Charlton Athletic’s only negative after win at Crawley – summer signing forced off with groin niggle

Charlton Athletic only had one negative from tonight’s 1-0 win at Crawley Town – Josh Edwards going off early in the second half with a groin injury.

The summer signing was grimacing and in clear discomfort a few minutes before his withdrawal in the 55th minute.

Edwards, 24, has made 35 appearances in all competitions this season.

“The boy does massive shifts and he has played almost every game,” said Addicks manager Nathan Jones. “Just stiffness, in terms of his groin and he is feeling that. It’s fatigue – the games are coming thick and fast. It is a relentless league, League One, and you get no respite.

“At times pitches are heavy, not like the Premier League where everything is a plush carpet. It is just the way it is.”

Club captain Greg Docherty was absent from the fixture after his partner gave birth.

Asked about that, a smiling Jones said: “I don’t know who books a caesarean the day before a game but, hey, that is what happens. Congratulations to him, we’re glad everything is good but we’ve won a few games without him – it could be to his detriment!”

Chuks Aneke was not in the matchday squad against Crawley.

“We don’t take chances,” said Jones. “Chuks was fine after the (Stockport) game, no problem. We wanted to use the squad and to have Chuks available for the weekend, we probably didn’t want to expose him tonight.

“It’s about using the squad. We’ve got to keep everyone fit and everyone right. We’ve left Bezza (Luke Berry) out tonight and put (Alex) Gilbert in because he has looked a little bit jaded in recent weeks. It is about using and trusting your squad.”

PICTURE: KYLE ANDREWS