Shrewsbury head coach Paul Hurst admitted the over-riding emotion after securing League One safety with a 1-1 draw at Charlton was “relief”.

The Shrews ensured they will have a 10th successive campaign in England’s third tier.

The Shropshire club reappointed Hurst as head coach in January after predecessor Matt Taylor had suffered seven losses in eight matches.

Daniel Udoh’s confident finish put the visitors ahead at The Valley – his 10th goal in all competitions – in the 23rd minute.

But George Dobson, set to leave Charlton after signing a pre-contract agreement with Hungarian club Fehervar, equalised in the 46th minute.

Hurst said: “Relief is the first emotion and then enjoyment and togetherness. I have to say I’m really pleased for the chairman (Roland Wycherley) because it hasn’t been easy, I think he has gone on record saying how difficult the last couple of seasons have been – but this one in particular.

“He will be a very happy man tonight. But I feel like almost the job starts again.

“Credit to the players, staff and everyone involved that they managed to get over the line.

“I’ve enjoyed being back in work. It wasn’t the longest break but you have to respect and cherish the times when you are working.

“No doubt there have been some challenges in front of us – like hoping to bring more players in than we did (in the last transfer window) and we’ve had some big injuries.”

Charlton are undefeated in 14 matches – losing just once since Nathan Jones was appointed manager in February – but they are guaranteed their lowest finish since 1926.

Dobson did have a moment to savour in SE7 as he raced on to Connor Wickham’s through ball, going past Shrews keeper Marko Marosi to convert in what is set to be his last outing as an Addicks player on home turf.

Jones said: “I believe he has signed a pre-contract – I want him to be at this football club and playing for Charlton.

“I will do everything I can to keep George Dobson at this football club. I did it in January – to prolong his stay. And I would like to keep him.

“He has done very, very well for me. I’m very proud of him. Now we need to find some common ground.

“He epitomises what I want us to be – front-footed and belief in what we do.

“At half-time we said some choice words and laid some tactical things down and we implemented it straight away. If we had only started the first half like that it could’ve been a different story.

“First half we weren’t us. Second half we asked for a reaction and we got it and we were much better.

“First half we were too passive all over, moved the ball too slowly and became that possession-based boring football team. Second half we were more us.”

Shrewsbury ensured a 10th successive campaign in League One after their 1-1 draw at Charlton.

The visitors have not won in six matches, drawing four times, but sharing the spoils at The Valley was enough to secure safety.

Dan Udoh put Shrewsbury ahead in the 23rd minute with his 11th goal of the season, slotting smartly across Addicks keeper Harry Isted.

Before that Town had gone close when Morgan Feeney’s header hit the left post with the ball rebounding on to Tunmise Sobowale and once again coming back off the woodwork.

Charlton levelled almost instantly after the restart. Addicks captain George Dobson, who has signed a pre-contract agreement to join Hungarian club Fehervar, raced on to Connor Wickham’s through ball and confidently went past Shrewsbury keeper Marko Marosi to finish into an unguarded net.

Addicks midfielder Karoy Anderson headed over from close range after meeting Thierry Small’s cross from the left shortly before the hour mark while Marosi got down well to parry away substitute Daniel Kanu’s strike.

Charlton extended their unbeaten run to 14 league matches, 10 of them draws.

Garry Monk praised his Cambridge side’s fighting spirit after they hit back to draw 1-1 with Charlton.

The U’s were outplayed in the first half, trailing to Connor Wickham’s goal at the break, but produced a rousing display after the interval to earn a draw.

Macauley Bonne’s goal against his former employer helped lift Cambridge to 18th in League One, six points clear of the relegation zone.

“I think the biggest compliment I can pay the players is four or five weeks ago, a goal like that in the first half, maybe mentally we would have suffered and not come back from it, but I think you can see the difference in mentality now,” Monk said afterwards. “The last four games, the mentality is there to fight.

“I think it was probably a fair result in the end, and it’s another point on our tally. Every point’s crucial.

“It was a great strike and I thought it was deserved. I thought we had a lot of pressure in their half, in and around their box.

“In the second half I thought we came out on top for the large period of that in terms of both boxes, winning those battles.

“I’m really pleased with the players, over these last four games especially. I just think the attitude and the level of performance has definitely risen.

“I think you could see the level of determination and attitude and desire to try and win and do the right things. We have to make sure we keep hold of that.”

Nathan Jones rued his Charlton side’s continued failure to finish games off as they missed opportunities before Cambridge hit back.

“I’m frustrated,” Jones said. “There are positives; we created enough chances to have won the game. It’s another point, it’s another game unbeaten. It’s away from home, the conditions are brutal and we haven’t been done.

“There’s a pleasing element to it but when I’m looking at how I want us to evolve, how I want us to move forward, we have to do better. We have to be more clinical in their box and score good chances when we got them. That’s happened on a number of occasions now.

“We’ve got to defend our box better because it’s a poor goal to give away, from every single aspect.

“We’ve got some decisions in the summer and we’ll have to make those decisions so that we’re nowhere near where we are now next year. I know where we want to go and what we want to achieve, but don’t take anything away.

“Since I’ve come in the players have been brilliant. They’ve driven each other, they’ve grafted and they’ve given me absolutely everything.”

Cambridge earned a gutsy 1-1 draw with Charlton to move a further point clear of the bottom four.

The away side scored first after 23 minutes when George Dobson’s pass was taken down on the edge of the box by Connor Wickham, who then fired low beyond Will Mannion to mark his full debut with a goal.

In added time Mannion made an excellent save to deny Tyreece Campbell, and soon after the break he also pushed Tyreeq Bakinson’s shot wide.

Instead Cambridge hit back after 50 minutes through Macauley Bonne, who struck a powerful shot on the turn from the edge of the box and celebrated his first U’s goal against one of his former clubs.

Charlton missed a huge chance to go back ahead 13 minutes from the end when Dobson played sub Alfie May through on goal, but the division’s top scorer saw his shot come back off the far post.

In the final seconds of the game Mannion again came out on top, denying May at his near post.

Charlton boss Nathan Jones was disappointed with his side’s defensive work in Tuesday night’s 2-2 League One draw with Wigan.

The Addicks had gone ahead in the 20th minute when Wigan captain Charlie Hughes sliced a long ball from Macaulay Gillesphey into his own net.

But Charlton’s soft underbelly was on show again just after the hour mark, when two goals in four minutes from Charlie Kelman turned the game around.

Chuks Aneke was able to rescue a point, but only Carlisle have fewer League One clean sheets than Charlton.

“This team hasn’t kept many clean sheets,” he said. “There’s been three managers now and no one’s kept clean sheets, me included.

“That’s something that we need to address and we’ve got to be better at because I don’t want us to have to score three goals at home to win a football game,” he continued.

“It’s either work or personnel. We’ll do lots of work and if the work doesn’t do it then we’ll change personnel.”

The Charlton boss was also disappointed with his team’s finishing.

“We created enough to have punished them tonight,” he said. “If that’s 4-2 or 5-2 then no one’s moaning, no one’s saying ‘we’ve got lucky there’.

“We’ve had 20 shots tonight. We’ve had double their shots, double their shots on target. It shows that we’ve had a right go tonight. The fans want three points but they’ve seen a team that’s proper front-footed tonight.

“But when you don’t put them away, then it’s a 2-2 game – and that wasn’t a 2-2 game.”

Shaun Maloney could have been forgiven for having his mind on other matters, given that his wife gave birth to their daughter on Monday.

“I just about made it here today, so it wasn’t the normal preparation,” said the Wigan manager.

“We knew this was obviously coming at some point and I thought the staff did a really good job today and yesterday. All of them.

“I just want to thank the senior players. They really stepped up today.”

It was a spirited performance from the Latics, who had to suffer but came out with a point. Maloney was pleased with the second half in particular.

“We were under real big pressure,” he said. “We’re 1-0 down, the first five minutes were really difficult. To then play the way that we did, I really liked.”

Maloney was full of praise for the man who turned the game around.

He added: “He’s had to be patient, Charlie. It’s tough. I’m a really big fan of his.

“I think there’s loads more to come. Physically, in the first two or three weeks he got up to speed. I just really like his movement. I love him out of possession. He knows what I think of him.

“Tonight was really big for him.”

Charlton extended their unbeaten run to 12 games as they celebrated their longest streak in nearly 13 years with a 2-2 League One draw against Wigan.

In the 20th minute, Alfie May pressed for an opener and he caused Wigan captain Charlie Hughes to slice a clearance up and over goalkeeper Sam Tickle and into his own net.

Wigan had been second best but turned the game on its head just after the hour mark. First – in the 62nd minute – Charlie Kelman touched home to equalise after on-loan Fulham winger Martial Godo’s deflected shot fell his way.

Four minutes later, Kelman completed his brace via a close-range shot which deflected off Macaulay Gillesphey.

But 11 minutes from time, Charlton hit back through substitute Chuks Aneke, who headed home from a George Dobson cross.

It is now just one victory in six for the Latics, who have not won away from home in nearly two months.

Charlton, meanwhile, look a different side under Nathan Jones and moved up to 14th as a result.

Barnsley manager Neill Collins was frustrated with the performance of the referee in a controversial 2-1 loss at Charlton as the Tykes were defeated on the road for the first time since November.

After two excellent goals from Alfie May had twice given Charlton the lead either side of an Adam Phillips penalty, a feisty second period saw a Fabio Jalo volley ruled out for a tight offside.

“We should have been sitting here with a point,” said Collins. “But we’re not because of a poor decision at the end of the game. He’s a yard onside, so I’m really disappointed with that.”

The visitors also had a shout for a penalty before the one they were awarded in the first half, when Devante Cole and Michael Hector tangled legs.

“It’s a stonewall penalty,” Collins added. “Devante goes through, he’s about to shoot, he gets bundled over. How he didn’t get that, I’m not quite sure.”

The Barnsley boss did concede that his side had the chances to win the game: “At half-time we should have been in the lead. But we weren’t because of missed opportunities.

“(Cole) is going through a little period right now. I’m sure it will be a matter of time before he’s putting them in the back of the net.

“Alfie May showed why he’s the top goalscorer in the league, with two great finishes. We’ve got players who are capable of doing that, but today we probably passed up too many good opportunities, and Charlton were pretty clinical.”

Charlton manager Nathan Jones was also quick to praise his forward.

“Alfie took his chances really well,” he said. “On the counter we were a constant threat and could have had more.”

“It’s an absolutely massive three points for us. A really good performance.

“They’re in the play-offs, they score goals freely, they’ve got one of the best away records. So for us to win the game, we’re delighted.”

After a winter spent just above the relegation zone, Jones has steadied the ship.

“I never take anything for granted but we’re not looking at that. All we want to do is keep moving forward,” he said.

Asked about what it takes to turn a club’s fortunes around so quickly, Jones gave a remarkably honest answer.

“Every part of your life. Literally every part of your life,” he said. “I live away from family. Anyone who works at the football club knows the hours we do, knows what we watch, knows how we prepare, knows how meticulous we are on every aspect of what we do.

“How we eat, how we sleep. If you want to raise standards then you have to set those standards, you have to live those standards.”

Alfie May’s double for Charlton secured a 2-1 win over play-off hopefuls Barnsley at The Valley.

May broke the deadlock with a tremendous free-kick in the 20th minute to fire Charlton ahead.

Adam Phillips grabbed an equaliser for Barnsley eight minutes later from the penalty spot following a handball by Kayne Ramsay.

But, after a dreadful miss from inside the six-yard box by Devante Cole, the Addicks regained the lead in the 40th minute when May curled in a shot from the left corner of the box following a clever dummy by George Dobson.

Chuks Aneke missed a 94th-minute penalty for Charlton after Liam Roberts fouled Tyreece Campbell, and Barnsley assistant coach Jon Stead was sent off for dissent a minute later.

Defeat left Barnsley with two wins from seven matches and Cole wihtout a goal in 12. But the Tykes still only need seven points from their last five games to guarantee a play-off spot.

The Addicks have now gone 11 games without defeat.

Exeter manager Gary Caldwell felt the draw was a fair result as his side failed to capitalise on a near-perfect start in the 1-1 stalemate with Charlton.

Ben Purrington’s sixth-minute goal against his former club was the first time Exeter had scored in the opening 15 minutes of a home league game since October 2021 but they let Charlton off the hook by sitting on that lead.

It came back to haunt them as Chuks Aneke’s header went in off Grecians defender Cheick Diabate with just three minutes remaining and it could have been worse for Exeter had Alfie May’s stoppage-time strike not hit the upright.

Caldwell said: “I think it was probably a fair result. I think both teams might think they could have won it.

“I want us to be better over the course of the game; I thought our start in the game was fantastic and the personality we showed right from kick-off, the bravery to play our way, the patterns of play we had worked on all week were killing them.

“We scored a brilliant goal and then we stopped doing what we did to get in front. We made it a 50-50 game. We lost our composure.

“When we give it away playing out, we then become edgy at doing that. I think it’s a lesson that we have to stick to the process. We have to keep doing the things that got us in front in the game and not turn the game into a 50-50 game.

“We’re four games unbeaten but we need to be better.”

Charlton boss Nathan Jones was left with mixed emotions.

He said: “I am just disappointed. If we had started the game better and just been a bit more front-footed and cleared our lines a bit and taken the game to them in the first 10 minutes, we wouldn’t have lost the game.

“We were good first half and created enough chances and moved the ball well but 1-0 puts a different spin on stuff.

“Second half we came out and went after it in the first six, seven minutes and then the game evened out and it wasn’t until I made the changes that we looked like we were going to score.

“Then we finally get the goal and continued to go for it, we went for the win and should have won it at the end. The positives are that we are another game unbeaten, it is another point and we will keep going.

“I wanted us to be front-footed and come out of the blocks but we were a mile off what we have been in recent weeks. Now we have got three home games where I really want us to be front-footed.”

Charlton boss Nathan Jones was left less than impressed with the state of the Fleetwood pitch after their 1-1 draw.

Blustery conditions made it difficult for both sides but Ryan Graydon came off the bench to salvage a point for battling Fleetwood as his 84th-minute strike cancelled out Alfie May’s opener at Highbury.

“It was just brutal really, a brutal game,” reflected Jones.

“The conditions and the pitch made a spectacle very hard out there.

“There was a lot of honesty out there, but very little quality so a point was a fair result.

“I don’t think a Football League pitch should be like this. For whatever reason it is, I don’t want to comment too much on it. But it made any kind of footballing game very difficult. The wind took away any chance of a spectacle.

“It’s one of those things, it’s EFL football. It was a brutal game today.

On the goal the Addicks conceded late on, he added: “We lost a runner, lose a challenge then another challenge and they tap it in off the post. I’m really disappointed because there were four things we could have done better.

“The manner of the goal was very disappointing. It was probably an even result, but when you lead going into whatever minute it was you expect to see it out and we didn’t.”

It was a goal which denied the London club all three points, though they stretched their unbeaten run to eight games.

But for the Cod Army it could be a precious point in their survival bid.

They are five points off safety and boss Charlie Adam was left wanting more.

He said: “If you look at what we did again, we created three or four big chances.

“The impact of the subs did a good job again. I’m really pleased for Ryan to get the goal, it was the least that we deserved from that game.

“We will go away, dust ourselves down and look back on it with real frustration in terms of not winning the football match.

“I believe we had the best chances in the game so it’s frustrating. But I’ll say it again, we’ve closed the gap and that’s all you can do.

“It’s disappointing but all we can do is look forward to the games that we have left.”

Alfie May’s 25th goal of the season was not enough for Charlton as Fleetwood hit back late to earn a 1-1 draw in League One.

May scored from the penalty spot but substitute Ryan Graydon rescued a point for the hosts with six minutes left, rounding keeper Harry Isted before tucking home from a tight angle.

The Cod Army started brilliantly with Xavier Simons denied by a super save from Isted. Jayden Stockley also headed inches wide, still with less than 10 minutes played.

The hosts continued to press, Brendan Wiredu and Gavin Kilkenny also going close.

The Addicks’ first decent chance came after 36 minutes when Macaulay Gillesphey drilled narrowly over the top.

The visitors went ahead in first-half added time when May tucked home a penalty after he had been felled by Shaun Rooney.

Fleetwood went close soon after the restart when Bosun Lawal saw a well-struck shot saved by Isted. Wiredu also headed wide from Phoenix Patterson’s cross.

At the other end Thierry Small’s effort was saved by Jay Lynch, before Graydon went on to salvage a point for the hosts with time running out.

Charlton manager Nathan Jones said he was pleased to have League One top scorer Alfie May spearheading his attack as the striker’s 19th and 20th league goals of the season earned a 3-2 win over Carlisle.

Charlton did not have it all their own way, going behind to a 20th-minute volley from Luke Armstrong, but goals either side of half-time from May and Daniel Kanu helped to resume normal service.

Taylor Charters equalised with a 63rd-minute penalty after Armstrong was fouled by Macaulay Gillesphey but 15 minutes from time May pounced on a Sam Lavelle back-pass to claim the points.

“He’s a wonderful player,” Jones said of his striker, who arrived for his own media duties with a bottle of champagne.

“He’s a clever player, he’s a great lad and he’s brilliant around the place. He thinks about his game, he thinks about his movement and he doesn’t just go and play off the cuff.

“He’s scored goals wherever he’s been, he’s come here and he’s been scoring goals. His dip coincided with a dip in the team’s form, which can happen, but all you have to do is keep giving these players confidence and keep talking to them and Alfie’s responded fantastically well.”

The result moves Charlton 10 points clear of relegation but Jones insisted he remains focused on his team playing well.

“It wasn’t [about] survival, it was about getting performances,” he said. “Yes, we want to make sure that we don’t get sucked into any kind of relegation thing but we want to finish as high as we possibly can because we want to build.

“We’re not just planning for now, we want to build for the future as well.”

Carlisle boss Paul Simpson felt his team merited a much-needed point.

“The players have worked extremely hard today and probably deserved something out of it but unfortunately we go away with nothing again, which is the story of our season,” he said.

“For long periods I thought we looked decent. I thought our shape was good. I thought the plan that we had was good.”

“I’m pleased with some individual performances. Harry [Lewis]. Dylan McGeouch got on the ball and passed the ball well for us. Harrison [Neal] had another good game. Good for Luke to get a goal.”

Unfortunately for Simpson, individual errors cost the Cumbrians. “We’ve just given really poor goals away today,” he said.

“We just haven’t reacted well enough for the second goal. It’s a throw-in and we’ve not squeezed high enough up the pitch to make us nice and compact.”

“The third goal is a mistake and it’s just one of those things. We’ve got to clear our lines in that position.”

Alfie May scored twice as Charlton secured back-to-back League One wins for the first time this season, beating Carlisle 3-2.

After a 20th-minute volley from Luke Armstrong gave the visitors an unlikely lead, Charlton turned the game around with goals either side of half-time – May following up a deflected shot from Daniel Kanu in the 37th minute and Kanu himself crashing home from close range in the 54th.

Carlisle manager Paul Simpson had asked his players to show pride and they did so, Taylor Charters equalising from the penalty spot after Macaulay Gillesphey had fouled Armstrong.

But the hosts’ quality eventually told, May latching onto a loose back-pass from former Addick Sam Lavelle and rounding the keeper to claim his fourth goal in four games after just one in the previous 13.

Charlton’s first home victory since November means they now find themselves comfortably in mid-table, 10 points above 21st-placed Cheltenham and quickly forgetting any relegation concerns.

Carlisle’s 10th loss in 11 games means they will almost certainly go down.

Late strikes from Tyreeq Bakinson and Alfie May earned Charlton a 3-1 League One win at Cheltenham to ease their relegation fears.

The improving Addicks took a first-half lead through Daniel Kanu before Liam Sercombe’s 70th-minute leveller set up a tense finish.

But the late double lifted Nathan Jones’ side seven points clear of their hosts and the drop zone.

It took 19 minutes for them to break the deadlock, with Conor Coventry releasing Tennai Watson on the right and his low ball was turned in by Kanu for his 10th of the season.

May was denied by Liam Kinsella’s block in the box and Luke Southwood blocked another May effort, but the rebound was skewed wide in the 33rd minute.

Matty Taylor saw a low shot deflected wide, but Charlton were on top for much of the first half.

Cheltenham equalised when Jordan Thomas weaved past two defenders and forced Harry Isted into a low save, but he could only parry it to Sercombe, who tapped home.

But Bakinson struck four minutes from the end with a low shot that Southwood reached – but could not keep out – after George Dobson’s pass.

And former Robins hero May added the third in the 90th minute, tapping into an empty net after collecting Freddie Ladapo’s pass as Charlton extended their unbeaten run to six.

Charlton boss Nathan Jones gave Harry Isted an ‘earful’ after the goalkeeper’s calamitous error cost his side two vital points against Northampton on Saturday.

The Addicks led after just four minutes at Sixfields thanks to Karoy Anderson’s deflected strike and they rarely looked in trouble thereafter as Northampton struggled to create anything in attack.

But Isted was caught on the ball with 10 minutes to play and that presented Louis Appere with a simple tap-in, earning the hosts a 1-1 draw and denying Charlton a crucial victory in their battle against the drop from Sky Bet League One.

“I’m just so disappointed,” admitted Jones. “It was a difficult game in the first half but I thought we were excellent in the second half.

“We won every first ball, we landed on the seconds, we played some really good stuff and we created two glorious chances to put the game to bed.

“We’ve drawn through a huge error. We were in total control and I couldn’t see them scoring and that’s the disappointing thing because they didn’t create anything all afternoon.

“We defended superbly and we won every first ball and every second ball, and we also had two great chances, but you can’t legislate for such a big error like that. It’s cost us three points.

“I’ve hammered him (Isted). I probably shouldn’t have done but he’s a good goalkeeper and I’m just so disappointed because it’s a huge error. He got an earful from me but he’s a great kid and he’ll bounce back.

“It’s good that we’re still unbeaten but we want to win games and we should have won today because we were the better side and they didn’t deserve anything.”

Cobblers boss Jon Brady was thankful for a point, saying: “It was really tough in the first half because out of nowhere the rain came down and the wind kicked up and it was hard for us to get out.

“I watched Charlton play Derby on Tuesday and they are direct and competitive and they don’t give you time or space, but we conceded a poor goal.

“We then started to get to grips with the game and we tried to play and open them up but we didn’t really create any chances and then we just had to say in the game in the second half.

“The game ebbed and flowed a bit and Alfie May hits the post for them but we go up the other end and score through a mistake.

“Charlton have drawn with Bolton and Portsmouth and they beat Derby the other night and they have very good players for the level but it shows how good our group can be to take four points off them this season.

“To get a draw in the end was really positive.”