CHARLTON chief Phil Parkinson must play an anxious waiting game on the fitness of key players ahead of Saturday’s big League I clash with Town.
Already ruled out of the trip to the Galpharm, the Londoners’ first since they won 2-1 in the Championship in December 1999, are goalkeeper Rob Eliot and 13-goal top scorer Deon Burton.
And Parkinson – who turned down the chance to become Town manager in succession to Peter Jackson in April 2007 – also has doubts over former Galpharm frontman Akpo Sodje, midfielder Lloyd Sam and Spanish defender Jose Semedo.
To make matters worse for the former Colchester and Hull boss, back-up striker Leon McKenzie is still a couple of weeks off full fitness after a thigh injury.
Keeper Elliot has been ruled out for a month because of a groin muscle tear sustained during Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Gillingham at The Valley.
He was replaced for the second half by Darren Randolph, and Parkinson is actively scouring the loan market for a back-up stopper.
The much-travelled Burton, who includes Derby, Rotherham and Sheffield Wednesday among his former clubs, faces at least a fortnight out because of knee ligament damage picked up against Gillingham.
And Wednesday loan man Sodje, unable to score in two starts and seven outings as a substitute for Town in 2004-05, is struggling with a toe injury.
Parkinson’s player worries come after he appealed to Charlton fans to get behind the bid for an immediate return to the Championship.
A section of the South-East London club’s support, who were watching Premier League football as recently as 2007, turned on the team during the Gillingham stalemate, which followed a 4-0 derby setback at Millwall.
Parkinson insists he has far less to spend than rival clubs at the top end of League I, saying: “The majority of supporters have been great, but a minority need to look at the table.
“They need to look at how much money teams like Huddersfield, Colchester and Millwall have spent compared to us.
“If there are any supporters out there with the odd million pounds floating around and they want to donate it to us, so we can go and get a proven striker, like Norwich did when they signed Grant Holt, then I’ll gladly go and sign someone.
“We’ve pieced together our team with loan players and free transfers. We’re going well and still fighting for that second spot.
“Because of the size of the club, the expectancy from the supporters is high but sometimes I need to explain what I’ve had in terms of resources.
“It’s up to the supporters to help us to where we want to be. We’ve got nine games to go and we have to pull together as a club. It can make a big difference.”
