Charlton Athletic,

The Valley,

Floyd Road,

Charlton, SE7 8BL.

By Supporters Club Coach

For full details of Away Travel which has changed from last season, this includes pick up times: –

Click here: – FGR Away Travel – Forest Green Rovers Supporters Club (fgrsc.com)

For further information, including pickup point locations

Away travel arrangements 22/23 – Forest Green Rovers Supporters Club (fgrsc.com)

Book coach ticket with your match ticket from FGR.

25% discount for FGR Supporters Club members.

Click – Tickets | WE ARE FGR

By phone on 0333 123 1889 Monday to Friday, between 9am and 3pm.

By Train

 From Stroud this would take about 3 hours and involve a couple of changes, probably not realistic for an evening match.

Charlton station is the nearest train station to The Valley and is just a three-minute walk away. Charlton station is served by trains travelling from London Cannon Street, London Charing Cross, Dartford, and Gillingham.

By Tube

North Greenwich is the closest tube station to The Valley. Located right outside of the O2 Arena, North Greenwich is served by the Jubilee Line.

By Bus

London Buses 472, 486, 161, 177, 180 and 380 stop near to The Valley. Some of these can be boarded from North Greenwich tube station, which is around a 10-minute journey from The Valley.

By Car

 The Valley’s postcode is SE7 8BL. On a good day from the Stroud area, the journey takes just over 3 hours.

Leave the M25 at Junction 2 and follow the A2 towards London. After around 12 miles the road splits with the A2 going off to the left and the right-hand lanes becoming the A102. Proceed on the A102 towards the Blackwall Tunnel. Leave the A102 at the next slip road (sign posted Woolwich & Ferry A206). At the bottom of the slip road turn right at the traffic lights towards Woolwich/Charlton. Proceed along the A206 passing the, now closed, Antigallican pub on your right (the ground and away entrance are diagonally behind this pub). For the main club entrance and car park go straight over the next roundabout, passing a retail park on the left. At the next roundabout, go right around it, turning back on yourself along the A206. Then take the first left into Charlton Road (beware that there is a seven feet width restriction along this road). Cross over the railway and after passing the Royal Oak pub on the right, turn right into Harvey Gardens. The ground is down on the left.

Car Parking

Please be aware – A lot of the roads around The Valley have parking restrictions.

You can park at The Valley for £30+VAT per match and you can find out more information about stadium parking by emailing sales@cafc.co.uk.

As you come off the A2 onto the A206, there is, reported to be, some street parking on your right, in a couple of streets, before you reach the Rose of Denmark pub.

It is reported that there is some street parking around the industrial estates in the area, in Westmoor Street, Eastmoor Street (the very road where the club was apparently formed 100 years ago!), Warspite Road and Ruston Road.  If you are coming up the Woolwich Road from the Blackwall Tunnel, then as you go past the ground, the industrial estates are on the left-hand side.

There is also the option of renting a private driveway near in the local area via YourParkingSpace.co.uk.

Disabled Supporter Information including Parking etc

For away supporters that have mobility issues, Charlton can offer two complimentary car parking spaces which are arranged through the away DLO who then passes on that information to the Charlton DLO.  These are located in the West stand car park.

There is also a drop off point at Jimmy Seed Stand: Entrance no. 4 (Valley Grove). Drivers are advised to drop off passengers by no later than 7pm for a 7.45pm kick-off. The driver must then leave the stadium area and park away from the ground. Please note a one-way system is in place on matchdays, so please follow stewards’ instructions. After the game, the disabled supporter can again be collected from the relevant spot once the post-game football traffic has dispersed.

Click here for more details – Disabled Supporters | Charlton Athletic Football Club (charltonafc.com)

Away supporters are in the Jimmy Seed or South Stand.

On Arrival

 Away fans are housed in the Jimmy Seed (South) Stand at one end of the ground, which is slightly raised above pitch level, making for a generally good view. Up to 3,000 away fans can be accommodated in this end.

The Jimmy Seed Stand is the oldest part of the ground, and dates from the early 1980s. This stand is named after Charlton’s manager, Jimmy Seed – with whom Charlton won the FA Cup in 1947.

Click here for Stadium Plan – Stadium Plan | Charlton Athletic Football Club (charltonafc.com)

Charlton finished 13^th in League 1 last season.

They are currently in 12th place with 9 points. Last time out they lost 3-1 to Bolton.

Their top scorer is Scott Fraser with 3 goals.

Nearby pubs which, it is reported, welcome away supporters: –

The Angerstein Hotel on Woolwich Road, which is around a 15-minute walk away from the Valley, going towards Greenwich/Woolwich. To find this pub then as you come out of Charlton Station turn left and at the traffic lights (where the pld Antigallican is on the right) turn left and proceed along Woolwich Road. Go past the Rose of Denmark pub on your left, under a bridge and then straight across under the busy flyover. The Angerstein Hotel is just on the left.

The Anchor & Hope pub, which is also around a 15-minute walk away from the Valley Ground. It is situated beside the Thames and although on the small side it does have some tables outside from which you can sit looking across the river. To find this pub then if you come out of Charlton Railway Station and turn left and then with the old Antigallican Hotel on your right, go straight across the dual carriageway and into Hope and Anchor Lane. Just proceed straight up this road (going across one small roundabout) and at the end, turn left and the pub is just on the left.

Alcohol is available in the away end in the form of; John Smith’s, Fosters, Bulmers Cider & Wine etc.

George Dobson

Defensive midfielder Dobson joined Charlton in July 2021 and was their player of the season. He previously played for Walsall and Sunderland having started his career at West Ham.

Jack Payne

New signing goalscoring midfielder Jack Payne joined Charlton in July 22. The 27-year-old, who netted 13 goals and provided six assists for Swindon Town in League Two last season, has signed a two-year contract with the Addicks following the expiry of his contract with the Robins. Payne has won promotion from all three EFL divisions and made 28 appearances for Huddersfield Town in 2016/17 as the Terriers earned promotion to the Premier League.

Charlton Athletic have signed forward Jesurun Rak-Sakyi on a season-long loan from Crystal Palace. The 19-year-old began his career in Chelsea’s academy before joining Palace in 2019.Rak-Sakyi made two Premier League appearances last season and also scored 18 goals for Crystal Palace Under-23s to make him the joint top scorer in Premier League 2. He has also been capped by England U20s and scored on his debut. He has just signed a 5-year deal with C Palace.

Jo Wollacott

On 7 August 2019, Wollacott joined FGR on loan from Bristol City for the 2019/20 season He made his debut in professional football six days later, saving a penalty as he kept a clean sheet in a 0–0 draw ironically with Charlton in the EFL Cup, before going on to finish on the winning side in the penalty shoot-out after saving another penalty. He played 10 times in total for FGR.

On 12 February 2021, Wollacott joined then L1 side Swindon on a seven-day emergency loan deal. In June 2021, Wollacott signed for Swindon on a one-year contract.

On 23 June 2022, Wollacott joined Charlton on a three-year contract following the expiry of his contract at Swindon Town.

FGR’s David Davis played 5 times on loan at Charlton in 2020.

Josh Davison

On 18 October 2019, Davison sealed a move to then Championship side Charlton until the end of the season and made his first-team debut during a 2–2 draw with WBA, just a week after signing for the Addicks.

On 24 October 2020, Davison joined Woking until January 2021. On 13 January 2021, it was reported that Davison’s loan had expired at Woking and he had returned to Charlton Athletic with the view to a loan move to a L2 club. Six days later, he joined FGR on loan until the end of the season. He played 20 times for FGR and scored 3 goals.

On 24 January 2022, Davison joined Swindon on loan for the rest of the 2021–22 season. In July 2022 Davison left Charlton and joined Wimbledon on a 3-year contract.

The Charlton mascot is named Harvey (after Harvey Gardens alongside the ground). The man on the left of the picture on the phone is calling security. There is another mascot called Floyd named after the ground’s address – Floyd Road

Cosmic! – In the long-running BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses, Rodney Charlton Trotter is named after the club.

It is implied in some episodes that Rodney is though a Chelsea supporter. In one episode Del remarks that ICI have dropped a point, to which Rodney replies that “Chelsea dropped three on Saturday!” In a later episode he takes Victoria to see a football match at Stamford Bridge.

Ben Garner began his professional coaching career at the very highest level with Crystal Palace in 2005 where he spent the next seven years as youth coach at the Academy. Initially appointed as head coach of the under-11 team, he progressed through the age groups to become head coach of the under-18 team.

He was promoted to first team coach in the 2012–13 season by manager Ian Holloway. Garner remained in his role as first team coach for the next two seasons working under Holloway, Tony Pulis, Neil Warnock, and Alan Pardew. Garner left Crystal Palace on 7 July 2015 by mutual consent.

A smiling Ben Garner celebrating yet another Palace victory.

He was appointed as first team coach at WBA on 9 October 2015, where he was reunited with former manager Tony Pulis. Garner departed West Bromwich Albion in December 2017.

Oh Calcutta! – On 16 January 2019 he was appointed as assistant head coach under Palace’s probably greatest former manager Steve Coppell, for the rest of the season, at Indian Super League club ATK. (Atlético de Kolkata)

Garner was appointed Bristol Rovers Manager on 23 December 2019. On 14 November 2020, Garner was relieved of his duties with the club following a 4–1 home defeat to Fleetwood Town.

On 21 July 2021, Garner was appointed head coach of Swindon Town by new owner Clem Morfuni. At the time of Garner’s appointment, the club only had seven players, Garner’s newly implemented transfer policy focusing on the signings of younger players. Despite this difficult start to his time at the club, Garner guided Swindon to the play-offs in his first season in charge, finishing the season in sixth place. Facing Port Vale in the play-offs, Garner’s Swindon side won the first leg 2–1 before losing the away leg 1–0, before being defeated 6–5 on penalties.

On 8 June 2022, Garner was appointed manager of Charlton on a three-year contract.

As this photo shows, at Charlton, Garner has continued to put his faith in very young players.

Charlton are the only club to win the FA Cup having lost a match – the semi-final was a two-legged affair.

Charlton Athletic Football Club was founded on 9 June 1905. Their home ground is The Valley. For many years, the Valley was one of the largest Football League grounds in Britain, with its highest maximum capacity of 75,000. Its current capacity is 27,111. Charlton have played there since 1919, apart from one year in Catford, during 1923-24, and seven years as lodgers at Crystal Palace (the first official ground sharing arrangement in the Football League in 36 years) and West Ham between 1985 and 1992, due to financial issues, and then safety concerns raised by the local council. The club’s fans formed the Valley Party, nominating candidates to stand in local elections, in a bid to return the club to The Valley.

Early in the the 1985/6 season Charlton left the Valley. A rumour that gold had been founded under the pitch at the Valley proved false.

Charlton turned professional in 1920 and first entered the Football League in 1921. Since then, the club has had four separate periods in the topflight of English football: 1936–1957, 1986–1990, 1998–1999, and 2000–2007. Historically, Charlton’s most successful period was the 1930s, when the club’s highest league finishes were recorded, including runners-up of the First Division in 1937. After World War II, Charlton reached two consecutive FA Cup finals, losing in 1946, and winning in 1947. Charlton won the 1947 final 1–0 after extra time, with Chris Duffy scoring the winning goal. For the second consecutive year, the ball burst during the match; both incidents were later put down to the poor quality of leather available after World War II.

The club’s traditional kit consists of red shirts, white shorts, and red socks. When the club was first formed, they borrowed shirts from then near neighbours Arsenal who at that time played at Woolwich Arsenal. Their most commonly used nickname is The Addicks. Rumour has it that players of old had a meal of haddock before games and Addick is slang for this fish.

Substitute 1: On 21 August 1965, Charlton’s Keith Peacock became the first substitute used in the Football League when he replaced injured goalkeeper Mick Rose after 11 minutes of an away match against Bolton. Peacock’s autobiography was titled ‘No Substitute’.

Substitute 2: The Who’s May 1976 concert at the Valley, part of their By Numbers Tour, was the loudest rock concert of all time – 126 db. measured at a distance of 32 metres. Support acts included Lou Reed, Humble Pie, Bad Company, Lindisfarne & Dave Mason. (The song ‘Substitute’ was a hit for the Who in 1966).

First Choice – Laurie Cunningham has generally been recognised as the first black player to play for England at any level. Recent research has shown that in fact this honour goes to Benjamin Odeje who played for England Schoolboys at the age of 15. Right winger Benjamin played in England Schoolboys 1-0 victory against N Ireland in front of a crowd of 70,000 at Wembley in March 1971. Odeje played for Charlton’s youth team. He never, though, played any League football but did play for Hendon, Clapton & Dulwich Hamlet before subsequently coaching at QPR and working as a PE teacher. Odeje is being invited to attend England’s match against Germany on 26 September to recognise his achievement. Viv Anderson the first black player to play for England in a full international is also being invited to attend.