One way or another:- Charlton bound for Wembley?

As a Charlton Athletic supporter, the last five years or so have been an emotional roller-coaster. From top flight Football to League one in just a matter of seasons to then win League one and get a top half finish in our return to second tier Football at the end of last year. But this year, once again is a very different story.
             
The Addicks have had what can only be described as an dreadful season in the Championship so far. Sitting third from bottom with the lowest amount of goals scored by any team is not where many fans expected their team to be when the season kicked off. Scoring just one goal in their last five league games (which came from a 92nd minute corner), Charlton simply have to improve if they are to remain in the Championship next year. They have bought in several new faces in the January transfer window but also sold a few, including French fan favourite Yann Kemorgant who netted a hat-trick for his new club Bournemouth this past weekend. So many fans expected the reds to travel to Wembley this year. But as scary as the end of the season may seem, their dreams are still within reach.

Church sends Charlton through to the Quarter Final

The team are fighting for a spot at Wembley in a very diffe
rent way. A way in which no one could have imagined. The FA Cup. A trophy which year after year brings us shocks, incredible plot twists and fascinating Football. The Quarter finals will take place this weekend and the under-dogs are in perhaps the most enviable position of any team as they take on League One team Sheffield United. It sounds like a god-send for Charlton after beating one half of the Steel City but they may have their work cut out. The blades have now won 8 matches in a row since the start of February including a 1-0 over Premier League team Fulham in the FA Cup.

Sheffield will go into this match with a lot of momentum, there is no doubt about it. It will be up to the Addicks to halt that momentum from the word go and ideally get themselves an early lead. They have the talent to do it. Simon Church has become a crucial part of the offence in recent weeks and new signings Nego and Reza Ghoochannejhad will be eager to prove to the clubs new owner exactly what they can do.

Iranian international Reza Ghoochannejhad
will be keen to net his first goal
for his new club this weekend.

IF Charlton get past Sheffield Wednesday, they would be just 90 minutes of Football away from a game at Wembley. This is the furthest Chris Powell's men have ever gone in a Cup Run and they certainly will not want it to end any time soon. But, standing in their way are going to be three of the potentially most dominating teams imaginable. The other three games this weekend are as follows.

Arsenal vs Everton
Hull vs Sunderland
Manchester City vs Wigan

This means that no matter what the outcome, Charlton will have to face a top flight Premier League side in both the Semi Final and the Final. Current cup holders Wigan are in a rematch of their final last year as they take on runners-up Manchester City. Wigan have beaten the blues before and are well equipped to do it again. But City will be determined to play as well as they are in the league and stop Wigan from retaining the decorated trophy. So either way, Charlton IF matched up against either of these, are going to have an almighty task on their hands.

Current holders Wigan could potentially retain their title.

With the other four teams perhaps poising to be just as much of a threat, all Charlton can do is their best. Miracles do happen, and if the Addicks can make their way into the final even in the flukiest of ways. It will restore both hope and faith. Two emotions that possibly had been lost months ago for fans across the country. The squad morale would be through the roof and if they could carry that into their remaining league fixtures, including the two they have in hand over the teams around them, then maybe...just maybe..they could avoid relegation and bring home the team's first ever F.A Cup.

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NFL The Power Players:- Week 6

A week of surprises as underdogs fall short of greatness, gladiators tumble and unbeaten records come to an end. Week 6 was nothing short of excellent and it's time to take a look at who the best players and teams were along with who's leading the charge to get into the top 10 in the chase for the LJS player of the year.

Quarterback-                        Rank last week           Touchdowns           Yards           

1. Joe Flacco                                N/A                                   2                          342

2. Andy Dalton                             N/A                                    3                          337

3. Peyton Manning                        2                                     2                          295

4. Nick Foles                                N/A                                   3                          296

5. Aaron Rodgers                         N/A                                  1                          315

Joe Flacco and the Ravens faced a formidable Green Bay side this past Sunday and unfortunately for them it resulted in a loss. It was yet another slow start, but that didn't stop the Superbowl MVP from demonstrating exactly why he earned that title and delivering arguably the best game of his season so far. Two touchdowns, no interceptions and throwing for more than 300 yards for the third time this season. The same can't be said for the rest of the offense as it took 3 quarters before Flacco threw into the Endzone. It was a frustrating game to say the least as they battled all the way until the end but ultimately fell short. It was too little, too late and they now sit tied for 2nd in their division, a single win behind the Bengals.

Running Back-                  Rank last week           Touchdowns                Rushing Yards

1. Arian Foster                           5                                      0                                      141

2. Brandon Jacobs                   N/A                                  2                                       106

3. Eddie Lacy                               3                                    0                                        120

4. Stevan Ridley                         N/A                                2                                           96
5. LeSean McCoy                     N/A                                  0                                          11 

With Matt Schaub having his own fans cheer when he limped off the field injured, it was a clear sign if it wasn't evident before that yet again he was struggling. The Texans were at a 25 point deficit when he left the game after throwing for 186 yards.To make up for this the Texans had to establish a decent running game and they did just that. Arian Foster rushed for nearly 150 yards and gave a glimmer of hope to a very agitated Texans fanbase. With many picking Houston for the win and expecting Schaub to vastly improve on his poor form, the game was a disappointment but there are positives to be taken. Arian Foster proved that there is an alternate option and that's to try and increase the amount of times the team run the ball per game. Foster ripped apart the Rams Defense despite not scoring a touchdown and as a result, he has not only been in the top 5 for three weeks in a row, but leads the category this week.

Wide Receiver-                Rank last week                 Touchdowns                  Receiving Yards

 1. Justin Blackmon                  N/A                                    0                                        190

 2. Riley Cooper                        N/A                                   1                                        120

 3. Vincent Jackson                  N/A                                   2                                        114

 4. Jordy Nelson                        N/A                                   1                                       113

 5. Larry Fitzgerald                   N/A                                    1                                       117

Justin Blackmon has stood out to me these past few weeks in what can only be described as a train wreck of a Jaguars team. But something happened on Sunday, it so easily could have been the Underdog story of the decade as the Jags traveled to Mile High stadium to face an unbeaten Devner Broncos team. With millions of fans anticipating an absolute hammering, they were all left shocked when at half time the score was 14-12. Forcing Manning into an interception sent the crowd wild. Blackmon received for almost 200 yards against the Broncos and played a vital role in the game. Chad Henne has started to find his footing in the offense and you could see the chemistry between the two building the more receptions Blackmon caught. Making several big plays you could see the team slowly start to pick up speed. Right now it's the equivalent of buying a really nice car that is missing a few parts. They are still giving up big plays, turning the ball over too often and making silly calls costing them penalties and valuable yards. But come on, an unbeaten Broncos team going into the second half looked wobbly. They found their form later on but for a short moment the Jaguars had everyone's attention. They sent a message to everyone that day, and that is not to under estimate them. To receive for 190 yards against any team is good, to do it against an unbeaten team when you're part of a winless squad is simply staggering.

Tight End-                      Rank last week                  Touchdowns                 Receiving Yards

1.Vernon Davis                      N/A                                      2                                    180

2. Kyle Rudolph                      N/A                                     1                                     97
3. Heath Miller                       N/A                                     0                                     84

4. Dallas Clark                       N/A                                     1                                     81  

5. Timothy Wright                   N/A                                     0                                    91

After three weeks at the top spot, Saints Tight End Jimmy Graham doesn't even make the top 5 after being shut down completely by Green Bay. This opened the door for one man in particular to put in an exceptional performance, and that man is Vernon Davis. Two touchdowns and 180 receiving yards saw Davis propel the 49ers to a victory over the Cardinals.He already has one more touchdown than he did throughout the entire 2012 season and has shown the world that he just needs a chance to turn a short gain into a big play and he will probably succeed. He really has been a crucial weapon this season for Colin Kaepernick and without him you have to wonder, would San Francisco have won the percentage of games they have this season?

Linebacker-                   Rank last week            Tackles                Sacks             

1. A.J Hawk                            N/A                           10                           3

2. Thomas Davis                    N/A                           8                           2

3.  Derrick Johnson                N/A                           8                            2

4. Tamba Hali                         N/A                           4                           3.5
5. Elvis Dumervil                      N/A                           3                           2

One word describes A.J Hawk's performance this past weekend. Unstoppable. 10 tackles and 3 sacks on Joe Flacco helped the Green bay Defense shut the Ravens down for the first half of the game. In fact, it took three whole quarters before Flacco threw a touchdown and a lot of that was down to the pressure that Hawk put on the Offense. Not to mention the impressive goal line stand which stopped the Ravens progress.With Clay Matthews out at the moment, the Packers need more than a placeholder and seemingly looked to A.J Hawk. He stepped up to the plate and exceeded everyone's expectations. In his 8th season for Green Bay, Hawk really showed why he was the fifth overall pick.

Defensive End-         Rank last week                 Tackles                              Sacks

1. Chandler Jones             N/A                                    3                                       1

2. Malik Jackson               N/A                                     7                                        2

3. Carlos Dunlap               N/A                                    5                                        1

4. Darnell Docket             N/A                                     4                                        1
5. Wallace Gillberry          N/A                                    5                                        1

Chandler Jones helped ignite the Patriots comeback against the previously unbeaten Saints by recording seven tackles (including assists) and sacking elite Quarterback Drew Brees. Now one sack on the surface doesn't sound like it was game changing but this one was pretty special. The Saints had the ball on 3rd down with 2 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter and the Patriots having used all three of their timeouts. All New Orleans had to do was get a first down and run down the clock to maintain their unbeaten streak. But Chandler Jones got to Drew Brees for a five yard loss giving New England one more shot, one more chance at getting a touchdown. Tom Brady got the touchdown and made fans around the world sit in shock after a clash of titans ended so spectacularly. A lot of the focus will be on Brady this week for his emphatic finish, but Defensive End Chandler Jones deserves to have his name on the front page alongside him.


So with the new points system in place to determine the top 10 players in the NFL, let's see how they look going into week 7. With Jimmy Graham not scoring it sends Manning into a 5 point lead at the top of the table and with only a few other notable gains inside the top 20 including Eddie Lacy entering and Arian Foster securing his spot it was a week of new entrants picking up points. Making the race for the top 10 hotter than ever.

Peyton Manning           20
Jimmy Graham            15
Jordan Cameron         12
Marshawn Lynch         11
Antonio Gates              10
Carlos Dunlap               9
Drew Brees                    9
Jamaal Charles            9
 LeSean McCoy             9
Robert Mathis                8
Phillip Rivers                 8 
DeSean Jackson          7
Julius Thomas              7
Tony Gonzalez              7
Arian Foster                  7
Adrian Peterson           6
Frank Gore                     6
Eddie Lacy                     6
Chad Greenway            5
Antonio Brown               5

Power Rankings-

Broncos (6-0)

Last Week- 1

This Week- 1                                                      

Chiefs (6-0)

Last Week-4

This Week-2

Seahawks (5-1)

Last Week- 5

This Week- 3

        Saints (5-0)
        Last Week- 2
        This Week- 4

Patriots (5-1)
Last Week-7
This Week- 5

 Colts (4-2)
Last Week-3
This Week-6

49'ers (4-2)
Last Week-6
This Week- 7

Packers (3-2)
Last Week- 10
This Week- 8

Bengals (4-2)
Last Week-8
This Week-9

Bears (4-2)
Last Week- N/A
This Week-10

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