November is traditionally the month that heralds winter. The dark nights have arrived, cold, foggy days creep in, Guy Fawkes night is celebrated and Football League clubs enter the opening rounds of the FA Cup.

By the end of it, the Addicks will have a reasonable idea of what kind of season they can expect in the Championship.

They have an advantage over many of their rivals as they have an extra game to play – the rearranged Doncaster game that was abandoned in August.

The first game is at St Andrews on Saturday. Birmingham were eliminated from the Capital One Cup by Stoke on Tuesday. The Blues recovered from a 1-3 deficit to take the game into extra-time. Again, they came from behind to draw 4-4 but eventually lost 4-2 on penalties.

Both physical and mental fatigue may be a factor on Saturday. Birmingham’s performance on Tuesday was even more meritorious, given that they recovered from that 1-3 score line with ten men, Wade Elliott -often Charlton’s nemesis in the past – was sent off for violent conduct and will miss the game on Saturday.

It’s an ill wind as they say and Charlton need to take advantage of Birmingham’s misfortunes.

A week later, Leeds will visit The Valley and Chris Powell will be desperate for his side to notch only their second home win of the campaign.

There are no scheduled matches for 16 November as the day is sandwiched between World Cup play-off matches.

The Addicks have a tough test the following Saturday, when they visit high flying Queens Park Rangers. Though the Hoops are in good form, they have not been a high scoring team and Powell will be hopeful of getting something from the game.

Three days later, Doncaster visit The Valley for that rearranged game. Charlton will want to take advantage of having another opportunity to beat Rovers. They were trailing 1-3 when the original game was abandoned.

The last day of the month will see the Addicks entertain Ipswich. Mick McCarthy has steadied the Tractor Boys since taking over at Portman Road but his future is uncertain. McCarthy is rumoured to be a front runner to become Irish manager for the second time.

Whether the rumours unsettle Ipswich remains to be seen, but Charlton will view the November fixtures as an ideal opportunity to move up a gear and pull clear of the lower reaches of the Championship.