Mirrors

Mirrors are reflections and many of us at this time are reflecting on where we are, where we have been, what we are doing. I’m reflecting on Parkie and on our promotion prospects and where we have been before.

When I look at Parkie and reflect I see a manager who is in the mould of a former great. Like Curbs Parkie has entered Charlton management under a cloud, Curbs was not accepted because we saw Steve Gritt as true Charlton, whereas Curbs was true West Ham and throughout his tenure, all 15 years this hung over him, Parkie carries the baggage of being part of Pardews team that took us from Premiership to Division 1 and whenever results are bad this willbe remembered, like Curbs it appears that Parkie has players who once they cross him never find their way back, for Jason Euell there is Yassin Moutakill, Parkie is young and has potential, Curbs was young and had potential, potential that he fulfilled, to an extent, both during the early part of their tenure worked off small budgets and were forced to go for free transfers and loans, Curbs had Bumstead and Gatting, the game has changed so Parkies list is longer and includes the likes of Dailly, Mooney, Sodje’s, although during their tenure neither has been free from error. Where they diverge is that Parkie has two club experience behind him – a promotion and a sacking, whereas Curbs came to us a virgin, just a bit of coaching. Curbs probably plateaued after 12 years, the club did not go forward or backwards, the question is has Parkie after a year in charge reached his plateau. Lets not forget Curbs went through periods like this and then he did he shed his cloak of conservatism, made wholesale changes and turned things around. One of these times was after a real tonking at the hands of West Ham and saw the beginning of the end of Kinsella’s Charlton career. When you reflect on Charlton’s hapless performances since January, culminating in Mondays defeat then you know that Parkie now needs to step up to the plate and be bold, be brave put his career on the line and take the approach that will lead us to reflect on another campaign, a campaign where with games to go we went on a run,we kept clean sheets and we went to Wembley, under dogs we fought and we won and the golden era of recent years began.

Or and this is my final reflection, not Curbs but Pardew. Parkie can be the new Curbs or the new Pardew. Two seasons ago, we came out of Christmas second a guarantee of a return to the land of milk and honey, called the Premiership. But after the New Year results tailed off, instead of promotion results indicated a play off place, and then not even a play off place, mid table. Like now we had a team that exceeded the quality of the division, we had a team that should have at least competed for automatic promotion.

So Parkie, the message is be bold be brave,if we are going to stay in this division then lets stay down fighting and playing,lets reflect on past glory and achieve new success.