This has got to be the quietest July in the Club's history - or at least since the transfer window system came in. So far we have signed one player and temporarily lost four to pre-season injuries or illness. It is clear now that nothing further is going to happen and cost cutting is just going to continue indefinitely. Usually at this time of year fans of almost every club are looking forward to the new season, even if their team is skint. I cannot ever recall being less excited about a new season kicking off in just over a week. Of course it will be nice to get back into the match-day routine on those Saturdays when Charlton are playing at home. But even the football is probably going to do little more than distract most fans from the lack of anything else whatsoever happening at the Club; just give us something else to talk about for a couple of days each week. Everything is winding down in anticipation of a take-over which now looks like it will never happen. September at the earliest? We've heard it all before. I can't believe this season is going to lead us anywhere except to next summer, when Charlton will have about 5 players left in their squad, and about that many staff still working inside the Valley.
Lardiman, Absolutely spot on and been saying this for ages and the latest rumour concerning Aribo going to Ipswich and notice Bows stating I am going to have to make decisions on these 3 on trial players and believe one has had as much as 13 or 14 clubs a real intention of intent and LOL quality signing and how many others going out of the door and a 33-year-old not match fit and others as usual just not fit There is still enough much deadwood within the club from top to bottom and the well the media teams in-house and outhouse needs to be completely changed and some professionalism would be nice. I would also like to bring it to the attention of the moderators on here that a certain Charlton Live team (Alias) many members of the Valley Pass team either on official media of CAFC and those condone live and insulting personal remarks live on matchday broadcast. No mentions of any apologies whatsoever and they and Charlton Life and many members of both sites and others block any posts which are differing from their own and ban several decent postings and it is disgusting. Many people would like these to be completely shut down and I have heard many contributors on various sites been banned, for not much worse than a difference of opinion. Opinions are going to be different, but it seems several valuable contributors are being banned it seems for life and it is as if they have seriosly injured or murdered anyone. One thing is for sure this diabolical Owner has got his wish in that he has completely and successfully alienated all supporters and yes in fighting the normal sequence of events and soon this time how long will Charlton be in existence for. Having stated all of this even in our Premiership days the supporters were divided and very serious arguments broke out. I am very very sad at the shambles from top to bottom of our so-called professional football club being deliberately run into the ground and there is not much left to go is there? I am very very sad indeed and we have fought many crises in our history, but fear we have lost a generation of supporters and yes no one can ever take this away from me, I was oh so such a very very proud candidate for The Wonderful Valley Party and to see us in this very dire situation and yes how long can CAFC survive this time. Yes a loyal supporter of over 56 years and a volunteer groundsman to that Late great character Sir Maurice Banham in the 1960's and not one to blow his own trumpet, normally.
Charlton Athletic has faced many problems and dire situations in its history. Nothing quite like this owner though. Duchatelet is not a crook or a villain in the conventional sense, and he is hugely wealthy of course. But he clearly has no understanding of what matters to football fans, and he does not care at all that his failed experiment has caused long lasting damage to more than one Club. His treatment of CAFC now no longer even includes a pretense of responsible stewardship. The Club is not far off being an empty shell now, with no long term planning and vital senior posts just left unoccupied. And all the while the debt to him goes up and up, as season tickets sales have declined again and again. We are losing a generation of future fans. If RD won't sell the Club for a reasonable price it will eventually grind to a halt - effectively it will die. Summer 2019 will see most of our mid-table 3rd tier squad just walk away for free. A whole raft of journeymen and crocks coming in next summer will see the Club relegated to the 4th tier for the first time in its history in season 2019-20. Once that happens whole stands within the Valley will be closed, and the prospect of the stadium being sold will surely be on the agenda.
PS Generally speaking, you want to be careful with the ‘crook’ word. It’s a bit like being asked ‘when did you stop beating your wife?’. I’ve seen this tactic used elsewhere to create Aunt Sallies, in order to stop legitimate questions being asked.
I have emailed him "Oi Murphy, did you know your mouthpiece is threatening other Charlton fans with legal action on the forums?" with a link to said post And he supports Millwall!! You're welcome" No reply as yet!!
Gerard Murphy’s e mail address has been published by disgruntled long term Charlton fans on another forum. Good With only 9 days to go until kick off, the Aussies have left us high and dry.
Have you read his blog? "Good People & Good Governance My family and I recently returned to Australia after living in London for almost four years. During this period I was fortunate enough to be able to work in, and observe the professional sporting cultures of English soccer, rugby, union rugby league and the GB Olympic team. This experience provided me with examples of great team culture, poor team culture and lots inbetween. With this as background, I have been intrigued by the ‘cultural’ issues within our sporting teams that have been unfolding on an almost daily basis. Initially it was the post-Olympic discussion, followed by the Essendon FC & ACC report, Adelaide FC, Melbourne FC, Cronulla Sharks, the Australian swimming team and the Aussie cricket team suspensions (apologies to anyone I have missed). Each of these examples is extraordinarily complex but would have been prevented through the implementation of two simple yet critical factors – values-driven leaders followed by good governance. Values-driven people articulate their values and live by them. They understand who they are and what they stand for. Under pressure, they take responsibility and revert to their values to make decisions. They instill confidence in their team. This enables the group to move forward as a unit, permitting them to prevail when many would have doubted it possible. Such people can be very difficult to identify and I wish that I had a dollar for every person who has asked me “where can I find good leaders?” Begin by looking for leaders in great teams or organisations. Identify your targets and analyse how they perform when things are going against them. Do they refer to their values or do they self-protect? Do they put the team first or do they do their own thing. When you have identified your values-driven people, and placed them in every key of leadership position within your organisation, then you must support them with excellent structures and governance. This will provide the framework for ethical and honest decision making. It will provide the organisation with the checks and balances required and it will give every leader the confidence to make informed decisions that will improve the team. Without sound governance, good people can make bad decisions. These two factors alone will not create elite teams, but they are a great place to start. From this starting point you can then begin to implement all the other important elements of a great team or organisation." Boasts an impressive list of clients, but makes you wonder why none have retained his services!!
It’s a string of platitudes & PR guff. Rather like his takeover pronouncements. Long term Charlton fans are starting to see thru it. Oh for the day when we had genuine, understated, non big headed real Charlton fans owning our club - men like Mike Norris & Roger Alwen.
