Rotherham United 1 (Becchio 70) Charlton 1 (Gudmundsson 27).
Kevin Nolan reports from New York Stadium.
Battered from pillar to post by Rotherham, Charlton staggered unsteadily out of South Yorkshire, still clinging tenaciously to their unbeaten record after ekeing out their fifth draw of the season, four of them by this 1-1 scoreline. They are making a virtue of stubborn resistance to pressure, most of it almost perversely brought on themselves. But it can’t last. Not unless they start to occasionally operate off the front foot for a change.
Ironically, the Addicks might have emerged with their first victory on the road if their new tactic of studious interpassing near goal hadn’t rebounded on them. With 20 minutes left, Tal Ben Haim was caught lollygagging in possession by Luciano Becchio and, seconds later, his carelessness was punished by the substitute’s far post equaliser. A rudimentary clearance of his lines might have been a shrewder idea but what do we philistines know? Well, we do know it’s terrific to have principles but they’re hardly iron-clad and should be adaptable to circumstances. As Tommy Cooper helpfully observed, “if you don’t like my principles… I’ve got others.”
Still on the subject of poncing about at the back, it’s becoming clear that the word is out concerning Charlton’s cerebral approach. Twice in the opening exchanges, the disappointing Yoni Buyens was closed down by Richie Smallwood uncomfortably close to his penalty area. No harm ensued but the message was unmistakeable. Charlton are playing a dangerous game, one at which they are far from experts. And they’ve been rumbled.
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Settling down eventually, the South East Londoners edged the first half. Chances were evenly distributed, with long shots from Jordan Cousins and the ever-reliable Johnnie Jackson narrowly off-target; they were countered by Alex Revell’s effort on the turn, saved smartly by Stephen Henderson, and Joe Skarz’s downward header, which directed an accurate cross from Frazer Richardson perilously close to Henderson’s left post. After Rhoys Wiggins had survived a reasonable penalty shout for awkwardly bundling into Paul Green, the Addicks took the lead before the half hour.
There didn’t seem much danger to Scott Loach as Johann Berg Gudmundsson picked up a loose ball on the right, moved inside Smallwood and let fly left-footed from 25 yards. His superbly struck drive left Loach helpless on its unstoppable way into the bottom left corner. Gudmundsson was the pick of the visitors until he tired and was replaced by Callum Harriott, whose bright promise has faded and who might profitably spend less time badgering his boss about playing time and rather more in re-locating his elusive mojo.
Gudmundsson’s excellent goal pointed the way to a reasonably convincing victory. After Revell had forced another save from Henderson, Franck Moussa stung Loach’s hands with a piledriver and both Wiggins and Jackson skimmed the bar from long range. But that was virtually the last heard from the Addicks as an attacking force.
An arduous second period was fought out almost exclusively in Charlton’s half as the Millers ground out pressure on their visitors. Half-time substitute Lee Frecklington sidefooted a point-blank chance at Henderson; Jordan Bowery’s “goal” was correctly ruled out as offside; Paul Taylor made a ballooned mess of converting at the far post after Bowery prodded back another menacing cross from Richardson from the opposite corner.
A rare response saw Andre Bikey head Cousins’ outswinging corner over the bar but an equaliser was, by now, looking inevitable. And when it came, it was largely self-inflicted. With time to launch a clearance downfield in recommended but currently disdained fashion, Ben Haim chose instead to seek out Bikey, dithered vaguely and had his pocked picked by Becchio. Two passes later, Ben Pringle’s cutely delivered cross was nodded past Henderson by Becchio at the far post and Charlton’s unbeaten record was in severe peril.
The beleaguered Addicks should have fallen behind but Kari Arnason headed Pringle’s corner wastefully high and lived on their nerves again as Taylor’s hard-driven cross struck Jackson on an unspecified part of his anatomy inside the 18-yard line. United were denied a penalty, according to their wildly-popular Scottish manager Steve Evans, purely down to their small-club status. There was some other puzzling stuff about Jackson being as fat as Evans is because of stuffing the ball inside his shirt. He also moaned a bit mysteriously about the unfairness of Charlton spending money on new players but unhelpfully neglected to reveal who they were. All a bit garbled really but do make allowances. Evans is clearly no Chic Murray and was working without a script.
The stout manager’s mood was hardly improved by the marvellous last minute save made by Henderson to keep out Skarz’s sure thing header but it could have been worse if Loach hadn’t scrambled desperately back to scrape Frederic Bulot’s optimistic effort off his goalline, a close thing which meant honours shared between plucky little Rotherham, their not-so-little boss and Southern fat cats Charlton.
Rotherham: Loach, Richardson, Morgan, Arnason, Skarz, Wordsworth, Smallwood (Frecklington 46), Green, Bowery., Taylor (Pringle 68), Revell (Becchio 39). Not used: Broadfoot, Collin, Derbyshire, Clarke-Harris.
Booked: Morgan, Becchio.
Charlton: Henderson, Solly, Ben Haim, Bikey, Wiggins, Gudmundsson (Harriott 80), Buyens, Jackson, Cousins (Fox 90), Moussa (Bulot 60), Vetokele. Not used: Pope, Wilson, Morrison, Tucudean.
Booked: Moussa, Buyens.
Referee: Darren Deadman. Att: 9,620 (1,106 visiting).