Banks's sweet strike seals it

MY BALL . . . Aiden O'Neill slides in to gain possession

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OLLIE Banks set up this latest victory early on and sheer bloody-mindedness saw it through to its conclusion.

The midfielder's neat fourth-minute finish aside, this was not a pretty three points. All the glamour was elsewhere on Valentine's Day, but those fans who chose a night with John Sheridan and the boys over an evening of spaghetti carbonara with their nearest and dearest were rewarded with a similar level of commitment to the cause on the field.

Who needs a bottle of plonk to get the evening going when you have the 2017 Sheridan vintage?

That's five wins in eight games now. It's been a good year.

Charlton were full of pace and intent, but found the blue wall generally unyielding.

And when Karl Robinson's side - who came into this contest unbeaten in seven - did get in behind the back-line, they found Connor Ripley in typical form.

Serial watchers of the on-loan Middlesbrough star won't have expressed too much surprise at most of his saves. The pair at the death from Lee Novak and Patrick Bauer, from two of the Addicks' 16 corners, were real beauties though.

Sheridan talked in the build-up to the game about the possibility of freshening up his side and he made three changes, one of which was enforced by the knee injury picked up by Aaron Amadi-Holloway.

CONTENT

Paul Green, who came on early for Amadi-Holloway against Coventry, started in midfield and Banks stepped into the shoes of Ousmane Fane, who had to be content with a spot on the bench after finding the going tough against the Sky Blues.

Also out was Ryan Flynn, with Lee Erwin - absent recently with a virus - given a first start since Sheridan's opening game back at the club against Gillingham, adding a physical element up front.

Athletic lined up with Banks and Green screening the back four, with Chris Taylor, Aiden O'Neill and Ryan McLaughlin supporting Erwin.

Best laid plans almost went out of the window after only 15 seconds. A long ball over the top sent Josh Magennis clear as he burst through the line. With only Ripley to beat, he hesitated and blasted wastefully over, before looking accusingly at the playing surface, possibly feeling the ball had reared up at the crucial moment.

Athletic scored with their first attack. Taylor skated across from the left and played an inviting ball into the path of Banks on the edge of the box. His strike was as clean as Magennis's but an awful lot more accurate, curving away from the dive of Declan Rudd and into the top-left corner of his goal.

McLaughlin almost carved out the chance to double that lead after 11 minutes, but his touch was heavy enough to allow Rudd to collect at his feet, leaving Erwin wanting for a cross in the middle.

Charlton were unbowed and came back strongly, showcasing a team wily boss Robinson had packed with pace and energy.

On-loan Arsenal forward Stephy Mavididi was the pick of the bunch and a surging run deep into Athletic territory ended with Jordan Botaka's effort being headed over by Green.

O'Neill was a peripheral figure but while Athletic were not able to function too often as a fluent unit, they did get close to making it 2-0 after 36 minutes.

McLaughlin's persistence won a corner kick on the right and Banks's delivery saw Peter Clarke rise magnificently between two markers to power a header towards goal. Only the width of a post prevented him notching a third goal in four outings.

LEVELLING

Robinson's side came close to levelling six minutes before the interval, twice from corner kicks, First, Ripley had to be alert to turn aside an Ezri Konsa header; from the resulting corner on the opposite flank, Andrew Crofts directed a header that drifted agonisingly wide with a crucial touch.

Charlton opened the second half strongly and Magennis glanced not far wide from a corner.

Sheridan's men were holding on as Jake Forster-Caskey hit a left-footed effort which Ripley had to arch his back to tip over the top and needed to establish control in the middle third against seriously mobile opponents.

Athletic rolled up their sleeves and competed and had a chance to increase the lead after 64 minutes. Erwin, who covered every blade of grass in a thankless role, should have got his head up and crossed for McLaughlin when set free down the right, but went alone and was tackled.

In the 72nd minute, Erwin's persistence won him a free-kick right on the edge of the area with Ezri Konsa penalised. Banks played a short pass to Green and shaped a shot a couple of feet over the top.

At the other end, Charlton had a decent shout for a penalty when Chris Solly appeared to be pushed in the back. Referee Mark Brown, who let the game flow throughout, was unmoved.

Michael Ngoo came on for a shattered Erwin in a bid to give the visitors something else to think about.

The trick nearly worked straight away. One leggy burst down the left resulted in Taylor seeing a left-footed angled drive well saved low to his right by Rudd.

DIVED

Lee Novak came within a whisker of a leveller with a near-post header which Ripley dived to tip aside and then, from the opposite flank, a terrific stop came as he tipped over from a strong header by Patrick Bauer.

Despite six minutes of additional time, Athletic held on to earn back-to-back victories in the league for the first time this season.

IN A NUTSHELL: Athletic found a way to win yet again.