Jack Moylan Shines in Cardiff's First Championship Win

Jack Moylan announced himself to the Cardiff faithful in emphatic style, striking twice and creating another as Brian Barry-Murphy’s side finally claimed their first Championship win of the season with a 3-1 victory over Charlton.

The Republic of Ireland forward, a summer arrival from Lincoln after earlier stints with Shelbourne and Bohemians, ripped into the game from the off. Eight minutes in, he broke the deadlock, settling early nerves in a stadium that had been waiting a long time to celebrate three points.

Cardiff, promoted from League One but winless in their opening seven league fixtures, suddenly played with the freedom of a side unburdened. Moylan stayed at the heart of it. On 24 minutes he turned provider, slipping in Yousef Salech, who made no mistake to double the lead and send a restless home crowd into full voice.

Charlton did not fold. Tyreece Campbell dragged them back into the contest after the break, trimming the deficit and asking a familiar question of Cardiff: could they hold their nerve?

Barry-Murphy’s players did more than that. The response was immediate and ruthless.

Barely after Charlton’s goal had shifted the mood, Moylan stepped up again. Picking up the ball on the edge of the area just after the hour, he unleashed a stunning strike that flew in and effectively killed the contest. Any lingering tension evaporated. Cardiff were not just hanging on; they were dictating, carving out further chances and finishing the game looking every inch deserving winners.

For Barry-Murphy, it felt like vindication of performances that, in his view, had not always been rewarded.

“It was a very important game for us,” he said. “We felt as if we’d been playing reasonably well and we have to do it again. We knew today’s game was going to be tough, but we played a great game, created really good chances and we took enough of them to win.

“We obviously had a real awareness of what Charlton do and how effective they can be, but we got into the spaces we needed to and created good chances. I was particularly pleased with the response to conceding the goal because that was obviously a test for us.

“We bounced back pretty much straight away and kept creating good chances. In the second half, I felt as if we ran out deserving winners.

“You don’t always get what you feel you deserve. We were clear with the players that there were certain games where we weren’t at our best, but we had full belief that if we kept playing the way we were playing and managed to score the goals we felt we would, we could win the game.”

At the centre of that belief now stands Moylan. Cardiff signed him to lift the level of the squad; on this evidence, he brings something entirely different.

“We felt as if we were bringing a player who would improve the squad when we bought Jack Moylan. He has qualities we probably didn’t have before,” Barry-Murphy said.

“He’s a very dangerous player in the situations you saw him in today. The big appeal for us was because of where he’s come from, he has a lot of improvement in him. The way he’s working means he will improve a lot and become a great player for the club.”

Cardiff have their first win. In Moylan, they may have found the man to turn survival talk into something far more ambitious.