Football May 02, 2026

Charlton Athletic 1-2 Ipswich Town: Tractor Boys hit back for victory at The Valley to retake second in Championship

👤
By Admin
Sports Journalist
Charlton Athletic 1-2 Ipswich Town: Tractor Boys hit back for victory at The Valley to retake second in Championship

Jaden Philogene's penalty fired Ipswich back up to second as Kieran McKenna's promotion chasers came from behind to beat Charlton 2-1.

The Tractor Boys are back above Millwall on goal difference and with a game in hand, as they close in on a return to the Premier League a year after they were relegated.

In the first of three pivotal away games in six days, they started badly, falling behind to a Greg Docherty goal inside the first minute.

But they hit back through a superb Darnell Furlong strike and a Philogene penalty to keep their automatic promotion bid firmly in their own hands.

Charlton are still not mathematically safe from relegation but frustrated manager Nathan Jones made eight changes to his side from the 1-1 draw at Sheffield Wednesday, their sixth game without a win.

The move looked to have paid off instantly as Docherty fired the hosts into a shock lead after only 42 seconds.

Ben Johnson's mistake allowed Tyreece Campbell to burst down the right and when his angled drive was palmed away by Christian Walton the ball fell to the Addicks skipper who thumped it into an unguarded net.

Ipswich took a while to get into their stride but when they did Philogene volleyed over before Dara O'Shea headed straight at Addicks keeper Thomas Kaminski.

Then Ivan Azon made an awful mess of a Furlong cross, right in front of goal, when he kicked the ball with his right foot against his left leg and watched it roll feebly wide.

The equaliser came after 36 minutes when Azor Matusiwa found Furlong 20 yards out and the full-back lashed his shot beyond Kaminski into the far corner.

It was a timely first goal for Ipswich for the 30-year-old, who moved to Suffolk from West Brom last summer.

Furnell also played a major role in Ipswich's second, 12 minutes after half-time, when he was sent tumbling in the area by Macaulay Gillesphey.

Philogene's spot-kick was actually pretty tame but it rolled under the body of the diving Kaminski and squirmed into the net.

Philogene almost had a second moments later but Kaminski pulled off a fine save with Anis Mehmeti unable to convert the rebound.

Charlton sent on Scotland striker Lyndon Dykes as they pushed for the point they still need to ensure their safety,but Ipswich held out to move another step closer to a swift return to the top flight.

Charlton's Nathan Jones:

"I thought the overall performance was good. We started brilliantly.

"We gave a cheap foul away for the penalty and you can't afford to do that, and that's what's costing us at the minute. We need to do the basics better and we need one more big performance."

Ipswich's Kieran McKenna:

"It's a big win, I really like how we won. Conceding a goal that early was a big blow.

"To have that and then we couldn't get a foothold in the game, so to come back from that and show belief, to score a really good goal in the first half and come out in the second half really strong was a good show of character from the group.

"To do that away from home, it was a good night to do it. Now there's every chance we have to show it again if we are going to be successful."

Tags:

football report

Share this article

Related Posts

Man Utd 2-1 Brentford: Bruno Fernandes closes in on PL assist record as Red Devils edge closer to Champions League return

Man Utd 2-1 Brentford: Bruno Fernandes closes in on PL assist record as Red Devils edge closer to Champions League return

Manchester United are within touching distance of returning to the Champions League after beating Brentford 2-1 at Old Trafford.Michael Carrick benefi...

Morgan Rogers: Man Utd target Aston Villa star with Arsenal, Chelsea and PSG interested - Paper Talk

Morgan Rogers: Man Utd target Aston Villa star with Arsenal, Chelsea and PSG interested - Paper Talk

The top stories and transfer rumours from Thursday's newspapers...Morgan Rogers has emerged as Manchester United's number one attacking target, and is...

Arsenal 7-0 Leicester: Gunners fire WSL title warning to leaders Man City as Stina Blackstenius scores twice

Arsenal 7-0 Leicester: Gunners fire WSL title warning to leaders Man City as Stina Blackstenius scores twice

Arsenal sent an emphatic warning to leaders Manchester City that the Women's Super League title race is far from over with a thumping 7-0 win over bot...

PSG 5-4 Bayern Munich: Champions League holders beat Bayern in nine-goal thriller in first leg of semi-final

PSG 5-4 Bayern Munich: Champions League holders beat Bayern in nine-goal thriller in first leg of semi-final

A nine-goal Champions League classic saw holders PSG sensationally beat Bayern Munich 5-4 in the first leg of their semi-final in Paris.The goal-fest,...

Atletico Madrid 1-1 Arsenal: Gunners have late penalty overturned as Champions League semi-final first leg ends in draw

Atletico Madrid 1-1 Arsenal: Gunners have late penalty overturned as Champions League semi-final first leg ends in draw

Mikel Arteta was left fuming after Arsenal had a penalty controversially overturned following a VAR check in a pulsating 1-1 draw with Atletico Madrid...

Southampton 2-2 Ipswich: Jack Clarke earns late point for Tractor Boys to take Championship promotion race to final day

Southampton 2-2 Ipswich: Jack Clarke earns late point for Tractor Boys to take Championship promotion race to final day

Jack Clarke struck a late equaliser for Ipswich to end Southampton's automatic-promotion dream in an enthralling 2-2 draw, which will take the race fo...