Everton:
Martyn, Pistone, Stubbs, Unsworth
,
Naysmith, Carsley,
Gravesen, Kilbane, Rooney, Ferguson,
Jeffers.
Bench:
Simonsen, Weir, Radzinski
(Jeffers 59), Campbell (Carsley 84), Linderoth.
Referee:
'Ol Mother Riley.
Fantastic,
fluent, exhilarating what a game, Arsenal that was, and I could not
wait for the next home game, and Charlton although flying high, should
not really pose us to many problems. We started like a team that meant
business. Tommy Grav surprised everyone by starting, as all the news
had been fairly downcast regarding his injury. Big Dunc was recalled
to partner Franny, and Pistone replaced Tony Hibbert who had been
looking a bit under par of late. As normal of late everything in the
early exchanges went through the Big Man, but apart from the odd effort,
Kiely in the Charlton goal had little in the form of on target shots
to deal with. One belting effort from about twenty odd yards out,
was tipped around the post by the Charlton keeper, but as per normal
with 'Ol Mother Riley, who was the man in black, pointed for a goal
kick, wanker. Everton seemed to run out of ideas and steam after half
an hour or so. Tommy Grav who started like a man possessed, was starting
to tire, as Charlton took a foot hold in the game, putting our defence
under a bit of pressure. Pistone cool as ever looked like he had spent
his time recuperating under a sun bed, and as Charlton pressed, everything
still seemed to be under control, with the back four guarding Martyn's
net admirably.Everton pressed again, but after a mis judged pass from
Carsley, on the edge of their box, Charlton broke with most of Everton's
defence and midfield pushed up the pitch. Di Canio found himself with
the ball out on the right, and with the back four at sixes and sevens,
he found Stuart totally un marked in the area, who turned and fired
his shot past the helpless Martyn. Welcome back Graham, as they say
'it's a funny old game'. It was a lead they hardly deserved, but that's
football I suppose, so like last week Moyesy team talk at half time,
was changed a the eleventh hour, thanks to a goal right at the death,
changes ahead me thinks.
Half
Time: Everton 0, Charlton 1.
Charlton started the second half content with protecting their lead,
and for all Everton's possession their was very little in quality
in their play to change the course of the game. The inevitable changed
happened on the hour mark, with the ineffectual Franny being replaced
by The Rad. For all of the Canadians missed chances, I for one love
the effort he put's in running the line up front, and maybe with a
bit of pressure on their back four, a point or maybe three could still
be ours. The higher tempo in the match was immediate as Ferguson had
a header cleared off the line by Fish, after excellent work by Killa
out on the left. Radzinski himself went close, but the angle he made
for the shot was too tight, and Kiely collected comfortably. The crowd
sensed something was afoot, as the noise increased, and Charlton sat
back and allowed Everton to come onto them. Shots from Stubbsy and
Killa, a poor free kick from The Duke, and a glaring missed header
from Carsley were our second half chances, as Nige in the Blues sticks
was a virtual spectator in the second period.Time was against us,
and Super was thrown on with five to go, but that was that. A professional,
if scrappy job done for Charlton, and a missed oppurtunity for us
to cement ourselves in the top half of the table. Bluekipper.com Starman
was extremely difficult, as quiet games were had by most of the starting
eleven, but it is about opinions, and I gave it to 'Sandro Pistone,
who at times looked class, and admittedly at times looked very ordinary,
but the sun tan swung it for me. Anyway the shite and United next
up in the league, but as they say 'it's a funny old game'.
Full
Time: Everton 0, Charlton 1.
Addickted
to footy
By
Mickey Blue Eyes
Alas,
annoying loss that at Fulham, especially after we made the running
and missed some easy chances. I didn’t go due to more important matters
but I got virtual running commentaries via mobile phone calls from
Mogsy and Texyla. It pissed me off mightily losing to a team owned
by a Cairene barrow-boy and supported by a tiny bunch of lower middle-class
council tax-dodgers with green corduroy trousers and green corduroy
brains. I don’t know who’s worse – them or the racist deadheads of
“ours” who come up out of the sewers every time we play there. Time
for the club to reassert the special measures introduced the last
time these BNP nazi nerds made a show of us at Craven Cottage. Next
time you see one of them in action go report him to the police and
take his seat number and report him to the club too. Texyla did just
that with one of the scum and maybe it will get the culprit in front
of the beak. If we only manage to get one of them banned it will be
a small victory for civilization.
On
Friday Lahndan tabled its bid for the Olympics 2012. I am for it in
principle but irritated the establishment wouldn’t seek out and fully
back another city-venue, preferably in the north of England, more
specifically our own beloved city. (Manchester’s bid was never properly
supported in the corridors of power and proceeded bravely in the face
of muted jeers from the capital.) We need it a good deal more than
the metropolis, it would be cheaper and it would provide a much-needed
boost to regeneration. On the other hand Lahndan, choked with too
much of everything, needs it like a hole in the head and our country
is anyway more centralised than any former totalitarian East European
state. Therefore in many ways it is an unhealthy bid.
But
there is no denying the boost it provides, as any visitor to Barcelona
and Sydney will tell you. Unfortunately a British bid is dogged by
the kind of cultural failures which, for one instance, rot the Vatican:
Exaggerated and needless secrecy, institutionalised incompetent right-wing
bureaucracy, corrupt self-interest and simple appointment of untalented
fools in sufficient numbers to sabotage any chance of creative thinking,
let alone action, almost all of it centred in the capital. It isn’t
as though the provinces lack necessary talent. Sheffield and Manchester
showed how to organise and run the Student Games and the Commonwealth
Games well nigh flawlessly. Glasgow still reaps some small benefits
from their time as City of Culture – hopefully we will do the same
from 2008. So on balance I am in favour and wish it every success
but wouldn’t be in the least surprised if the bid doesn’t succeed.
After all, this is the establishment which also gave you, or didn’t
give you, Wembley, Picketts Lock and the Millenium Dome, to say nothing
of Kings Dock. I just wish too we could avoid the kind of claptrap
which claims it would benefit the whole country. Not it won’t, anymore
than Sheffield’s and Manchester’s successes benefited anybody else.
Also
on match eve, Rio Ferdinand said he would appeal his eight month ban
for failing to take a drugs test. Given the circumstances I am fairly
sure he would have passed the dope test easily, largely because he
IS a dope. Anybody who does that haha sherbet is a right charlie,
if you see what I mean. For most of them it is a short route to hell
lined with stupefaction. It isn’t the same as alcohol addiction because
the sale of alcohol is not dependent on a criminal infrastructure
for distribution, an infrastructure which destroys lives actually
and figuratively, and which finds ready victims amongst the deprived
and hopeless. Remember that next time you are tempted to play in the
dirt.
The
best answer of course is to restore the legislation to where it was
before our establishment criminalized the disgusting business at the
behest of the American establishment. As soon as they did, addiction
went through the roof from a minimal base and took related criminal
offences with it. All of it was entirely predictable, as are the spikey-haired,
goggly-eyed nincompoops who vie with drunks on a night out for who
is the biggest loud-mouthed drear. And of course if drugs were to
be decriminalized then all sports would have to be given free rein
too. Why not? How can you allow it in private life and not in public
athletic life? What’s the difference? Which will provide exactly the
kind of phoney spectacle we all seek to avoid. Which is why I said
Rio is a dope. Ask Billy Kenny. For that matter, ask Tony Adams and
Paul Gascoigne too. Multi-wrongs do not a right make. They make for
plenty of charlies though.
Personally
I hope Ferdinand gets his ban boosted to the full hit of two years.
Don’t hold your breath. Apparently the lawyers are involved now and
that may mean an open challenge to FIFA, UEFA and FA statutes. If
they fail to hold up you might as well hand the game over to shysters
like Rupert Murdoch, Roman Abramovich and Silvio Berlusconi. Who of
course are the perfect dealers for hapless junkies of the above sort.
A
much healthier form of addiction is to the game of football itself.
The Addicks of Charlton are living proof. I would love to think their
whole set-up is owned, managed and played by clean-limbed human beings
with a reasonable sense of the limits of human nature and an ability
to avoid the worse-than-useless oblivion of any form of liquid or
powder addiction. However, people are people and therefore prone to
error and weakness at all times. It would be asking too much of the
universe to reckon Alan Curbishley and co. are the shining light we
all feel the game needs. After all, not so long ago fools claimed
Leeds were the shining light. Er, no. Nor are Charlton despite their
excellent and apparently well-deserved run.
Curbishley
dropped Scott Parker for our match due to Chelsea and Abramovich screwing
with the lad’s head for muchos pesos. Silly boy Scott – in my view
a player with the same kind of intense promise as Wayne Rooney – apparently
listened to the honeyed moneyed voices in his ear and had irritated
words with everyone at The Valley. This annoyed me no end since I
get enormous pleasure from watching Parker play and run rings around
almost everybody. If we could afford him I would mortgage your house
tomorrow to get him. Moreover I have an equal amount of admiration
for the way Charlton have revived themselves as a club on and off
the pitch. It can’t have escaped your attention they have 24,000 season
tickets – if memory serves this is more than our complement – and
have rebuilt three sides of their ground. More power to their elbow.
Except when they play us of course.
All
of which made the match a rather large let-down. I should have known.
Walking along Goodison Road is a melancholic experience in extremely
cold weather. Somehow the disgusting pavement dispersal of chip shop
remnants – human and otherwise – never fails to remind you of why
we should relocate to modern facilities as soon as possible. (Again,
don’t hold your breath). There is absolutely no excuse for the muck
which gets deposited on the ground and even on the window sills and
front steps of innocent nearby homes. Those who defend this on the
grounds of “working class culture” are fools with no idea of an authentic
definition of the term. Really, there isn’t too much to say about
the game. It was mediocre and gave no cause for any belief we are
about to embark on a run of good form and results. Charlton were easily
the better side by virtue of a tight and tigerish display in midfield
and defence. We never looked likely apart from the opening ten minutes.
Charlton scored from their only first half attempt on goal five minutes
before the break, and even then because our defence behaved like a
pack of mongrels in a dogs home. Consolation was scant and strictly
relative but came in the shape of Unsy’s performance at centre back
and Kilbane’s efforts wide left. Rooney’s first touch was restored
in spasms too and his long passing from wide right continues to improve.
As usual, he had two or three men on him every time he got the ball.
Best get used to it, Duke, because that’s the price of fame and ability.
But this is clinging to straws. Everyone else was next to useless
in a slipshod and lazy performance which only got emphasised when
The Rad came on as a late sub and promptly ran their left side defence
ragged – only to screw up every time with his final pass. We had three
good attempts on goal in the second half but the truth is we would
neither have earned or deserved an equaliser. Charlton were full value
for their win. Actually the pattern of play showed why they have climbed
to fourth place. In many respects they played the way we did last
season. It gets uncomfortable when you think what they might have
done with Scott Parker in the side. In the present run of fixtures
our best hope for points was from the last two games versus Fulham
and Charlton. Having lost both and our next two games just as likely
to be pointless – though of course you can never tell – in three weeks
we could end up in the bottom three and out of the FA Cup too. In
which case, watch out for the Melledrew Tendency to make their inevitable
whining reappearance. My guess is they’ll blame David Moyes this time.
If you like that kind of thing, join in. But don’t expect sensible
people to help you. Some of us have better things to do with our time.
Still……………maybe we will get something out of the derby game. Maybe.
And, given the Wolves result, maybe we’ll get something out of the
Man United game. Maybe. And maybe we’ll beat Fulham in the Cup. Maybe.
Ifs, buts, maybes. And while I’m at it, who sensibly could have seen
Charlton in fourth place? They’ve earned it though, just as we earned
it last season. Which now seems a long, long time ago………………………………………(18/01/04)
