Charlton boss delivers his verdict on League One play-off race after Portsmouth move into driving seat

The Blues’ top-six hopes are back in their hands after their 3-1 win at AFC Wimbledon on Saturday.

And with Charlton drawing 1-1 at Accrington, Danny Cowley’s side are now four points ahead despite having played one match more.

The Addicks’ game in hand comes against Lincoln on Tuesday night. They need a victory to keep the pressure on Pompey heading into the final day of the season.

The Blues welcome Accrington to Fratton Park while Charlton host Hull – who have already claimed the third-tier crown.

And despite the Londoners suffering a big setback, Adkins still believes his troops can beat Pompey to the final play-off spot.

The Charlton boss told the South London Press: ‘Whilst you’ve got hope and belief it is something to cling on to. We need to learn the lessons from today and get ready for our next game on Tuesday, which will be a cracker against Lincoln at The Valley

;Everyone who crosses that white line wants to win a game of football. It’s up to us to go and win a game of football.

“They (Lincoln) will present a load of different situations. But we have got threats and we’ve got to try and pose the opposition problems.

‘We’ve demonstrated on our day we can play well against anybody

‘You give John Coleman and Accrington Stanley a lot of credit, this is a very difficult place to come to. We’ve watched several of their games. They are very direct and have more shots, crosses and corners – we were very big and played three at the back. You’ve got to defend your penalty area because the ball comes in from all areas of the pitch.

‘We’ve got a point away from home – we needed three. But there are plenty of twists and turns, as we all know. It’s easy to say after the event ‘let’s play out from the back and all the way through’ then we could’ve got a good hiding, but maybe you wouldn’t have done. That’s the hindsight side of it.

‘Ryan Inniss’ header goes past the post and on another day that can go in and change the complexion, (but it) didn’t happen. We knew it was going to be a horrible game and you’ve got to do all the crappy things that go with it. But you have got to do that.

‘The players have gave everything. You can’t fault them for their effort or commitment. It was very competitive.’