A three way race

The competition for the automatic promotion places was looking more like a three-way race after Leeds lost 2-0 at Exeter, Norwich repaid their start of the season humiliation with a 5-0 win at Colchester and Charlton unseated the Chairboys to win 2-1 at Adams Park.

Having located my ticket tout, Vern, I joined the Addickted inside the Dreams stand. We were well represented and must have made up around a quarter of the crwod.

Wycombe threatened down the wing in the early phase of the match, but their inaccuracy let them down when they failed to convert three chances, one of them a one-on-one with Elliot. Charlton then took their chance well when Shelvey made use of a cut back from Lloyd Sam and put the ball inside the far post from 15 yards out.

The pitch was rather small and box like in shape and it was also very slippery. Mooney had a half chance to put the Addicks 2-0 ahead but his shot lacked enough power. The Chairboys were awarded a free kick in a dangerous position, but their effort came off the wall. One of the things I liked about Charlton's play in the first half was the way in which Bailey was putting in long and accurate balls across the pitch to Sam who was tormenting the opposition.

Half time: Chairboys 0, Addicks 1

Wycombe looked more lively when they came out after the break and put Charlton under some pressure. As in the first half, a worrying feature was the space given to their wingers who often popped up unmarked.

The inaccuracy of Wycombe's shooting is emphasised by the fact that they had three shots on target to Charlton's seven. Eventually, however, their work down the wings paid off and Jon-Paul Pittman made use of a low cross from Stuart Green to level the score.

Parky responded by taking offf Mooney and bring on Dickson, followed two minutes later by the replacement of Omozusi with Richardson returning from injury. On 74 minutes Burton was taken off and replaced by McKenzie. On 77 minutes Bailey pounced on a loose ball after his shot had come out to make it 2-1.

The referee somehow five minutes of time to add on at the end of the game, but Charlton were able to withstand the pressure and end their run of draws.

Match analysis

Ivy the Terrible has awarded the Silver Bone to Nicky Bailey not just for the winning goal, but also for a captain's game in which he defended when needed and made sure he talked to the other players about what was going right and wrong. Elliot was exposed for the goal and couldn't do much about it and apart from one ball high up in the air, he was calm and in control. Good to see before the game that he and Randolph can banter with each other. Basey was one of our weakest players and the reason that Wycombe found so much space down the right. He also picked up an avoidable yellow card, the only one of the match. Omozusi has been all right as a fill in, but it's good to see Richardson back. Dailly had an excellent game, his quality showed, and he received a personal hug from Parky at the end. Llera looked like an accident waiting to happen, he was often poorly positioned. Semedo received repeated chants from the Addickted and was calm and confident. Shelvey had a good game, showing both determination and skill. The Bloke Beside Me complained about Sam complaining that all his trickery and the players he got round produced no end product. There is something in that, but he was a real threat to the opposition and is more talented than the level he is playing at. Burton had rather a quiet game and it is not suprrising that the two goals came from midfield. Mooney gets a good mark for effort, but never really came close to scoring. Dickson put in one weak shot after he came on and then had a chance to create a one-on-one towards the end of the game, but hesitated after he had burst through. Richardson looked the quality player he is when he came on. McKenzie was described by the Bloke Beside Me as 'all huff and puff' and he made little impact.

Hiss of the Match This goes to the Wycombe floodlights which offered a strange combination of glare and ineffectiveness. As the mist rolled in from the beech woods, it became increasingly difficult to follow the game at the other end of the pitch.

Crowd rating Some rousing choruses of Valley Floyd Road but relatively subdued. 6/10.