Charlton’s veterans got off to a great start in their first game since reforming, beating a Cray Valley PM Legends XI at Badgers Sports Ground on Sunday.
The charity match was put on to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of the non-League club, with a percentage of proceeds going to Prostate Cancer UK.
Jon Fortune, Grant Basey, Peter Garland, Jason Euell, Johnnie Jackson, Kevin Lisbie, Marcus Bent and Paul Hayes all started the match with Chris Powell overseeing matters on the touchline and it was the Addicks old boys who go their side off to a flyer with Lisbie rolling back the years with a superb lob after 13 minutes to put Charlton one up.
Matt Knuckey equalised for the hosts, but Bent put the visitors back in front almost immediately on 27 minutes with a fine finish into the top right-hand corner, before Jackson sent a calm finish into the bottom corner from Hayes’ pull-back six minutes later to make it 3-1.
It suddenly became the Lisbie show before half-time when his 15-year-old twin sons came off the bench to get in on the act – Kyreel cut inside from the left before finishing brilliantly in the 35th minute, reminiscent of some of the goals his father got for the Addicks, before he was brought down for a penalty three minutes later. He handed the ball over to his brother Kyreece who confidently put his penalty away, in off the crossbar.
A Knuckey penalty reduced the arrears for Cray Valley just before half-time making it 5-2 at the break and the home side would rally after the restart, threatening an impressive comeback.
Del Oldfield made it 5-3 six minutes after the restart, before a defensive lapse allowed a cross to trickle through to Knuckey at the far post to complete his hat-trick and reduce Charlton’s lead to just one goal with 20 minutes remaining.
But Kevin George resored a bit of breathing room for the Addicks in the 76th minute when he finished into an empty net after Euell’s initial effort had come back off the inside of the post.
There was still time for the prolific Knuckey to score one more for the hosts with three minutes left on the clock to set up a nervy last few minutes for Powell’s men, but they held on as the Former Player Associations’ new-look vets celebrated their first win.
An official crowd of 364 ensured that plenty of money was raised for a good cause and it it hoped that more fixtures will be arranged in the coming months.
Charlton Veterans: Cascoe, Corpe, Heritage, Fortune, Basey, Garland, Euell, Jackson, Lisbie, M Bent, Hayes.
Subs: Lyamani, Cella, George, Kyrell Lisbie, Kyreece Lisbie.
Attendance: 364