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Date: Sunday 11th February 2001, 4.00pm Live on Sky Sports Venue: The Valley  Conditions:  deeply unpleasant Admission: £tbc Programme: £tbc

Charlton Athletic	2 - 0	Newcastle United
Half time:	2 - 0
Score Sheet:
(37) Svensson  (43) Bartlett
	Teams
Ilic Rufus Todd Fish Kishishev Parker Jensen Stuart Powell Svensson Bartlett		Given Barton Marcelino Hughes Quinn Solano Acuna Lee Speed Dyer Ameobi
Substitutes:
(77) Johansson for Bartlett (83) Robinson for Kishishev  (90) Kinsella for Parker		Bassedas for Lee (72) Lua-Lua for Solano (73) Gallacher for Acuna (59)
Subs not used:
Brown Caig		Harper Griffin
Bookings:
(56) Parker  (78) Svensson		Barton (79)
Referee: Paul Durkin (Dorset). Nothing to do with him that we lost.
Attendance: 20,043

37 mins Newcastle ignored several opportunities to disrupt a Charlton attack before Powell's cross from the left was nodded back by Bartlett for Mathias Svensson to ignore a half-hearted "challenge" from Marcelino and steer his left-footed shot into the corner of the goal. 0-1

43 mins A build-up down the Addick right saw the ball played past Aaron Hughes, but although it was nowhere near his arm, the linesman flagged for a handball. Referee Durkin played the advantage and Warren Barton's fluffed clearance fell for Shaun Bartlett to crash a volley through Shay Given's legs. 

Schoolboy stuff as we didn't play to the whistle. 0-2

Half time: Charlton 2 Newcastle 0

Full time: Charlton 2 Newcastle 0

Ahead of a trip to the sunshine in La Manga Uncle Bobby fumed: 

Curbs enthused:

"It was a fantastic response from the players.

"I kept faith with the same 11 and asked for a performance I didn't get against Spurs. It was a psychological thing as well because if Newcastle had managed to come back and beat us from two goals down as happened in midweek it would have been two on the spin.

"I have been delighted with the attitude since the West Ham game and I have said to the players that despite everyone talking about 40 points I have seen teams tail off after they get to that total - I have been talking at length to stop that happening to us.

"Now we are maybe looking at something different with 11 games left and we want to pick up as many points as possible.

"If we can get to 50 points it will have been a great season, but the reason the teams are down at the bottom of the table is because they have not won for 11 games. 

"People talk about point totals for survival, but we are not safe yet.We have worked ever so hard to get where we are and we are not going to let it go away lightly."

This one almost writes itself: London, SKY TV, capitulation, blah, blah, blah.

Perhaps if all the hot air expended before the game about how we were "up for it" and ready to break the hoodoo had been saved, we might have had enough to blow the ball up the field. It would certainly have been an improvement on our efforts to kick it anywhere near the Charlton net.

Once again we journeyed inside the M25 and promptly went belly up, revealing a sizeable yellow streak in the process. Nine league games have been played in London under Bobby Robson for a return of one solitary point, and a check back at the relevant NUFC.com match reports reveals possible over-use of the words "abject", "gutless" and "clueless." 

After Arsenal, Spurs, West Ham and Chelsea, add the name of Charlton to a list of average teams that we've made look like Real Madrid when we've come to visit. What perfect guests we are.

For your average toon nut travelling down from Newcastle, the cash expended in going to those nine games now starts to nudge toward four figures, discounting the use of holidays, bribery or judicious skiving to get time off for midweek games. 

In terms of the damage done in other ways however, the expectation level is now below sea level, and the support to the lads is dropping off markedly. The second half at Stamford Bridge saw a quiet away section and at the Valley, barely a voice was raised in anything other than anguish. Indeed, the final twenty minutes or so was eerily silent, as those who hadn't already sneaked out stood impassively with expressions of grim resignation.

There seems to be no middle ground for United of late, either brilliant or awful, and the loss of Goma and Stevie Caldwell before this game almost guaranteed that a clean sheet wouldn't be recorded. 

This prediction was almost realised three times before the home side went ahead, and our backline seemed in a constant state of panic, with Barton popping up almost anywhere except in a right back role. Marcelino however merely contented himself with a static position in front of Given's goal, giving him a grandstand view of various Charlton players passing above him to collect the ball.

If any outfield player added to his reputation, perhaps it was Wayne Quinn. Early on, he was sharp in the tackle and generally gave the impression of a man desperate to impress. 

One or two probing runs forward also gave us at least a semblance of width, but in the main he at least tried to play in his chosen position unlike our other full back. Elsewhere Lee toiled without reward in the middle, and Speed simply vanished without trace once we were behind.    

If our formation had been unclear earlier on, the subsequent changes that brought Gallacher, Bassedas, and Lua Lua on to the field made us look even more dishevelled, if that were possible. Acuna chose to hide from the ball up front (a safe place as it turned out), Ameobi was forced to pull out wide to gain possession and Dyer reprised the latter part of Beardsley's first reign on Tyneside, dropping deeper and deeper. 

As for Solano, he may as well have brought his trumpet on to the field, as his footballing contribution was remarkably unentertaining. Hopefully Bobby stuck a boot behind him to speed him on his way to the dressing room when the Peruvian was substituted for cowardice. 

Now we endure an enforced break in competition, and the chance to save a few pennies while the team swan around La Manga in their espadrilles, worrying whether the English papers have been delivered to their hotel. 

It's odds on that we'll beat Manchester City, but assuming we do, what will that prove? That we can dispatch a team of second rate journeymen, almost certain to be playing in the Nationwide league come August. It'll take a wee bit more than that to stop the less committed of our 44,000 season ticket holders ripping their renewal forms up. 

And whisper it softly, but if a certain team down the road actually get into Europe, one or two of the undecided may swap black and white for red and white, especially if the disparity in ticket prices increases.

Those of us who are beyond help however, merely stand, suffer, go home and do it again. Such is our fate.  

Biffa

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