CHARLTON manager Phil Parkinson declared that the season couldn’t end soon enough after his relegated side were defeated 1-0 at Derby on Saturday.

The Addicks saw their six-game unbeaten streak come to an end at Pride Park as Rob Hulse headed home the only goal of the game 20 minutes from time.

And with Charlton’s fate already sealed long before kick-off, Parky admitted while their first half efforts were strong, Derby’s desire to confirm their own survival proved to be the deciding factor.

He said: “In the first half today I thought we did alright and were the better team, but in the second half we took our foot off the pedal.

“I thought we got a bit sloppy on the ball and gave it away too cheaply.

“Obviously Derby had a reaction after their first half performance and that, coupled with us not playing as well in the second half, got Derby back in the game.

“Overall it’s our first defeat in seven games and the lads have been giving their all under difficult circumstances.

“And yes we are looking forward to the season being over on Sunday.”

The fact Derby were still mathematically able to be relegated before their victory over the Addicks after spending last season in the Premier League is a testament to how competitive the Championship can be.

And Parky compared the Rams’ struggles over the last two years to his own side’s plight, stating next season is the club’s opportunity to halt their downward momentum once and for all.

He explained: “Derby came down and had that losing mentality that is hard to shake off, but over the last few months we’ve done better and though we’ve drawn a lot of the games, we’ve been more resilient in our performances.

“It’s been tough and this club needs to get to the summer quickly and start rebuilding for what we hope will be a promotion winning campaign.

“We obviously want to keep as many of our good players that we want and add to it as we’ll need to add to it to have a chance of coming back up.

“If we do that and add some firepower, then we’ll have a decent side.

“Charlton’s a big club and players want to come and play for Charlton and I’m sure this time next year there’ll be a great chance of Charlton celebrating a promotion winning season.”