The latest setback in the form of a heartbreaking 2-1 loss at home to Coventry has pushed Charlton to the brink of embarrassment as they find themselves staring down the barrel, as they remain static at the bottom of the Coca-Cola Championship.

The team’s misfortunes seem to be piling up by the day, while caretaker manager Phil Parkinson has had nothing but trouble when it comes to pulling together the badly fragmented pieces of the team. The absence of their regular manager Alan Pardew is not helping matters, as the confidence level of the players is taking a nose dive.

Meanwhile, the latest defeat is suspected to create even more discord between the players and the management and heads are expected to roll. Parkinson has already had a meeting with Chairman Richard Murray to sort out future strategies of the team, but there was no indication about the future of his tenure.

Taking the defeat on his stride, Mr. Parkinson told media persons that he was doing his best to lift the morale of the team and extract the best out of them. He also highlighted his plight and said that too much was being expected of him as he has his hands tied until January. We can’t really argue with this as Charlton remain lifelong underachievers, and always one of the most challenging teams to play as in FIFA 08, or any of the FIFA series. He further recognised the contribution of Richard Murray and the board in getting the club to its current position, and said that every individual related to the club have a responsibility to maintain that. Speaking at length, he also stressed the need to accept changes in the attitude and polices of the club so that they can remain contemporary and meet the various challenges.

The match which was nevertheless played at a feverish pace with some interesting moments, such as the stunning winning goal from Coventry’s Daniel Fox.