Charlton player Danny Hayes writes exclusively for the KM Group
With two goals in a week shortly after
coming back from injury, I suppose most fans would expect me to
start this column by focusing on that.
But after conceding eight goals in two
games at The Valley, arguably the most important thing about
Sunday’s 2-0 win at Bristol City was the clean sheet.
Four of those goals were in the
dramatic match against Cardiff at The Valley last midweek and
although we came from 2-0 behind to win 5-4, conceding two goals in
the final few minutes simply wasn’t good enough.
We’d done all the hard work to lead
5-2 with 90 minutes played and the lack of concentration at the end
that almost cost us dearly certainly dampened any post-game
celebrations.
Defending needs to be done as a team,
so we were all pleased to leave Ashton Gate with a clean sheet.
Of course, I’m delighted with my goals
against Cardiff and City. I’ve had a lot of issues with my
hamstring last season and this and that’s been a big downer for me
but I’ve kept working hard.
Manager Chris Powell has shown faith
in me and given me an opportunity and now I’m reaping the
rewards.
I almost scored again on Sunday but
the ball skimmed off the post.
Hopefully, we can push on now and
begin a little run. We’ve played well in patches this season but
Sunday’s win was perhaps one of the few times we’ve played well
over 90 minutes.
It was an important win because, after
the results the previous day, it bridged a little gap that had
developed in the table. And, after being near the relegation zone,
we’re now as many points away from the play-offs as we are from the
bottom three.
That shows that it’s a tight league
and if any team can string a few results together, as Crystal
Palace and Middlesbrough have recently, they will move up the
table.
We’re adapting to Championship life
and had some decent results against big teams, such as Leeds,
Wolves and Cardiff, so there’s no doubt that the ability is there,
it’s just about a bit of luck.
The luck went our way last week. Next up is Burnley away, and
after an unbeaten away run of five games, let’s hope for another
enjoyable trip back on Saturday night.
15/11/12