1 min
Charlton Athletic extended their unbeaten run to five league games to beat Oxford United 2-0 at The Valley – despite being down to ten men early in the second-half.
Oxford controlled possession early on, but their only clear cut chance came from Anthony Forde who fired over the bar after a brilliant run on 26 minutes.
Charlton then opened the scoring against the run of play just after the half hour mark, Conor Washington slotting a low effort past Oxford keeper Simon Eastwood.
And the Addicks doubled their advantage just before the interval thanks to a powerful free-kick from the boot of Luton Town loanee Andrew Shinnie.
The second-half saw Charlton keeper Ben Amos ensure the two-goal lead stayed intact with two great stops, keeping out Matt Taylor’s effort with a great parry and saving the rebounded effort from the head of Matt Sykes.
Despite Ryan Inniss seeing red for a second bookable offence just past the hour mark, Charlton were rarely troubled for the remainder of the game.
Key Points
Check out all the key talking points and reaction from London Football Scene below…
Key Moment
Conor Washington’s opener gave the Addicks a huge lift in a match that they hardly had control of early on.
Moan of the Match
The amount of times the referee stopped play instead of allowing advantage was frustrating, constantly slowing the game down.
Talking Point
The Addicks will be without both Ben Watson and Ryan Inniss against Portsmouth due to one match bans – how much of an impact will their absences have?
Man of the Match
Andrew Shinnie – bagged himself a great goal and an assist, showed excellent quality in the middle of the pitch.
Tweet of the Match
Referee Watch
Craig Hicks (Surrey) – a poor, poor game from the man in the middle and was far too hasty to get his cards out.
Atmosphere
The haunting echoes of an empty Valley will hopefully be a distant memory when fans return.
Verdict
A tough win in which Charlton had to grind out the three points – a huge attribute if they are to strive for a quick Championship return.
