Charlton’s unbeaten run at The Valley continued with a hard fought point against Sheffield Wednesday this afternoon. After a busy opening period in which both teams has good chances, ex-Real Madrid winger, Royston Drenthe, gave The Owls the lead after a strong run and classy finish from outside the box. Thankfully, Drenthe’s second half performance did not match his first and he was substituted in the 73rd minute.  Everytime Drenthe got the ball in the first half he looked dangerous and went past our players with ease. Jordan Cousins wasted Charlton’s best chance when he headed over in front of the 2000 or so travelling Wednesday fans, who had made the familiar journey down the M1.

It was three of those fans who caused a pretty big disturbance in the North Upper towards the end of the first half. They thought it was amusing to let the rest of the North Stand know where their loyalty lied and were marched out of the ground. However, as they made their way towards the concourse they were confronted by 100 or so angry Addicks who let them know exactly what they thought of our uninvited Northern guests… The police eventually turned up to help them on their not-so-merry way. It reminded me of a game back in the 90’s when the infamous Wednesday ‘Tango Man’ appeared in the North Stand during a cup game, although I’m sure if my memory serves me correctly, he was congratulating, not antagonising…

The fans that were kicked out missed what proved to be a very good second half for The Addicks. We went for Wednesday immediately after the whistle blew, and our pressure paid off in the 70th minute when unmarked substitute, Igor Vetokele, calmly stroked in what was (in mine and my Dad’s trusted opinion) a mistimed Rhoys Wiggins shot. Whatever the intention, the run that Wiggins made immediately beforehand was superb and justified an assist.

Both teams had chances to win, but a draw was probably a fair result. Charlton did look much better with Gudmundsson and Vetokele on the pitch, but our lack of striking options is a huge flaw in a promising squad. Vetokele is quality, but without him it’s hard to see where goals will come from. Watching Yann Kermorgant come on as a substitute for high-flying Bournemouth was a reminder of what we are missing and I’m looking forward to seeing what Roland and Bob can come up with in the transfer window. 23 points at this stage of the season is a significant achievement and with some quality additions our position may look even stronger at the end of the year. However, without further investment, points like today’s may become harder to secure as the season continues.