Powell relieved to end Saturday Valley hoodoo with Blackpool win (From This Is Lancashire)

Powell relieved to end Saturday Valley hoodoo with Blackpool win

6:07pm Saturday 12th January 2013 in National News By Paul Green

CHRIS Powell admitted it was something of a relief to finally get a first home league win on a Saturday after the Addicks saw off Blackpool 2-1 at The Valley.

All three of the club’s previous Championship successes came in midweek encounters, but the long wait for a weekend triumph was finally ended this afternoon.

Charlton built up a useful 2-0 interval lead thanks to first half goals from skipper Johnnie Jackson and Scott Wagstaff, who was making his first league start of the season.

Former loan striker Nathan Eccleston grabbed an injury time consolation for the visitors but it couldn’t prevent the Addicks picking up their first Saturday home success of the season.

Powell said: “It has been a long time coming.

“Our home form, as I’ve said if we just improved it a bit more, we could have had a better position in the league.

“But I’m really pleased for our fans because the majority come to The Valley, they want to see their team do well and we’ve done that today against a decent Blackpool team.

“Obviously they have had upheaval with the manager going but football is football and they will always come and play.

“It was up to us to combat that and I thought the players worked ever so hard for the result today.

“I’ve just realised that it is our first league double.

“We obviously had a number of them last year but it is always nice to have that and it was fully deserved.

“We worked hard this week after the cup game last week and one or two players came in for their first starts in the Championship.

“They are a team who have got some dangerous players, Blackpool, and some wily old foxes like Kevin Phillips who still knows the game.

“They play a certain way, they are one of the teams in the Championship that have their own style but after maybe a bit of a pensive start I felt we grew into it and they were two very good goals to put us in front.”

Powell also made a point of praising Wagstaff’s contribution in his first league start of the campaign.

“I’m very pleased for him,” the manager said.

“He is a good young professional, he has been out on loan, he has bided his time and he has always been looking to get a chance but he has trained ever so hard, especially this week.

“We worked on one or two things. I never told him where I was going to play him until today but I think he would have had a fair idea with what I’d done this week.

“I’m pleased for him because he is a Charlton boy and he got a very good reception from the supporters.

“He will always give you that 100 per cent endeavour and he has got quality as well.

“For him to come in on the left and play with Cedric Evina down that side and then obviously get his goal and put a real good performance in for 70-75 minutes, I’m very pleased for him.

“Then we brought on young Callum Harriott who is an exciting talent and fans have seen him before.

“Nathan Jones works really hard with him and the rest of those boys in the development group.

“I had three of them on the bench today and obviously Callum came on and excited everyone for 15 minutes.”

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