Euell's wonder strike seals Charlton delight

Two young lads in Charlton colours made their way down the stairs to the exit after this game, their eyes bright with excitement. "Jason Euell,'' said one, "what a goal!''

"That was winning in style'', the other replied. And the day wasn't even over yet – Dad was going to buy chips.

Statistically speaking this was all about a Charlton team registering their first successive victory of the year following last weekend's 1-0 win at Manchester City. But it was the manner of their triumph, after a first half in which they had provided the bulk of a 26,152 crowd with virtually nothing to shout about, which will provide Athletic with a vital sense of their own continuing worth.

By the time Euell scored his concluding goal in the 90th minute, breaking clear of a half-hearted midfield tackle by Dwight Yorke and then producing a fierce shot from 25 yards, Charlton had already established a dominance they had never remotely aspired to in the opening 45 minutes.

Blackburn, seeking to find their feet after a disturbing run of seven games without a win, dominated the first half and should have had a penalty in the 25th minute when Jon Fortune brought down Andy Cole.

David Dunn, David Thompson and Cole also went close to giving the visitors the lead, but as the referee, Uriah Rennie, blew his whistle for half-time the game was about to change dramatically as Charlton's manager Alan Curbishley got his chance to alter his line-up from 3-5-2 to 4-4-2.

"I was desperate for half-time,'' he said. "I wanted to make a change from 10 to 15 minutes in. The biggest problem was that their shape was causing us all sorts of difficulties because their players were getting into dangerous areas without having to do that much.''

Although the first coherent move of the second half almost saw Egil Ostenstad put Blackburn ahead, Curbishley saw his men take the initiative through a superbly controlled free-kick from 25 yards by the substitute Paul Konchesky, who drove the ball left-footed around the wall and into the top corner of the net.

The Valley erupted into celebration – and within a minute Curbishley was left wishing it had not as Blackburn struck an instant equaliser through their indefatigable Liverpudlian midfielder David Thompson, who drove home from the edge of the box following a knock-down by Cole, just 38 seconds after the visitors had kicked off again.

"I think the celebrations caught us out more than anything,'' Curbishley said. "We weren't back to cover them when they attacked.''

As Blackburn began their own celebrations, their manager Graeme Souness leapt out of his seat in satisfaction. But his joy was short lived as Charlton swiftly regained their momentum.

Kevin Lisbie was just short of restoring their lead in the 63rd minute as he skied the ball over at the far post following a telling cross from the left by Euell. Eleven minutes later Charlton had the real thing as a corner from Konchesky was headed powerfully past the Blackburn keeper by Charlton's captain and centre-half, Richard Rufus.

The home side's joy was unconfined; and Souness was not a happy bunny. "The decisions went against us today'', he said. "We should have had a penalty in the first half, and there should have been an off-side before they got the corner from which they scored their second goal.

"There's no secret to the way Charlton play. They are in-your-face, aggressive in their challenges, and they get the ball into your box at every opportunity. Overall, in my opinion, we did enough to get something out of the game. But we are going through a period where we are making individual mistakes. Their second goal was a poor one from that point of view.''

Curbishley was sensibly cautious in his reaction to the statistical news about his side's win. "To get two wins like that gives you a big boost,'' he said. "If you can put three or four results together you can really move yourself up the table. But it's a long, long season.''

The important thing is that his men will approach their next match, at Leeds, with a growing sense of confidence.

Goals: Konchesky (59) 1-0; Thompson (60) 1-1; Rufus (74) 2-1; Euell (90) 3-1.

Charlton Athletic (3-5-2): Kiely 7; Fortune 5 (Konchesky 7 , h-t), Fish 6, Rufus 7, Powell 6; Young 6, Kishishev 6, Parker 7, Euell 8; Lisbie 5 (Bart-Williams, 85), Bartlett 6. Substitutes not used: Rachubka (gk), Brown, M Svensson.

Blackburn Rovers (4-4-2): Kelly 5; Curtis 5 (Grabbi 5, 77), Short 6, Johansson 6, Neill 5; Thomson 7 (Gillespie, 87), Dunn 7, Todd 5, Duff 7; Cole 6, Ostenstad 7 (Yorke 5, 62). Substitutes not used: Robinson (gk), Jansen.

Referee: U Rennie (Sheffield) 6.

Bookings: Charlton: Euell, Lisbie.

Man of the match: Euell.

Attendance: 26,152.