Here here SCV. Competition for places is important in any squad and players languishing on the subs bench/training field are no use to use when required to step up to the plate and perform. Cup competitions can be a distraction, but they are a good distraction and imagine what a win against Reading will do for the confidence of the players and us as supporters?
Wasn't our poor league form later in the season when we were out of the cup competitions? And if you go back a bit further you'll find our cup form was poor while we were sliding down the leagues( mind you it was also poor when we were an "established" Premier league side). We can still play our strongest side in the league, and even use the cup to find if this really is our strongest side, which I am not convinced.
Eddie Firmani wind-ups aside - I hope we win all of our matches, especially when I have paid good money to watch us play, and that the players give their all for the fine money that they earn. If the team has a Charlton badge on the shirt then I want wins. Regardless of the permutations on any other competitions we are in. One match at a time is my motto.
Parkinson was sacked during two cup runs, so the poor league form came during the good cup runs... Best to focus on the league.
I think there are pro's and con's to going out early or having a run in one of the many cups we are in. Many of which have already been stated. While we all know Charlton have never really been known for their cup aspirations, always putting out second rate teams to concentrate on the League, which has happened for as long as I can remember. This has always paralleled with the fact that we have never had the strength in depth within the squad in recent times. But I feel now that Powell has built a squad that will challenge on all fronts and all positions, which in my opinion has not been the case for a while. So I agree with previous posters and sitting on the fence. We need to use the cups to get players hungry and proving what they can do, having not yet had the chance to do so. No one likes to sit on the bench. Even a sunday league player with a stinking hangover wants to be on the pitch. But at the same time, we don't want a cup to become a distraction, so it is about getting the balance right. Whatever the case I always want to see Charlton win!
Good article eddie. With the way the first team is currently playing, cup games will be the only chances for Alonso, Evina, Pritchard, Bover et al, all of whom look decent players and will feel they should be playing regularly, so will want to impress. I don't care if it's only the JPT - did Southampton complain when they won it?
