Addicks fight back to win at home

Charlton won a rare home victory when they beat Bolton Wanderers 3-2 at The Valley this afternoon. Although most of the teams below them won, it still gave a platform to build on to pull away from the threat of relegation. The Addicks had gone behind in the third minute and were soon 0-2 down, a goal greeted by a chorus of boos. The row behind me decided that the only issue was whether we would finish 23rd or 24th. However, Charlton started to get back into the game and Johnnie Jackson sent them in just 1-2 behind at half time.

After the break they equalised and Yann Kermorgant put them ahead with a penalty with Bolton down to ten men and finally to nine. (Possibly they they ended up with eight after the game as Knight was shown a yellow on the pitch after the end of the game and continued his argument near the tunnel where it is suggested that he received a second). After we had gone 3-2 ahead, we took our foot off the pedal somewhat and were forced back more than I would have liked. Seven minutes added on, largely because of the substitution of one of the linesmen provided some tense moments, but we held on and the Bolton fans, and indeed some of their players and their manager, blamed referee Kettle for the result. But it was the indiscipline of their players that was the underlying problem for them. For us, the presence of Suzanne, the charming partner of the Blackheath Addick, did not cast a spell on us after all and she saw her first win at The Valley.

As someone who travels a distance to the game, I am perhaps too inclined to put emphasis on the journey itself as a signifier of what might happen in the game. Whether Deptford Creek has the tide in or not is really irrelevant, although a higher tide does seem often to work in our favour. Yesterday, however, by journey was a little unusual, suggesting to me that the game would not be a straightforward one. Virgin Trains decided to celebrate the Easter holidays by putting on a smelly and labouring diesel unit from Coventry, even though the electric wires were functioning normally. Then the Northern line via Bank was closed and I decided to stay on the Jubilee to North Greenwich. I caught a 161 and the driver drove as if a white van full of Millwall fans was behind him and we got to the Woolwich Road in less than the advertised nine minutes (often it seems interminable particularly for an evening match with tired commuters travelling).

Within 47 seconds Bolton had won a corner. Pritchard should have cleared the ball, but he didn't and it came back in and was not far off target. Bolton then broke with Ngog and Hamer have to save. The inevitable happened on three minutes with Dervite in 'apres vous' mode, the visitors were given loads of space to allow Sordell to score.

Some hope was provided by the way in which Harriott and Wiggins were combining down the left. We then had a penalty call when Pritchard was tugged back by charm merchant Knight as he was about to score, but referee Kettle had still not got up steam. Charlton won a corner and, after some intervening play, a second. But Bolton were able to break and they always looked dangerous when they did so and Chris Solly had to come to Charlton's rescue. Some good play led to a Charlton corner that was eventually cleared. Bolton countered again and Solly had to put in an excellent defensive header.

Then on 19 minutes Kamara scored for Bolton from distance. I thought that Hamer should have done better, but the Blackheath Addick says that it looked a more testing shot from the North Stand than it did from the West or East. In any event we should have closed them down.

One Addick commented, 'It felt a bit Cardiff like this game - we kicked into gear after going 2-0 down and rarely looked troubled afterwards.' Harriott put in a delicious cross right in front of the goal, but unfortunately there was no one there to collect. Harriott put in some good work, but Jackson was slow to take advantage. But shortly afterwards he redeemed himself when following play involving Harriott again he seized the opportunity to make it 1-2 with a captain's goal. In many ways this was the crucial goal of the afternoon as it meant that the match was no longer beyond our reach.

Ricketts made a meal of it to claim a Bolton free kick. Fuller was not creating very much at this stage of the game or taking advantage of what was created for him. Pritchard and Solly provided some good defensive work. Hughes created an opportunity for himself but then put the ball wide. Ricketts fouled Harriott. Referee Kettle had by now got steam up and awarded what was probably a rather harsh yellow card which was to be important later. From the free kick Solly won a corner for Charlton which he took himself. Harriott then won the Addicks a corner and it was again Solly who provided a good inswinger. Hughes got a yellow card.

Half time: Addicks 1, Trotters 2

Good work by Harriott won us a corner, but dithering by Morrison nearly cost us. Referee Kettle was then seen running to the side of the pitch making strange gesticulations to the players and it was unclear whether these meant 'I'm boiling over' or 'I've lost the plot and I'm giving myself the red card.' It turned out that it was the West Stand lino who was to receive the red card and there was then a great delay while the fourth official was readied, including great efforts to see that he was neatly turned out. Referee Kettle was still simmering when he gave Ricketts a second yellow card and sent the Welsh international off for bringing down Fuller. Kermorgant's free kick hit the post but Dervitte was there ready to pounce and equalise to the delight of at least one Frenchwoman in the crowd.

Fuller was then obligingly brought down to give us a penalty. Sacre bleu! It was Yann Kermorgant who stepped up, not captain Jacko. The Breton was seeking to exorcise the memory of that penalty miss at Leicester which is engraved on the hearts of Leicester fans. Kermorgant scored emphatically to make it 3-2.

Harriott continued to be lively, winning the Addicks a corner. But Bolton were still pressing hard and Solly was once again called on for his defensive skills. Hughes was withdrawn and Gower came on for his Valley debut. Dawson received a yellow card. As normal time came towards an end, the Addicks made a double substitution. Harriott and Fuller went off and Wilson and Haynes came on. It looked as if the referee was in a competition to issue cards as Solly was the next to receive a yellow, although he seemed to think it was a fair cop.

With seven minutes added on, the Bolton keeper had to tip the ball over the bar. The referee wanted a Breton for his collection and gave Kermorgant a yellow card. The indiscipline of Craig Davies led to a yellow card for arguing and then he too was sent for an early shower with a second yellow. Spearing got a yellow card from the referee who was now shrouded in steam. After the game ended Zat Knight gave it large to the referee and got a yellow card.

We had a long wait at the station while a door problem was dealt with and the Bolton fans were full of complaints about the referee. He did overheat, but then we have had our share of poor refereeing decisions. For once fortune was on our side. I missed my usual train at Euston and had to get a Preston train which had its complement of distressed Trotters. My day was made complete by the news that Leamington were ten points clear at the top of the Southern Premier, having beaten Cambridge City away 4-1. This included three penalties so they got the rub of the green as well.

This morning the sun was shining as I went to a church that served an abandoned village in a beautiful remote spot in the Warwickshire countryside for the Easter Day service. For once, having been to a Charlton game the day before, I was at peace on a Sunday morning.

Match analysis

There were a number of candidates for the Silver Bone but Ivy the Terrible selected Callum Harriott. Sometimes he tries to do much, and he didn't score, but he really put the Bolton defence under the cosh. Hamer should have done better for the second goal, but he did make some decent saves later. Button had a mare against Millwall, but the goalkeeping issue remains one for thought once the season is over. Solly had another great game, making some great defensive interventions. It was also good to see him take some inswinging corners. Player of the year again? Wiggins is shaking off the rust and looked the best I have seen him since his return. Morrison has not been at his best recently and once dithering by him nearly set up a goal scoring opportunity. Dervite was slow and error prone early in the game, but improved as it went on and he did score, so all is forgiven. Hughes took a little while to get into the game on his return, but then he started to put in a performance that was workmanlike and then went beyond that. Got a generous acknowldegement when he went off. One Addick commented, 'He started to get into the game with his low fuss passing, easy control and general Kish-like hassling of the opposition.' Jackson was an early target of the moaners and his lack of pace is a worry, but what people often forget is that he can score goals. Pritchard is a player I like because of his commitment, but I still worry that the skill level isn't quite high enough at times. The moaners in the row behind argued that Fuller only looks interested when he has sight of goal, but I thought that he put himself about quite a bit, getting a bashing for his troubles. Sometimes he does make a sublime move and then a poor one minutes later. Kermorgant started to lose his rag again in the second half and he needed to score the penalty to boost his confidence. Wilson made an efficient contribution when he came on. Haynes tried to get involved, but didn't contribute a lot. Gower looked cultured.

Rescue Cat Reg stopped me writing the match preview yesterday by bashing the keyboard and placing himself in front of the screen until I agreed that he could give the Hiss of the Match instead of Juneau the Soccer Cat. Reggie did indeed act as a lucky talisman and has awarded the accolade to Bolton manager Dougie Freedman who clearly took particular exception to being beaten by Charlton and argued with the officials all the way to the tunnel. He has complained about the referee being 'part-time', but they all are at this level.

That's why it's Good Friday!

Birmingham City took all the Nectar points at Sainsbury's yesterday evening by beating Crystal Palace 4-0 in a clinical display. Shocked supremo Ian Holloway conceded that Palace's promotion challenge is in danger of losing momentum at precisely the wrong time. He was left stunned by his side's capitulation. He said, 'I am shocked. I am finding it hard to cope with. That was unrecognisable. That is a huge dent in what we want to achieve. Losing at Brighton seems to have dented everything. That was awful - awful result, awful day.'

However, it was Thai takeaways all round for Millwall after they edged a 1-0 victory over 10-man Leicester at what was the Crispbowl. My Foxes supporting friend Stacey was losing it badly in her tweets after Leicester's captain was sent off after three minutes and she has my sympathy, although the sending off seems to have been justified.

The 1-1 draw between Blackpool and Blackburn put the two teams ahead of the Addicks on goal difference with Charlton now 17th. Huddersfield are also on 47 points but have a far inferior goal difference to us. These things could count at the end of the season. The woes of Bristol City increased as they went down 3-0 at Derby.

Elsewhere, Bradley Wright-Phillips found the net for Brentford in their 2-1 win over Notts County, while Mambo scored for Shrewsbury in their 2-2 draw at Carlisle.

Good news for former Charlton defender Jon Fortune whose efforts to get himself fit at Chatham Town have succeeded. He has signed for Dagenham & Redbridge until the end of the season.

Powell: Baker is Charlton's heartbeat

Charlton chaplain Matt Baker is the heartbeat of the club says Chris Powell in a feature on club chaplains in The Times today which gives the Addicks top billing. Powell said that if he ever left Charlton for another club a chaplain would be one of his first signings: 'I would demand a chaplain ASAP.'

But Powell, who is known for his religious commitment, admits that not everyone buys into the concept. Coaches dislike interference and clubs fear Bible bashers.

But he insists, 'If a club doesn't have a chaplain, they are missing the point. Why not have someone who will help the club grow, help players individually, be part of the support network? Players need a voice, someone with empathy away from the football side. I'm their boss and they understand that, but these guys might see something that means they need to talk. They won't come to me with a question about religion or bereavement.'

'I don't think there's many chaplains qualified to deal with an on-pitch issue. But what if the player is dropped, he might think how does he handle that? The chaplain's role could be to keep his spirits up, tell him he's seen him play.'

Matt Baker has been Charlton's chaplain for 13 years. He also works full time as pastoral support director for English Football. Four months into his chaplaincy he had to deal with the drowning of Pierre Bolangi at an army training centre in Aldershot.

When Leon McKenzie attempted to take his life three years ago while playing for the Addicks, Baker, in the days that followed, was the only person at the club he told about the depths of his depression.

Trotters in town

Bolton Wanderers are sometimes referred to as the Trotters and sometimes by the much blander term the 'Whites'. For me, the 'Trotters' always evokes the heritage of the club. Anyway, this Bolton fan uses the term in his match preview in which he points out that a win for Wanderers tomorrow will put them two points off a play off place: Trotters

At the beginning of the season I named Bolton as one of my promotion picks. Yet seven weeks ago Bolton had lost four games in seven and were just one place and three points above the relegation zone. Their resurgence since then shows how quickly a team can move upwards or downwards in this tightly packed league.

Palace's Dougie Freedman replaced Owen Coyle as manager last September. Freedman told The Football League Paper, 'I'm very proud of what I did at Palace. I got hold of a club in the bottom three and left them in the top three. And I made the club a lot of money. But, professionally, it was the right decision to come here.' There is certainly a big contrast between operating from a supermarket car park and the Reebok.

Freedman reckons that the team bore pyschological scars as a result of the fortunately not tragic Fabrice Muamba incident, and being relegated on the final day by a late goal at Stoke. He said, 'Remember this is a club that hasn't won regularly for near enough four years. Quite simply, there was no winning mentality. I inherited a lot of very good players who just need a bit of direction in life. For me, it was about changing the culture and convincing them that they're good enough.'

For Charlton Mark Gower will be available tomorrow to add his experience to a midfield that often loses its shape. Leon Cort will face a late fitness test. New loan signings Robert Hall and Danny Butterfield are set to make their debuts for Bolton. For Bolton right back Tyrone Mears (blood infection) remains sidelined along with Republic of Ireland international Keith Andrews (Achilles).

Charlton have won only once against Bolton in six home matches in the last decade. In the first half against Millwall we did play some nice football, in particular passing accurately to Charlton players, but it had no end result. It is difficult to see how we can avoid defeat tomorrow, even though Bolton did lose against Ipswich last time out.

Rescue cat Reg has done his best to stop this story being written as he demands that veteran Hiss of the Match analyst Juneau the Soccer Cat is dropped for a younger male cat. In the hope of bringing us some luck, he will provide the Hiss of the Match tomorrow. The Association of Canine Match Analysts has also announced the imminent arrival of two lucky labradors who will start training as match analysts: Henry from Chilton, Oxon and Mustang from Compton, Berks.

Tribunal hearings involving Charlton?

The following story has appeared in the Currant Bun: 'Shrimpers chief executive Steve Kavanagh is taking Charlton to an industrial tribunal over his exit last summer. The hearing is likely to shed some light on internal matters at The Valley. Kavanagh resigned from the Charlton board in late July and quit as chief executive soon after.'

The story continues, 'Peter Varney, who also left the club last July, is believed to have settled his case but it is understood former development officer Rick Everitt is suing the club after he was sacked last September. Kavanagh and Charlton declined to comment. But Everitt, in a message posted after he left The Valley, said: "These matters will shine a powerful light into what is going on."'

Ramsgate resident Everitt recently re-launched The Voice of the Valley fanzine and it is understood that the first issue sold well and a second one may appear in April. After the recent resignation of Pope Benedict, speculation identified Everitt as a possible 'dark horse' candidate for the role of Supreme Pontfiff, but the Hand of God intervened.

Any tribunal hearings are likely to take place after the end of the season.

Easter memories

On holiday at Lerryn in 1954, picture has been tinted.

Going back fifty years or so, it was usual for teams to play three matches over the Easter weekend. The team played at home on Good Friday would be played away on Easter Monday or vice-versa. Although when Easter fell had an influence, these matches were usually very important in deciding questions of promotion and relegation. Incidentally, in my work on non-league football I have discovered that some local junior teams played two matches in a day at Easter and that involved getting on their bikes to travel from one location to another.

In the mid 1950s we started going on holiday to Cornwall at Easter (my mother's family came from Cornwall). In part this was possible because the only perk of my father's job as a carriage and wagon fitter on the railways was access to some free tickets to travel anywhere in the UK (or, indeed, to some extent abroad, although we never used that but some of his mates did). I would go down with my mother at the beginning of Easter week. One memory I have is sitting in the restaurant car of the Cornish Riveria Express for coffee and being surrounded by people who were clearly more exotic than one found in Plumstead Common. 'Oh, they're Chelsea types going to St.Ives', my mother said dismissively. My father would travel down on Good Friday. His arrival was eagerly awaited as then I could discuss promotion and relegation issues in the various divisions with him. We then returned as a family on Easter Monday.

The downside was that we missed any home Charlton games over the holiday. I would also note that the weather was often cool and wet and I have a picture of me somewhere looking miserable in a mackintosh on a Cornish beach. Easter 1954 saw us at Lerryn in Cornwall, staying in a very nice converted barn. Eric Portman who was a famous actor at the time dropped by to see the owners and we got to meet him. It was a late Easter and Charlton were comfortably placed in the top flight, eventually finishing 9th.

Good Friday was on April 16th, my father's birthday, and we lost 2-0 at Old Trafford with Firmani missing a penalty. Easter Saturday saw us at home at The Valley in front of a crowd of 22,226, Leary scoring for Charlton. The game against United on Easter Monday saw a crowd of just 19,111 compared with 49,742 for the first match of the season against Sunderland on a Wednesday. Probably interest had dropped off with the Addicks neither in contention for the title nor in any danger of relegation. No doubt many people had taken a day out on the Kent coast. Eddie Firmani scored the winning goal despite having been injured and switching to outside left.

The following year we went to Talland Bay in Cornwall, renting the annex of a big house occupied, as I recall, by two elderly sisters (I think it may be a posh hotel now). It was possible to walk along the cliffs to Polperro. We had to walk in the dark to meet my father from a bus at a remote crossroads, Charlton having lost 2-0 at Portsmouth. They then lost 5-0 at Bramall Lane the following day, although they had gone down to ten men after an injury to Ayre in the twentieth minute. 21,807 came to The Valley on Easter Monday to see a 2-2 draw with Pompey. Charlton finished 16th, heralding the end of the glory days of before and after the war.

Florent Rouamba signs

The official site has announced that Burkina Faso international Florent Rouamba has signed until the end of the season. He still requires a work permit and will not be available against Bolton on Saturday.

Rouamba has arrived at The Valley via Moldova and is apparently finding the weather a shock (he's not the only one). He is living in a hotel and knows no one, so he does not sound like a happy Easter bunny, nor does he like one in his photo. But at least there are players he can speak French with.

He is a defensive midfielder, so he could be the new Keith Jones. Or perhaps not. I'm not quite sure what to make of this, as we already have Dervitte. Perhaps it is a kind of super trial to find out whether he has was it takes. He does have 41 caps for the Stallions who reached the final of the Africa Cup of Nations this year, a considerable achievement for one of Africa's poorer countries.

Unsurprisingly, his Wikipedia entry is rather thin: Rouamba