.
I didn't buy a season ticket this year as I might be moving away so buying match day tickets. My ticket cost £31.50 yesterday & suspect people weren't prepared to pay that. No queue to get into the East Stand, which is unusual so perhaps some switched to the cheaper stands yesterday.1 -
That is what we have been waiting for all season. A proper team performance and Ramsay was outstanding. Great credit to the management for yesterday and i have been critical of Jones and just hope this isnt a one off. Well done.2
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Posted some brief thoughts as I arrived home last night and was going to leave it at that, but I was awake for a pee at 5am and couldn’t get back to sleep because I was still buzzing from the game so just have to get these thoughts out. Sorry if it’s uncharacteristically long, but this one is for me!
I’m posting before reading other comments, so forgive me if I’m simply repeating other observations.
Firstly - The tactics: Spot on. We looked much more comfortable with a traditional back four and it didn’t stop the full backs from getting forward - probably more so than when we’ve been playing with wing backs. Four in midfield made us much more solid and also enabled a better passing game whilst playing two mobile forwards discouraged the usual long punt and hope approach which has been so dreadful to watch.
Will Mannion - didn’t have a lot to do. We’ve seen he is a bit vulnerable to long shots but he is much better aerially that AMB or Isted was. He claims crosses confidently and punches out when he should.
The defence: Kayne Ramsay was outstanding. The best RB we’ve had for many a year and could easily play at Championship level now. Josh Edwards was back to his very good level after his injury lay off and got forward especially well, as did Thierry Small when he replaced him. Mitchell and Jones were a strong partnership and it was noticeable the rapport they have when they celebrated together at the end like we’d won the cup.
The midfield: I was a bit worried when I saw the selection that all four midfielders were in the same mould, but they all performed well both individually and as a unit. Alan Campbell was unrecognisable from his previous cameo appearances, snapping into challenges and recycling the ball on numerous occasions. Conor Coventry was excellent too. Karoy Anderson was a little less eye-catching on the ball but his work off the ball was very effective.
The strikers: Now that Alfie May has gone, Matty Godden is the most naturally gifted striker we have and he showed it but Daniel Kanu was fantastic. He never stopped running, pressing their defenders, giving others an out-ball by running the channels. I was gutted he missed that (self-created) glorious chance near the end of the first half because, if ever a young man deserved a goal, it was Kanu yesterday.
(Talking of Alfie May, I didn’t like the boo-ing he received but I was well chuffed to see him subbed off at half time.)
The manager: Take a bow, Nathan Jones. He got everything right and deserved the applause every bit as much as the players. I know he isn’t flawless but he made those calling for his exit look a bit premature, at best.
A fantastic, memorable performance and a great result. The whole look and feel of the side was unrecognisable from the somewhat dispirited and disjointed rabble we witnessed in the last three games. I hope Jones has hit on a winning formula so we can well and truly leave that bad blip behind us.
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As everyone else is saying, that was a great performance and fully deserved result.
I wasn't at The Valley, but watched it all on the TV. It was night and day compared to Bristol Rovers.
All credit to NJ and the players for the turnaround. Which begs several questions:
What was the difference?
Why does NJ persist with Ahadme?
Why the he'll was Ramsay dropped?
When fans on here have been pleading for the style of play to change for some time, Why did NJ think that was the way forward?
As I said before, seeing the players walk into the ground Tuesday, it was obvious that none of the squad were mentally ready for the match. I can only speculate, perhaps they didn't want the set up NJ told them to do, perhaps they knew the starting 11 wouldn't work? NJ was on his own and not looking part of a team, maybe this had come out in open discussion, hence his very quick admission that the Rovers match was down to him and not the players?
I'm on a high right now, but not getting carried away as I think Nathan has been at the route of our poor performances this season. I hope that he has seen the light and now knows the righteous path.
Onward and upward.4 -
Don't get too see many games at the Valley these days and first time in the North Upper (used to sit back of the E block back until I moved to Canada).
What a cracking game and atmosphere. Bumped into some old friends I haven't seen for years.
Sitting on the tarmac at Heathrow ready to head back to Canada, slight hangover and still buzzing from the game. Actually feeling a bit home sick after 17 years away for the first time. Charlton eh!
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Truly blooming typical!
Miss the best game of the season as I had tickets for Strictly Come Dancing although lots of brownie points to be earned with the wife for that!
So there am I watching blooming Strictly and missing what sounds the best game of the season! And I don't even know the result until 11.00pm as I have to hand my phone in after going in!
Anyway some great summings up here - thanks for those - and looking forward to seeing the rerun on Monday!
And I know you are all desperate to know who got knocked out of Strictly but my lips are sealed!!!11 -
We were the better team and deserved to win, could’ve scored more.
Birmingham allowed us to kick the right way.
In a similar way to the Stevenage goal helping them, the glare of the sun added a little extra which helped us score.
I have noticed in a lot of games when seeing the highlights, that the slope of the sun is a factor across the leagues at this time of the year.
As well as the mystery of there never being foul throws any more, and the mystery of not leaving at least one player up when defending a set piece you can add the mystery of why goalkeepers don’t wear caps any more.
If we had lost yesterday we would’ve been seven points off the automatic promotion target, but we are now four points off.
If we beat Stockport and Wrexham at home and Barnsley and Exeter away in our next four games the season will be well and truly back on. During that group of games we are peppered with two silly buggers and one FA cup game in the mix, and Barnsley away is a grim up north midweek away game to boot.
Speaking to Birmingham fans after the game they were universal in thinking we deserved it and they didn’t, but all of then picked out ‘that number two’ as being our best player.4 -
Really pisses me off that fans can't spell Ramsay's name properly. Ffs1
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Having seen the highlights, have we got Josh Parker in as striker coach? Some of the chances Kanu missed yesterday had real Parker vibes.1
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Some of my (first time) thoughts.
I was in the cafe with my mate when the team came up on our phones. Our first thought was "4-4-2". Then, when we get to the ground, we were watching the pre-match defensive drills. They were really weird. Ramsey as the RCB. Jones at LCB, and Mitchell in the centre. Then there was Edwards on the right, and KA on the left! So, it looked like 3-5-2, with inverted wing backs! We couldn't get our heads around that, at all!
KO arrives and we ARE playing 4-4-2, with a box midfield. Which now made sense, as there was no width in the midfield.
So, my 2 pence worth. 1) The pre-match drills were obviously set up to fool the Birmingham coaching staff. (Do you REALLY think that someone isn't used to watch the oppositions warm ups?) 2) The midfield. When we signed Docherty, we were told he would be the attacking midfielder. Yesterday, he was far more effective in a position that seems more natural to him. However, it's important to remember that we didn't sign A. Campbell until late in the window. So the coaching staff have been playing catch up into where he fits in. Clearly, he's a better option playing as a more forward midfielder, than Docherty is. It's now been realised, and the formation adjusted accordingly. 3) Godden is one of the first names on the team sheet. If we need more goals, he is the most instinctive striker we have. And he works very hard. Him and Miles as a strike partnership, is something no defence will enjoy coming up against.
Be gentle with me!27 -
Some longer thoughts from me after a nightmare journey yesterday!
Could sense the disappointment in the fans bar as the teams were announced and people saw A Campbell starting along with 3 other midfielders but also relief we'd gone to 4 at the back.
The opening 10/15 mins felt pretty even but with Godden's shots after 5 mins the only signs of danger. Something then clicked with our press and we really frustrated them. A Cambpells shot about 10 mins before half time seemed to bring him and the team up to life in an attacking sense and Birmingham seemed a little shocked by it. We then had some great chances, Kanu's offside volley and then his first real chance after some really intelligent and structured pressing from the team. He has to do better but from the top of the covered end Anderson looked miles behind and like a pass might have been blocked by Bielek. The other chance he had was an easier one in my opinion, he just couldn't believe he'd been given the ball there and his first touch was poor.
Bielek and May coming off at half time was very satisfying and it looked like Birmingham changed shape. They looked a bit more threatening but without ever actually challenging our goal. Mannion made a good punch from a save and the back 4 looked like they could stop anything if Birmingham managed to make it through our press. The throw for our goal created chaos in the Birmingham defence, they didn't know what to do and the finish from Godden was smart and exactly what we bought him for, could tell how much he loved it too. There was a great block in there from Mitchell to make it hard for the Birmingham CB's to challenge for the ball.
We sat back a little bit more after that but not as deep as previously and still pressed at times. For a split second I thought we were going to be treated to a second Aneke peach of a goal but not the case. We had to withstand some pressure at the end but I was never worried about us conceding. TC provided a great out ball whenever we got it back and could take at least a minute out of the game with his direct runs almost always leading to a chance, a dead ball our way or an opportunity for Small and Aneke to shield it in the corner.
Finally, it was noticeable how much more time Jones and Mitchell took on the ball. You could almost see them shaping up for the long ball before consciously playing a shorter pass into midfield. That box really worked as everyone was closer together and passes were easy to make. As others have said it was probably a Birmingham specific plan but I hope it continues. It could help nullify Louie Barry at Stockport.6 -
Anyone else of the ‘abroad’ viewers yesterday find the sound was a second or two behind the pictures of the game on Charlton TV?18
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Yea defo was, guessing being all the way abroad in Catford might have had something to do with it!oohaahmortimer said:Anyone else of the ‘abroad’ viewers yesterday find the sound was a second or two behind the pictures of the game on Charlton TV?2 -
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Every team has a blip. Maybe those three games were our wake up call after understandably slipping into complacency following our start.Bring on Stockport!0
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Think I actually captured the 'Slope of the Sun' yesterday.seth plum said:We were the better team and deserved to win, could’ve scored more.
Birmingham allowed us to kick the right way.
In a similar way to the Stevenage goal helping them, the glare of the sun added a little extra which helped us score.
I have noticed in a lot of games when seeing the highlights, that the slope of the sun is a factor across the leagues at this time of the year.
As well as the mystery of there never being foul throws any more, and the mystery of not leaving at least one player up when defending a set piece you can add the mystery of why goalkeepers don’t wear caps any more.
If we had lost yesterday we would’ve been seven points off the automatic promotion target, but we are now four points off.
If we beat Stockport and Wrexham at home and Barnsley and Exeter away in our next four games the season will be well and truly back on. During that group of games we are peppered with two silly buggers and one FA cup game in the mix, and Barnsley away is a grim up north midweek away game to boot.
Speaking to Birmingham fans after the game they were universal in thinking we deserved it and they didn’t, but all of then picked out ‘that number two’ as being our best player.
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when it comes to formation, maybe we have to give up on the 3-5-2 one as are players are not good enough to play it. It seems to me we lost the previous games because we attempted to play that way to try to be more out and out attack and it does not work for us.
An issue that we have to deal with against so called weaker teams, will be dealing with long balls out. I do not want to see our defenders having to turn round and try to catch a player who gets behind them onto the long ball which we have seen often, it may mean sitting deep then. Play to the strengths and weaknesses of our squad.0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIhCqHi-8LM
https://youtu.be/qKr7XJDmr_o?si=UjcIowtI5rhzp6PV
