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Your Charlton ‘golden period’
Lordflashheart
Posts: 5,623
I think your own period of time that you look back on regards Charlton is not only to do with the club’s performance, but also to do with your personal circumstances at time (amongst other things as well no doubt)
Many I imagine will say the Premier League years
However for me it’s Division 1 in the Selhurst years
Why ?
Many I imagine will say the Premier League years
However for me it’s Division 1 in the Selhurst years
Why ?
Well I was 16 in 1986, started work Jan ‘87, young, free, single (well I had girlfriends, but Charlton came first), carefree and with that swagger that late teenage boys have about them (confidence I mean - I have never been a troublemaker)
Add to that the massive underdogs Charlton were, homeless, laughed at, low crowds because it was Selhurst (imagine the crowds if we had still been at the Valley) and the constant battle to stay up - I felt special and unique and very very proud that my Dad had inflicted Charlton on me, whilst my mates supported West Ham or Spurs or Arsenal - I regarded my Charlton support as a source of pride against a backdrop of everything that was weighed against my club
Add to that some really good players - Walsh, Humphrey, Reid, Shirtliff, Melrose, Stuart, Lee, Bolder - and add to that some players who really put a shift in every game they played, despite perhaps not being Div 1 quality (Thompson, Jones, Shipley)
And some incredible results - winning at Old Trafford, winning at Spurs, the 2-2 at Highbury when McKenzie tore thru the Arsenal defence to score, Stamford Bridge draw, St Andrews play off win, taking Chelsea apart at Selhurst (there are loads more I know)
For me halcyon days
What is your golden period and why ?
Add to that the massive underdogs Charlton were, homeless, laughed at, low crowds because it was Selhurst (imagine the crowds if we had still been at the Valley) and the constant battle to stay up - I felt special and unique and very very proud that my Dad had inflicted Charlton on me, whilst my mates supported West Ham or Spurs or Arsenal - I regarded my Charlton support as a source of pride against a backdrop of everything that was weighed against my club
Add to that some really good players - Walsh, Humphrey, Reid, Shirtliff, Melrose, Stuart, Lee, Bolder - and add to that some players who really put a shift in every game they played, despite perhaps not being Div 1 quality (Thompson, Jones, Shipley)
And some incredible results - winning at Old Trafford, winning at Spurs, the 2-2 at Highbury when McKenzie tore thru the Arsenal defence to score, Stamford Bridge draw, St Andrews play off win, taking Chelsea apart at Selhurst (there are loads more I know)
For me halcyon days
What is your golden period and why ?
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Comments
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68/69 season for me. We played some fantastic football that season just come up short in the bid for promotion. I can still name the players without having to think. Wright,Curtis,Kinsey, Reeves ,Went, Moore,Peacock,Gregory,Tees,,Treacy&Campbell4
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96-99 to us going up.
Great owners, players with personality and a belief that we were constantly improving.
it could also be an age thing as I started going in 1994.2 -
Mid 60s through to late 70s for me. Gregory, Wright, Tees, Curtis, Treacy, Peacock and their like, then into Hales, Flanagan, Powell and co.I've pretty much just listed my favourite Charlton players!Probably formative years stuff from the age of 8 through to 20.4
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Same for me. It seemed like everything was just about looking forward to saturday.bobmunro said:Mid 60s through to late 70s for me. Gregory, Wright, Tees, Curtis, Treacy, Peacock and their like, then into Hales, Flanagan, Powell and co.I've pretty much just listed my favourite Charlton players!Probably formative years stuff from the age of 8 through to 20.1 -
Tough question but for me its got to be the first three years in League One which ended with us winning the League
Had been a season ticket holder for over ten years but would argue that before then I was your typical fan - Premier League days were of course great but they didnt really define me as a fan, same with the two years in the Championship... That first game against Scunthorpe I remember us taking the lead and sniggering thinking that our time in the Championship would be short (well I was right in that regard) and that we'd soon be back in the Premier League
Life in League One though was what really made me feel connected with the club
I did a ton more away games and it just felt as though there was a connection between fans and players that we've seen disappearing in the Premier League
Whilst I love the Premier League team that went to Highbury and won 4-2 I'd say I love the team that won that League One title even more3 -
1970s for me. Everything is good when you are a child and you certainly see things different and maybe a little basically. I started supporting us properly around 74. For the next few years we had a great team but one that only seemed to win at home, even then sometimes we had to score 4 goals to get a win. I liked Andy Nelsons style of football although he lost the plot at the end. He used to play 4-2-4 even away from home. Absolutely awesome when things were going well but we used to get thumped when things didn’t.
The second golden age for me was 92 onwards to our second promotion to the Premier league, after that football lost it’s magic for me. I can’t stand the fact the rich clubs, (Sky 6), will never get involved in a relegation battle and clubs like ours will never be taken seriously and only exist to make the numbers up when in the top flight.4 -
Killer, Flash & Paddy ... definitely my favourite time supporting Charlton.9
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Probably 1985 - 1990. Shame it coincided with ground sharing at Selhurst. During that period we battled the odds all the time and survived in the top flight, despite having small crowds and limited budget. Lawrence worked miracles and signed some great players. Players that never gave up. The likes of Peter Shirtliff, Steve Thompson, John Humphrey, Bob Bolder, Mark Reid and co are the type of players I’d love to have at the club now. I also felt I had a bit more of a connection with the club - I certainly cared a lot more than I do now.Maybe it was because we were battling the odds all the time. As a supporter those days were the be all and end all for me, I wouldn’t dream of missing a home game and even though I was still a kid, I’d bunk off school and make my way to mid week away games as well.4
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1992 is a special year for me. I'd been to many matches before down the years, but I started going regularly in January 1992, and have a real soft spot for that team, and indeed Upton Park. And of course it culminated in the return to The Valley
Thinking about it, I initially went to the Barnet FA Cup match, which we won 3-1. If we had lost, maybe I wouldn't have become a regular! The timing though was perfect.
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Charlton at Sainsburys separated the club from ground but created a special bond between players and fans.
Lennie should have been knighted.4 -
A bit harsh having to go to school on a Saturday.ricky_otto said:Probably 1985 - 1990. Shame it coincided with ground sharing at Selhurst. During that period we battled the odds all the time and survived in the top flight, despite having small crowds and limited budget. Lawrence worked miracles and signed some great players. Players that never gave up. The likes of Peter Shirtliff, Steve Thompson, John Humphrey, Bob Bolder, Mark Reid and co are the type of players I’d love to have at the club now. I also felt I had a bit more of a connection with the club - I certainly cared a lot more than I do now.Maybe it was because we were battling the odds all the time. As a supporter those days were the be all and end all for me, I wouldn’t dream of missing a home game and even though I was still a kid, I’d bunk off school and make my way to away games as well.0 -
I was born in 61 and so i should be saying late 70s, Killer, Flash and Paddy. But I'm opting for last season. With the Rat in charge promotion was very much against the odds and as fans we were very close to the management and players - a common theme above. What made it special for me was the atmosphere home and away. We did about 35 games last season, and sharing that and the drama of the last 2 play off games with my son made it the best. But I always thought we'd fall off the edge of the cliff if Roland was in charge in the summer and tried to get the most out of last season that I could.1
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March 2020. The drama hooked me.3
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Killer,Flash Paddy and Hugh Mcauly,(I don’t think I’ve spelt the last name correctly).1
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I meant mid week games.ElfsborgAddick said:
A bit harsh having to go to school on a Saturday.ricky_otto said:Probably 1985 - 1990. Shame it coincided with ground sharing at Selhurst. During that period we battled the odds all the time and survived in the top flight, despite having small crowds and limited budget. Lawrence worked miracles and signed some great players. Players that never gave up. The likes of Peter Shirtliff, Steve Thompson, John Humphrey, Bob Bolder, Mark Reid and co are the type of players I’d love to have at the club now. I also felt I had a bit more of a connection with the club - I certainly cared a lot more than I do now.Maybe it was because we were battling the odds all the time. As a supporter those days were the be all and end all for me, I wouldn’t dream of missing a home game and even though I was still a kid, I’d bunk off school and make my way to away games as well.0 -
Mid to late seventies was the time I started going, and still do, just praying things can sort themselves out.1
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For me it would be 1995-99. I moved back to London in 1995 and had my first child in 1999. We were re-established back at the Valley, had a decent team and I had no parental responsibilities. Having an epic promotion season didn't hurt either, with the much talked about Ipswich play off game being the highlight.1
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I concur with @Lordflasheart and @ElfsborgAddick.
We witnessed, and much enjoyed, some splendid matches during the time based at Selhurst Park.
Charlton Athletic under the wise, and successful, stewardship of Lennie Lawrence was a club on the up.
I was pleased to support it and did what I could to bring it home to SE7.5 -
Late 70s when I first started going for the experience and excitement of it all, attended sporadic games with my Dad. Then I'd say the whole of the 80s as that's when I attended every home game and most of the away games, visiting proper football grounds not the soulless ones now. Plus seeing all the same faces at away games and getting to know everyone and the away trips on Bill and Wallys coaches.2
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I m with Bob and Baldy bonce -- then legging up to the paper shop to get the late edition of the standard to see the scores.... but Killer remains my all time fav player.0
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86-89, 92-96 and 98-02 are all equal to me. Unless I have a son, which is increasingly unlikely, then I suspect it’ll never get that good again.0
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Reckon for me it was the 93-94 period - that’s when I was old enough to start going on my own and it was generally the end of childhood innocence. Overall happy days when I looked forward to Charlton games all week beforehand.
My heroes were the likes of Nelson, Leaburn, Robson, Minto. And I remember the feeling when I saw a real first class goal scorer for the first time as a Charlton fan. David Whyte Whyte Whyte!4 -
Hard to say.
Probably the Selhurst years, plus the 98-00 period where we had 2 promotions & a relegation in 3 seasons. The latter 3 year period I had just got divorced & being single again I went to a lot of away games, playing a round of golf beforehand. Used to get up earlier on a Saturday than I did during the week. Away to grounds in the East Midlands meant leaving home at 6.30am & getting to Leicester, Derby, Forest etc for a tee time around 9.30. Finish by 1.30 & then a mad dash to the ground.
Great days.2 -
Mid and late 70s for me. That 74/75 promotion season is easily my fondest memory. Beating the eventual third division champions Blackburn at home and singing 'champions' to the tune of 'oh yes you're beautiful' all the way out of the ground. There was a 2-1 home win over Gillingham, think it was a Friday night game, loads of fighting. My dad, who was a teacher in Greenwich, waded in to pull some of his pupils off of the Gills fans and then ticked them off, wagging fingers and all. Best of all was promotion on the last day v Preston. Losing at half time, winning 3-1, knowing we'd won it with 15 minutes to go. The covered end was ecstatic. There were flags. To my boy's mind it was like Liverpool playing in Europe. For me, that match is up there with the play-off finals. Loved the seasons after that - Derek Hales in his pomp, twice, and my first away match at Wolves in the cup.10
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Have you thought of adoption?JiMMy 85 said:86-89, 92-96 and 98-02 are all equal to me. Unless I have a son, which is increasingly unlikely, then I suspect it’ll never get that good again.0 -
Has to be early 70s Hales ,Flanagan,Powell and The General Keith Peacock. Went with the coaches to most away games hence my name,When trouble followed you everwhere but the old grounds in Division 3 was just so unreal football at its best maybe not ,but if you are too young for this you do not know what you missed.Walsall Fellows Park,Hailfax The Shay,Cambridge The Abbey,Aldershot Recreation Ground,Bury Gigg Lane wonderful days out .Would not have missed them for the world.4
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My first match was on 30 Apr 55. For me our golden decade would have to be the 90s. Everlasting memories of 68/69 and of the exile years for sure, but to watch the gradual re-awakening of this remarkable club - from absolutely nothing - was quite extraordinary.
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91-95 I would say.
A group of players I really look back on fondly, not our best ever squads, but proper pro's who really put in a shift with some really quality in there as well. Players like Webbo, Balmer, Nelson, Lee, Minto, Walsh, Whyte, Brown, Robinson, Mortimer......
You of course also had BTTV and I went to most away games as well as home back then. They say never look back, but I'd go back to those days in a heartbeat and wouldn't change a thing.
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Fuck me, you are always after a new home.ElfsborgAddick said:
Have you thought of adoption?JiMMy 85 said:86-89, 92-96 and 98-02 are all equal to me. Unless I have a son, which is increasingly unlikely, then I suspect it’ll never get that good again.0
