It looked like more same old, same old on Saturday. A bright start preceded the shipping of a sloppy goal, which led to the team’s confidence evaporating.
The second half was entirely different. An early Benson equaliser, a howler from the Orient keeper and even a Semedo goal rounded off a sparkling display. Here’s what Chris thought of the performance:
‘You can sometimes forget how to win. In our last home game against Southampton, I felt we put in a performance. We’ve had two games on the road since and I said to the boys at half-time we needed to put in a performance again.
‘Today was a London derby where we’re not traditional rivals, but we should make a game of it and we didn’t in the first half. We were too passive and it was almost like a training session for them.
‘At half-time, I had a go at them. I said they demand more here. As a result, they to a man, demanded more of each other. They never let Orient settle. The end result was three goals and we could have scored more,’ said an elated manager. before continuing, ‘I’m proud of them. It’s been a tough run but they’ve trained well. You want to win matches, that’s why we’re in this game.
‘It’s been a tough period for everyone and at least we’ve given the fans a little smile for when they go into work on Monday.’
The real turning point was Jamie Jones faux-pas which gave Bradley Wright-Phillips the opportunity to fire the Addicks ahead. Chris was back to his bouncy best as he added:
‘If you want to throw it to any Charlton player, you don’t throw it to Bradley Wright-Phillips. I’ve just seen it again and it was quite comical.
‘We had a gameplan to press them, we didn’t in the first half but we did in the second, and then to cap it off, Semedo, who scores as many goals as I did in my career, pops up! I’ve been asking for more of that from him.
‘They can be proud of their efforts and how they turned it around, and it gives us some heart going into a tough game on Tuesday at Southampton.’
Powell then reflected on his opening 16 games before looking ahead to tomorrow’s match at St Mary’s:
‘Where do I start? We’ve had some real ups and downs and I’ve learnt not to get too carried away.
‘You’ve got to turn up in this league. That’s a basic rule. Any team in this league can beat you by a set-piece or through sheer effort and determination. We’ve shown it only in spells, you have to do it for a longer period.
‘I’ve learnt a lot about myself. I’ve had 16 games and at times I’ve got it wrong, but at times I’ve got it right.
‘It’s difficult for the players, they’re young. but I saw a lot of good signs today and they took it upon themselves to say ‘we’ve had enough of this’. We got our rewards.’
‘Bradley’s a got a knock on his ankle, hopefully he’ll be okay for Tuesday. Benson cramped up towards the end, Scott Wagstaff got a knock, and Rob took a knock in the first half but was brave and carried on.
‘We’ve got a few aches and pains and we’ll see who’s travelling down to Southampton,’ said Powell.
If his team play like they did in the second half, Powell’s beam may be in evidence after the match with an erratic Southampton side.
Share this article
