Charlton v Coventry - Fans' revolt

So here I am again in South London on a sunny autumn day to see Coventry again, now at Charlton. Wis I hadn't bothered for a number of reasons.

Started ok. A bit of checking on the internet meant I had found that the routes to the ground were limited by engineering works. So I duly went via Victoria, and did my good deed of the day in rescuing a bunch of inebriated City supporters staring at a board with no idea where to go.

And Charlton have a nice trim ground and the away supporters are allowed the run behind one goal (rather than being put in an obscure corner). But both sides have much hated owners, and teams struggling in the lower half of the table. So the "match" started with a joint protest march to the ground.

But when the whistle went for kick-off it was joined by a hail of pink plastic pigs being hurled onto the pitch, resulting in the game being immediately halted so that stewards could clear the pitch of pigs. Surely the first ever case of play being stopped due to flying pigs.

Now the problem with this protest, and the endless chanting against the owners, is that its all so futile. They don't care. All that really happens is that the game is disrupted and the enjoyment lessens. And I fear for the environment - those pigs aren't going to bio degrade any time soon. Unlike the teams.

Anyway, game finally restarted.

 But I can't say it was much fun. There is nothing wrong with Coventry that half a dozen good players couldn't sort out. But we haven't got them and aren't going to get them. And if we did change squad I would say the entire defence needs replacing. They were awful against a very poor Charlton side who eventually managed to run out three goal winners, of which only the last wasn't the result of woeful defending. Could have been all so different if Lameriras' shot hadn't rebounded of the inside of the post at nil-nil.  But it did and we rarely looked like scoring after going a goal down.

And so we trooped off back to the station. The sunny afternoon at kick-off had now transformed into pouring rain. And Charlton station has only a very small shelter on it. For most of the crowd there was no alternative but to stand together against the rain for 20 minutes like huddled emperor penguins against an Antarctic storm. Not a happy day. And I had paid for the privilege.