Jones: 'The league form has been too inconsistent'

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Nathan Jones has called for his side to 'turn the corner' ahead of Saturday's meeting with Mansfield Town at The Valley.

"The league form has been too inconsistent and we need to rectify that," said Jones. "Saturday is a good time to do that. Last season we were unbeaten at The Valley, but this season it's been more sporadic.

"We've had some big wins against Bolton and Birmingham, and we've been excellent. It's been a good place for us, but lately, coinciding with a lot of injuries and inconsistencies, not so much. Now we're starting to get everyone back, I do believe we can turn the corner."

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"We’re in a much better position now, going into a critical period," added the boss. "We've got three of our next four games at home so it will be a really defining time for us over the next couple of weeks. We’ve got a lot of our players back - Kayne [Ramsay], Chuks [Aneke] and Tennai [Watson] are a little way off yet, but the others are in a much better position. 

"It was good to have Daniel Kanu back, Lloyd [Jones] back and Dan Potts back in. We're in a healthier position."

Asked to compare the current challenge to previous spells in his career, Jones said: "The ironic thing is the challenge isn’t as big as the challenge that was here when I first came in back in January. The club hadn’t won in 18 games, we'd played more games than everyone else and were one point above the relegation zone. 

"If there was any fear of a challenge, then trust me I would have stayed in Poole and gone on my paddleboard for another few months! That was the challenge back then.

"This club, on all levels, wants to move forward. That's why I came here. It's not just about results; results are the top thing you see, it’s like an iceberg, everything underneath has to be strong. What we have now is a really good underbelly in terms of the culture, the environment, recruitment and the discipline throughout the club. The golden thread right through the academy and Community Trust as well, everything is there. 

"At the minute, we're inconsistent with results and that won’t just turn overnight," he continued. "You won’t turn from a team that is 18th in League One to a challenging team, but that's the aspiration we have. 

“That might take a little bit of time and it also takes fans to get behind stuff, and I know there is no way I would have got behind the Crawley performance. No way, I can’t defend that. We’ve got a good group here, a hardworking one that is also young but we've got good experience as well. 

"It will take a little bit of time, and what we're asking is that everyone is together, and it is. It's a big challenge but when you come to Charlton it's always a challenge. Whatever league you are in, there are always aspirations as we've been an ex-Premier League club. 

“I didn’t come here because it was a cushty little number and I could live near Greenwich Park and ride a Lime bike; I've come here to work hard and take this club forward and, given time, I know we can do that.”

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