A niche in the market ...

This isn't a Charlton Blog. It's a blog about life in South East London that happens to include my support for Charlton. So I don't rush home to get on T'Internet to write about the team, or rant (much) about the clubs falldowns, or generally argue the toss about how shite Marcus Bent is. I leave that to others. But sometimes, just sometimes you have to make your feelings known.

I wanted to go on Saturday because it was Dowies first home match. We've had 15 years of Curbs and this is a new chapter. If it all goes pear shaped you know there will be cries of "Sod of back to Sellout you Palace twat!!!" You know it I know it. But I wanted to get in there early whilst the canvas was still quite blank. So what did we find? A general non plussed experience.

Lets start at the Oak. It's changed hands. A new govenor, new bar staff, ho hum. The pub was fairly busy, I say fairly, but in truth it was empty in comparrison to the usual bedlam that will happen come UManU or the Arse. So why did it take forever to get served. The bloke did that crap shake of the arms, stoke shake of the head, shouting whose next because he wsn't serving people in any particular order. There was a 2 minute conversation about crisps!!! A bloke wanted Salt n Vinegar hade been given Cheese n Onion, then the barman started saying he had asked for this and that. Just give him his crisps and poor me a drink. Trust me, by Christmas the Oak will be empty.

Then we move onto the Programme. It's square!!!! It's got a wipe dry cover (still) and it's difficult to fir in your pocket. It's also gone up to 3 notes, so I'll not be buying one in future. The end of an era, you decide.

Next, we have the ground. Exactly the same, no new paint, or signs or flags ... just the same dirty seats and a patchy pitch. The word is that Paddys seeds were washed away in a storm. It looked shite though.

Then onto the game. An inept performance from a bunch of overpaid football players, a whirling dervish as a PA announcer and supposedly music when we scored. I was gobsmacked that Marcus had scored to notice the music, but reading All Quiet ... it appears it was true. We don't and I repeat don't want goal music. Leave it now. It maybe something we need the fans director to get involved in. So make sure he knows your feelings on this.

Did I mention how inept the football was!!!!

On a side note, how hot was it yesterday? And there was bleedin delays at the Blackwall Tunnell again. I'm not sure why for 3 years the south bound access was shut, but now that they want to repair the North Bound tunnel they close on of the South bound lanes and shunt trhem all up there. Bleedin typical.

My tune of the day: Mas Que Nada - Sergio Mendes