Charlton slipped to sixth in the table after a battling draw at Vicarage Road yesterday. Despite the relief of rescuing a point after coming back from a goal behind, Pardew's side will be disappointed they failed to take all three.The Addicks opted for the same side that started at West Brom on Tuesday, but with the exception of Iwelumo replacing McLeod. Chris Dickson and new signing Andy Gray made up the striking options on the bench, and McLeod's absence may back up reports of a £1m bid from Crystal Palace.
The game was no classic by any means – the conditions were atrocious, and both sides struggled to cope with the swirling wind and rain. Watford created little in the match, and failed to give any indication of the form they'd shown earlier in the season.
Iwelumo had a few half-chances, but the first clear opportunity came after half an hour when a Varney flick-on released Lloyd Sam, who fired just wide from ten yards. Ambrose missed another two great chances before the half was up, and the away fans were beginning to wonder if it would be one of those days.
Sadly, Calum Davenport left the game in a neck-brace after a collision with Darius Henderson – full news is yet to come through on his condition, and I'm sure I'd echo the feelings of other Addicks by wishing him a speedy recovery.
The second half saw Watford impose themselves more on the game, and McAnuff should have done better with an early chance. The Addicks fought back though, Ambrose forcing an excellent save from Lee, and Sam shaved the post with a fizzing shot.
Despite this pressure, Watford opened the scoring on the hour mark. Moutaouakil failed to pick up Ellington, and after a sweeping move from the home side the ex-Baggies striker found himself in acres of space to slot the ball past Weaver. It was all too easy, and a real disappointment to go a goal down after having so many clear-cut chances.
The remainder of the game stayed on a knife-edge, but despite the tension there were fewer opportunities on goal to be had. Pardew introduced Andy Gray for the last 20 minutes as the Addicks searched for an equaliser, which finally came with 10 minutes remaining.
Ambrose made a surging run at the Watford defence, and his speculative shot from outside the box somehow caught out Richard Lee who could only palm it into his own net. A fortunate goal, but no more than Charlton deserved for their earlier endeavour.
Chris Dickson was introduced for the final stages, although he sadly failed to make the most of what should have been a straight-forward one-on-one with Lee. Clearly he has more to learn at this level, so hopefully this will lower some of the huge expectation mounting on him.
No more goals followed, and the spoils were shared. A mention has to go to Paddy McCarthy, who had an excellent game and looked solid. I've been one of his critics after a shaky start to the season, but in the last few games he has been a real asset to the side.
It remains to be seen if this will be a point gained or lost – I'd possibly have settled for a point before the game, but after an abject display by Watford it really should have been a full haul.
Results around us didn't offer much comfort – we've now been leap-frogged by a resurgent Palace side, although the consolation is that the automatic promotion spot is now only 4 points away. A win against Stoke in 10 days time is vital – the next 4 home games see us play top-six teams, the results of which will go a long way to determining the result of our season.
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