Charlton Atheltic (A) League 1 Monday 9/4/12.

[Ancient Moaner]

Looks like great end to end stuff...we've now had 9 corners, even if we lose we should be VERY proud of such an effort against an obviously superior squad. :D

[WFC_Rob]

Beevers goal disallowed for offside.

[cumbria-saddler]

Beevers goal disallowed for offside

[Fray Bentos is God!]

Lee Beevers is so tight and muscular.

[Welsh_Saddler]

Chesterfield now 4-0 against Wycombe, and Bury now 4-1 against Colchester.

85th minute, and Preston take the lead at Stevenage :shock:

If we do achieve safety it may well be Coventry coming to join us - they're 2-1 down at fellow-strugglers Bristol City, which will put them 4 points from their own safety!

[cumbria-saddler]

Preston 1-0 up :shock:

[Ancient Moaner]

Come on Bowerman....make yourself a hero...10 minutes to get us a point!

[WFC_Jimmy]

Come on Walsall...give us a goal!!!!

[Jorge14]

4 added...c'mon!

[Welsh_Saddler]

Stevenage equalise against Preston in the 4th minute added - now 1-1

[hullsaddler]

Sounds like we were really really unlucky not to get something out of that.
Charlton commentators were very nervous towards the end . They were really keen on Ledesma.

[PINNACLE]

Bad luck lads, a noble effort,
we should still be ok tho :D

[PINNACLE]

Looks like we are 'under the cosh' right from the start....the BBC don't have enough room in thier report slots to fit in the number of shots/crosses/corners...etc that Charlton have made after just 4 minutes...those who thought we may get something out of this game are setting thier sights slightly high through rose tinted glasses!!! :( :(

Happy now :roll:

[1933]

Sounds like a good effort by the lads and not too much damage to our goal difference!

[WFC_Rob]

Sounds like we were the better side for the majority of the game.

A win next week has the potential to put us 7 clear with 3 games left. Given our goal difference, that would need Wycombe to win all three of their remaining games.

[Ancient Moaner]

Looks like we are 'under the cosh' right from the start....the BBC don't have enough room in thier report slots to fit in the number of shots/crosses/corners...etc that Charlton have made after just 4 minutes...those who thought we may get something out of this game are setting thier sights slightly high through rose tinted glasses!!! :( :(

Happy now :roll:

NO, I'm not, it would appear that we should be VERY proud of thier efforts today, sounds as if they were not at all outclassed. Shame we couldn't have got that goal, still onwards and upwards...UTS

[Welsh_Saddler]

According to the BBC/Press Association, we had more shots, more on target, and more corners than Charlton. The only statistics where Charlton were superior were those of fouls committed, and bookings. :roll: We were certainly not disgraced, and the fact that both Wycombe and Leyton Orient lost heavily (and I have to say unexpectedly heavily) means that all is certainly not lost yet!!

Onwards and upwards - UTS :D

[PINNACLE]

Looks like we are 'under the cosh' right from the start....the BBC don't have enough room in thier report slots to fit in the number of shots/crosses/corners...etc that Charlton have made after just 4 minutes...those who thought we may get something out of this game are setting thier sights slightly high through rose tinted glasses!!! :( :(

Happy now :roll:

NO, I'm not, it would appear that we should be VERY proud of thier efforts today, sounds as if they were not at all outclassed. Shame we couldn't have got that goal, still onwards and upwards...UTS

Some of us always are, some of us cant wait to stick the knife in and have a cheap shot, ring any bells Mr Moaner ?

[WFC_Rob]

Let's leave off the bickering, shall we? Being a Walsall fan has taken a turn for the better of late and there's no reason for that to change after today.

[leedssaddler]

Sounds like we were the better side for the majority of the game.

A win next week has the potential to put us 7 clear with 3 games left. Given our goal difference, that would need Wycombe to win all three of their remaining games.

Agreed and don't forget Wycombe's 2 away games are at Charlton and the Wendys.

With our goal difference, reckon 50 points and 4 pts from 4 games will do it. Party in exeter?!

[BathSaddler]

277 Saddlers at Charlton today.

[Welsh_Saddler]

Let's leave off the bickering, shall we? Being a Walsall fan has taken a turn for the better of late and there's no reason for that to change after today.

Hear jolly well hear!!!

[Surrey Saddler]

Just back. And a very creditable performance. Our mid field bossed the game and we had most of the possession. Nichols ran at them in the first half and was impressive, but tired a little in the second period. Macken ran his socks off but just does not have the legs, I am afraid. Ledesma was a constant threat but it was a pity that their defence was much superior to their attack, which - for a team running away with the league - was woeful. If we play like this for the rest of the season we will be OK.....BUT, for next year, we will be without our loan players. What then?

[MILO5]

Just back.

Entertaining game and a really good performance .

There was nothing in it between the two teams. If anything, in open play we were more creative and always looked as if we had a goal in us. But the clue in the final scoreline would suggest that we didn't.

The goal that separated us was at the other end ...difficult to work out what went wrong , but would be guessing Grof . Not being wise after the event , but have said for a few weeks that I wouldn't mind the reassuring presence of james walker esq for the pressurised run in.

Such a pleasure to see our midfield have such energy and verve , a million miles from earlier in the season. We always looked to have pace today , Nicholls, Flo , Ledesma and later Patterson all worried them. The only weak spot from that point of view was Hurst , who had a quiet game.

People talk about Macken being able to hold the ball up, but I thought Ledesma did that job 100 times better ...the ball stuck to him like glue , no matter how awkward. The bloke is pure class, so far better than the rest of the team it's not even funny.
Whereas Macken normally looks like a 40 year old who was a decent player once, today he looked about 50 . He was played in once in the first half , looked like a 50/50 between him and the keeper who would get there first .....Macken had given up half way there .

Defensively , no arguments at all, all 4 very solid ( as was Grof to be fair barring the goal) . Butler and Smith excellent ....Butler always in the right place at the right time , and Smith a class act too....loved his tricky run down the right wing too!

Midfield v good , always playing to feet, always available and full of running . Hurst a disappointment .

Ledesma though .... W h a t A P l a y e r . I think I might be a little bit in love.

Proud day to be a saddler , as we gave the top of the table a VERY uncomfortable afternoon. Knowing Wycombe were well behind also softened the blow massively .... Glad that Exeter beat orient , but trying to have my cake and eat it , I would rather they were already down when we go there , which isnt a given now.

Nearly 300 Saddlers In good voice at times and keep laying like this and NO reason why we can't get a point or two out of the tough last two games .

[McSaddler]

First game of the season. First impression was that we look better than our current league position although it was the recent signings in the main that stood out.Charlton looked particulary nervy and really just ground out the victory. Despite all of our possession we didn't create too many good chances.

Ref was pretty loud, you could hear him shouting from where we were sitting.

Here's my report card.

Grof - One top class save in the first half tipping over from a long range shot. Punched quite a bit and that might have been his downfall for their goal, that said it was a good free kick. Overall impressive and made a few other smart stops and dealt with some potentially tricky back passes on a slippy suface
Beevers - had the ball in the back of the net but disallowed for offside, distribution could have been better at times but overall solid
Sadler - kept things simple, from what I've read on previous match threads it was a classic Sadler performance
Smith - steady, attacked the ball well from a corner in the second half
Butler - solid, excellent blocking tackle in the second half which prevented a certain Charlton goal on the break, had a stint upfront towards the end
Nicholls -attacked well especially in the first half, got some decent balls in
Hurst - didn't particularly stand out for me
Mantom - covered the ground well,
Cueliver - good engine, rarely conceded possession and used the ball well, linked well with Ledesma, pick of a good midfield performance
Macken - generally held up the ball well but yard off the pace, decent chance which a nippier striker would have got onto the end of in the first half
Ledesma - chased well , was the source of most of our creativity

Paterson - looked lively and was willing to take on players
Bowerman - got involved
Chambers - Looked rusty when he came on and gave away possession but not on long so probably a bit harsh to read too much into it

No shame in losing 1-0 away to the league leders we should have enough to get the points to take us over the line. Well done to those who made it down to London on a miserable day. See you at Exeter.

[Oxsall]

I think we played well today. All the players worked hard and at times we played some good football, especially in the first half before they scored - Nichols in particular had a lot of joy against their left back. You wouldn't have guessed they were top and we were battling relegation. So no complaints. Most days that kind of performance would have got us at least a point. If we can play at that kind of level in our remaining games we should do well (but then that's the trick isn't it!).

Not sure what happened with their goal as it was down the other end. Grof ended up on the floor. Butler seemed to complain to the ref that he (ie Butler) had been fouled. It's the kind of goal that as a defence you probably feel was a soft one and you're disappointed about. We had a few chances in the first half, one good one I think for Culvier (?) with a shot from the edge of the box that he dragged wide. In the second half it was harder to tell what was a good chance - as we were attacking the far end - but Ledesma had one on his left from the edge of the box very near the end which I thought he might have done better with. He had his head in his hands after. As others have said, he was very good today.

ps We seemed to have a lot of corners!

[Neuromantic]

Just got back.

Really proud of the team today - thought we completely bossed the second half and looked dangerous. If we had a decent striker to play off Ledesma we may actually have won that game.

[MILO5]

Charlton fans v.impressed with us on their sites.

[priestley_saddler]

If someone had said to me before the game "Would you accept a 1-0 defeat if it meant Wycombe losing 4-0 and Leyton Orient 3-0?" I think I'd have said yes.

Charlton flew out the blocks and Grof made a decent save, but we looked really lively on the break with Nicholls in particular having the beating of their left back. This seemed to stop Charlton in their tracks and to our immense credit the game was pretty even. Their goal game from a free kick lobbed into the box which Grof decided about a second too late that he was going to come for, and as a result never got there.

Grof - Apart from the goal was solid. Dropping him would be silly (can't remember who mentioned it above), would you drop Wacka if he'd been turning in Grof's performaces? Didn't think so.
Beevers - The 'Lee Beevers barclays Club' really annoys me. Not only is it ridiculous to cream over him every time he does something right, but all it does is emphasise how rarely that actually happens. Heard his name chanted twice today.
Sadler - Typical Sadler performance. If he doesn't win Player Of The Season then its a travesty.
Butler - Has never exactly been poor has he, but his performances these last few weeks seem to have that bit extra bite. Makes an excellent captain.
Smith - Rock solid
Mantom - I thought was possibly his weakest game for us, although I wouldn't go as far as to say he played badly. Think by the end he was feeling the effects of two games in 48 hours
Cuvelier - Was probably the pick of the midfield
Hurst - Have never seen him pass to a red shirt quite so often, unfortunately today we were playing in black.
Nicholls - Had the beating of their left back, but still seemed scared to take him on at times. Definitely proven he's a better right winger than a striker, but would still question whether we should keep him or not.
Macken - Has set the bar for the standard of our strikers all season and now looks inadequate playing alongside Ledesma.
Ledesma - If Macken had set the bar to a High Jump standard, Ledesma has raised it to Pole Vault level. So much better than everyone else it actually looks ridiculous. Must keep him.

I don't think any of the subs particularly did a lot.

I think one more win and we're safe. Would leave Wycombe needing at least 8 points from their final four games, and with trips to Charlton and Sheffield Wednesday to come for them, that is not going to happen.

Was good to meet saddlersam today (I'd actually met him before without realising who he was). Was good to put a face to the name.

[Guest]

Absolutely gutted that we didn't get at least a point.