Peterborough Utd (Szmodics 66,79) Charlton 1 (Washington 14,pen).

by Kevin Nolan on duty back at home, where he belongs.

Two descents into momentary madness destroyed what had promised to be an untroubled, tactical tour-de-force by Charlton. On arguably the worst playing surface in League One, they had adapted sensibly to the conditions, kept things deliberately simple and were proceeding uneventfully behind the early lead supplied by Conor Washington's early penalty. Then abruptly they shot themselves twice - once in each foot.

Their first concession involved an outbreak of slapstick misunderstanding - comical under different circumstances but disastrous in this serious context. While converging on an innocuous high ball through the middle, Jason Pearce and Deji Oshilaja contrived to impede each other and turned what should have been a routine clearance into a music hall farce, which Brian Rix might have authored. Subdued up to that point, Jonson Clarke-Harris was quick to exploit the carnage, his flick sending Sammie Szmodics through to slot calmly past Ben Amos. From busy beasts of prey, Charlton became hypnotised rabbits in Peterborough's headlights.

A creditable draw with freescoring Posh (25 goals in 10 home games) was still achievable until more Keystone Kops defending ruined even that modest ambition and handed all three points to their grateful hosts. A faithful re-run of the opening goal saw the hapless Pearce combine with substitute Andrew Shinnie to make an unholy mess of dealing with another apparently harmless delivery near the left touchline. Pearce hesitated, as did Shinnie; both were lost as the predatory Clarke-Harris solved their dilemma, his accurate pass slipping Symodics clear to beat Amos again, this time off the foot of a post.

Before the end, Symodics and Amos confronted one another again, with the keeper winning their third one-on-one duel by blocking the on-fire forward's shot. It was too late to matter by then, with the Addicks already reduced to a broken, disorderly rabble. But until Posh's prolific striker equalised, their tactics had been spot-on. They carried out Lee Bowyer's game plan faithfully, with high-end pressure, tigerish group tackling and defensive responsibility unsettling their normally freewheeling opponents. Taken aback , Duncan Ferguson's men struggled to assert the usual authority they enjoy at home. The question was whether Charlton could keep it up. Five minutes past the hour mark, we had our answer.

On 14 minutes, however, the visitors' future looked bright. They had signalled their aggressive intent shortly after kick-off, with Ian Maatsen's fierce drive skimming the crossbar. It was no shock when they took the lead, with Pearce an important contributor at the right end of United's ill-kempt potato patch. In pursuit of Jake Forster-Caskey's free kick, he was clumsily hauled to the ground by Ethan Hamilton and despite goalkeeper Christy Pym's pointless protests, for which he was booked, a penalty was correctly awarded. From 12 yards, Washington made not altogether convincing work of claiming his 7th goal of the season.

Buoyed by their early success, the Addicks were good value for the lead they brought back to the dressing room at half-time. Oshilaja and Pearce were a redoubtable barrier to progress down the middle, with Darren Pratley in belligerent mood ahead of them; Clarke-Harris and Symodics were reduced to scraps of occasional possession.  Full backs Maatsen and Chris Gunter were sound, with Forster-Caskey continuing his recent improvement as midfield organiser. From Omar Bogle up front to Amos in goal, each Addick contributed to a tireless defensive operation which, while hardly attractive, was effective. But it couldn't last.

Had Gunter netted a straightforward headed chance soon after the break, the Addicks might have sealed  an unexpected victory over close promotion rivals. His miss denied them the clear water they needed to see them home and an old, familiar feeling of inevitability greeted Posh's equaliser and their eventual winner. That both goals resulted from defensive howlers fails to mitigate the deep disappointment felt in countless living rooms in South London and North Kent. It suggests that Charlton are a decent League One side, whose Championship ambitions are currently so much pie in the sky. And as for the trumpeted five-year plan to "get back where we belong" in the Premier League, that should perhaps be filed under "temporary insanity." There's nothing wrong with mindless optimism. Trouble is that a withering dash of reality is often served as dessert.

In the shorter term, the Addicks will be seeking some sort of redemption against Swindon Town at The Valley on Saturday. It's not too late to make a run for the play-offs. That particular optimism is grounded, not mindless. And we're not too bad at play-offs.

Peterborough: Pym, Butler, Thompson, Beevers, Kent, Taylor, Clarke-Harris, Dembele, Symodics, Kanu (Burrows 58), Hamilton (Brown 64). Not used: Gyollai, Eisa, Broom, Jones, Mason. Booked, Pym, Kent, Symodics.

Charlton: Amos, Gunter, Oshilaja, Pearce, Maatsen, Smyth (Gilbey 79), Pratley, Forster-Caskey (Shinnie 71), Millar (Williams 79), Bogle (Aneke 67), Washington (Schwartz 67). Not used: Maynard-Brewer, Harness, Matthews. Booked: Forster-Caskey, Millar, Smyth, Pratley.

Referee: S. Purkiss. 

Bristol Rovers 0 Charlton 1 (Liam Millar 64).

By Kevin Nolan observing press box etiquette from home.

Past masters in the dark art of torturing both themselves and their hypertensive supporters, Charlton at least ended their recent mini-slump in less than imperious fashion. A first clean sheet since October 31st and their streakiest goal of the season were enough to deliver this sorely needed victory. It wasn't always pretty but the result was potentially pivotal.

It hardly needs mentioning Lee Bowyer's boys were at pains to prolong the agony before all three points were nailed down. Yet again they were reduced to ten men, with Albie Morgan the latest Addick to see red but fortunately had enough about them to withstand a wave of late pressure from desperate Rovers. And had Omar Bogle finished an added time chance with greater aplomb, those last uncomfortable minutes might have been avoided. Let's start at the end and work backward.

Caught on the break while understandably flooding forward, Gas were split open by an artfully judged through pass from Ronnie Schwartz which sent fellow substitute Bogle through on his own to confront Joe Day. With possibly too much time to consider his options, Chris Gunter's left-footed shot was alertly saved by the advancing keeper. It was then Schwartz' turn to frustrate Bowyer, his inadvertent goalline block of Gunter's piledriver denying the visitors breathing space. The Addicks should have been punished for their profligacy but Alfie Kilgour may find it hard to explain to his manager Paul Tisdale how he managed to direct a point blank header over rather than under Ben Amos' bar. An equaliser then and Bowyer's sunny post-match mood might never have seen the light of day.

Charlton's 64th minute match-winner relied on the old advice that if you can't be good, be lucky. It arrived via a right wing corner taken by setpiece guvnor Jake Forster-Caskey, who declined Liam Millar's offer to improve his angle and drilled a head-high delivery along the right byline. On his way towards the near post, Millar made a game, twisting effort to help it on its way but missed. His feint did succeed in bemusing a slow-on-the-uptake home defence, which stood transfixed as the ball wriggled inside the near corner. Millar's hopefully tongue-in-cheek attempt to claim credit never really gained popular support. It was the otherwise outstanding Forster-Caskey's goal and reward for his dramatic improvement in form.

The goal, by the way, was saluted by a gathering of ecstatic Addicks around the corner flag from which Forster-Caskey had delivered his decisive flagkick. In flagrant contravention of the unofficial dictum deploring physical excess, they cavorted and capered in the usual manner, with not so much as a mask among them. In Grove Park, meanwhile, we kept our heads and celebrated a little more decorously. A hearty old-fashioned "Hip-hip-hooray" was quickly organised and elbow bumps were exchanged. We even remembered our manners enough to clap plucky Rovers off the field at the end. As someone with previous in away press boxes (most memorably among them an unfortunate misunderstanding which followed a late equaliser by Johnnie Jackson at Ipswich), I was anxious we behave appropriately. I've mellowed appreciably since the post-match unpleasantness at St. Andrews after we'd clung on to a 4-3 nailbiter all those years ago. Anyone who knows me will vouch for that. I'm not currently barred anywhere in the country, not even at Hartlepool, where a 4-0 thumping didn't sit well with the locals and led to some regrettably heated exchanges.

Until Forster-Caskey's fortune-favoured goal ignited the closing stages, a fairly routine game had chugged along with the visitors in charge but never quite secure. His hand forced by injury and suspension, Bowyer deployed a solid-looking side to face struggling Rovers. Without four centre backs, he moved Gunter inside from right back, continued with Deji Oshilaja alongside him and brought in Adam Matthews to replace Gunter. Old pros Gunter and Matthews were dependably steady while Oshilaja was excellent. Never giving anything but his best, Deji was inspirational, his tackling and interceptions backed up by a willingness to put his body on the line in a warrior's determination to block goalbound shots at source.

Chances were few and equally shared. Ex-Addick Brandon Hanlon squandered Rover's most promising opening, scuffing wide a perfect cutback from the left byline supplied by Jonah Ayunga. Both he and Ayunga blasted efforts into the sidenet before Ben Amos came to the visitors' rescue by denying Luke McCormick in one-on-one confrontation. Charlton were hardly explosive themselves, being restricted to early long range shots from Chuks Aneke and Forster-Caskey. An earnest but dull encounter was heading for goalless stalemate until luck positively beamed on the Londoners. The task of protecting their advantage seemed straightforward enough until Albie Morgan picked up two yellow cards, the second of them a needlessly late challenge on Jack Baldwin. Sensing an unexpected opportunity, Rovers rallied and made the closing minutes unnecessarily awkward. Five added minutes hardly eased the strain but there was no repetition of the late reverses which have blighted Charlton's season.

There's a promotion contender striving to surface in this injury-depleted squad. When -and if - Bowyer is able to name a full-strength team, it might assert itself. It's important until then to stay in touch with the pacesetters, none of whom appear to be impregnable. Tuesday's daunting trip to home specialists Peterborough might tell us more... nobody said it would be easy.

Rovers: Day, Leahy, Grant, (Rodman 90), Upson, Westbrooke, Hanlon, McCormick (Barrett 76), Kilgour, Ayunga, Hare (Harries 58), Baldwin. Not used: Van Stappershoeff, Little, Ogogo, Koiko.

Charlton: Amos, Matthews, Gunter, Oshilaja, Maatsen, Williams (Smyth 69) Gilbey 82), Morgan, Forster-Caskey, Millar, Aneke (Bogle 69), Washington (Schwartz 69). Not used: Maynard-Brewer, Purrington, Barker. Booked: Oshilaja, Morgan (2) - sent off.

Referee: P. Wright.

Hull City 2 (Adelakun 18, Docherty 75) Charlton 0.

By Kevin Nolan, mercifully placed well south of DW Stadium.

Having dropped four valuable points in recent 2-2 draws with mediocre opponents Shrewsbury Town and Plymouth Argyle, Charlton were handed an inviting opportunity to get back on track against depleted Hull City. Unsettled and distracted by Covid-19 worries, Grant McCann's hopefully rusty Tigers seemed fair game to be brought down by visitors with ground to make up.  You hardly need telling that's not how it turned out, of course.

In assessing this drearily beige offering, it must first be conceded that Lee Bowyer's plans for this season have been regularly torn to shreds by an injury list of frequently pandemic proportions. At DW Stadium, his thinning squad lost Ben Watson after 10 minutes but escaped otherwise unscathed until Darren Pratley found another way of joining the absentees by getting himself sent off early in the second half and incurring suspension. As the door closed behind him, Chuks Aneke opened another by thoughtfully completing a one-game ban and will be available to Bowyer for next Friday's TV titbit against Accrington Stanley.  Your classic example of one step forward, two steps back.

The under-pressure gaffer hardly eased the strain by leaving Akin Famewo on the bench, where he shared space with Marcus Maddison, whose injection of class had saved the day against Plymouth. Famewo is either fit or not fit - if the latter, his presence among the substitutes was surely pointless. The almost wilful indifference to Maddison, meanwhile, is equally difficult to understand. An anaemic line-up which as good as surrendered to Hull clearly lacked the creativity Charlton's enfant terrible can supply when he's in the mood. He might be a pain in the tuchas but he would have had a point to prove to Hull, where he spent a few wheel-spinning months not too long ago. He was worth a punt and it was frankly mystifying that he was ignored while his colleagues threshed around feebly in front of him.

For this ill-fated fixture, Bowyer named an oddly deployed starting line-up featuring right-footed Matthews at left back again, with naturally left-footed Ian Maatsen in right midfield. Neither the experienced Matthews nor the L-plated Maatsen embarrassed himself but the Addicks were a lopsided mess who surprised us all by lasting 18 minutes before conceding what turned out to be a decisive goal.

When Jacob Greaves lofted a measured pass into a yawning space behind the visitors' undermanned defence, Mallik Wilks was alone and unhindered while bringing the ball down and driving it waist-high across the six-yard area. An inadvertent deflection off both Jason Pearce and Ben Amos left Habeeb Adelukan the easy task of tapping home from close range.  His goal made the remaining minutes mere motions to be gone through, though it took the Tigers fifty seven of those minutes to deliver the coup-de-grace. And if you find my wording ugly - well, it fits in well with this equally ugly game.

Without suggesting even once that they had it in them to equalise, Charlton pottered around aimlessly. Their ineptitude was even more firmly demonstrated by Pratley, who responded to Wilks' baiting and kicked out at his tormentor. His inane dismissal had absolutely no effect on the outcome of a game, in which the Addicks merely made up the numbers they were again at pains to reduce. Describing their offensive contribution needn't detain us for long.

The less said the better, for instance, about the mess made by Omar Bogle of connecting with the chance laid on for him when Pearce nodded down Jake Forster-Caskey's corner. So we'll say no more about it. Forster-Caskey himself  was responsible for the Addicks' best effort, his free kick forcing George Long into a diving save to keep out a respectable delivery. There isn't much else to say except to note that, at least, the general misery didn't include a long journey home from Humberside.

To be fair, there's the small matter of describing the Tigers' irrelevant second goal. It occurred while refreshments were being served in Grove Park and passed without comment or curse. To be honest, our interest was waning anyway by the time substitute Keane Lewis-Potter placed on a plate a chance which Wilks inexplicably headed against a post. Skipper George Honeyman alertly re-cycled the rebound for Greg Docherty to bash past Amos. Had it been a fight, the referee would have been justified in stopping it. Mind you, he could have spared us needless punishment by waving it over after City's first goal. You gotta know when you're beaten. And we were already beaten...

Hull: Long, Emmanuel, Jones, Greaves, Fleming, Smallwood (Batty 84), Docherty, Honeyman (Slayter 78), Adelukan (Mayer 78), Wilks, Eaves (Lewis-Potter 78).    Not used: Ingram, Coyle, McLoughlin

Charlton: Amos, Gunter, Pearce, Pratley, Matthews, Maatsen, Watson (Gilbey 10), Forster-Caskey, Morgan(Williams 61), Washington, Bogle (Smyth 46). Not used: Maynard-Brewer, Purrington, Famewo, Maddison.

Referee: Martin Coy.   

In memory of Tom Morris, friend and colleague. In an old school age, I wrote the reports, Tom expertly took the photos and Peter Cordwell added the snappy headlines.  We've lost an artist. Go gentle into that good night, Tom.

Swindon Town 2 (Jaiysemi 26, Pitman 90) Charlton 2 (Bogle 37, Aneke 61)

Kevin Nolan moderates his language to report Charlton's latest added time fiasco.

Charlton's tiresome inability to withstand late pressure and protect a slender lead to the bitter end returned to haunt them at the County Ground. Their confused defending of a last gasp setpiece proved, not for the first time, to be the Achilles heel into which a poor Swindon side fired a point-saving arrow.

John Sheridan's struggling Robins were beavering away gamely but optimistically when Chris Gunter was forced to concede a left wing corner. As both teams crowded into a heaving penalty area, Matt Smith swung in the flagkick, which veteran substitute Bret Pitman, finding space in the maelstrom, looped over Ben Amos and into the net off the underside of the bar. Pitman, it might be worth noting, was a relative pygmy among the giants surrounding him.

That familiar feeling of gut-wrenching disbelief radiated through countless Southland living rooms as TVs and laptops were abruptly switched off in disgust. The behaviour in one Grove Park house was nothing short of disgraceful but you can push some people only so far. "Oi vey iz mir!" was the most imaginative of the salty comments uttered. Others among us relied on tried and tested Anglo-Saxon epithets. You can always turn to the tried and tested. Especially when you feel tried and tested.

And so another late goal continued a trend which has accelerated Charlton's recent fall from grace. The chronically bad habit did much to relegate them last season. It promises to keep them where they are this time around and happens too often to be dismissed as coincidental. Admittedly the absence of centre backs Akin Famewo and Ryan Innis removed, at two ill-timed strokes, the rock-like partnership responsible for the sequence of early-season clean sheets but a corporate lack of grit or bottle - call it what you will -has more to do with it. Scarcely one fan expected them to hang on against Swindon as they dropped deeper, gave the ball away regularly and launched panicky clearances, which were picked up and returned with interest. And the groan which greeted the fateful corner was born of bitter experience.

A rare unchanged side, which named Omar Bogle over Chuks Aneke and preferred a largely anonymous Ryan Gilbey to in-form Jonny Williams had made heavy weather of putting Swindon in their place - a place which, even after this useful draw, still leaves Town in the relegation basement. On the back of the previous weekend's demolition of AFC Wimbledon, the visitors were expected to overwhelm the Westcountrymen but their diffident approach to an apparently uncomplicated task allowed their hosts to gain a foothold. After nearly a half hour of shapeless sparring, Swindon moved into a surprising lead with a goal out of context with its scruffy surroundings.

Adding vision to his diligent midfield industry, Dion Conroy made progress on the left before picking out Diallang Jaiysemi to the right of Charlton's goal. Showing impressive control, the persistent wide man's acute turn inside sent marker Ian Maatsen sprawling and gained him space to blast an unstoppable drive past Amos. Jaiysemi remained Swindon's main threat although Maatsen stuck to the task of containing him with commendable zeal.

Swindon's lead stood up for only ten minutes before Bogle equalised. Played in behind the home defence by Maatsen, he brushed aside a weak effort to stop him and was in the act of rounding Matej Kovar when the keeper clipped his heels. A penalty was obvious but Kovar's intervention supplied a stumbling Bogle with the impetus he needed to almost comically prod the ball into a vacant net. Mere minutes later, Marcus Maddison's pass gave him an even clearer chance to score again but an ugly mess was made of finishing from two yards out.

Replaced as usual by Aneke, this time during the interval, Bogle had at least answered his critics by scoring. And as long as Aneke is considered incapable of completing 90 minutes, their either-or relationship seems set to continue. Just past the hour, big Chuks made his point by putting Charlton ahead after Conor Washington drew Kovar from his line and unselfishly squared for him to tap home from two yards.

With a half hour separating them from three priceless points, the Addicks should have blown their lowly opposition out of the water. A re-run of the second half exuberance which lit up The Valley a week previously would have done the trick but caution ruled and instead poor choices in possession and inability to look after the ball turned the game into an unsightly mishmash which allowed one of League One's feebler sides hope of salvation. They were never "comfortable" as Lee Bowyer claimed post-game and were desperately hanging on by the time Pitman equalised. That's the way it looked, at least from the Lord Melchett-like position of immunity adopted by this witness.

The discouraging result threw a wet blanket over the cheerful, positive vibe spread about him by Thomas Sangaard - or Thomas Standguard as he could be appropriately renamed. He seems like a regular bloke but why should he be spared the frequent disappointment, bordering on despair, which goes with the territory of following Charlton? It's part of the deal, Thomas? Merry Christmas anyway and the same to all of you. But if only somebody had got his head on that bloody corner, it might have been whole lot merrier...

Swindon: Kovar, Odimayo, Bauldry, Friars, Grounds, Grant (Hunt 85), Conroy, Tom Smith (Pitman 62), Jaiysemi, Matt Smith, Jonny Smith (Payne 48). Booked: Odimayo, Pitman.

Charlton: Amos, Gunter, Pratley, Pearce, Maatsen, Watson, Forster-Caskey (Purrington 66), Gilbey, Maddison (Matthews 72), Bogle (Aneke 46), Washington. Not used: Maynard-Brewer, Oshilaja, Levitt, Williams. Booked: Forster-Caskey.

Shrewsbury Town 1 (Norburn 90+4) Charlton 1 (Watson 72)

A last kick penalty, nervelessly converted by Ollie Norburn, dealt Charlton's promotion ambitions another sickening blow in Shropshire on Saturday. After staggering through intense pressure during a torrid last quarter hour, they were within seconds of making off with three precious points when they imploded. And as long as football matches are decided on the playing field and not in small claims court, whether they deserved them doesn't matter, not even as a moot point. You deserve what the scoreline says you deserve. That's how it works in football.

It's the nature of the grand old game, of course, that Shrewsbury will be far more pleased with their point than their loftier visitors. A last gasp equaliser makes a draw feel like a victory, whereas the Addicks felt like the stuffing had been knocked out of them. Their own goal had been scored in the game's later stages but triggered an almost instant wave of panic through the ranks. As the desperate home side drove them back, they were opposed -at times single-handedly - by Ben Amos, whose series of brilliant saves brought his beleaguered side to the brink of victory. You might even say that Amos deserved to end up a winner.

One last conclusive clearance would have done trick as the last of four added minutes ebbed away when Albie Morgan popped up on the edge of the penalty area to lend a hand. Unhappily his agricultural attempt to help out his defence was badly sliced back towards Charlton's goal. Akin Famewo did his best to solve the airborne problem but its treacherous flight deceived him and allowed substitute Dave Edwards to fasten on to the elusive ball. Dangerous but still with a lot to do among a throng of opponents, Edwards was no doubt delighted to make contact with Chris Gunter's unwisely inserted foot and understandably made the most of it. The spotkick was inevitable, skipper Norburn made cool work of drilling it past and Charlton's most recent gift to League One's needy was signed, sealed and duly delivered. Bludgeoned by Burton, finessed by MK Dons, their pockets picked by Shrewsbury; AFC Wimbledon are next in the queue for a handout.

Ringing his usual changes, the most notable of which welcomed Jason Pearce back to the colours, preferred Jake Forster-Caskey to Albie Morgan in midfield and obstinately named Omar Bogle over Chuks Aneke, Lee Bowyer can hardly be accused of dithering. His controversial first half withdrawal of Bogle recently showed his ruthless side. At Shrewsbury, he replaced an ineffectual Ryan Gilbey with Jonny Williams on 62 minutes before hooking Williams and rushing on Adam Matthews with five minutes left. A clear signal to the lowly home side had been made. Charlton were at bay, their backs to the wall and unapologetically desperate to hang on to what they had. Not exactly the attitude expected of a member of the division's elite but, there you go, needs must…

Nothing the Addicks contributed to this scruffy, scrappy game had daunted Town. Their mediocrity was matched -and more than matched at times - by their more upwardly mobile guests. The sides vied with each other to hand over possession, the long ball found new favour, one was as crude as the other. Nothing of note is worth reporting so let's hasten on to the 72nd minute when Charlton surprised everyone, not least themselves, by scoring. And at least one of this dreary game's better performers claimed dubious credit for the goal.

Breaking quickly on to Amos' clearance, Charlton cut through the left side of Town's rearguard, helped on by Bogle's hustle and the pass fed by Williams to an overlapping Gunter on his right. The right back's cutback was sidefooted goalwards by Ben Watson, caught a huge deflection off Aaron Pierre, and left Matija Sarkic stranded as it headed for the opposite corner. Watson's first goal for Charlton was laced with good fortune, might even have been an own goal but will, quite properly, be claimed by the estimable veteran.

Far from inspiring Bowyer's boys, as it turned out, the lead was bravely protected by their outstanding keeper. Great saves by Amos kept out piledrivers from Norburn, Shaun Walley and Marc Pugh. then he excelled at the feet of a rampaging Charlie Daniels. Matt Millar's effort scraped the bar before Josh Vela's deceptive cross was awkwardly pawed over the top. Only moments before Charlton capitulated, the defiant Amos hurled himself full length to turn aside a rocket from substitute Jason Cummings. His resistance was finally broken by Norburn and Charlton were left with only recriminations, mitigations and explanations. Oh…and a point. Let's not forget the point. Doesn't seem like much right now. But it might come in handy going forward, as they say.

Shrewsbury: Sarkic, Pierre, Williams, Whalley, Norburn, Vela, Millar, Daniels, Udoh (Cummings 72), Ebanks-Landell, Pugh (Edwards 65). Not used: Burgoyne, Golbourne, Goss, High. Booked: Udoh, Pugh, Vela.

Charlton: Amos, Gunter, Pearce, Famewo, Maatsen, Watson, Pratley, Forster-Caskey (Morgan 62), Gilbey (Williams 62, Matthews 85), Aneke (Bogle 69), Washington. Not used: Maynard-Brewer, Purrington, Henry. Booked: Gilbey, Aneke, Morgan.

Ipswich Town 0 Charlton 2 (Morgan 21, Bogle 68).

By Kevin Nolan from the tactical safety of Grove Park.

As good at Portman Road on Saturday as they were bad in midweek at Burton Albion's Pirelli Stadium, Charlton brushed aside Ipswich Town and re-established themselves as serious promotion contenders. Their inner Mr. Hyde had embarrassed them in Staffordshire; Dr. Jekyll showed up in Suffolk, where the Tractor Boys were comfortably beaten.

Whatever harsh words Lee Bowyer chose to criticise the humiliation by bottom-of-the-table Burton clearly did the trick. His shaken side produced a performance of relaxed but purposeful ability, which included first league goals for the outstanding Albie Morgan and a score-settling Omar Bogle, whose first half removal on Wednesday was hurtful but got Bowyer's message across. Bogle's stone-faced reaction to scoring, while his teammates generously celebrated his change of fortune, was born of injured pride but Bowyer had been proven right. Omar is cordially advised to lighten up. With the wretchedly unlucky Paul Smyth now unavailable for a few games, he promises to be indispensable to his manager.

Morgan had been one of the few successes at Burton, where his second half replacement of Marcus Maddison inspired brief hope of a second half rally. The 20 year-old's display earned him a start three days later and he rose to the occasion with a tour-de-force of impressive quality. Well schooled at Charlton's peerless academy, young Albie seems ready to kick on from eager prospect to savvy midfield all-rounder, capable of quarterbacking play and shouldering greater responsibility. "Things are starting to finally sink in with him", remarked Bowyer and Morgan's new willingness to do his share of the muck-and-nettles work around him made the gaffer's point. 

Alongside the kid at Portman Road, the superb contribution of grizzled veteran Ben Watson provided him with a timely example. Watson was busier than a one-armed paperhanger as he threw spanner after spanner into Town's sputtering tractor and gummed up its works. Morgan's early opener was a logical result of the hustle and hassle so dismally absent at the Pirelli Stadium. An attack appeared to have foundered on the edge of the home penalty area until a crunching recovery tackle by Chuks Aneke won back important possession. Jonny Williams added a touch, which allowed Andrew Shinnie to pick out Morgan in space ten yards out. A crisp first-time shot whistled past David Cornell and Charlton were on their way.

It was far from one-way traffic, of course, with Ben Amos required to do his bit before the interval. He narrowed the angle intelligently to force James Norwood to scoop over the bar after the bustling forward burst between  deputy centre backs Chris Gunter and Darren Pratley. He then rescued Pratley, who was outwitted by Drinnan while attempting to shepherd the ball over the right byline. Leaving his line alertly, he smothered Alan Judge's effort to convert Drinnan's artful cutback. But the twisting, mid-air save he produced to touch over Judge's deft header as it redirected Chambers's wicked free kick towards the top left corner was his piece-de-resistance. As the Addicks settled down, Town's chances dwindled.

Conspicuously absent was the pointless "build from the back" stodge which was seen at its worst in midweek. Crisp and confident, the visitors moved the ball quickly, switched play seamlessly and dominated their promotion rivals. Even the important second goal was prudently timed to ease nerves and provide a more accurate reflection of an increasingly one-sided game.

The process was begun by the quietly dependable Adam Matthews, whose long throw from the right was awkwardly shinned out to Pratley and returned hard and low by the estimable old stager. Unmarked beyond the far post, Bogle made the points safe by finishing  efficiently.  Seemed a shame not to celebrate an overdue goal. There was - as there always is - a price to pay for this vital win. Just past the hour mark, Smyth suffered a badly gashed knee when sliding in to challenge Aristote Nsiala and departed the ground on crutches. Already without Conor Washington, Bowyer's talent for improvisation will be exercised yet again as he prepares for the midweek visit of MK Dons. He wouldn't have it any other way.

Ipswich: Cornell, Chambers, Nsiala (McGuinness 71), Woolfenden, Ward, Gibbs (Jackson 64), McGavin (Lankester 71), Dozzell, Judge, Norwood (Drinan 35), Bennetts. Not used: Holy, Kenlock, Hawkins, Booked: Ward, Judge.

Charlton: Amos, Matthews, Gunter, Pratley, Maatsen, Morgan, Watson, Shinnie, Williams (Gilbey55), Aneke (Purrington 71), Smyth (Bogle 66). Not used: Maynard-Brewer, Pearce, Maddison. Booked: Maatsen. Referee: Craig Hicks.

Charlton 0 Plymouth Argyle 1 (Jephcott 60)

Some things don't change. It's standard operational procedure for Charlton to leave the FA Cup by the nearest exit and at the first available opportunity. As a League One Club these days, they duly lived down to expectations and were dispatched one round before the eventual winners join the competition.

"Am I disappointed I'm out of the Cup?", mused Lee Bowyer. "Not really, not in a disrespectful way because I love the Cup but the league is more important to me." Of course you do and of course it is, Lee, goes without saying. So perhaps best not say it.

Mercifully locked out of The Valley, Charlton's fans were at least toasty-warm in their living rooms as the "drama" unfolded though at a tenner a time, Valley Pass saw them coming. And while this latest surrender was as docile as any in recent memory,  most of them will forever link this spectacularly trivial football result with the very weekend America surfaced from a four-year coma and flushed that tangerine-tinged twerp down the White House toilet, defiantly screaming "let them drink bleach!" as he gurgled past the U-bend.

At a deserted Valley, meanwhile, a deceptively strong-looking Charlton side was going through the motions of battling unchanged Plymouth for a place in the second round hat and a chance to draw one of the big boys (among which they themselves were numbered not so long ago) in the third round proper. "Battling" is possibly a fanciful description of their contribution to a largely tedious yawn which frankly tried the patience of its on-the-spot witnesses, denied as they were the comforts of home and hearth. 

At the ground, consolation was found in the knowledge that the tie would be resolved on the day by penalties if the scores were level after 90 minutes. On the hour mark, Argyle made that eventuality unnecessary by surprising their complacent hosts with a decent enough goal. While hardly the work of genius, rhapsodised by the visitors' club press which bandied words such as "fabulous" and "fantastic" in describing it, it wasn't half bad. A quickfire combination from Danny Mayor and Byron Moore set up Luke Jephcott to "delightfully dink" from close range over league debutant Ashley Maynard-Brewer. It was enough to reward the visitors' "super display", which to the more churlish of us was more a case of Argyle's dross being marginally less dreary than the Addicks' dross.

One of two full debutants (Marcus Maddison being the other) Maynard-Brewer emerged with credit from an otherwise mundane occasion. His alert save at Ryan Hardie's feet after Ryan Inniss slipped up staved off the Westcountrymen before Jephcott struck. The young Australian's work was neat and unfussy. The eagerly awaited Maddison, on the other hand, left as many questions as answers. One impressive second half burst produced a sharp cutback which eluded an onrushing posse of colleagues but there was little else of note. The first full weekend of November 2020 won't be remembered, though, for this minor league encounter in the first round of a great competition robbed of relevance and, despite pious cant to the contrary, the respect it deserves.

It will go down instead as the time the world scraped Donald Trump off the sole of its shoe and threw him - shoe and all - into history's garbage can. Meanwhile finding room for most of his ghastly family. So you pay your money and you take your choice. What's worth recalling about this pivotal weekend? The sobering realisation that even the 2021 FA Cup semi- finals will not feature Charlton for the 73rd successive season? Or the more cheerful certainty that at last Trump - the pimple on the world's posterior - has finally been lanced? 

Charlton: Maynard-Brewer, Matthews, Barker, Inniss, Purrington, Forster-Caskey (Maatsen 84), Williams, Morgan, Levitt, Maddison (Vennings 64), Aneke (Washington 64).Not used: Amos, Pratley, Wiredu, Henry. 

Referee: Neil Hair.   

Kevin Nolan reporting from the no-man's land of Grove Park

Behind a rock-solid defence, Charlton comfortably won this wind-marred mess of a game to make it three victories in a row. It didn't exactly qualify as winning ugly but the neutral observer understandably found it a chore to watch.

Deprived of fast improving Chuks Aneke, Lee Bowyer stuck to his rotation system and made five changes from the side which beat Blackpool. But it  was the same superb back four behind the midweek triumph at Bloomfield Road who came through for him again. Ruthlessly efficient centre backs Ryan Inniss and Akin Famewo were in "No Pasaran" mood while new captain Chris Gunter and Ian Maatsen were equally hard nosed full backs. Behind them, Ben Amos contributed a marvellous first half double save and the pass-of-the-game later on to set up Charlton's second goal. His fourth consecutive clean sheet was otherwise little more than a formality.

It made sense in chaotic conditions to keep it simple, forget any fooling about at the back and use direct methods. Apart from one scare handed them midway through the first period, the Addicks' tactics, though hardly original, proved chillingly effective. Northampton were a beaten side well before the final whistle.

The solitary blip in an almost flawless away performance cropped up when Maatsen fouled Ricky Korboa to the right of the away goal. Nicky Adams' wickedly delivered free kick was met on the run by Sam Hoskins, who seemed certain to score from close range until Amos almost miraculously parried his effort. While on the ground, the keeper kicked clear the rebound off Inniss' shins. He could scarcely have seen the original bullet but of course goalkeepers respond to more uniquely honed instincts than mere mortals.

Charlton's only threat to the Cobblers' goal scarcely warrants mention but serves to illustrate the dire lack of action in an opening half which made watching it from the warmth of Grove Park all the more attractive. Some of us have already paid our travelling dues and then some. Anyway, Omar Bogle's header had the merit of being on target but made easy pickings for Jonathan Mitchell. So much for the first 45 minutes.

Bowyer's interval replacement of a subdued Dylan Levitt by warhorse Darren Pratley made an immediate difference. Levitt has still to find his skilful feet while Pratley was made for such belt-and-braces conditions. Within 10 minutes, he blasted the visitors ahead in typically no-nonsense style.

The latest in a series of menacing corners from Jake Forster-Caskey was met at the far post by Inniss and headed back into a crowded six-yard box., where Bogle made a foraging nuisance of himself. From eight yards, Pratley hammered the loose ball into the roof of Mitchell's net. The lead should have been instantly doubled but Paul Smyth made a hash of converting another header by Inniss from yet another of Forster-Caskey's corners. The Forster-Caskey-Inniss setpiece combination promises to be productive.

Smyth's miss was not costly because the Addicks lost little time in scoring again, this time by direct but far from crude means. Fielding a corner, Amos spotted Alfie Doughty already on the move over the halfway line and delivered a scorching sideways-on pass ahead of the flying winger. Leaving Christopher Missilou trailing desolately in his slipstream, Doughty burst clear to cross hard and low from the right byline. Caught wrongfooted as he sought to clear the danger, Cobblers' defender Jack Sowerby turned the ball into his own net. Play out from the back aficionados might find it educational to consider that the goal resulted from Amos' long pass, without a hint of long ball aimlessness about it. In this age of regimented, one-style football, there remains room for improvisation. Defenders still fear the ball over the top. They "don't like it up 'em". Or over 'em, come to that.

Two decisive goals up, the Addicks managed what was left with impressive ease. Keith Curle's Cobblers struggled to make headway, their fading hopes pinned on the long throws of Fraser Horsfall. The aerial domination of Inniss and Famewo toyed with those hopes and the points were secured without undue drama. His enforced 66th minute withdrawal of a limping Doughty provided Bowyer with his only headache. The rookie speedster is being targeted as Charlton's danger man and kicked accordingly, which is both a compliment and a concern at the same time.  Doughty will probably miss Tuesday's visit by Karl Robinson's Oxford United. If he does, who knows, we might see Marcus Maddison step in to the breach. One door closes...

Northampton: Mitchell, Harriman, Sowerby, Bolger, Horsfall, Hoskins, Adams (Ashley-Seal 62), Korboa (Chukwuemaka 63), Racic (Marshall 70), Missilou, Rose. Not used: Arnold, Watson, Smith, McWilliams. Booked: Racic, Harriman, Hoskins.

Charlton: Amos, Gunter, Inniss, Famewo, Maatsen, Forster-Caskey, Levitt (Pratley 46), Williams (Washington 77), Doughty (Shinnie 60), Bogle, Smyth. Not used: Maynard-Brewer, Watson, Morgan, Maddison. Booked: Forster-Caskey.

Referee: Samuel Allison. 

Lincoln City 2 (Grant 45, Montsma 88) Charlton 0.

Last week marked a longed-for upswing in the turbulent fortunes of Charlton Athletic. It was unceremoniously out with the old in the gnarled, sour form of Roland Duchatelet and in with swashbuckling Danish/American entrepreneur Thomas Sandgaard as the new owner of the strife-torn club. It's been a long time coming.

You just have to like the new bloke. He scrubs up well, plays rock guitar and shapes up like a regular guy. A bit of a chap all told. He seems normal, likeable and best of all, he isn't Matt Southall.

There were no dubious characters crowding through the door behind him. Nor were Interpol or the FBI.

The new guvnor's arrival was greeted with an explosion of joy - mixed, it should be said in certain areas, with caution. Charlton fans have seen it all but what they saw in Thomas Sandgaard they liked. All that remained to complete a perfect week was to pop up to cuddly little underdogs Lincoln City and relieve them of three welcome points. New owner bounce would comfortably take care of that.

Early indications at LNER Stadium, once known to pub quizzers as Sincil Bank, suggested that Lee Bowyer's still-gelling Addicks were in the mood to take care of their end of business without too much difficulty. The first half chances were almost exclusively theirs.

Two-in-two this season, Conor Washington should have made it three but after cleverly losing his marker inside the penalty area, dragged a low drive wastefully wide. No matter, it seemed, as the confident visitors continued to pull the strings with first-time starter Dylan Levitt firing narrowly over the bar and lively schemer Erhun Oztumer going close twice. By the time Levitt's deflected drive wrongfooted Alex Palmer but squirted agonising inches wide of the right post, an opening goal seemed overdue. There were other close shaves, scrapes and scrambles before, In first half added time, the Imps made nonsense of the run of play by grabbing a bitterly disputed lead.

Ben Purrington's handling offence allowed Jorge Grant to loft a dangerous free kick into the goal area where Darren Pratley clumsily manhandled Tom Hopper under the beady eye of referee Marc Edwards. Grant's inevitable penalty was smartly saved by Ben Amos but bundled home by the spotkick-taker after Harry Anderson's follow-up effort was blocked. From a no-longer cosy chair miles from Lincolnshire, it was impossible to know whether Grant was "miles offside" as claimed by Bowyer but after a lengthy consultation with his linesman, Edwards allowed the goal. Charlton's impassioned protests may or may not have been justified but had Purrington and Pratley kept their hands to themselves, the ensuing unpleasantness might have been avoided. As it was, Grant's goal, legitimate or otherwise, was pivotal.

Owners of a poor record in coming back to win from behind, the Addicks ploughed on through a humdrum second half without causing their hosts undue inconvenience. Up front, Washington faded while his partner Macauley Bonne was a ponderous disappointment throughout. Goals seem certain, as usual, to be in short supply. Levitt stood out, as to be expected from a Manchester United graduate, while Oztumer showed enough to be given a decent run as a starter. The elusive little playmaker picks a pass well, works sharp one-twos near the box and must surely survive Bowyer's weekly tinkering with the line-up. Fits and rare starts do him a disservice.

At the back, new centre back Akin Famewo was unruffled if conservative; beside him, Deji Oshilaja, apart from an unhappy tendency to concede free kicks, gave his all. Operating as an emergency right back, 17 year-old Charlie Barker was slightly out of his depth; Purrington was a steady left back and Amos, so unlucky with the penalty, was sound. It'll take a month or more, we're advised, before we can properly evaluate Bowyer's newly constructed side. Shame the league won't wait for us to catch up.

The second period, meanwhile, was over in a flash with occasional flickers of life from Alfie Doughty providing Charlton's best moments. Forced regularly inside by right back Lewis Montesma, Doughty was denied space for his usual explosive raids down the left flank but was hard to subdue. There was precious little else to bother the Imps who hardly needed Montesma's clinching goal to make it three wins in a row. Meeting Grant's soaring left wing corner at the far post, the free-scoring defender's towering leap left debutant Ben Watson earthbound as he headed powerfully past Amos.

So much then for new owner bounce. Let's hope his cheque's cleared.

Lincoln: Palmer, Montesma, Jackson, Jones, Hopper, Grant, McGrandles (Johnson 69), Eyoma, Bridcutt, Anderson (Sealey 79), Roughan. Not used: Ross, Edwards, Archibald, Howarth, Elbouzedi. Booked: McGrandles, Eyoma, Johnson.

Charlton: Amos, Barker, Oshilaja, Famewo (Watson 62), Purrington, Oztumer (Forster-Caskey 77), Levitt (Williams 77), Pratley, Doughty, Washington, Bonne. Not used: Maynard-Brewer, Vennings, Lapslie, Davison. Booked: Pratley, Watson, Barker.

Referee: Marc Edwards.

West ham 3 (Haller 22, 26, Anderson 79) Charlton 0.

Charlton slipped quietly out of the Carabao Cup on Tuesday evening at an East London athletics stadium masquerading as a football ground. West Ham experienced no more difficulty in dismissing them than the Addicks themselves encountered at Crewe three days previously. In each case the losers were put firmly in their place by their superiors.

A Hammers selection including only one survivor from their opening day defeat by Newcastle was still surprisingly strong and was never seriously troubled as they coasted into the third round. Sebastian Haller's quickfire double midway through the first half prematurely decided the issue, with Anderson applying the coup-de-grace ten minutes from time.

The result, of course, meant little to Lee Bowyer, who understandably was more interested in gleaning positives from his team's performance -of which there were plenty. At times, particularly during a vastly improved second period, the resurgent visitors hung in with their Premier League hosts. To be honest, they rarely looked like reducing their arrears but the chivvying, scurrying Jonny Williams twice inconvenienced Darren Randolph with uncharacteristically powerful shots from distance. Alfie Doughty (pronounced Doe-etee by West Ham's irritating commentator, also the owner of an eagle-eye which detected three clearcut penalties for handball, all of them outrageously denied the Hammers by Andre Marriner) was a pacy, direct threat to David Moyes' often startled defence.

In central midfield, meanwhile, loanee Dyland Levitt operated under the radar but showed enough, with cool, constructive passing, that his Manchester United pedigree will eventually out. Elsewhere, Deji Oshilaja and Darren Pratley stuck gamely to their guns while Charlie Barker was irreverently underawed by the company he was keeping.

In the attacking third, where the solitary Macauley Bonne toiled fruitlessly, Charlton were no match for the East Londoners, whose clinical finishing, as exemplified by Haller, was different class. Haller had already made a mess of an early chance laid on for him by Ben Johnson before he delivered the one-two combination which ended the contest. His opener was served up on a plate by Andriy Yarmolenko, who moved through spreadeagled resistance on to Josh Cullen's lofted pass before squaring for Haller to tap home from three yards. Four minutes later, the towering striker rose effortlessly above an overmatched Deji Oshilaja to head Robert Snodgrass' accurate cross beyond Ben Amos into the top left corner. With over an hour left, both sides were already going through the necessary motions.

While enjoying a fair share of the exchanges after the break, Charlton were handed another lesson in finishing by Moyes' second-string Irons. Manuel Lanzini was making heavy weather of sorting out his feet before scoring when Felipe Anderson stepped in to drill past Amos from the penalty spot.
Despite on this occasion reporting in hospitable conditions from the civilised end of the Blackwall Tunnel, your reporter confesses to chronic apathy about competitions like the Carabao Cup. In fact, there are times when that apathy morphs into downright hostility. So for the time being, that's all she wrote. Or, more accurately, he wrote.

West Ham: Randolph, Balbuena, Yarmolenko, Lanzini, Diop, Anderson, Snodgrass (Coventry 83), Haller, Masuaku, Johnson (Ashby 83), Cullen. Not used: Martin, Fornals, Bowen, Silva, Alese. Booked: Johnson, Masuaku

Charlton: Amos, Lapslie, Barker, Oshilaja, Pratley (Gilbey 77), Purrington, Williams (Washington 73), Oztumer, Levitt, Bonne (Aneke 46), Doughty. Not used: Maynard-Brewer, Forster-Caskey, Morgan, Vennings.

Referee: Andre Marriner.