The only surprise for me after watching yesterdays abject performance by Charlton, was how Forest were only two points above us before yesterday's kick off? This was probably the most one sided performance I have seen Charlton involved in this season, and all for all the wrong reasons. If two players playing in the same position for their respective sides can sum yesterday up, and I think they can, then step forward Andy Reid and Dale Stephens.
Reid calmly controlled the entire game, whilst Stephens was rightly hauled off at half time for a performance that was little short of woeful. Those that went to Leicester on Tuesday night spoke of Stephens having had one of his best games in a Charlton shirt, and yet here we were four days later, and a showing that was beyond dreadful. I am struggling to think of a completed pass of any note that he might have made in the first half.
His wasn't the only poor performance, but take nothing away from Forest, as a large part of the reason we looked so poor, was because they are a very good side, and made us look poor. Yesterday was a little puzzling to some of their fans as well. The same players that had been having an indifferent season are suddenly pulling up trees since the second coming of Billy Davies. I often wonder what would have become of Charlton had the Board coughed up the higher basic salary Davies wanted after Curbishley left us. Instead we ended up with Dowie, and the rest as they say is history.
I should be feeling annoyed at how bad Charlton were yesterday, but I am not, and the reason is that I can accept a footballing lesson like that if we have been completely outplayed by a far better team, and that is exactly what happened. With the possible exception of Wiggins, nobody in a Charlton shirt should be feeling any satisfaction with their performance yesterday, least of all Kermorgant, who spoilt a great week for himself, by petulantly kicking out at former Addick Greg Halford, and getting sent off for his troubles. I personally didn't have a problem with the referee consulting with his West Stand lino about it either, as I would rather the man in charge took on all views available before making a decision to send a player off. That is what he did, and the decision, as Chris Powell has subsequently admitted was the correct one.
Moving swiftly on; a fond farewell to Bradley Wright-Phillips. As regular readers will know, even before the season started, I didn't believe Bradders would be a first choice striker this season, and so it has proved. I wish him well at Brentford, and I am sure he will score goals again at third division level. On the basis of one out, one in, a welcome to Jonathan Obika. The loanee from Spurs' introduction to Charlton being a cameo in yesterdays horror show, and who could blame him if he was looking up bus times back to White Hart Lane even as I type. In Chris we trust, of course, but I can't get too excited by this signing, and I wonder who we would have brought in had Wright-Phillips and Green joined Swindon during the transfer window as originally planned. With all due respect to him, I am not convinced that Obika would have been one of them.
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