NATHAN Jones has emphasised the importance of Charlton Athletic supporters to the League One promotion bid ahead of the return to The Valley to face Stockport County this weekend.
The home section of Charlton’s biggest crowd of the season, 16,250, roared Jones’s side on to a 1-0 win over leaders Birmingham City before the international break.
“The fans are so important to this,” Jones said on Charlton’s website. “They have such a part to play and they can lift us. [Against Birmingham] they were magnificent from start to finish. With the greatest respect, it wasn’t a League One game. I’m very respectful of the league that we’re in and everything, but that was a really, really high-end game from both sides.
“The fans are so important to what we want to achieve and that’s why I want to connect with them and I want them to believe in something.
“We have big games now against promotion rivals and we need that support. We love playing in front of that support, that’s the big thing.
“I love it when The Valley rocks – I’ve seen it before when I’ve come here as a player and an opposing manager. I love it when that happens and let’s get this place rocking because it’s a massive help to us.”
The game against sixth-place Stockport, who have the same amount of points (16) but are ahead of eighth-place Charlton on goal difference, kicks off at 3pm.
