Thursday 16 December 2010

Confidence high at Hartlepool

Confidence is high at Hartlepool United after a good run for the club and they are expecting to take three points off Charlton on Saturday: Hartlepool

In contrast the mood among many supporters at Charlton seems to be one of gloom and pessimism despite the fact that the club remains in the play off places. Of course the team is not playing good football but then very few clubs in this division do. It is actually quite difficult to play well against a team that is playing hoofball which is why the Addicks might give quite a decent account of themselves against Spurs.

The Football League Paper had a piece supposedly written by Johnnie Jackson last Sunday, but no doubt drafted by the press office on an 'as told to' basis. Indeed, some of it I had read somewhere before: family settled in well, great to be back in the smoke, playing alongside good players, overjoyed to have a fixture at Spurs etc.

However, one thing in particular struck me: Jacko said 'Charlton is a big club'. The description of us by ITV as 'the tiny London club' when we won the play-offs at Wembley was ludicrous, but we have never really been more than a medium-sized club.

But the fact that teams see as a big club is a bit of an albatross around our neck. It allows teams like Hartlepool to big up our visit and hope to get a few more through the turnstiles.

The covers have been on the pitch there this week. I haven't checked a weather forecast for the area, but with the ground so close to the North Sea and snow showers feeding off it, there must be some risk of postponement. My current forecast is: game abandoned after 39 minutes (snow), Charlton leading 1-0.

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