As most of my Charlton friends know I started life being a Chelsea fan and at around 13 years of age became a Charlton supporter, the distinction here between supporter and fan is someone who follows a team, goes to matches and is there through thick and thin while a fan is someone who follows from a distance and watches on Match of The Day.
I converted from a team of Osgood and Bonetti to a team of Wright and Crawford. Top tier to 2nde tier, most people go the other way - what is the opposite of a glory hunter - whatever it is thats me.
I began watching Charlton the season after the were pipped by the Selhurst crew for promotion and in a season - one of many - when we avoided relegation by the skin of our teeth.
Any fans who supported Charlton around this time will remember a team that was exciting to watch in matches that were exciting to watch, the team may not have been very good - even with Alan Campbell - but the games were fun and there was always the peanut man and we would see lots of goals, I saw us beat Swansea Town 6-1, lose to either Bristol or Blackburn Rovers 2-4, but I did not really care because we had no expectations of grandeur top flight, there was the brief encounter with Simonsen when what looked like naked ambition turned out to be just a brief interlude in the pursuit of mediocrity.
Then in the 80's Uncle Len with a ragga muffin band of players got us into the top tier, we loved it but we never really thought we should be there, each and every season we expected it to be our last and eventually it was,but we had enjoyed our stay at the top and really never expected to be there again. Sorry when I say we, I mean me, it was nice while it lasted.
Then came Curbishley, Gritt and Alwen, to be succeeded by Curbishley and Murray and what did they do, they gave us hope they got us into the Prem, they bought half decent players and over a decade they gave us results and positions that we could be proud of and we came to expect.
So now when we get beaten, which is an all too frequent occurence it hurts, when as yesterday I see an inept performance by a forward like Grey (who's idea of attacking the ball is to stand still and hope it bounces off his head to one of his mates) instead of thinking of Dickie Plumb or Barry Endean, I think of Darren Bent and Andy Hunt (Ok Clive Mendonca too), when I see inept loan players as we have had too many of lately, I don't think of Mike Small, I think of Jorge Costa - when we put in an inept performance like we did yesterday, when our Championship life depends on it, I don't think "well thats Charlton- thats what we are like, thats what life for a Charlton supporter is all about." I think "I've been short changed, my team don't care, I am gutted."
After the Owls fans chanted "We've got our Wednesday back", our fans chanted "We want our Charlton back." Well maybe we've got our Charlton back, but thanks to Murray and Curbishley there is no turning back, they have given us expectations and its like opening Pandoras box and it hurts.
