Grounds for cautious optimism

Thanks to CAS Trust for providing a very full report on last night's meeting between Katrien Meire, Richard Murray and VIP season ticket holders: VIP meeting. It's a very informative report and clears up some misunderstandings. Katrien was clearly in feisty mood and showed once again that she is a very sharp cookie and dedicated to Charlton. Whether she will swing from the crossbars at Bramall Lane remains to be seen.

Charlton supporters really need to read the report for themselves. One thing that did interest me was that Richard Murray referred to what I regard as the one weakness in Roland's strategy, the reliance on the early delivery of financial fair play. Murray acknowledged that QPR and other top clubs are already consulting their lawyers and they may well have a case against the Football League. In any event, it could hold up the application of sanctions.

Inevitably Yann Kermorgant came up again. It was one subject I discussed with the Premiership adviser I had dinner with last night. He thought that Kermorgant and Stephens were our most creative players and it was a mistake to get rid of them. He was also critical of Simon Church, although I think that his recent performances have been somewhat better. I regretted the departure of Kermorgant in particular. But it was difficult to match the offer being made by Russian bankrolled Bournemouth. Kermorgant was already the best paid player at the club and there is a real question about how much one is prepared to pay for a player of his age.

In any event the responses reinforce my mood of cautious optimism about the new regime.