A2 derby ends in draw

Today's A2 derby at Gillingham ended in a 1-1 draw which means that Charlton stay in second place, writes Erith Addick Paul May. With Leeds losing at Millwall, Charlton are one point behind the leaders, but just one point ahead of Colchester United who won with the assistance of Kevin Lisbie. However, MK Dons lost at Southampton and Bristol Rovers went down at home to Yeovil.

Charlton started again with a 4-4-2 formation with McLeod and Burton up front and Shelvey on the bench again. As expected, Semedo started in place of Spring and Sodje retained his place.

Racon had an early attempt from just outside the box which went wide of the post. Elliot saved from Bentley. Burton received a yellow card. An attempt by Sodje went way over the bar. McLeod blazed wide from the deep inside the penalty area. Fishlungs charm merchant Nutter received a yellow card for fouling Sam.

Semedo blocked a shot by Oli. A corner was cleared by Sam, leading to a second, which was dealt with by Richardson. Another Nutter corner threatened danger but Richardson was able to clear. Semedo took a shot, but Gowling was able to block it.

Half time: Gills 0, Addicks 0

Elliot saved from an early effort by Jackson. Youga cleared from a Gills corner taken by Nutter. This led to a second corner and this time Burton made the clearance for a third corner. This time Racon got the ball away.

Following a Charlton corner, the Addicks received a free kick for a foul on Semedo. Bailey's effort was saved by Royce. Elliot saved from Barcham. Youga cleared from a Gills corner. From the following corner, Bentley took a shot but Richardson was able to block it. Richardson was then replaced by Basey.

Youga had a try from outside the box but it went wide of the post. Sodje was booked for a foul. This was followed by a booking for Weston and then for Christian Dailly for a foul.

Burton had a shot, but Royce saved at the expense of a corner. This was taken by Basey, but Dailly's headed effort missed the target. Elliot made a succession of saves from Bentley, Oli and Nutter. The last one led to a corner, but the reliable Youga cleared. Mooney replaced McLeod on 76 minutes.

Charlton went ahead on 78 minutes when Gills centre half John Nutter sliced a clearance from a Racon cross into his own net. But just two minutes later Jackson equalised with a goal from inside the box low into the middle of the goal.

A long range effort from Youga went wide of the target. A shot for the Gills by Lewis also went wide. Former Addick Barry Fuller tried a shot but Sodje blocked it.
At the end of normal time Wagstaff replaced Sam while former Addick Rashid Yussuff replaced Oli. The four minutes of time added on never looked like producing a winner for either side. It might have been a different story if McLeod had not had an early penalty appeal waved away.

Match report to follow.

Looking down the river on a sunny morning

Il capo called me to an early morning meeting in London today. The meeting was inconclusive and I have to go to his home in Italy for another meeting. But it was a lovely mild autumn morning in London and from the penthouse floor of the Tower Hotel it was possible to look down the river towards Greenwich with Shooters Hill visible in the distance.

What this reminded me is that Charlton are, always have been, and always will be a London club. We have many supporters in Kent, but we are not the Kent club that plays in London. Hence, all talk of a Kent derby tomorrow is nonsense. However, apparently Gills' boss Mark Stimson has been dreaming about tomorrow's fixture since the play off final at Wembley: Dream

One of the problems we face in this division is that smaller teams see us a 'scalp' to be secured, turning our match against them in to their cup final where their rag, tag and bobtail sides play at a hitherto unknown level of determination and achievement.

Asked which team he most wanted to beat this season in the 4-4-2 pre-season preview, Gillingham fan Matt Gill [sic] named Charlton. Gillingham are certainly not that high up my list. Millwall, Leeds and even MK Dons come before them. Indeed, I am indifferent to the Gillingham match other than that it offers three points that need to be secured for our promotion push.

Can we win tomorrow? There are no injuries tomorrow, other than chronic crocks Leon McKenzie and Dean Sinclair. Will Parky be brave enough to try out a 4-4-2 formation away from home? I would like him to, but I suspect he will go for 4-5-1.

Will Gillingham beat us in a league match for the first time in 85 years? I doubt it? Will they manage to secure a point. That's more likely. Nevertheless, I think that we have enough skill, quality and (yes) motivation to take all three points and I am going for a 2-1 win for the Addicks.

I have recorded a slot on Plymouth Argyle for tonight's sports show on Radio Scilly (5-6 p.m., listen online) and the view certainly looks better from second in League 1 than second from bottom in the Championship. Let's hope we can consolidate our position tomorrow.

BTW, the official football season in the Scillies kicks off on Sunday with the Charity Shield match between last year's top two teams, Garrison Gunners and Woolpack Wanderers. Radio Scilly tell me tickets are still available.

We expect to be the only Charlton blog providing coverage from a shell shocked New Windmill Ground tomorrow of the clash between Leamington and Brackley Town. A caretaker manager from Somerset has been brought in while the Brakes board ponder who should replace Jason Cadden as manager.

Needle match

A Gillingham view on why the so-called 'Kent Derby' is a needle match, trying to make something out of the 'invasion' of Gillingham territory by the Rickshaw (there are probably more Arsenal fans in Kent than Gills) and the Chris Dickson affair:
Gills

From a Charlton perspective, Gillingham are not Millwall and they are not Palace.

Coming next: are Charlton a threat to Dover Athletic's support base?

Scallywag

Rickshaw proprietor Rick Everitt will have the unusual experience of Saturday of a shorter ride to the match from his home in the Isle of Thanet. Gillingham have been somewhat resentful of the network of Valley Express services that Charlton has created.

However, the most likely destination for Addicks leaving the two boroughs is Kent. This has been a constant challenge for Warwickshire Addicks who have been seeking to commandeer one of Racing Club Warwick's 'Racing to Get You There' minibuses. However, messages and E mails I have received indicate that the Jockeys are in turmoil and their buses can no longer be seen in affluent Warwickshire villages engaged in a vain search for the socially excluded.

Most Gills supporters are in the meaner, chavtastic streets of the Medway Towns, although they have to cope with a large branch of the Spanners supporters club in Maidstone prison. Nevertheless, Gills boss Paul Scally would like to relocate the club, although presumably not to Dubai where he lives.

Inspector Sands once wrote a spoof of the Gills' response to the Rickshaw which consisted of a battered Ford Escort thundering down the A2. It was almost as good as his spoof of the attempts to launch a Rickshaw service in Boulogne and Dunkirk. Unfortunately, he does not index his best posts unlike the New York Addick. The projected closure of the latter's blog after his pending move to beechy Bucks is a major blow to the Charlton blogosphere.

When one thinks of Paul Scally, one is glad that one has the likes of Richard Murray in charge at The Valley. The ex-Spanner is certainly a colourful character and although this piece is dated it still has some relevant information: Scally