Charlton 2 (Buyens 38,pen, Cousins 55) Blackpool 2 (Eagles 25, Davies 89)
Kevin Nolan reports from The Valley
Steady evolution gave way to sudden revolution on Saturday at The Valley, where Bob Peeters threw off his cautious reputation and confronted the steady erosion of his side with unusual boldness.
Beset by long term injuries to first choice goalkeeper Stephen Henderson, left back ace Rhoys Wiggins and deeply influential skipper Johnnie Jackson, Peeters learned as late as Thursday evening that Arsenal wanted loanee Francis Coquelin back in their ranks on Friday morning. The Gunners were perfectly within their contractual rights but their ruthless behaviour smacked of disrespect for a “smaller” club, which had a moral right to expect more reasonable notice that the loan was to end. No criticism of Coquelin, of course, who departed to resume an occasional career on Arsenal’s bench.
Meanwhile, back to Peeters who, short of donning a Che Guevara beret and rounding it off with a “No pasaran” t-shirt, could hardly have kicked over the traces with more spirited abandon. His new 3-5-2 (or was it 3-5-1-1?) formation featured regular right back Chris Solly in a right central midfield role, while17 year-old prodigy Joe Gomez took over behind him. Novice left back Morgan Fox was pushed forward to wingback as the Addicks were pared down to three at the back. With Callum Harriott and Igor Vetokele carrying the red flag up front, it seemed that visitors Blackpool would be swept away by a tide flooding aggressively over the barricades.
It would have been heartwarming to report the overwhelming success of Peeters’ bold experiment but the reality was rather different. Though Solly settled responsibly to his new duties, the “diamond” we were promised looked more than a bit lopsided. There was little understanding, even less dynamism, no cohesion to speak of. Frankly the laboured diamond began to look more lozenge-shaped as soon as the newly revitalised Seasiders got among them. And a well chewed lozenge at that.
It was Jean Paul Sartre who stopped waffling about other things long enough to maintain that “in football, everything is complicated by the presence of the opposing team”, an inconvenient truth just as conveniently ignored by your grandstand know-alls. It quickly became obvious that Blackpool intended to cheerfully complicate life for the misshapen Addicks. Timing’s the key to football and Lee Clark’s rejuvenated side bears no resemblance to the shambles which offered easy pickings for opponents earlier in a campaign which still looks odds-on to finish in relegation. It wasn’t Charlton’s good fortune to meet them while they were still on offer.
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The visitors’ defiant intentions were signalled as early as the 3rd minute, after Jordan Cousins carelessly tripped Chris Eagles and Jacob Murphy’s swerving free kick was turned aside at full stretch by Nick Pope. Pope was also reliable in getting behind Eagles’ sidefooted effort but rode his luck as Steven Davies was gutbusting inches away from touching Eagles’ swooping diagonal cross past him.
It was an uninspiring start to the uprising and was hardly improved by Vetokele’s poor touch in allowing Cousin’s piercing pass to roll untouched through to Joe Lewis; so it came as no surprise that it was unfancied (14/5 could be had on-line) Blackpool who shocked their supposed betters by snatching the lead.
Still with something to offer at 29, Eagles found space to accept Tom Kennedy’s infield space, his fierce drive earning a right wing corner off Tal Ben Haim; Jamie O’Hara’s inswinger was pawed by Pope on to Nyron Nosworthy’s head and forced over the line by Eagles despite Solly’s goalline resistance. All very scruffy but justified by the run of play.
As the Addicks came into it, O’Hara was booked for upending Cousins but Johann Berg Gudmundsson’s free kick soared harmlessly over the bar. The momentum had shifted, though, and a vital equaliser before the break was secured by Charlton’s fourth successful penalty of the season.
A sweeping move along the left flank was spearheaded by Fox, whose well-timed pass sent Gudmundsson to the byline. The midfielder’s cutback eventually reached Vetokele, who was irresponsibly upended by Peter Clarke. As expected, Yoni Buyens proved ice-cool from the penalty spot.
A rare home win -Charlton’s first since October 21st – seemed assured when the indefatigable Cousins fired them into the lead ten minutes after the break. Picked out by Solly’s square pass 25 yards from goal, the coltish teenager picked his spot and calmly passed the ball into the bottom right corner.
Up front for the visitors, meanwhile, the bustling Davies is exactly the kind of centre forward badly needed by Charlton to support Vetokele. Uncomplicated, direct and physical, he kept plugging away but was in the wrong place at the wrong time as he inadvertently blocked Kevin Foley’s goalbound drive. In the last seconds of normal time, he put matters right with a typical No. 9’s equaliser.
Harshly penalised for fouling Ishmael Miller though he appeared more sinned against than sinning, Andre Bikey conceded the free kick which Tony McMahon whipped in from the right and Davies, bravely throwing himself in front of the rashly charging Pope, risked injury to head down inside the right post. The scorer limped painfully off though Bikey himself wasn’t quite finished. With almost the game’s last kick, he met George Tucudean’s precise lay-off from the left byline but from eight yards blazed haplessly over the bar. It would have been hard on the plucky Tangerines if he’d scored but it was always a long shot -even from eight yards!
Charlton: Pope, Gomez, Ben Haim, Bikey, Cousins, Solly, Buyens, Fox, Gudmundsson, Harriott (Tucudean 71), Vetokele. Not used: Etheridge, Wilson, Bulot, Onyewu, Pigott, Ahearne-Grant. Booked: Ben Haim.
Blackpool: Lewis, Foley, Nosworthy, Clarke, Kennedy, McMahon, Murphy (Miller 48), O’Hara, Perkins, Eagles (Delfouneso 53) Davies (O’Keefe 90). Not used: Parish, Orlandi, Waddington, O’Dea. Booked: O’Hara.
Referee: A. Davies.