Nigel Adkins claims Charlton undone by fine margins as late Lincoln show condemns Addicks to seventh defeat of the season

BY LOUIS MENDEZ

Under fire Charlton boss Nigel Adkins claimed his side were undone by fine margins as they fell late on at Lincoln City to their seventh defeat of the season – just 12 games into the League One campaign.

Charlton remain rooted in the drop-zone as their latest flat display was condemned to end in defeat in added-time.

The dominant Imps enjoyed 59% of the ball during the game, amassing 12 shots to Charlton’s five, five of which were on target to Charlton’s two. The hosts forced 10 corners to Charlton’s three and saw a goal disallowed by the offside flag shortly before Regan Poole’s added-time winner.

The game had started evenly before Elliot Lee was forced off through illness on 19 minutes. Michael Appleton’s side then enjoyed nearly 70% of the ball for the remainder of the first-half, albeit without creating many chances.

The deadlock was broken by the desperately unlucky Jayden Stockley, just two minutes after he entered the fray from the bench. A shot was palmed away by Craig MacGillivray but ricocheted off the Addicks forward and in.

Stockley played a part in an equaliser five minutes later as his header was prodded in by Sam Lavelle but the home team were always the more likely to secure the victory and did so a minute into added-time.

Adkins said: “We started really well for the first 20 minutes. We talked about trying to get between the lines and counter attack with Elliot Lee linking up with Josh Davison. We did that really well on three or maybe four occasions. Elliot has gone off ill after 20 minutes and there was a lull in the game. I put Charlie Kirk in the 10 position and the exciting Corey Blackett-Taylor on the wing. But for me, Lincoln were then able to get the ball and play a little bit more out from the back. 0-0 at half-time. I put Leko in the 10 position then to support Josh and put Kirky back out on the wing. Very early on we brought Jayden Stockley on as a different threat going forward. The first goal is a deflection, it’s deflected onto Jayden who can’t get out of the way of it. That bit of fortune didn’t go our way. We get back in the game – Jayden got a header from a corner and Sam Lavelle reacted really well.

“From there I’m thinking come on, the game is there to be won. Akin Famewo has got a bit of a calf that we’re concerned about, Harry Arter is starting to feel his hamstring so he’s had to come off. I wanted to get Conor Washington onto the pitch but we couldn’t do that.

“Then, it’s the 90^th minute, we want to win the game. It’s a stonewall penalty. The player has grabbed Jayden Stockley’s shirt, drags him to the ground, kicks him as he goes to the ground. Both the linesman and the referee has gone ‘yes he’s pulled his shirt but not enough for the penalty’. They go down the other end of the pitch from that, they get a corner. Second phase – could we have stopped the cross? Yes. But the cross has come in and the player is offside when the cross comes in. For me, that’s a real kick in the, you know. Fine margins. Things didn’t go our way today, that’s the reality of it.”

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