Post-Match Thread and Ratings Southend United vs Northampton Town

Please post your match rating and reports here.

Dont do ratings as hard to measure every player personally, my stand out opinions though:

Thought Freddy looked good, worked hard and took his goal well and wow did he enjoy it, the whoop of joy when he celebrated was brilliant and great to see his team mates all embrace it. Still early days but think Eastwood is really starting to show he can play a big part for us.

Corr did well in the build up play etc, should have done better for one the chances he had but contributes so much in the general play Id hate to have him out for those 3 games.

Bentley did well with what he had to do, not overly challenged but everytime he is called upon he does what is needed, won a few good punches and good penalty save to keep us level.

I have to say I dont get the Straker love in, I do think he has improved but his final ball is absolutely terrible. Hurst instead please. However that said he did score and there was one point he came back to get the ball from Bentley so certainly looks more confident. Still dont see him as our best option there though.

Disappointing to lose Laird and assume he will be out, he really is the engine in the middle. Was impressed with Clifford and think he is going to be decent player for us.

Penalty - Yes
Resultant save - Brilliant
Sending off - Inevitable
Yellow cards - Mainly right - even Whitey - luckily the ball was in the way.
Performance - Good - but it was against 10 men
MOM - Bentley - priceless save - well done to all.
Opposition - For the first 10 mins they looked like they might give us some problems but post red card once we settled only one team was gonna win. - Great display from Matt Duke - someone get him out of this league .
Overall - Pleased - well done to Messrs Brown, Penney & Coughlan.

Bentley 10.....what more could he do, dominated his area, saved a penalty, faultless.
White 8 not sure how much he was at fault in giving away the pen but definitely got better as game went on.
Thompson 8 very sound debut, mature and composed.
Prosser 7 played well but still hits too many "give away" balls forward and too many back passes.
Coker 8 best left back we have had for years, booked.
Straker 7 scored, fortuitously but had got in right position, crossing is improving, tired in last 15 minutes.
Laird 7 worked hard,box to box, injury could be a few weeks out if twisted knee is bad.
Leonard 7 got bettter and showed great fitness and wanted to get forward.
Atkinson 7 v good 2nd half, works right side well.
Corr 8, another game and he would have had a hat trick, tireless & good hold up play.
Fred 8, well taken goal, really up for game, getting sharper with every game.

Subs Clifford(for Laird) 8 very composed and creative
Reid (for Fred) 6 I wish he chased more and when closing down faced the ball instead of bottling it.
Payne (for Leonard) 8 only a few minutes but showed Reid how to show passion and desire.

Ref; 7 or 8/10, got most decisions right including pen and yellow cards, my only criticism was he showed first yellow very early on AND then was consistent.

Ben Clarkson 6, slow to get onto pitch for Laird

Kitman 3, no shirt for Timlin which stopped him coming on which was why Payne made league debut.

Crowd 8, good noise and positive all through game.

Outstanding effort from the players today in a game we might easily have lost in previous seasons. Make no mistake, Northampton Town will be there or thereabouts at the end of this season. They're hard working, they're direct and they're nasty as Boothroyd has instilled in them a fierce will to win.

We matched them in their work-rate though and kept our heads while they went it too hard time and time again - as above, they're a nasty outfit and it was absolutely no surprise to me that they ended up with 10 men. They'll be effective, but I'm glad we get to watch our team and approach this season and not theirs. Horrible. Good riddance from the Hall.

Ratings as follows:

Bentley - 9 - Penalty save, dominance of his area under a barrage of long throws, and a clean sheet
White - 9 - Solid and reliable - saved a certain goal with a clearance off the line
Thompson - 8 - Calm and composed, reads the game very well. Great future in the game.
Prosser - 7 - Usual Prosser, solid at times but often wasteful in the distribution
Coker - 8 - Dependable, responsible in part for the improvement in Straker
Atkinson - 8 - Looked excellent on the counter-attack and fed the ball out well
Leonard - 8 - Growing in confidence and class. Neat distribution and should stay in the team on merit.
Laird - 6.5 - Does what he always does but gave the ball away on occasion today in dangerous areas. Injury looked quite serious. Why on earth did we not get a stretcher round there?
Straker - 7 - Not his absolute best, nor his absolute worst but a hotch-potch of both. Sublime to ridiculous on occasion with some excellent then appalling final balls. Upgraded to a 7 for getting on the scoresheet.
Eastwood - 9 - MOM - Oozing class and occasionally looking like the arrogant genius he used to be
Corr - 6.5 - Put himself about as always against tough opposition and led the line well. Mark would have been higher, however, he's there to score goals and missed a couple today he should have expected to score.

Clifford (sub) - Added further drive and energy to the midfield when replacing Laird, even if it was due in part to a tiring 10 men who had kept us under pressure for long periods. Can't wait to see more from him.

Payne - Looks like a cracking prospect for the future.

Brown - 9 - Boothroyd knows his players and his players know what he wants from them. A solid performance then from Southend against a strong side who arrived with an effective game plan. There's something about this Phil character you know. You have to take the luck that comes from a penalty save but we could easily have had 4 or 5 today. He's certainly got us firing on all cylinders at the moment.

As for the penalty, it amazes me just how differently some people see the game. That was as nailed on a penalty as I've ever seen us concede at Roots Hall. Completely missed the ball. Completely took the man.

South Bank Hank said:

As for the penalty, it amazes me just how differently some people see the game. That was as nailed on a penalty as I've ever seen us concede at Roots Hall. Completely missed the ball. Completely took the man.

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Hard to be certain from where I was in the West Family, but as soon as it happened I did think it was a penalty.

Doesnt matter though as we dont concede goals so it was never going to go in.

What can I say, brilliant. WE ARE GOING UP !!

Bentley...8.5 Game changing penalty save. Good hands. Looks confident
White..8 Solid and dependable. Great goaline clearance
Thompson...7 Looked tidy and settled in well
Prosser...7 Another good game. No thrills, just did his job
Coker...7 Reads the game well. Attacks and links well with Strakes.
Atkinson...7.5 Worked sooo hard. I like this guy
Leonard...8 Bossed the midfield, again. Kept things simple.
Laird...7 Gave the ball away a few times, but can never fault his workrate. Hope the injury isn't too bad
Straker...7 Nice goal. Not his best game, but he is a real threat down the left. Confidence is showing
Eastwood...8.5 My MOTM. It's about scoring goals, and he isn't scared to have a shot. Created the first, finished the second
Corr...8 Won countless headers. 8 for keeping out of trouble when the tackles were flying in
Subs
Clifford....8 McCormack is back !! Ferocious little fella. Could be important player for us, especially away from home
Reid..6.5 Jury is still out
Payne..7 Not on long, but glad he's in the 1st team squad. A huge prospect

Credit has to be given to Phil Brown! Eastwood seems far fitter than last season, Straker has improved beyond recognition and there has been far more commitment from the team than anything I saw last season and also passing football.

Most of the new signings look quality i am particuarly impressed with Atkinson, White, Coker and Clifford. Thompson was in my opinion MOM today.

An absolute quality performance from the Blues the only thing missing was a little more pace up front and a stretcher for Laird. I thought White was superb today as was Freddy. Has PB found a magic formula?

I can't remember coming away from the match on such a high. Tried not to get too carried away after the Plymouth opener but now I've seen them again I'm quietly confident this will be our year.
Bentley: Don't know how long we have his contract for but for goodness sake get the guy on five years at least, cos he is going to be in big demand very soon!
Many more games like this and we must start puting more bums on seats soooon! 5,500 the only disappointment of a cracking afternoons entertainment.

Agree I was in the South Upper infront of it and both me and my mate said Pen but the people next to us were argueing it I cant beleive how Biased people can be for there own team it was so blatent a pen it was untrue!

Bentley 9: Top class save for the Pen and was commanding through out.

White 8: top class pass for the second goal and was committed and played well though out and a great goal line clearence.

Coker 8: Was up and downt he whole game and was joining in with attacks very well.

Thompson 8: Always gonna be a battle against the much taller Blyth and was solid and handled him well.

Prosser 7: Solid and didnt put a foot wrong.

Straker 7: Not his biggest fan but he gives it his all every game and like a few have said went from Sublime to ridiculous at times but got his goal.

Laird 6: Was wasteful at times but kept battling hard hope the injury is not as bad as it first looked.

Leonard 7: Solid through out and worked hard.

Atkinson 7: Was a little frustrating in the first half running down blind alleys but picked up in the second half and was involved in most that was good.

Eastwood 9 (MOM): Top class today and looks far aboce League Two level and fit again. Hope he keeps it up.

Corr 7: Should of had a hattrick tbh but battled well against some tough CB's and was being fouled pretty much every time he went for the ball.

Subs:
Clifford 7: I cant wait to see more of him the game seemed to go up a notch as soon as he came on. Links up and uses the ball well.

Reid 6: Not enough time to do anything TBH

Payne: No rating as only got 3/4 Minutes but even then he looked like a great prospect.

As far as I am concerned it was a blatent red for Hackett and a blatent pen for them and first 15 minutes they looked like they would case us problems. TBH if I was a Cobblers fan I would not be happy watching that team every week its all hoof ball towards Blyth and the players are more bothered with smashing the other team around than playing football! You can tell they are an Boothroyd team and why they are so good at home playing like that.

Eastwood just totally immense. Hope Dave Webbs brain is ready as this to me today showed why it was worth persisting with Freddy. Class on the ball, great touch. Fast feet and got his shots off. A goal and an assist.

Bentley just oozed confidence. Came for the ball when needed and punched well.

Leonard I take it all back. Faultless display from him.

Everyone else was good. Delighted with overall performance.

Did the Northampton defender just lash it at his own goal in the second half when we got a corner?

Last season that would probably been a bit of a bore draw, with 2 sides with similar styles cancelling each other out.

Today, football simply outclassed hoofball.

A very good all-round performance. I for one went "Oh NO!" when Brown was announced as manager. Now - pass me humble pie - and lots of it!

DTS said:

Did the Northampton defender just lash it at his own goal in the second half when we got a corner?

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No, for a corner. He had to do something - so he decided to panic!

RobM said:

No, for a corner. He had to do something - so he decided to panic!

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Looked like a great effort from where I was.

Well we should have got a few more goals in the end but that will do! playing against ten men can be hard in this division, in the last few years I think we have probably won more than lost with ten men ourselves.

I thought the ref was a bit picky but he got all the big decisions spot on. The first 20 minutes or so was just scrappy and physical which made a stop start game. Once down to ten men though Northampton may as well have gone home, we countered very well and made good use of the man advantage.

Bentley - 8.5 - If he didn't save the pen and Northampton had something to hold onto, then we might have drawn or even lost the game.

White - 8 - Best game so far for Whitey and is showing better class as he gets more settled into the side. Great pass for Freddys goal, one of the best assists I have seen for a while here, also cleared off the line when Northampton really tore us apart from a set piece.
Thompson - 7 - Did okay, against tough opposition gave as good as he got.
Prosser - 7 - Same as Thompson, glad he has cemented his place in the side, showed he can play well without Phillips alongside him.
Coker - 7.5 - Decent play, hard working and intelligent. Brings out the best in Straker.

Atkinson - 8.5 - My man of the match, top second half, cut in from the wing and scared Northampton on many occasions, good dribbling and intelligent passes.
Leonard - 8 - Getting better and better in midfield, good distribution and engine.
Laird - 7 - Always gives an option on the ball and a good work rate. We may miss him if injured but the back up is to a good standard.
Straker - 7.5 - Involved a lot, got his goal, worked well with Coker. A few very nice touches and passes, but then many poor crosses which cost him an 8.

Corr -7.5 - Could have had a hat-trick, up against big defenders meant he could never get much control on headers he won. Good link up play even so....Bit like Straker, involved a lot but no end product today.
Eastwood - 8.5 - Quality performance, took his goal well and looked dangerous, scared the opposition at times. It looks like the Freddy we know and love is on his way back.

Clifford - 7.5 - good contribution.
Reid - 7 - Looks like he wants a goal to settle him in, good link up play but I am not sure still how he will do!
Payne - 7 - one good jinxing run across the box, looks very promising from what I have seen.

ref - 8 - Frustrating at times but made all the big calls right. Good standard of refs so far this season.