Charlton 2 West Ham United 0

ON THE day of Michael Owen’s broken metatarsal, the first Charlton player in seven seasons to reach double figures in Premier League goals before the turn of the year offered compelling evidence that he can step into Sven Goran Eriksson’s full England squad.

Good players know when their talent has made things happen and on New Year’s Eve Darren Bent was never in any doubt. At the final whistle he looked precisely like a man who had spent the afternoon carrying the Charlton attack on his shoulders.

He created the first goal for Shaun Bartlett and scored a sublime second in addition to offering a display of strength and pace, allied to a sureness of touch which does not always receive recognition.

When Bent joined Charlton from Ipswich in the summer, there were those who described the £2.5million fee as a snip. Even in football’s over-heated financial climate, Bent has already justified the outlay with four months of the season remaining.

So Bent for England? His manager, Alan Curbishley, is in no doubt.

“I believe Darren has a genuine chance of breaking into the England side,” he said. “Because there may be room in Sven’s side for something different.

“Sven’s got his ideas but someone who arrives in the squad at the end of a long season full of the enthusiasm that Darren shows for us must have a chance.

“I believe that Darren will be in Sven’s face for the rest of the season.”

Curbishley’s whole football life has been built on the belief that if you fight hard enough, anything is possible. Bent and the rest of the Charlton team are re-acquainting themselves with the work ethic that was the cornerstone of their early season success.

The one quality inherent in Charlton teams over the years is that no matter what the star-rating of the player, they roll up their sleeves.

There were times against West Ham, especially in the first half, when Charlton appeared a nervous wreck of a side against opponents striving to avert a fifth defeat in seven games.

Charlton looked every bit the part of a team that had lost four of their last five matches at The Valley as the Hammers lay siege to their goal. Only Jonathan Fortune’s tackle on Marlon Harewood stopped a certain goal before Hermann Hreidarsson cleared off the line to deny skipper Nigel Reo-Coker a 14th-minute strike.

The sustained pressure forced Charlton to battle, scrap and chase lost causes. It was never pretty but it was to prove effective in such a crucial game.

The break they diligently worked for arrived in the 21st minute when Bent escaped down the right flank and delivered a peach of a cross to the far post where Shaun Bartlett gleefully rammed the ball into the roof of the net for his first league goal of the season.

The enigmatic Dennis Rommedahl, returning to the starting line-up for the first time since mid-November, showed the rest had done him no harm as he produced probably his most vibrant performance of the season.

Two minutes after Bartlett’s goal, he forced West Ham goalkeeper Roy Carroll into an excellent full-length save. A minute later, West Ham centre-back James Collins blocked a shot from Bartlett and then Charlton goalkeeper Thomas Myhre did remarkably well to save from ex-Addick Shaun Newton.

In a pulsating London derby, Rommedahl was out of luck with a 50th-minute shot that hit a post before Matt Holland struck the rebound wide. With Charlton’s levels of confidence rising, Bent sealed victory with a classic finish in the 63rd minute.

Chris Powell delivered the perfect cross to Bent who soared above Paul Konchesky to head the goal his efforts richly deserved. Then Carroll prevented a third when he palmed away Hreidarsson’s header.

With Charlton in the ascendancy, the goalkeeper did well to save from Bryan Hughes, then substitute Kevin Lisbie was inches away from celebrating a first goal of the season with an 85th- minute shot on the turn.