Charlton 4 (Watt 26, Ahearne-Grant 40, Bergdich 57, Ghoochannejhad 77) Dagenham & Redbridge 1 (Doidge 69).
Kevin Nolan reports from the Valley
Blithely unencumbered by past Cup embarrassments, Charlton’s current side made light work of sweeping aside their League Two visitors and cruised into the Capital One second round. Dagenham never really stood a chance. Nor did Redbridge, who didn’t turn up to help their neighbours.
A great believer in breeding a winning mentality, Guy Luzon took the competition seriously and fielded a strong side. There were debuts for massive French centre back Naby Sarr and 18 year-old Regan Charles-Cook at right back but this was no outing for intended second stringers. The starting line-up for next Saturday’s trip to Derby is by no means cut and dried.
Clearly meaning business, the Addicks might have been in front on 16 minutes after Nyron Nosworthy clumsily tripped the irrepressible Tony Watt. From over 20 yards, Johnnie Jackson’s free kick beat Mark Cousins but clipped the crossbar on its way to safety. Jackson and Watt combined again shortly afterwards, with the skipper’s pass allowing the Scottish livewire to attack the heart of the visitors’ defence. Temporarily dispossessed by Nosworthy, Watt tenaciously won the ball back before placing it carefully past Cousins into the bottom right corner. The Addicks were off and running.
Charles-Cook (some player,Charlie Cooke, by the way), meanwhile, was finding his hands full with elusive wide man Ashley Chambers who, in one memorable incident, dummied the youngster on the left touchline before sprinting into ominous space. Charles-Cook’s lungbursting recovery run and key block of the winger’s cross spoke volumes for the kid’s fighting spirit.
Before the interval, Charlton predictably doubled their lead. Stylish Cristian Ceballos fed Watt, took the striker’s return in his stride and crossed low from the left. On the six-yard line, Zakaraya Bergdich’s robust challenge created the loose ball, which Karlan Ahearne-Grant, still a 17 year-old anklebiter, turned inside the right post for his first senior Charlton goal.
Little had been seen of Dagenham as an attacking force until on the half hour, Joe Widdowson’s centre caused brief concern as Patrick Bauer slipped but a distracted Matt McClure air-kicked an acceptable chance behind the struggling defender.
With no half-time substitutions made, Luzon continued his hard-nosed attitude to the tie. He was almost rewarded with a third goal when Watt’s typical persistence made room for El-Hadji Ba’s fierce drive to rebound off the bar but didn’t have long to wait. And the clincher, when it came moments later, was easily the best of the four.
As Watt carried the ball into a densely packed penalty area, Ahearne-Grant’s willing decoy run took the pressure off his strike partner. Using the space created, Watt’s inspired reverse pass sent Bergdich through to calmly slot past Cousins for a goal which brought most of a paltry crowd to its feet in salute.
These game Daggers weren’t ready to roll over yet and replied with a clever face-saver of their own. Timing his through pass perfectly, Chambers found Cristian Doidge, who stayed astutely onside before giving Nick Pope no chance.
Pope’s headlong dash from his line to beat Jodi Jones to a long ball, which he headed emphatically into touch was impressive. Not so impressive was his handling of no fewer than three pea-rollers straight at him, all of which he awkwardly fielded at the second attempt. Mindful of the “shocker” they scored through his legs at The Valley last season, Derby’s scouts will pass the word to their strikers not to give up on seemingly innocuous shots. Nor should Pope’s defenders until their otherwise admirable keeper’s technique can be corrected.
Dagenham’s brief recovery, meanwhile, was quashed by the Addicks’ fourth goal, claimed by the dimly remembered Reza Ghoochannejhad, once of this parish but a world traveller since World Cup 2014. And a tidy effort it was as the Iranian international ran on to Ba’s fine pass, found his angle close to the right byeline too narrow, so casually opened his body for a cute left-footed finish whipped over Cousins’ shoulder into the near corner.
With many of their Championship rivals eliminated from The Capital One Cup on Tuesday evening, Charlton march on. Forget the many disappointments because they have a proud Cup tradition to sustain them. After all, they remain the only SE London club to have actually WON the FA Cup. Not so tasty in the variously titled League Cups but there you go, you cant -and don’t – win ’em all.
Charlton: Pope, Charles-Cook, Bauer, Sarr, Fox, Ceballos (Holmes-Dennis 74), Ba, Bergdich (Gudmundsson 62), Jackson, Watt (Ghoochannejhad 62), Ahearne-Grant. Not used: Mitov, Cousins, Makienok, Lennon. Booked: Ceballos.
Dagenham: Cousins, Nosworthy, Dikamona, Boucaud, Widdowson, Jones, Hamalainen (Hemmings 58), Partridge (Passley 75), Ferdinand, Chambers, McClure (Doidge 58). Not used: O’Brien. Connors, Cureton, Richards. Booked: Nosworthy.