Ten Years Ago: The Valley of Death

Charlton had already been in action on 12 August away at the Hawthorns against the Baggies, going down to defeat 1-0 in the first Charlton game in which Curbs was in sole charge. My notes recall of this hot August afternoon, 'A poor performance by Charlton in the first half, lacking pace and direction. They moved up a gear in the second half and had most of the possession, but West Brom scored. We still can't make anything of corners.' I noted the Addickted's 'mordant humour'.

Notes on individual players including the following:
Salmon Made an outstanding save, but contributed to the errors that led to the goal.
Leaburn Lumbering around the field and falling over at the first opportunity. 'Dig a hole and leave him there', shouted one of the Addickted.
Robinson Mr Sensation. Came on and missed a strong opportunity.

Blues Enter The Valley of Death

This was the headline in the Midlands Sunday Mercury after Birmingham City went down 3-1 at The Valley. The club web site report noted, 'The gathering gloom at The Valley was swept away in the space of just two second-half minutes, as the Addicks surged past Birmingham. A poor crowd, announced as 9,692, reflected both the disgruntled mood of the home fans and an away end that was only three quarters full due to Birmingham's outrageous £15 surcharge on ticket sales.'

My notes state, 'Charlton played well in the first twenty minutes, but missed some good chances - Whyte in particular, who seemed off form. They slackened off before half time and Birmingham brought on three substitutes, including the dangerous Ricky Otto. They then took charge and the inevitable goal followed [Bowen on 55 minutes].'
This was the first match in which the Addicks used three outfield substitutes (Grant, Walsh, Chapple) and the first in which three were used by the opposition.

'After a shaky period, Charlton recovered and Nelscn scored on 68 minutes followed by an important goal by Bowyer on 69. Grant (now playing for Fleet) made it 3-1 and it could easily have been four.' The official report said of Kim Grant's goal, 'Put through by Bowyer's visionary ball from deep inside his own half, Grant not only finished with aplomb from 10 yards, but also held off the physical challenge of Daish to do so.'

The programme included the first ever message from Curbs to fans as sole manager with a picture of him with his official red Ford Mondeo. He commented, 'I would liked to have been in some new blood over the summer. Unfortunately, and quite simply, there is no money available to do that.' A feature on 'A day in the life of Colin Powell, groundsman' showed him pictured with the sort of equipment available in the average back garden.