Franck Queudrue scored in injury time for Fulham to earn a 2-2 draw with Charlton in the English Premier League on Wednesday, ruining a perfect start for new Addicks manager Alan Pardew.
Queudrue hit home a volley in the last minute of injury time at The Valley, drawing Pardew's ire.
Pardew, 24 hours into his new job, was angry at the decision to give the free kick that led to Fulham's equalizer, when Djimi Traore was penalized for handball.
PHOTO: AP
"I am absolutely disgusted. Mistakes happen but you would expect the officials to be nice and calm and they made a bad mistake there," Pardew said. "We were two minutes away from ecstasy but we feel deflated."
Fulham manager Chris Coleman praised his side's spirit.
`Tough blow'
"I think we earned a bit of fortune tonight," Coleman said. "To score when we did was a tough blow for Charlton but it was a good point for us."
Fulham striker Brian McBride netted his sixth goal of the season in the 13th minute, when a header from Queudrue rebounded off the bar. Darren Ambrose leveled for Charlton in the 19th off the inside of the post.
Darren Bent gave Charlton the lead in the 45th, taking advantage of a defensive error from Carlos Bocanegra and Moritz Volz. The Fulham defenders each left a goalkick from Scott Carson, and Bent latched on to the ball.
"I have to commend the players," Pardew said. "There was endeavor and fight and I have seen enough here to suggest in every game we can be competitive."
The draw left Charlton in 19th place, with 13 points from 20 games.
"All we can do now is not dwell on the past and we have to move on," Bent said. "We still have a lot of points to play for and keep going -- we can get out of [relegation]."
Pardew signed a three-and-a-half year contract with Charlton on Tuesday -- two weeks after being fired by West Ham. Pardew replaced Les Reed, who left the club on Christmas Eve. Reed had been in charge since Nov. 13, when Iain Dowie was fired after only 15 games in charge with the Addicks last in the standings.
Wycombe win
Charlton won just once in eight games under Reed, and were knocked out in the quarterfinals of the League Cup by League Two club Wycombe last week.
Former Hearts defender Steven Pressley, who left the club on Dec. 9 after falling out with the club management, attended Wednesday's game and could join Charlton when the transfer window opens in five days.
"There is a good chance he will be at Charlton and he will be a good addition if we can secure him for nothing," Pardew said.
Fulham stayed in 12th place.
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