Bristol Rovers 3 (Sinclair 30, Lindsay 57, Wilson 67) Charlton 2 ( A. Mitchell 79, Godden 90+4).
Kevin Nolan watched Charlton on Sky Sports+. He then struggled to find words to describe what he saw. Here’s what he came up with.
Do yourself a favour and read between the lines of this misleading scoreline. Charlton’s two late goals merely added a cosmetic touch-up which disguised their pitiful performance against one of League One’s poorer sides. But then, of course, they could be one of the poorer sides themselves.
Losers of their last four league games, Bristol Rovers were hardly daunting opposition but had more than enough about them to see off Nathan Jones’ clueless hoofers. And the usual mantras about “dusting ourselves off” and “going again at the weekend” ring hollow, especially with Birmingham City – and Alfie May – due at The Valley on Saturday. That’s about as tough as it gets but it does give Charlton a perfect opportunity for redemption. Certain to be rank outsiders, they might actually be worth a punt. Then again, maybe not.
Top of the league City will be only the third of the division’s current top ten faced by Charlton to date. The other two – Blackpool and Stevenage (no misprint, Stevenage, for crying out loud!) beat them as their promising start to the season proved illusory, the product of a fevered desire to clamber out of a division, in which they have wallowed since relegation from the Championship in 2020. Fact is, they are exactly where they belong and no amount of preening or posturing should be allowed to suggest otherwise. Charlton are bang average and that’s the painful truth. Have been for some time now.
Apparently incapable of picking, much less delivering, the simplest of passes and then possessing the necessary ball control to receive it at the other end, the Addicks soon resorted to hit-and-hope missiles launched from their own half into enemy territory, which were enthusiastically returned by their blue-and white quartered recipients. This pointless exchange of artillery continued until, on the half hour mark, an unexpected injection of class unexpectedly intervened.
Thirty five years old now, Scott Sinclair is one of those “been around the block” pros you assumed had retired years ago. Still plying his trade with Premier League level Everton, Ashley Young is another, whose experience and know-how is still valued in the quest for pace and power these days. Collecting a loose ball in the visitors’ half, Sinclair stepped inside a couple of uncommitted challenges, picked his spot from 25 yards and found it with an expertly curled strike which eluded Will Mannion’s full-length effort to turn it aside. Delivered with a supposedly weaker left foot, his goal stood out in this company as the proverbial pearl among swine.
Plodding on sightlessly, the Addicks showed no sign of improvement until, with two minutes of an otherwise dreadful first half remaining, Lloyd Jones squandered his side’s only chance by heading Karoy Anderson’s cross over the bar from no more than two yards out. His miss capped Charlton’s miserable contribution to a game guaranteed to make your teeth ache. Sinclair was its solitary saving grace and his quality alone made the difference.
The second half brought little relief to Nathan Jones men. In fact, matters took a turn for the worse when Scottish midfielder Jamie Lindsay doubled Rovers’ lead with a contribution which sought to emulate Sinclair’s effort. From similar distance, Lindsay’s first goal for the Gas sealed an issue that was already beyond Charlton’s reach. Ten minutes later, James Wilson headed home after Promise Omochere flicked on Mola’s corner and their humiliation seemed complete. Until, that is, they located some remnants of pride and, without genuinely troubling their triumphant hosts, at least gave them a brief flutter of concern.
With more than ten minutes left, Alex Mitchell supplied a finishing touch to Matty Godden’s possibly goalbound header before, in the fourth of six added minutes, Godden converted fellow substitute Chuks Aneke’s low cross to distort not only the scoreline but the story of a game which was always beyond Nathan Jones’ men.
“Too nice” is how Jones described his team after one of their recent defeats and he might just be on to something. A fixture at The Valley should mean visiting one of those fortresses you hear about, not the kiddies’ playground it is right now. It would suit some of us fine if Birmingham City arrive on Saturday without Friday night corn sufferer Alfie May – and flu-hit Kristian Bielik, for good measure – after ploughing through impossible traffic, stopping to repair a puncture on the team coach, then finding out they’d arrived without their scouting notes on Charlton. Well, perhaps not the scouting notes… Tuesday’s shocker would send their already sky-high confidence into orbit!
Rovers: Griffiths, Wilson, Mola, Sinclair (Forde 78), Omochere (O’Donkor 78), Sotiriou (McCormick 72), Taylor, Conteh, Bilongo, Lindsay (Garrett 72), Hunt (Forbes 72). Not used: Thomas, Hutchinson. Booked: Conteh.
Charlton: Mannion, Alex Mitchell, Jones, Gillesphey. Watson (Godden 61), Anderson, Coventry (Docherty 79), Berry (Leaburn 61), Edwards (Ramsay 79), Ahadme (Aneke 54), Tyreece Campbell. Not used: Maynard-Brewer, Allan Campbell. Booked: Coventry, Anderson.
Referee: David Rock. Att: 6,638.