Garner: A great moment
Ben Garner hailed goal hero Aaron Henry for the memorable strike which paved the way for Charlton’s thrilling win on penalties – and also for the impressive composure he displayed in the shoot-out, writes Yann Tear.
For the 18-year-old midfielder it was a very special night.
He picked the perfect moment to score his first senior goal, latching on to a ball just outside the box to lash a smart finish into the far corner.
But having enjoyed that euphoric 90th-minute strike, he regained his composure to coolly slot home the fourth of the five penalties the Addicks put away to settle the tie.
“To see young Aaron put that strike in as he did was a great moment, and then to follow that on and win on penalties made it a great night,” said the Charlton boss. “He’s a great technician – even in his composure to take a penalty for a young player.
“He’s very mature. He’s very level-headed and he’s got wonderful technical ability, so we need to keep developing him and adding to his game, and he’s got to take every opportunity that comes his way.”
Garner thought all his players deserved a pat on the back, especially the penalty takers at the end.
“I thought they were really good,” he said. “The attitude to take it. The character to take it and then backing themselves with their technique. It was pleasing and great to see Jojo save the first one and nice to win a penalty shoot-out because I didn’t win one at the end of last season [at Swindon in the play-offs].”
Garner added: “I’m really proud and pleased with our performance – especially first half.
“I thought our shape, our movement, our discipline and understanding of the game were really good.
“We need to take that on board and play with that freedom and confidence, because when we do, we are a really good team.
“It was disappointing to go one down because I didn’t think we deserved that by any stretch, but the reaction after that was really, really pleasing.
“We showed a desire to get something from the game and get what we deserved from the game.”
Picture: Keith Gillard
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