Okonkwo's brother joins my non-league team

Brian Okonkwo, the younger brother of Addicks keeper Arthur, has joined my non-league team (Leamington) from West Bromwich Albion.

In Saturrday's 4-0 win over Hitchin he made two outstanding saves from open play and then saved a  penalty. 

Bindon scores in Japan

Tyler Bindon's good form with New Zealand continued as the on-loan Charlton Athletic defender helped his country reach the final of Kirin Cup in Yokohama.

Having scored in a 3-0 friendly win over China on Sunday, the 21-year-old fired home the first penalty as the All Whites beat Panama 5-3 in a shootout after a 1-1 draw.

New Zealand will face the winners of the tie between Japan and Ecuador in the final on Monday, 5 October.

Bindon joined the Addicks on a season-long loan from Nottingham Forest in August and has made five appearances for the club.

Nigels lose their ultras

Before Palace’s opening home game of the season with Manchester City, the Holmesdale Front released a statement announcing they were “choosing to stop all organised activity as the HF inside the stadium” and cited “never-ending problems with the club up to the present day” among various reasons for the decision.

One of their concerns, relayed in a statement before February’s Conference League first knockout round home leg against Zrinjski Mostar, is a perception that the “club is determined to keep trying to force an American-style ‘experience’ on us”.

Chairman Steve Parish says it is “disappointing” to lose the group from Selhurst but believes there is nothing more Palace could have done, and cites safety and regulatory requirements.

“We’ve embraced them from the day I arrived here, and we’ve used them in our marketing,” he told The New York Times. “I don’t really know what’s at the heart of it. I understand that it’s difficult and frustrating at times — look at Lech Poznan, when they let off all those fireworks (in the opening Europa League match of this season at Selhurst).

“It’s hard because of the rules and regulations we have and the safety group. I understand it (and) we’re a very heavily-regulated society, so it’s frustrating for them sometimes. I don’t think that we could facilitate them any more than we do whilst trying to keep them safe and trying to get within the regulations.”

“I don’t really deal with them. They’re ultras, that’s not really how they roll. They have a dialogue with the people at the club on an ongoing basis. I understand how they feel. There are people that are around football who don’t want that kind of support at football grounds.

“I’ve personally had big battles on their behalf. I’ve been told by ‘the authorities’ on multiple occasions that we should ban the whole group. There’s an element where football fans are pushing back on it, where they want to have a bit more freedom to express themselves, but everything’s banned in England. It’s a fair frustration.”

There has been criticism of what some perceive to be a more ‘manufactured’ atmosphere pre-game and after Palace goals which the HF appear to believe stifles the organic approach they have tried to facilitate. Parish, though, says the choice is not binary.

“You have to be realistic,” he says. “We are a global show. We are putting on a show, and not everybody wants the same things all the time. There’s room for both of those things, but I don’t know a stadium up and down the country that doesn’t do any of the things that we do, and they work really well.

“There is a bit of a frustration sometimes from the fan base that they all have to do what (the HF) want all the time. ‘We have to sing their songs and do what they want, when they want’. Families come and sit in other parts of the stand and stadium and they want to hear some good music. Fans can’t sing the whole time in the lead-up to a game. You can always find a good compromise, and I think we will. Something will come back, and we’ll make it work.

“We loved everything they did. We were hugely supportive, and in the face of some quite vehement opposition. They’ve been an important part of what we’ve done. Anybody that wants to do something similar, we’re trying to accommodate it as much as we can, but not everything stays the same all the time."

 

 

Shelvey sacrificed prom for football

Jonjo Shelvey recalls the start of his career with Charlton in an interesting in depth interview with Four Four Two.

The interviewer noted that he became Charlton's youngest player when he made his debut at 16.  How did he handle the pressure?   (Question from Sophie Scott from Greenwich)

Shelvey responded: 'I played in the game on the Saturday, we lost 3-0 away to Barnsley, then on the Monday I was walking around school very proud, giving it big licks!   Charlton had just been relegated a week beforehand, so they were giving youth a chance, and it was a great experience,   I wasn't overawed - I felt comfortable as I'd been training with the first team squad since I wss 14.'

'Funnily enough, after the game, I had to ask the manager Alan Pardew if I could still take a girl to that summer's school prom as I needed to let her know.  He just laughed and said, "Tell the girl you can't make it sadly as you'll be on Charlton's pre-season tour."'

Samuel Henderson from Erith asked. 'How did you fit into the dressing room at Charlton and how did the older professionals react to you?'

Shelvey replied: 'There were some good pros in there who treated me well - guys like Matt Holland, Ben Thatcher, Christian Dailly, and Chris Iwelumo.   I didn't drive at the time so some of them gave me lifts to training.  I was OK as I always had a lot of confidence.   In the dressing room, I remember Dean Burton saying to me, "Young lad, get up and make the teas."  I just shot straight back, "I'll make the teas when you're better than me."  He just laughed and said "Yeah, that's fair."  I played up front with Dean, so I could get away with it.'

Tyreece Campbell could be heading for PL

Last year he was the favourite scapegoat player of many Charlton fans, but this morning Jamaican international; Tyreece Campbell is the subject of a special feature in the Football League Paper.

The FLP's resident expert Guy Branston has selected Campbell as one of three EFL starlets with Premier League potential.   He stats: 'The kid reminds of the quality wingers we've seen step up from the Championship over the years like Wilfred Zaha.'

'He's rapid, he moves fantastically and he's as slick as anything.  He's already played over 150 games by the age of 22 and I think he's got much more development to come.  He's going to get better and  better.'

Anthony Hayes, who coached Campbell from the age of 13, commented: 'People ask me who's the best young player I've worked with and for many years now I've said the one with the highest potential is Tyreece.  I still think he's only beginning to scratch the surface.'

Steve Avory, who spotted Campbell playing for a Southwark club at the age of nine, commented: 'The thing that always excited me about Tyreece was his ability to manage the ball at close quarters.  He has that one-v-one ability to go past players at speed with the dribble and get into goal scoring positions as a result of it.  And he was always a consistent goal scorer right through the academy journey.'

The article states that Campbell operates as a modern-day inside forward, preparing to use his speed and dribbling ability to cut inside off the left wing and take shots with his right football rather than hit the byline and provide crosses.

'Versus other Championship wide players and attacking midfielders, Campbell ranks in the top six for non-penalty goals, the top four for shot accuracy and the top two for goals per shot,'

'He has the composure and quality to fashion goal scoring opportunities from even low value chances.  For a team like Charlton who rarely dominate possession and take relatively few shots, it is an invaluable quality.'

We need simplicity after Cardiff says leading Charlton fan

Jonathan Grade remarked on X the other day that after winning at West Ham Charlton fans said we were heading for the Premiership, lose at Cardiff and we're going to be relegated.  'No perspectiv.' he rightly said.

I have no idea who Paul Sullivan is and why the BBC have selected him as the spokesperson for Charlton fans, but what he says is much more intelligent than a lot of the rubbish on social media.  Mind you, that is a low bar.

'Simplicity' is the key after Cardiff: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cr9dw2p02y2go

Encouraging signs at U21 victory

Nathan Jones has left his Welsh fastness and was at the U21 game, reports Richard Cawley. ‘Junior Nkeng definitely catching the eye. Hit the crossbar in the first half (might also have been a cross rather than shot). Wicked low cross in the second period which a Sheffield United player managed to lift over for a corner.

Winger Reuben Reid has been very good. Just added a third goal for the Addicks. Cut in off the left and a lovely curled finish into the bottom right corner of the net from the edge of the penalty area.

A 3-1 victory over Sheffield United at The Valley - goals from Junior Nkeng, Harvey Knibbs and Reuben Reid. Josh Edwards played the first 45 minutes. Penalty save by Logan Williams in the 49th minute kept the hosts' 2-1 ahead, denying Christopher Eadie a second goal of the afternoon.’