Jim "the Ghost" Gannon brings his second division side to the Valley this evening for what promises to be an interesting encounter after the heroics of Saturday. Stockport are undergoing something of a revival under Gannon but should find us too strong, especially away from home. I know we have only played them a handful of times and our record is very poor - I'm sure they did the double last time around.... I remember leaving the County Ground shortly after they went 3-0 up, the Alan Curbishley stare followed me all the way out of the ground. I'm only pleased he didn't feel compelled to gesticulate.
The crowd will be interesting for this one following the disappointing turnout for the Braga game earlier this month. Based upon the 20,000 Charlton fans there on Saturday and probably 21,500 for the Scunthorpe match, you would think we might hold up for close to 10,000. My suspicion is it might be nearer 5,000 and I can't see Stockport adding more than 500. At least we have the pricing right at £10 for adults and £5 for concessions.
I'm taking Pardew to rest three or four. Partly because we have a reasonable sized squad to select from and also because Palace are already out and can expect to be a tad fresher come Saturday. I don't think he'll do anything more dramatic than that baring in mind the need for more games for the emerging team. Despite being lower opposition, I don't think we'll be fretting about the consequences of defeat here either and we should expect to create enough decent chances.
Finally, I see Thomas Graveson is being offloaded by the Bhoys. Fingers-crossed-every-so -tightly that it might come to pass. Always struck me as a "Charlton-type" and I'm sure he has something left to give as well as to prove after his relative disappointments since leaving Everton.
Come on you Reds!
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