Boxing Day.

Charlton Athletic 0 - Huddersfield Town 1.

I put my money on a 2-0 defeat at the Valley this afternoon. By the climax of the game, I was half right.


Unfortunately, the easy victory I was expecting for Huddersfield never materialised so when they finally did score, predictably during a good spell of play from Charlton, it felt like a kick in the teeth.


Huddersfield did very little all game and ended up snatching a victory that even their hardest of hardcore supporters couldn't have described as 'deserved'.


The men from Yorkshire had to rely on the kind of 'dodgy' decision that always goes against you when you're on a bad run.
A poorly taken free kick was smashed into the Charlton wall, only for the referee to judge the ball had been stopped by a hand.
It did seem harsh.
It seemed even harsher when the second, closer attempt arrowed into the net.
Smash and grab?
Yup.

Charlton defended well and made enough chances to win any game, yet for the third game in a row failed to do the business up front.

If I'm brutally honest, the game did go by in a bit of a blur for me.
Before the game I met Al Gordon for a quick beer which was nice. It's always good to put a face to a name.

When I arrived at The Valley I made my way to the Sky Box where Crispy was celebrating his 50th birthday with his family.

I stayed with them for the game and disappointing though it was to see yet another Charlton defeat, the rarified atmosphere and lovely padded seat did make everything seem a little better.

Another reason I was a little fluffy around the edges was I was suffering from jet lag, having only got back from NYC yesterday.

I love New York.
It's definitely one of my favourite places on the planet and I visit as often as I possibly can.

I went to see the New York Mets play at their recently built Citi Field.
The Mets have one of the highest wage bills in the league, a fantastic stadium but never quite seem to cut it on the ball park.
Sound familiar?

My seat was up in the area where the more boisterous fans congregate. 
There were a few loud utterances of "You Suck!" but anybody used to European / English football would never believe the supporters hadn't given up shouting for Lent.


I really enjoyed the game though as ever, the Mets threw it away in a 3 minute period when the pitcher had a complete 'mare.

So, just two home games to endure  enjoy before we can all pack up for the Summer.


I'd like to take the opportunity to again wish Crispy a happy birthday and say how privileged I was to join him and his family.
Cheers matey!