FAN’S VIEW  2025/26 –CHARLTON AWAY

Intro

I’d written this FV by late Monday night but didn’t publish it because I’d not yet got my family to proof read it. I ask them to do so to pick up any glaring factual errors and poor grammar. On Tuesday morning Oxford United announced Gary Rowett’s departure. Obviously that rather big piece of news needs to be commented upon but I thought I’d leave what I’d already written as it was and then tag something extra on the end.

Pre-awareness of our Head Coach’s departure

Anyone who regularly reads the FVs will know that I now only write about away games. That obviously does not stop me having a view of home games. After our defeat to PNE I seemed to be in a minority of one. OUFC supporting friends and family all thought we were unlucky and deserved at least a point. Mrs FV had a check-up with the dentist in the week. He’s a Cardiff City fan but goes to many other games. He was also of that opinion. I concluded a bit of a re-think was needed on my part. Having re-thought I did not change my mind. We got what we deserved, nothing. Unlucky? Perhaps when we hit the bar but as for the rest of it, no, no, no. It’s not bad luck when the opposition keeper makes a number of very good saves. It’s skill on their part. It’s not bad luck if your team doesn’t mark properly when defending a corner.  Michal Helik isn’t going to win everything although he had a bloody good go at doing so. If you’ve got no pace, you’re not going to win football matches. We had no-one with that asset in the first half. No one who could carry the ball from our own half, no one trying to find space out wide further up the pitch ready to be sent haring away with an accurate long ball. We have not really got a forward line worthy of the name have we? When an obvious simple pass is on, instead of moving the ball quickly first time, it might get there eventually with the third touch. So easy for the opposition. And then when we did have a bit of momentum in the second half bringing the crowd to life, some substitutions were made that were hardly inspired. Mind you, Nik Prelec had not done much.

Then there’s the stats. I’ve heard “look at the stats” we were their equals. Hypocritical of me I know because I often reference them in FVs but I’m getting sick and tired of it. The fact is we hardly ever win games of football whatever the stats say.

Seems I’ve unintentionally written a mini FV of the Preston game but that just shows the strength of my feeling. This is what I was taking with me to the Valley. Of course, it is not yet a done deal, but the writing is starting to appear on the wall. The spray can has been out and the first three letters of the 10-letter r word are there.

Will anything less than a miracle save us? Or am I getting way too gloomy here? Anyway, miracles do happen. Last week a couple for Wales won a million pounds on the lottery for the second time. The chances of that happening were 24 trillion to one.

Before this Charlton had picked up just one point from their last six matches. We’d achieved six. What could possibly go wrong?

The train and tube journey was without hiccup. We were in the Rake in Borough Market at about 11:30. This is a tiny pub owned by two blokes who run Utobeer, an off-licence in the market. Along with many craft beers there were four handpumps. Draft Bass which is 4.4% ABV (don’t see that around much these days), an IPA at 4.2%, another at 6.8% and Thomas Hardy’s ale at 11.3% (that’s crazy talk). I remember back in the day you could buy bottle conditioned TH ale when there was a dearth of real ale but had no idea it was available pint sized in pubs. I had no intention to be anything other than sensible – well as sensible as I can be – and opted for the 4.2%er. It was a cloudy one, intentionally so. I noticed the barman with a little bottle squirting something at the glasses after he’d poured the pints but before he’d lifted them on to the bar for us to pick up and take away. I had to go back and ask what that was all about. Never seen it before. It was water being fired onto the outside of the glass to clean off any beer/froth that had dribbled down the outside.

The offering was decent enough if a tad overchilled. A few more of us had gathered and for seating we had to go outside. The decision was taken to seek a little more warmth. Young Sophie has to be thanked for suggesting the Royal Oak in Borough, only half a mile away. I don’t know how I’ve managed to overlook this over the years. It is GBG listed. It opens at 11:00 on Saturdays. It was voted one of the UK’s top ten pubs in 2010 by the Daily Telegraph and was voted SE London CAMRA Pub of the Year in 2023 and 2025. It’s owned by Harvey’s and is now a managed house. Proper street corner London boozer and the beer was faultless. I stuck with Sussex Best Bitter (4%). There were a few other choices from the Harvey’s range available too. None of the others in our party, which grew even further, who opted for these complained. I’ll probably head straight there when next in the area.

After going through the turnstiles there’s a bit of a walk up to the away stand. The way was blocked by many stewards at various points. Some fans just weaved their way through whilst others, including me, were stopped and searched. I held my arms out as instructed and was patted down. He felt my pocket and then said can I look in your wallet or words to that effect. He might have said please but I don’t think so. I can’t recall ever having been asked to do that in my many decades of following OUFC all over the country. I was shocked at the request but proceeded to remove my wallet. The steward then said if you don’t like it, I’ll call a supervisor. There was one in earshot who came over. I’m conscious of the way some stewards have behaved in the past. Those at Cheltenham trying to grab your ticket for instance. Wallets hold money and banking cards. I decided to make my views known. I had not lost the plot. The more people just stand for this sort of thing the more they will be treated with little respect and the boundaries will keep getting pushed is the way I look at it. I never asked what it was they were expecting to find in my wallet. I told the supervisor that I agreed with searches to stop smoke bombs/flares getting smuggled in and asked why they still often managed to get through. “They’re hidden in places we can’t look” he said. If the place he was hinting at was the place it surely had to be that would be an almost possible feat of nature, wouldn’t it?

I subsequently checked whether they actually had a right to check inside wallets. Seems I have the legal right to refuse them doing so but they win because they then have the right to throw me out if that was in the terms and conditions on the ticket. I can’t find it now to check. Someone walking by had said “it’s just random mate, let them get on with it”. That ain’t random when stewards pick out who they want.

To be fair, as Swiss Yellow later pointed out, my wallet is on the large size (less easy to lose) and I suppose that makes it an ideal hiding place for small weapons and drugs. I’m now wondering if I could travel to football without a wallet.

Am I writing about this and not just letting it go because we lost and I am still pissed off with it all? Quite possibly.

Anything to distract from the football. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.

No problem with the stewards from here on in. Sit anywhere. Well not sit – it wasn’t enforced so standing it was. Isn’t this just about the case everywhere although safe standing has altered this somewhat? Not that I could have sat in my seat if I’d had a spectator either side of me. No room for my knees. This is what happens when seats got bolted onto terracing that was designed for standing.

No, I have to stop. That will be my last distraction. (I hope)

The bloody football.   

My nephew was amongst our group in the pubs. I lost him and his mate on entry. Afterwards I messaged him “Beers much better than the football”. His one-word response was “dire”. That’s the football because I know he liked the beer.

Dire indeed. I thought Charlton were poor but we were much better at being poor than they were. I’ve said this a number of times this season. It’s becoming tiresome. Way beyond a one-off blip.

We had just one effort on target. Jamie Cumming was the keeper making the saves. The Charlton shots that were off target looked more threatening than ours. If the best efforts we can come up with are Helik heading set pieces over the bar what a sorry state of affairs.

We create almost nothing from open play. Our forward line as an attacking force just isn’t. They’ve got nothing to feed off but don’t appear to have it in them to produce something themselves.

The more I see of the scrap down the bottom of the table the more I’m changing my mind in thinking that the quality of the Championship is worse this time than last. This wasn’t Championship football. Well, it was but I’m sure you know what I mean.

Our team looks very League One and I don’t think it would be good enough to win promotion from that Tier. Mid-table at best. So many players don’t look Championship level. Have they got it in them but it is just not being brought out by the manager with his man management and team selection and set up? Or should the recruitment team be held to account?

And whilst I’m at it what about the academy? Tyler Goodrham made his league debut in August 2022 and no-on else has come through since. Running that academy isn’t cheap. Questionable value for money?

We need to up our game in all manner of areas of the football club if the ambition of being one of the top 30 in the country is to be achieved.

We managed to keep the score at 0-0 until the 78^th minute. We have not kept a clean sheet since we beat Derby 1-0 at the Kassam 12 games ago. So, no surprise when sub Charlie Kelman scored and secured the points for the Addicks.

There was still a sizeable chunk of added time to be tagged on to the dozen remaining minutes and we did force a few corners. I tried to believe; I wanted to believe that we’d get the ball into the Charlton net. But it was difficult. We didn’t of course. If we had done, we would have been celebrating like absolute nut-cases. Yes, for a point against a team on awful form. We stuck to our current script by not doing so.

Our odds on going down now are 2/1 on – that’s dropped from evens in a fortnight. It’s staring us plain in the face.

I feel sorry for the defence; they do a pretty good job all things considered. Only letting in one goal isn’t that bad and they put in a lot of effort to achieve that. But seeing that the other areas of the team are not contributing anywhere near what they should be and that we have **** all threat up front other than when those same defenders have to pile forward for set pieces, I suspect they might be getting a tiny bit pissed off by now. However, to be fair it’s not showing at the moment. Which must be a positive for team spirit says I clutching at very tiny straws.

I thought we had a very good turnout of away fans but we now have to guess at the numbers as they’re not included as they used to be in most match reports on the official Oxford United site. Why? Most fans are interested. The club must know how many tickets they sold.

I’d guess a couple of thousand at least. Big split though. “Gary Rowett your football is shit” sang a sizeable number.  “Sacked in the morning” too. An equal number countered with “Gary Rowett’s yellow and blue army”. I don’t think that was because they have faith in him but more to do with what’s the point booing? Get behind the team, that’s more likely to help them. After all we were only a goal down. This is not a good state of affairs.

I sang neither. I’m at a loss, like our football team.

It’s as if GR has run out of ideas. Perhaps he’s realised that this squad just isn’t up to it and he’s got no chance. There’s the question that always has to be asked at times like this. If you want him out who else do you expect to be able to get in who could do a better job? 

Bearing that in mind do I think Gary is still the man for the job? I’m not going to say no but it’s less of a yes than it was. I can stand watching football that isn’t attractive on the eye provided enough points are being ground out to ensure survival. They’re not.

On the Price of Football podcast Keiran Maguire informed listeners that the average tenure of a manager in the Championship is 10 months. We’ve had GR longer than that.

This Tuesday that podcast is an interview with our CEO Tim Williams on the finances of the Championship, our move to the new stadium, the Independent Financial Regulator and more. Should be informative and we mustn’t forget that although we’re losing on the field of play, we’re slowly winning off it as the Section 106 looks like being signed off in mid-January. There is of course still the risk of a vexatious application for a judicial review being put in but as OxVox says this can only be done on procedural grounds.

When I walked out of Bicester North station at 19:30 I rang Mrs FV and said “I’m in a foul mood”. She jokingly said “well stay out then”.  So, I did although I’d only intended to pop in for one or two. I knew there would be a few Fossils in the Penny Black. I blame one particular Fossil who kept buying shots. I don’t do shots but I did that day, along with Stout, Guinness and JD and cokes. That’s what this Oxford United team is doing to me at the moment. (They don’t do shots. Well not many on target). In case you’re interested the Fossils are Bicester’s Walking Football Club. They’ve just had their 1000^th club session. 

Anyway, the usual Christmas greetings. Have a great one. Peace and joy to all. Try not to let the football bring you down. Boxing Day we go again. At three o’clock when we kick-off against Southampton I’ll be thinking perhaps, just perhaps today could be the day.

Post awareness of Gary Rowett’s departure

I found out about this when I got to Abingdon to play walking football. Quite a walking football theme in this FV. It’s thriving in Oxfordshire. “He’s gone then” “Who?” “Rowett”. I was surprised. Then on reflection not really.

The usual questions. Have we got someone lined up? Have plans already been made for the transfer window? Will they be able to get more out of this squad than GR did?

Will we get a new manager bounce when one is appointed? When will that be and how far adrift, if at all, will we be by then? Or will the interims get points on the board?

How will the players respond? Will Siriki Dembele be brought back in from the cold?

How much compensation will Rowett and his assistant Mark Sale be getting? To be honest if I’d been asked who the assistant was, I wouldn’t have known the answer.

A few things are for sure:

• The fans need to stay/get behind the team
• The new incumbent will have one hell of a challenge on their hands
• With a new manager you never know how things will turn out

So, farewell Gary. You came over on the radio as a thoroughly decent chap. You kept us up last season and lasted longer than the average manager in the Championship. Good luck in whatever job you get next other than if you are playing your latest former club.