Kevin Nolan’s Match Report: Charlton v Huddersfield Town (15/09/2015)

Charlton 1 (Sarr 45) Huddersfield Town 2 (Bunn 11, Huws 34).

Kevin Nolan reports from The Valley

Dispiriting defeat marked the second stage in Charlton’s three-game trawl through the lowest reaches of the Championship. They came up empty-handed after being outsmarted, outfought and embarrassingly outclassed by Huddersfield Town, who began the evening second from bottom and without a win so far this season but deservedly left The Valley just three points behind their helpful hosts.

At the weekend, bottom of the table Rotherham had helped themselves to a badly needed point while Blackburn Rovers, with a daunting fixture complicating matters at QPR tonight, will be targetting next Saturday’s home game against Charlton as an outstanding chance to improve their prospects. So much for the seven or even nine points haul the Addicks expected from this trinity of “winnable ” games.

There were similarities between the two home games. Starting on the back foot again, Charlton handed the initiative to the visitors, unfortunately this time going not one but two goals down before the interval. Briefly pulling themselves together, they reduced their arrears prior to the break and left themselves the entire second half to make good their disadvantage. Which is something they failed miserably to do.

Patrick Bauer’s cynical first minute foul on Harry Bunn, for which he might reasonably have been booked, betrayed Charlton’s inexplicable nervousness. So too did Morgan Fox’s less than resolute commitment in a 50-50 challenge with Sean Scannell, hardly a renowned brute in such circumstances. The ex-Palace wide man broke through Fox’s wafer-thin resistance before pulling a deceptive cross back behind the wrongfooted central defenders. Meeting the ball on the turn, Bunn’s firmly struck volley bounced up and in off the right hand of a badly deceived Nick Pope. It was tough on the young keeper but he might have done better.

At the other end, Johann Berg Gudmundsson shot narrowly wide and Jed Steer showed decisiveness in leaving his line to beat Simon Makienot to El-Hadji Ba’s fine curling delivery. But spearheaded by Ishmael Miller’s unmanageable physicality and the weaving menace of Mustapha Caryol on the left flank, the Terriers looked likelier to score again. Struggling to contain Caryol, Chris Solly was beaten on the inside by the winger, whose curling right-footed drive was pushed away by Pope, the loose ball barely eluding Scannell as he closed in beyond the far post.

With clearly no intention of sitting on their lead, Town set about doubling it. Full debutant Naby Sarr, deputising for the curiously rested Alou Diarra, showed immaturity in needlessly shoving the bustling Miller in the back to concede a free kick, which Emyr Huws skilfully planted in the bottom left corner. Leaving himself too much ground to cover from his position nearer the opposite post, Pope was unable to manage a touch despite a full length dive.

In the last minute of normal time, the Addicks seemed to have provided themselves with a launch pad for second half recovery by halving the deficit. Jason Davidson’s foul on the persistent Ba allowed Gudmunsson to swing in a free kick from the left, which Sarr glanced inside the left post. It was a morale-boosting end to a desperately disappointing first half but ultimately amounted to nothing.

The second period petered out almost as an afterthought. Ba started it by scuffing Makienok’s pass across goal but wide of the far post, then Makienot made a similar mess of converting a huge punt from Pope, which cleared Elliott Ward’s head and sent him through to confront Steed. Substitute Zakaraya Bergdich blasted Gudmundsson’s cross wildly over the bar and Makienok skewed the Icelandic schemer’s corner in vaguely the same direction.

It was hardly irresistible pressure and wasn’t helped by the self-indulgent contribution of Tony Watt. Dropping deeper as the game wore on, the undeniably skilful Scot set himself the self-appointed task of breaking down Town’s resistance with a series of doomed dribbles through their massed ranks. The word is obviously out on the ex-Celtic maverick’s individuality and his solo efforts were comfortably snuffed out by a nagging posse of opponents. Watt might be profitably re-introduced to Makienok and have the benefits of a strike partnership explained to him.

It wouldn’t do, of course, to lay the blame for Charlton’s recent slump solely at Watt’s twinkling feet. Or to castigate young Sarr, who was taken to school by the streetwise Miller. Alongside him, Bauer drew a similar blank in controlling Miller’s old-fashioned muscularity. Meanwhile, Solly has rarely been given the chasing he received from Carayol while Fox struggled vainly to contain the fleetfooted Scannell, who provided his defence with the ideal outlet whenever they came under occasional pressure. So outstanding against Rotherham, Pope was marginally at fault for both goals and weakened his case for selection when Stephen Henderson makes an overdue return. Ahmed Kashi and Ba were arguably the pick of a poor bunch, while Jordan Cousins has lapsed into relative anonymity, with some slack cut for his willingness to play out of position wide on the left.

Only seven games into the new season, Charlton already betray a jaded look. Much more of the same and it’s they who will be targetted as a soft touch by the top half of the table. Their attitude at Blackburn will be under the spotlight because defeat there might inspire the first shoots of panic. Perhaps they are not as good as we thought they were. Or perhaps they will ram those words down my throat.

Charlton: Pope, Solly, Sarr, Bauer, Fox (McAleny 74) Gudmundsson, Kashi, Ba (Bergdich 54), Cousins, Makienok (Vetokele 80), Watt. Not used: Mitov, Jackson, Diarra, Ahearne-Grant. Booked: Sarr.

Att: 13,873 (339 visiting).