Charlton Athletic 1 Burnley 1

Yesterday's first half performance crystallised something for me; Alan Pardew is on his way out and it will happen sooner rather than later. It's only now a matter of affordability and it will happen when the Board realise the seriousness of our situation because we cannot afford relegation; he will be lucky to see November out. I actually like the bloke and have been reluctant to join the band-wagon in recent weeks by slating him. What was plainly clear yesterday in the starting selection was that he has run out of belief and ideas, and is pressing all the buttons at once in order to try and get a result. However you look at it, he seems unable to motivate the players during a match. The second-half improvement was due to the half-time substitions and positional reshuffle, not the influence of the manager during the game. Bearing in mind the events of the week and the evident call to arms from all connected with the club, the first half performance was unforgiveable.

After Tuesday's debacle Alan Pardew promised numerous changes but his options looked limited in terms of the personnel available. Perhaps he has been hurt by criticism in recent weeks of always threatening changes but hardly making any because he made three for the start and only one of them had any effect on the match. Izale McLeod was a surprise starter but had a shocker and you have to wonder what he actually offers us for the future. He once won us two penalties in a League Cup match against poor opposition but he has done absolutely nothing else and if it was a surprise he started the first half, it certainly wasn't to see him subbed for the start of the second.

Josh Wright was thrown into the midfield for his debut and whilst he struggled in the first half, he did at least get into the match in the second and made some promising passes. Mark Hudson was back in central defence alongside Linvoy Primus with Yassin Moutaouakil at right-back and the right sided Martin Cranie preferred at left back. Sorry, but that was another school-boy error when we we had a perfectly competent left-sided left back in Grant Basey playing on the wing.

Andy Gray was dropped and can have no complaints although you wonder what Chris Dickson has done wrong not to get a start or even make the bench. When we are desperate enough to try McLeod again you have to ask why Stuart Fleetwood is still on loan at Cheltenham. He's not a teenager and it was pointless signing him if he's not good enough to play in the first team.

The first half was truly abject and we did not create a single chance. No shots on target and no shots off-target. Burnley should have wrapped it up before their half-time oranges. The referree was better than many we have seen since being back in the Championship but he made a complete howler in disallowing a Martin Paterson goal for offside after he had over-ruled the linesman in the build-up to the goal. It was so bad that I had to apologise to a Burnley fan after the match. You could say justice was done in that Paterson was off-side and also because Burnley did score minutes afterwards with a deflected shot from Joey Gudjonsson. Burnley dominated the rest of the first half and the smallest away following of the season so far, must have thought they would be taking three points back to Lancashire.

Lloyd Sam came on at half-time for Linvoy Primus (presumably still struggling with an injury) with Cranie going to centre-half and Grant Basey finally dropping to left-back. McLeod was also spared any further embarrassment and Svetislav Todorov got the chance to prove just how wrong the initial decision to play McLeod was. McLeod should be grateful he was subbed at the break rather than face the ignominy of being loudly jeered off as that's what would have happened.

After only four minutes of the second half Darren Ambrose got a header in which was our first effort of the game and it drew ironic cheers from the Valley's largest crowd of the season. Lloyd Sam upped the tempo and we began to make headway on the right flank. Yassin Mouaouakil (my man-of-the-match) was able to get up in support and more space was created for Bailey who had put a poor first half although he looked to be playing with one eye on Josh Wright. Wright improved second half and Darren Ambrose looked more interested now that the others were making more of an effort.

Todorov finds space well (look and learn Andy Gray) even if he hasn't got great pace. His equalising goal was a simple close range header from a Basey free-kick and we looked to have the winning of the match within our grasp with 15 minutes remaining. We didn't do quite enough although Luke Varney should have won it at the death after seizing on a short back-pass and skipping around the stranded Jensen. Duff hared back and slid in to deny Varney's shot and it was all over. Weaver tipped a fierce Gudjonsson onto the bar in the second half for Burnley's only real second-half effort but they deserved a point. Having said that, they are another team we should be beating at home and we failed again.

Ipswich will gain revenge in the week for their Valley defeat and we have to beat Barnsley at home next Saturday as we are unlikely to get anything at Plymouth or Birmingham.

Liverpool have at least cheered me up this afternoon by ending Chelsea's unbeaten home run. Let's hope Bolton can piss on Harry "loyalty" Redknapp's chips in the later game. What a greedy bastard that man is. Tottenham deserve him.