Cambridge United gained another valuable point towards securing their Sky Bet League One safety as they battled to a 1-1 draw against Charlton Athletic at the Cledara Abbey Stadium…
Although the visitors drew controlled the first half and capped it off by drawing first blood through the experienced Connor Wickham’s clean strike, the U’s refused to give in as Macauley Bonne opened his account in amber with a well-taken effort moments after the break to seal an important share of the spoils.
Raring to go at a sun-kissed CB5, the U’s arrived in a good place with five games left of the 2023/24 campaign still to play. Boasting a five-point advantage from the relegation zone, the aim was to secure a third win from four and take that one step closer to survival against an Addicks side unbeaten in 12 and ticking under Nathan Jones.
In response to the narrow defeat to Blackpool a week prior, Garry Monk decided to name three changes to his XI. Thanks to strong second-half cameos, Zeno Ibsen Rossi was rewarded with his first league start of the season, whilst Elias Kachunga and Macauley Bonne also returned to the fold, with Ryan Bennett, James Brophy and Sullay Kaikai all dropping to the bench.
In what was a stop-start opening to proceedings, where both James Gibbons and Ibsen Rossi received lengthy treatment following clashes to the leg and head respectively, the U’s contended well despite being under the cosh. The first notable attempt fell the way of Michael Hector on the 17th minute, who headed Conor Coventry’s free-kick on to the roof of Will Mannion’s net.
The home goalkeeper was then forced into an applaudable one-handed stop with 20 minutes on the clock when a well-worked move down the left resulted in Wickham teeing up Karoy Anderson from just inside the area, who couldn’t pass Mannion despite a powerful first-time attempt.
United succumbed to the pressure just a couple of minutes later when Wickham did well to control George Dobson’s lofted ball, before turning and leathering a fierce shot into the bottom corner to open the scoring.
In response, Monk’s side orchestrated their first clear-cut opportunity on the stroke of the half an hour mark when Gibbons drove down the left and whipped in a delivery towards the six-yard box that Bonne did really well to meet with a leap – he generated the accuracy but just not enough power as Harry Isted was there to catch.
It proved to be the closest the U’s came in the final third during a tricky first period, where they were unable to find that killer pass to unlock a well-drilled unit, who could have stretched their advantage on the first of six additional minutes when Tyreece Campbell twisted and turned, before pulling the trigger which looked destined to ripple the net after drilling through a crowded area, only to be denied by Mannion at full stretch.
Following a flat 45, where they had been restricted throughout, it was evident Cambridge needed the break, but the time to freshen up worked wonders as they grabbed the leveller just four minutes in. Thanks to great work in the air from Kachunga, who continuously plugged away, he forced a clearance which fell to Bonne, who swivelled and hit a sweet half-volley which caught Isted by surprise before wheeling away.
It breathed life into the afternoon, with the U’s at this moment on top and buoyed by an excellent atmosphere. The visitors had brought on Chuks Aneke and the division’s leading scorer Alfie May to add power and a cutting edged, but as time ticked on the encounter remained extremely balanced with neither side allowing a sniff.
A scare was forced on 76 when May beat the offside trap and also Mannion in a one-on-one position with a low effort, but it tapped against the post and fortunately fell back to United’s defence, who emphatically cleared their lines.
Entering the conclusion with their paws up and finding that freedom, the game became more open, which almost resulted in a last-gasp winner as May came racing in from the outskirts of the box and hit a piledriver, but again Mannion would not be beaten as he showed composure to stop.
It was the last hurdle the hosts needed to overcome, as they rose to 18th in the table and stretched their advantage to a comfortable six points, which capped a thoroughly satisfying afternoon.
Up next, the U’s venture to the south west on Tuesday evening (16th April) to take on Bristol Rovers – be sure to back the boys.
Cambridge United: Mannion, Jobe, Ibsen Rossi (R. Bennett, 77’), Andrew, L. Bennett, Digby, Cousins, Gibbons, Kachunga (Brophy, 89’), Bonne (Okenabirhie, 77’), Ahadme
Subs Not Used: Chadwick, Lankester, Kaikai, May
Goalscorers: Bonne (49’)
Bookings:
Charlton Athletic: Isted, Thomas, Hector, Gillesphey, Anderson (LuaLua, 78’), Coventry, Dobson, Bakinson (May, 56’), Small, Wickham (Aneke, 55’), Campbell (Ramsay, 77’)
Subs Not Used: Ward, Edmonds-Green, Edun
Goalscorers: Wickham (22’)
Bookings: Coventry, Bakinson
Referee: Darren Drysdale
Attendance: 7484 (1469 away fans)
Man of the Match: Bonne
