Former Addick Simon Church complains about his treatment by Bob Peeters in an interview with the South London Press: Simon Church
Peeters may well have thought that Church wasn't good enough, but possibly matters could have been handled better.
On a more positive note, the SLP also has an interview with new defender Patrick Bauer: Bauer made welcome
Simon Church will have the chance to score against Charlton next season after signing for MK Dons. He says that the ambition of his new club matches his (to stay in the Championship?).
'Churchy is a really top lad, a good player and can score goals. He will add tremendous quality to our team' said Dons boss Karl Robinson.
I would never fault his effort for us, but all the energy rarely had an outcome in terms of a goal.
Simon Church is to leave Charlton with other Championship clubs and foreign clubs in the Europa League who like the idea of a Welsh international in their squad supposedly interested. It's not a great surprise for Charlton fans, but it's quite big news in Wales: Simon Church
Church had plenty of energy and determination, but had difficulty in finding the back of the net.
Israel and Wales play in a Euro qualifier in Haifa, Israel tomorrow. Charlton's Tal Ben Haim and Simon Church engage in some banter before they oppose each other: Opponents
Two often criticised Charlton players got the goals in a 3-2 win over Reading at The Valley. Yoni Buyens scored from a penalty and from open play and Simon Church got the third. Having gone ahead in the first half, the Royals scored an injury time goal. Apparently, this is the first time we've done the double over Reading since 1980-81. Charlton are now top of the form table.
Solly was injured in the warm up, so Diarra had to replace him and Gomez moved to right back as Charlton faced Reading at The Valley. Vetokele was not in the team or on the bench and Chris Eagles accompanied Watt up front.
Good work from Tony Watt won the first corner of the game. Gudmundsson’s shot from a training ground move was just wide of the goal.
A shot from Eagles flashed wide after being he was supplied by Watt.
Charlton threatened again, but Reading dealt with it. Reading counter attacked and Pogrebnyak got past Johnson and the visitors won a corner.
With ten minutes gone, the Addicks applied pressure with some good build up play.
Charlton won another corner through pressure from Watt. The ball was cleared, but Charlton retained possession and kept up the pressure. Mackie hit the side netting for Reading, but was offside anyway.
Charlton were looking comfortable in possession with some good passing football.
On twenty minutes Charlton won another corner, but it was unproductive.
Gomez stabbed away a ball that came into the box. Charlton counter attacked, but then Reading broke and Morgan Fox put his body in the way, referee Deadman raised no objection to the body check.
Reading started to get a foothold in the game and Charlton had to slow the pace down a little.
Roger Johnson got a yellow card for a foul on Mackie on the edge of the box, it was a fair booking. The ball went out for a goal kick to derisive whistles.
Charlton were marking their men well and closing them down effectively. They were not letting Reading get crosses in to the big men up front. Diarra put in a superbly timed tackle.
Watt was impeded by Hector and there were loud shouts from the Addickted, but referee Deadman was oblivious.
Morgan Fox covered back well. The game had evened up after Charlton had enjoyed the upper hand in the opening period. Charlton needed a goal.
Reading won a surprising corner, Guy Luzon was not happy, nor was the crowd.
Henderson had to put in good work after the ball hit Roger Johnson. On 39 minutes the ball came in from Obita and Pogrebnyak put the ball beyond Henderson. It was a straightforward finish to make it 0-1 to Reading.
A confident Reading won a corner. Cousins hooked the ball high in the air. Then the ball hit the roof of the East Stand and went over (I have seen that in a reserve game).
Reading won a free kick, but it was unproductive. One minute was added on. Reading did not look too strong at the back, but Charlton had not troubled them enough except in the early part of the half.
Half time: Addicks 0, Royals 1
In a good move Tony Watt put the ball just over the bar for Charlton.
An on target effort by Buyens hit a defender. The corner was unproductive for Charlton. The Addicks kept up the pressure, causing chaos in the Reading defence. The keeper made a save from Eagles.
Then Reading put on some pressure and won a corner. Henderson leapt and caught the ball. Norwood got a yellow card.
Hector used his left arm under pressure from Tony Watt. He received a yellow card and the penalty was awarded. The reliable penalty taker Buyens put the ball in the roof of the net to make it 1-1.
Gunter was in space and fired in a shot but it hit the shins of Johnson. Charlton counter attacked strongly but the ball went over the bar from Eagles. Charm merchant Norwood went off and Karacan came on.
A shot from Gudmundsson were straight into the arms of Frederici in the Reading goal.
The ball came into the box but Henderson reached up and grabbed it. Watt fired in a shot that went straight into the arms of Frederici.
Eagles came off to warm applause and Simon Church came on to applause from the Reading fans. Gomez put a great ball in and Buyens scored to make it 2-1.
Church had the goal at its mercy but the keeper made a great save.
Charlton won a corner through Bulot. The Addicks kept up the pressure. Watt got round his man, after great work by Church, but the keeper made a good save. Watt delivered the ball and Simon Church scored on 79 minutes with a simple tap in to make it 3-1.
Gomez read a dangerous situation very well and snuffed it out. Reading made a substitution with Robson-Kanu going off and Stacey coming on.
Danny Williams was getting booked for handbags with Watt, who also got a yellow card. Williams then said something to Darren Deadman and got sent off.
Tony Watt came off to enthusiastic applause and was replaced by Christophe Lepoint. He made a good move, but was caught offside.
Five minutes were added on. Reading got their second goal to make it 3-2. Pogrebynak scored from very close range. Reading had a late soft free kick against Johnson on the edge of the box. Hendo gathered the ball and the final whistle went.
Charlton stay 11th, below Blackburn on goal difference.
Derek from Dymchurch says, 'The problem with this Luzon is we never score more than three goals and we nearly got caught out today.
Charlton beat bottom club Blackpool 3-0 tonight to secure another of their trademark wins by that scoreline under coach Guy 'loser' Luzon. Having got the result he wanted, he was then able to focus on the election results from Israel.
The pitch at Bloomfield Road had been flattened, but it was muddy and soon started to cut up as Charlton faced Blackpool. The ball was inclined to bobble all over the place. The atmosphere was eerie with the few thousand home fans quiet. About 3,700 people were actually there, 250 or so of them Addickted. Vetokele had been left at home.
Gudmundsson put in a curler to the near post, but Church’s header went over the bar. Watt got into the box, but his ball was not accurate.
Johnson had to use his pace to prevent Blackpool getting a corner. Blackpool’s centre halves were being physical with Tony Watt.
Church went down with an apparent ankle injury. He had been in a running battle with Peter Clarke. Church got up, but was limping.
Blackpool put in a shot that went over the bar. Blackpool then won a corner on 20 minutes. It was very scrappy.
A Blackpool free kick was flicked on by the vertically challenged player Telford but went over the bar. There was a moment of danger and Fox had to scramble.
A shot from Orlandi went wide and attracted tepid applause from the home fans. Charlton were having trouble keeping possession on the pitch. Eagles fired in a shot, but it was cleared after he took an extra touch.
The Addicks were getting out muscled in midfield in a poor quality game. A wag on Twitter said it was the Dog & Duck versus the Fox & Hounds on a Sunday league pitch. Charlton made a quick counter attack involving Gudmundsson, tearing through the Tangerines. The home side just managed to clear.
Tony Watt played Church through who was unselfish and ‘Red Robin’ Eagles had a tap in to make it 1-0 to Charlton.
The referee had a word with Gudmundsson and the much travelled Perkins.
Diarra got a yellow card for a challenge, he was not a happy bunny. Perkins placed a ball straight into the hands of Henderson. The Addickted tried to make some noise in the sepulchral stadium.Ferguson won a free kick although Cousins seemed to get something on the ball. The free kick was unproductive.
Solly had to challenge Perkins, but the Tangerines got a corner.
HT: 0-1
Barkhausen was allowed to get a shot in, but it went wide.
Gudmundsson put in a shot, but it was tame in the end and went wide.
Blackpool applied some pressure. Perkins shot straight at Henderson, getting a sarcastic standing ovation from the home support behind the goal.
Blackpool made a double substitution . There were cheers, but they may have been ironic.
Charlton needed a second goal to kill the game off. Out of nowhere, Gudmundsson had some space and Church had to control the ball and took his goal really well to make it 2-0 to Charlton after 61 minutes. Eagles went off for the follicular challenged Buyens.
Orlandi was in a good position but put the ball over the bar. There was a handball call for a penalty against Blackpool.
Charlton put in some good work, but Cousins put his volley over the bar.
Solly got away down the right and Blackpool conceded a corner. The move ended with a horrible ball from Morgan Fox.
Some of the home fans started to slip out to get an early tram. Blackpool got a free kick on the edge of the box as the spray came out for the first time. Henderson made a St. Patrick’s day leap to claim the ball.
Blackpool made their third substitution with Orlandi going off. Tony Watt, who had pulled up, came off and Christophe Lepoint came on.
Henderson had to tip a shot over the bar as it threatened to loop over him. The header by Medine went over the bar.
Clarke and Church squared up to each other. Church got booked. Barkhausen got a yellow card and Charlton won a free kick. Gudmundsson scored once again.
Bulot replaced Diarra who won applause for his battling performance from the Addickted.
Charlton won a late corner, Lepoint made a good run, but his header went wide.
Luzon wrote in last Saturday's programme, 'The reason I get paid by the club is to give [the players] advice and make changes when things are not going well or people are tired, but it is the squad who put ideas into action.'
Luzon has hailed Gudmundsson as 'the David Beckham of the Championship': He comes from Iceland
Charlton are now 11th in the table.
Bob Peeters has said that he is no rush to add to his squad. With players coming back from injury, the squad might not be good enough. He also said that there had been contact with Millwall about Simon Church, but thought that he would stay at The Valley: Good enough squad
The squad may be good enough to avoid relegation, but not to contend for a play off place. What is worrying is the number of players who have lost form since the start of the season, although in Vetokele's case he has been carrying an injury. Only Gudmundsson has really improved since the start of the season and we do miss Henderson in goal. However, exploratory surgery on his shoulder has revealed that the injury is not as bad as feared and he could be back in training in a few weeks.
Millwall are interested in Simon Church and Charlton are prepared to let him go with the completion of the signing of Tony Watt imminent: Church
I would give Church high marks for trying hard, unfortunately an end product was rarely evident.
Neil Etheridge has signed until the end of the season: Etheridge
Simon Church was injured early in yesterday's international qualifying match between Wales and Cyprus. Just a few minutes into the game (timings vary), he appeared to be nudged in the back and went down clutching his left shoulder. Unconfirmed reports say that it was dislocated.
In the old days this was a frequent affliction of Derek Ufton who sometimes had to play on with the shoulder strapped up, as there were no substitutes, although in the historic 7-6 victory over Huddersfield he had to leave the field at 0-0 and go to hospital where he was told the result. In total he dislocated his shoulder twenty times, 13 times on the left and seven on the right.
The rumour mill says that Derby and Brighton are interested in Church.
Tal Ben Haim scored for Israel in their 2-1 victory over Cyprus last night. He weaved his way into the penalty area and slotted the ball into the net: Tal Ben Haim
Simon Church played for 65 minutes in the 0-0 draw between Wales and Bosnia-Herzegovinia. He got a score of 6 from Wales Online for giving the Bosnian defence work to do without ever really threatening. That sounds like Simon Church: Simon Church
Although Vetokele is on the bench, and Wilson comes in with Solly rested, Bob Peeters has still put out quite a strong team for tonight's cup match with Colchester United. Gomez gets a start and Morrison returns to the sign. Wiggins is replaced by Fox. Tucudean gets another chance to see if he can get the ball in the net with Church and Pigott on the bench. I thought that Pope might get a chance in goal but Henderson kept his place.
01 Henderson 03 Gomez 21 Fox 24 Cousins 05 Morrison 06 Bikey Amougou 02 Wilson 17 Buyens 29 Tucudean 10 Moussa 11 Harriott
Substitutes 07 Berg Gudmundsson 14 Vetokele 18 Church 22 Nego 23 Pigott 26 Ben Haim 30 Pope
The Addicks have never lost to Colchester in a cup game, but the U's have won in three of last five outings to The Valley.
On 13 minutes Moussa put in a shot from outside the box but it was blocked. Charlton had the edge in terms of possession in the first quarter of an hour.
On 23 minutes the Adddicks went ahead through a penalty. Yoni Buyens converted the penalty with a right footed shot to the centre of the goal. Magnus Okuonghae was shown the red card for hand ball. The Us had to make a forced substitution and Charlton's share of the possession went up to two-thirds. Charlton pressed for a second goal, but attempts by Tucudean, Moussa and Harriott in quick succession were saved. However, Charlton failed to score before the break.
HT: Addicks 1, Us 0
Henderson dealt comfortably with a shot from outside the box by Sears in the first minute of the second half. Wilson put in a shot from outside the box but it just missed the target.
On 54 minutes an assist by Cousins allowed Lawrie Wilson to make it 2-0 with a shot to the centre of the goal. Four minutes later it was Moussa who turned provider as Wilson scored again with a shot to the bottom left hand corner. Vetokele replaced Moussa.
Church came on in place of Tucudean. Gudmundsson tried a right footed shot from more than 35 yards which was saved in the bottom right corner. Callum Harriott put in a right footed shot from the left side of the box which was too high.
On 88 minutes Church made it 4-0 shooting into the bottom right corner. Fox had a narrow miss with a shot from outside the box.
Even if it was against League 1 opposition, this was a morale boosting win for Charlton, showing that they can score goals and that Belgian Bob has something going for him.
That's what I call a celebration
Hamer came back in goal for the Addicks tonight, while Fox started in front of a crowd of 24,607, perhaps 1,500 of them Addickted. The Wednesday fans needed their ticket stubs for the anticipated Sheffield derby. Charlton won an early corner. Wilson set up Astrix, but his shot was over hit. Llera was giving attention to Church. A handball by Llera was ignored by referee Clattenburg. With a better angle a cross from Cousins could have set up Church.
Fox was playing his part in clearances. Wednesday seemed to be hoofing the ball a lot, particularly through Llera. Wilson provided good defending. Wood had to usher the ball back to Hamer, giving the home fans their first moment of excitement. Charlton came very close to scoring. Astrix’s first shot was blocked by Llera and his second was deflected for a corner. Charlton continued to ask the questions.
Wood tackled well to deny Best. Wednesday continued to offer long and high balls. A good ball in evaded Harriott. Michael Morrison dealt well with a ball pumped forward. Church won a corner for Charlton under pressure. The Addicks won another corner, taken this time by Jackson. Cousins put a cross in as the Owls appealed for a foul, a shot from Astrix was blocked and Harriott slammed the ball into the right-hand corner to make it 1-0 to Charlton in the 21st minute.
Church put in a snap shot from the edge of the area with the home side at sixes and sevens. Wilson dealt with an Owls attack well, stopping Maghoma from threatening. The home crowd were getting restive. Wednesday got the ball, but gave it away to Wilson.
A foul on Church was ignored by Clattenburg. Hamer was seeing a lot of the ball as it came over the top. There was a long pause in the game for an injury to an Owl.
Ben Hamer had to make a good save diving to his left. A Wednesday free kick ended in one for Charlton. Best put in a quick fire shot which went straight to Hamer but enlivened the home crowd.
Poyet put in a poor ball back and Hamer had to react quickly. Wednesday won their first corner in the 44th minute. Hamer flapped a little and it was panic stations until the ball was cleared. Three minutes were added on and the Owls continued to apply pressure. Charlton won a free kick to ease the pressure. Wilson went down, but managed to get up, but then had to go off for treatment. Llera clattered in to Church and took him out, but Clattenburg missed it when it should have been a yellow at least. Johnnie Jackson and other Charlton players spoke to the referee as the teams went off.
Half time: Owls 0, Addicks 1
Cousins cleared as the ball pinged around in the penalty area. Poyet was pushed over and Clattenburg waved it away. An effort by Jackson which was hit low and hard was close as Martinez scrambled across.
Wednesday were applying more pressure as they attempted to get back into the game. They equalised through Leon Best on 55 minutes, a long ball into the box and a header down. The atmosphere in the ground became electric with the home fans singing a song for the first time. The Owls made a double substitution.
Jackson had to complete a clearance after Hamer was unable to do so. Charlton applied a little pressure. Clattenburg booked Best for dissent. Llera clattered Church again, got a yellow card and Charlton won a free kick. Church got on the end of the Jackson free kick with his head to make it 2-1 to Charlton.
Morrison had to head the ball out for the second Wednesday corner of the game on 71 minutes and Hamer saved on the touchline and Wood was down injured. He got up, but was struggling.
Wilson defended well by sticking to his man. Harriott went down, but recovered. Church came off. Lawrie Wilson defended superbly to stop a run. Hamer made a superb save and the offside flag went up.
Wood got a yellow card which could have been red. The free kick led to a corner on 89 minutes but Llera put it over the bar. Wood came off and was replaced by Dervitte. Wednesday fans started to leave for the exit. Five minutes were added on. Charlton launched an attack and won a free kick 35 yards out. Hughes came on and Astrix went off to be congratulated by Chris Powell.
Hamer had to make a great save from a ball that took a deflection. There was chaos in the box after the corner. Charlton won a free kick. The whistle blew and the Addicks were one step closer to Wembley, although the Blades will be no pushover.
I see that Radio 5 referred to our result as 'elsewhere'. But a message of congratulation from Standard Liège is appreciated: 'Félicitations a l'équipe de Charlton qui s'rest qualifée ce soir pour le quarts de finale de la FA Cup.' Merci beaucoup. Allez les rouges!
Hopefully we will get a chance to play them in a pre-season friendly. I did think of going over myself, but my French is not good enough, plus my accent (which is a mixture of Bruxellois and Quebecker) might arouse the suspicions of the locals who might think I was Flemish rather than English.
Charlton will be in the draw for the 5th round of the FA Cup with Budweiser tomorrow after they beat Huddersfield Town 1-0 in front of a crowd of 10,120. The winning goal was scored in the second half by Simon Church on 54 minutes after the home side has been opened up on the right by Lawrie Wilson. Ben Alnwick kept the Addicks in the game with a number of excellent saves and got a score of 8 from the Football League Paper on Sunday. Harry Lennon on in place of the injured Evina played well.
Yann Kermorgant was ruled out before the game, although he had travelled.
In the first half it was handbags at six paces after players from both sides faced off after the Dale Stephens went in late on Huddersfield's Adam Hammill on 29 minutes. Stephens was booked for the foul while Town's Anthony Gerrard and Addicks defender Michael Morrison saw yellow for their roles in the scrap which followed. Just beforehand, Huddersfield's Danny Ward was lucky to escape a booking for leaving his foot in on Cedric Evina. The Charlton full-back and Hammill were both injured and had to be substituted with the tension simmering. It came close to boiling over when Stephens brought down Oliver Norwood soon afterwards but he escaped with a warning.
Ward was denied a goal on 26 minutes by a smart parry from the goalkeeper Ben Alnwick after Paul Dixon put the home forward through. His fellow striker James Vaughan, making his first start after five games out injured, had a shot blocked after a neat one-two with Gobern. The Town wing-back Tommy Smith retrieved the ball and crossed from the right only for Norwood to head over from close range on 21 minutes. At the other end the closest Charlton came was a Johnnie Jackson header, which flashed just wide from a free-kick curled in by Stephens.
In the second half Alnwick denied Smith with a parry at his near post just before Church scored at the other end. Ward fluffed the chance to equalise by missing an open goal after the substitute Sean Scannell pulled the ball back from the byline on 62 minutes.
It was a dogged and resilient performance by the Addicks who showed considerable 'gumption' according to the Radio Leeds commentators. It is worth noting that the often overlooked Dorian Dervitte got a 7 from the FLP: 'An excellent performance from the defender who was a rock at the back.'
Unfortunately the draw secured by Doncaster has pushed Charlton into the relegation places.
Michael Morrison has pleaded in the Football League Paper this morning for help for Charlton's struggling strikers. He calls for reinforcements up top if the Addicks are to avoid a relegation scrap this season.
Morrison said, 'Church has had to play up front on his own quite a bit this season but Yann is back now and we are going with two up top which has and will make us stronger going forward. There have been glimpses of that but hopefully it will be something that gets solved sooner rather than later.'
'Having a permanent partner for Simon - him being able to link up with somebody and moving the two centre halves and running in behind rather than being the man who does the day's work - will help him. I think they will click soon enough and they will be a great partnership, though. [This implies that they haven't been up to now and often they do seem to play some way apart].'
Morro concluded, 'Simon has got goals in him when he has that partner up front. We maybe could have had a bit more quality in the final third.'
The FLP concludes that 'the answer to Charlton's prayers' may be American billionaire Josh Harris. Nothing more has been heard on that front recently, but that doesn't mean that there is no possibility of a takeover.
Charlton are now 17th in the table, ahead of Millwall on goal difference, after last night's 2-0 victory against Doncaster Rovers. The attendance was depleted after a signal box fire at London Bridge disrupted travel by train. There was also chaos at North Greenwich with 7,000 waiting for buses.
Yann Kermorgant’s cross was only half-cleared by Khumalo and Dale Stephens opened the scoring this time with a spectacular volley before Simon Church slid home to seal the victory. The Addicks also hit the woodwork twice while Doncaster failed to test home keeper Ben Alnwick.
The win was only Charlton's second at home this season but they dominated throughout despite being forced into a late change. Goalkeeper Ben Hamer was injured in the warm-up, so Alnwick came in for what turned out to be a quiet debut.
Charlton's first chance came after just two minutes when Church should have given them the lead, before Yann Kermorgant scuffed a shot against the post. Johnnie Jackson then forced Ross Turnbull into a stunning save before the Doncaster keeper was finally beaten by Stephens. The visitors' only real chance fell to on-loan Manchester United striker Federico Macheda, who blazed a shot over the crossbar. Turnbull saved well from Lawrie Wilson but could do nothing when Church was sent clean through by Jackson and slid the ball home. Cameron Stewart went close to adding a third, striking the crossbar with a 25-yard shot.
Wigan manager Owen Coyle admits Charlton is a tough place to go, but is hoping to re-fire their promotion challenge by starting an unbeaten away run with a victory at The Valley today: Coyle. Wigan have experienced four consecutive away defeats and have only won once on their travels this season.
Speaking to The Football League Paper Simon Church insists that Charlton have learnt from their mistakes: 'We started the season quite slowly and the last couple of games we've really gone back to basics and defended well. The manager has been brilliant. He's instilled confidence into us and it's a really positive place to be.'
The paper has a feature interview with Richard Wood who says of the club, 'There are no factions in the group and from when I walked in I could see they ere all together - that's what you want to see as a new player.'
Johnnie Jackson and Yann Kermorgant are like to start. Chris Solly is still sidelined with a knee injury and likely to be out for three weeks.
Simon Church hopes to maintain his current good form and score more goals for the Addicks. Here is a BBC interview with the striker: Church
Charlton took three points away from Ewood Park this evening thanks to a first half goal by Simon Church.
Blackburn had a very early chance after only 25 seconds, but Tommy Spurr's cross was headed over the bar by Leon Best. Cameron Stewart took advantage of Kane's poor clearance on six minutes to feed Church but Dean blocked his low drive. Then, a minute later Dale Stephens's ball over the top managed to find Simon Church who, after controlling it on his chest, volleyed home. The local evening paper is full of praise for the 'superb' goal by Church: Church
Jordan Rhodes could have pulled Rovers level, but his header went straight into the hands of Ben Hamer. At the other end, Marvin Sordell made space for himself but was unable to direct his shot past Jake Kean. Hamer was again called into action, this time acrobatically turning Rhodes's volley round the post.
Best had another chance for Rovers shortly after the restart but he failed to find the target with his header. Stephens then connected with a Jordan Cousins cross but he directed his header at Kean. Charlton substitute Yann Kermorgant tried an speculative effort from his own half with his first touch, but saw the ball go wide. Goal scorer Church volleyed wide for the Addicks.
A valiant defensive effort was required and Hamer and the back four had a great game with Wood particularly outstanding and not letting anything past him.
Birmingham's heavy defeat at Leeds means that Charlton move up to 19th in the table.
A new blog, Chris Powell's Flat Cap, has a detailed report on the game: Victory
A Charlton player was on the international score sheet last night when Simon Church scored for Wales in the 67th minute in Cardiff to give them a 1-0 victory against Macedonia and lifting them off the bottom of their group. Church took advantage of a pinpoint cross from Bellamy to put the ball in the middle of the net: Church
Rhoys Wiggins was an unused substitute.
With Wales beset by an injury crisis, including Gareth Bale, Rhoys Wiggins has been called up for the squad to join Simon Church and the appropriately named O Tudur Jones (who plays for Hibs).
One of my all time favourite Charlton players, Johnnie Robinson, now coaching in Florida, was once Welsh footballer of the year in recognition of his efforts. Born in what is now Zimbabwe, he qualified through a grandparent.
