Post-Match Thread and Ratings Southend United 0-1 Bradford City

SOUTHEND United sunk to their fourth defeat in succession this afternoon, losing 1-0 to Bradford City at Roots Hall.

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Bradford were like Burton, lose the ball, throw yourself down screaming and the ref gives the free kick, even when he didn't see the incident. Was all about the ref today, poor poor poor.

Saying that, we were poor too. Nothing of note until Hunt came on. Can see us struggling next season unless there are changes

Tough game against good (although embarrassing) opposition who will be up there in the play-offs. Some players looked off on holiday and most were far from their best but it was certainly an improvement on last week. I thought that we improved massively after the Hunt for Mooney sub and he brought so much into the game. Massive well done to Ted Smith and Jack Bridge who both did very well. Kamara on the right seemed a strange decision but he played fairly well.

Smith 7 Did well and made a couple of decent stops, not convinced he's ready yet but that'll only come with experience and a good pre-season would help him.
White 6.5 Targeted by them at times and seemed slow to react, but equally made one or two good challenges.
Makarczyk 4.5 Woeful, like Bolger when he first started, erratic, poor positioning, poor passing. Decent headers but positioning often caught him out
Barrett 6.5 Caught out by the lack of pace once or twice but fought hard and made some good blocks.
Coker 6 Not his usual best, pinned back by them and looked ragged at times in defence.
Kamara 7 Drifted in and out of the game, you could see glimpses of quality
Atkinson 6.5 Will Atkinson performance, quietly efficient without being noticeable.
Leonard 7 Challenged and tried to push the side forward.
McLaughlin 6 Woeful, stupid yellow, but then improved when Hunt came on, some shocking crosses
Mooney 3 Waste of space, his dives earned 2 yellows for them and that was the extent of his contribution.
Barnett 7 Tried hard but often isolated, did very well in the chance where he hit the bar.

Subs
Hunt 7.5 Came on, revitalised, motivated, great movement and won his battles
Bridge 7 Often left with no options but looked to run with the ball and beat his man
Loza 6.5 No real impact

Ref was poor in my opinion, fell for the Phil Parkinson tricks too often and inconsistent. Ah well, on to next week and next season. The biggest thing to take from today was Bentley, Payne and Worrall all not involved and what that means for their futures. Biggest positives were Smith and Bridge, and Hunt's performance when he came on.

It's getting to the point where I'm forgetting to look up the league one scores on Saturday afternoons.

Thought we played slightly better than of late and actually thought certainly second half we were the better side. Gifted them their goal and were unlucky to at least not equalise. Again the side looked a bit disjointed, and again a number of changes. Thought it would have been good to have had both Bentley and Payne back in the side, if it's farewell to both then today would have been a way to show our thanks. A huge change in personnel needed to compete higher up the division next season. Still have doubts whether PB will be here or not. CB and upfront defo the priority areas.

Where to start? I wasn’t expecting a huge amount today but the first half kicked off with the Blues playing better than I thought they would. They were not totally up to the pace of Bradford but that was not surprising given Bradford’s league position and ambition. Cometh the 12[SUP]th[/SUP] minute cometh a goal and not for us, a neat build up by Bradford and a pretty clinical finish saw them take the lead. After that, and for the rest of the first half their finishing was rubbish and ours was no better. Good points in the first 45, Barnett was back to his ‘try for everything’ form, Kamara showed some nice touches and Lenny was protecting the back line, driving everyone forward and generally having a good game.

Second half started and it was obvious that PB had decided that we would benefit from getting in their faces a bit more and generally attacking more. This style continued for the whole of the second half, and finishing aside, we probably deserved a point. When Barnett lashed against the bar I was out of my seat giving it large only to be disappointed when it came back out again. I thought Phil got his subs right this week and it was good to see Hunt, Bridge and Loza upping the attacking ante. Noel Hunt has been sadly missed and his class is there for all to see. He is also a nasty little bugger when those player tangles happened in his vicinity.

Bits worth mentioning – Mooney is not worth mentioning; Phil Parkinson is a wind-up merchant on a par with PB; Lenny was our best player by a country mile; the Bradford supporters were magnificent; the Bluebelles got soaked during their routine as well as the pitch getting done. Special mention to the East Stand – this was the first time we’ve sat there this season and it was dire, loads of moaning for no good reason, total silence at times and very uncomfortable wooden seats and a sodding great pillar blocking our view of the South Bank goal. Back to the West for us in future.

ps - forgot to mention Macarczyk. He did well after a shaky start.

Can't agree with the scores given by Manor 15 thought Macarczyk had a good debut and would give him a 7 lots of intelligent play from him and he covered well. Atkinson would get a 5 from me why won't he pass forward it was one of his terrible backwards passes that led to the Bradford goal. Stand out player for me was Leonard who deserved an 8 back to his impressive best and if his shot had gone in would have been a 9. All the others 6 apart from Mooney who I'm afraid is a 5

Timlin1 said:

Can't agree with the scores given by Manor 15 thought Macarczyk had a good debut and would give him a 7 lots of intelligent play from him and he covered well. Atkinson would get a 5 from me why won't he pass forward it was one of his terrible backwards passes that led to the Bradford goal. Stand out player for me was Leonard who deserved an 8 back to his impressive best and if his shot had gone in would have been a 9. All the others 6 apart from Mooney who I'm afraid is a 5

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Completely agree with the comment on Macarczyk. Thought he had a very sound debut. I came home hoping Phil had finally given him a start becasue he might be available for next season.

40yearsafan said:

Completely agree with the comment on Macarczyk. Thought he had a very sound debut. I came home hoping Phil had finally given him a start becasue he might be available for next season.

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I was told at the start, that the loan players played today as they are all available come the end of the season. Apart from a few wayward passes early doors, unfortunately one that led to their goal, I thought he grew into the game and looked pretty decent

I thought Macarczyk had a reasonable debut and is worth a 7.
Atkinson gets a 2 for his back passes, 2 for sideways passes so he's only worth a 4. Once he discovers how to pass forward he can have another 2!!
Apart from that I agree with Manor15 ratings.

shrimperjon said:

I was told at the start, that the loan players played today as they are all available come the end of the season. Apart from a few wayward passes early doors, unfortunately one that led to their goal, I thought he grew into the game and looked pretty decent

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I did have a fleeting thought towards the end of the game that a Macarczyk/Bolger partnership might be worth seeing.

shrimperjon said:

I was told at the start, that the loan players played today as they are all available come the end of the season. Apart from a few wayward passes early doors, unfortunately one that led to their goal, I thought he grew into the game and looked pretty decent

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Tbh I wouldn't want any of them (accept Barnett) as they do not have what it takes for us to progress next season on today's showing.

Also disagree with Sam's ratings for Macarczyk, thought he had a solid game and allowed Barrett a little more freedom as he seemed more confident in him.

Felt we were unlucky and didn't deserve to lose on balance. It was a fairly even match and probably, for a neutral, quite entertaining, there were certainly some acting performances on offer to entertain! I hate play acting and diving and Bradford were exactly like Burton have been in the past....and the officials - the ref in particular - fell for it every time. Even gave a foul when one of their players threw himself on the floor with a thud behind him, even though he couldn't have seen a thing as he wasn't looking! Hate it when refs are so gullible.

Smith - 7, thought Ted did really well, and with that big Bradford contingent behind him too. With some real work on his build over the Summer I think he's every bit ready to step up and be Southend's number 1 next season
White - 6.5, thought John did ok today, especially considering he had Kyel Reid to deal with for most of the game
Macarczyk - 6.5, would be happy with him signing on his performance today. Actually felt he looked a lot more assured than Thompson
Barrett - 7, good old Mr Dependable, some great challenges in the box
Coker - 6.5, looked better than of late
Kamara - 6, did alright, nothing flashy - apart from the odd boots!
Leonard - 8, MOTM, ran the show in the middle, nearly scored with a well planned free kick move
Atkinson - 6.5, not as bad as some thought, some great tracking back
McLaughlin - 7, want to see more of those surges forward and decent crosses
Mooney - 6, again, not as bad as some thought. He did chase and harry and was getting unbelievably mauled by their defenders
Barnett - 6, great with his head but his touch was well off today

Subs:
Hunt - 7.5, Nolly was back to showing us his best today, made a total nuisance of himself and got right in their faces and they didn't like it one bit
Bridge - 7, showed glimpses of what he can do, think he's definitely one to play more next season
Loza - 6.5, even he looked as if he had more about him today!

My highlight of the day was David Mooney's little girl on the walkabout - she absolutely stole the show, bless her!! :smile:

Again I went full of hope and optimism. Fool !

Smith 6 Good Punch in first half and apart from goal only real save was near the end.
He's young and experience is good for him
White 5 Sorry but his distribution is terrible and he waits too long before releasing the ball allowing him to be closed down.
Makarczyk 5 Awful distribution long hopeful balls to no one. saved by good game in the air
Barrett 6.5 Tried hard but legs are going. Did try his best to score though.
Coker 6 League One a step too far I am afraid.
Kamara 6 Barely noticeable
Atkinson 6 Lots of energy. I am a great fan of his but backwards passing kills momentum.
Leonard 7 Has taken over Prosser's role of getting hurt. Great energy
McLaughlin 5 Was he playing ?
Mooney 1 Gets a point for that effort that made seagulls duck in the first half.
Barnett 7 One of his can be bothered game. Unlucky not to score.

Subs
Hunt 8 We looked a different team with him on the pitch.
Bridge 6 No chance to shine to be honest
Loza 4 Didn't touch the ball much when he came on

We are ponderous in our build up with the ball often being passed back for someone else to pass it sideways. When we beat someone we then pass it back to get the cross in thus allowing the opposition to get organised.

For the love of god do Mooney and Barnett not speak to each other ? If playing two strikers is it not common sense for only one of them to try to win the ball. I lost count of the times they both jumped for the same ball. So no surprise that no one was ever there for the flick on or knock down.

Hunts movement showed his class its just a shame we have been without him so much

Special mention for my pre match Burger. They remembered the onions and was almost tasty.

One of the Bluebells is leaving I hear. This may not be universally liked but is it not time they all called it a day.

Oh, and of those in the Play Offs, I think Bradford were the least impressive so it will be interesting to see how things pan out.

Smith 6 - Did fairly well, he was rarely threatened but his handling looked decent and made a smart stop towards the end.

White 6 - Nothing special but I thought he did reasonably well. Shame the idiots behind me in the east black thought it was ok to abuse him from the first minute. Pathetic from so called 'supporters' to pick on him right from the start :sad:.
Barrett 7 - Pick of the defence, passionate as always.
Makarczyk 6 - Started hesitantly and gave the ball away needlessly in the build up for Bradford's goal. Improved as the game went on and looks a better partner for Barrett than Thompson due to his aerial presence. Having said that could Bolger do a better job? In my opinion yes.
Coker 6 - Did Ok, still well short of his best, especially attack wise.

Kamara 6 - Strange decision to play him out wide, but actually he was quite good and showed some very nice touches at times.
Leonard 7 - Best performance since his return from injury, very good defensively and unlucky not to score late on.
Atkinson 5 - Can never fault him for work rate but his impact was minimal, one player who perhaps should move on before next season.
Mclaughlin 5 - Terrible for most of the first half, did improve after the break, needs to offer more if he wants to be a regular starter next season.

Mooney 5 - Not his worst performance but rarely made an impact other than winning a couple of canny 'Anthony Grant' style free kicks in the second half.
Barnett 7 MOM - Best performance for ages, he looked like the desire was back, won nearly everything in the air and was unlucky not to score.

Subs
Hunt 6 - Looked fully fit which is good to see, I'd like to see him start alongside Barnett next week.
Bridge 6 - Shame he was stuck out wide but didn't look overawed and showed some nice touches. We should give him a run pre-season, he looks a real prospect.
Loza 5 - Can only remember him touching the ball once, from a short corner and his cross was poor.

Overall I thought as a team the desire looked back, maybe Brown's announcement in the week did have an impact, hopefully we can pick up at least a point next week, to finish with 60 points would represent a decent return IMO.

Positives from today for me were that we have two new youngsters for the first team for next season. Ted Smith should be good enough to start as No 1 and Bridge looks a good prospect. I really hope they start next season and are allowed time in the team. If they are they could well be our best two players by the end of next season. Message to PB - get them signed up long term now please otherwise we will be in the same situation we had with Bentley & Payne.

The other positive was Macarczyk who after a shaky start was very good. It showed how much we need at least one tall CB to dominate in our box which we haven't had since Bolger left. Like Rootshallbloke I would love to see these two be our first team CBs next season with Barrett as cover - I can only dream, but hopefully we will sign Macarczyk if he is available.

rayleigh dan said:

Smith 6 - Did fairly well, he was rarely threatened but his handling looked decent and made a smart stop towards the end.

White 6 - Nothing special but I thought he did reasonably well. Shame the idiots behind me in the east black thought it was ok to abuse him from the first minute. Pathetic from so called 'supporters' to pick on him right from the start :sad:.
Barrett 7 - Pick of the defence, passionate as always.
Makarczyk 6 - Started hesitantly and gave the ball away needlessly in the build up for Bradford's goal. Improved as the game went on and looks a better partner for Barrett than Thompson due to his aerial presence. Having said that could Bolger do a better job? In my opinion yes.
Coker 6 - Did Ok, still well short of his best, especially attack wise.

Kamara 6 - Strange decision to play him out wide, but actually he was quite good and showed some very nice touches at times.
Leonard 7 - Best performance since his return from injury, very good defensively and unlucky not to score late on.
Atkinson 5 - Can never fault him for work rate but his impact was minimal, one player who perhaps should move on before next season.
Mclaughlin 5 - Terrible for most of the first half, did improve after the break, needs to offer more if he wants to be a regular starter next season.

Mooney 5 - Not his worst performance but rarely made an impact other than winning a couple of canny 'Anthony Grant' style free kicks in the second half.
Barnett 7 MOM - Best performance for ages, he looked like the desire was back, won nearly everything in the air and was unlucky not to score.

Subs
Hunt 6 - Looked fully fit which is good to see, I'd like to see him start alongside Barnett next week.
Bridge 6 - Shame he was stuck out wide but didn't look overawed and showed some nice touches. We should give him a run pre-season, he looks a real prospect.
Loza 5 - Can only remember him touching the ball once, from a short corner and his cross was poor.

Overall I thought as a team the desire looked back, maybe Brown's announcement in the week did have an impact, hopefully we can pick up at least a point next week, to finish with 60 points would represent a decent return IMO.

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Pretty much agree with all of that. We must have been watching the same game !

Who is the Bradford assistant manager? He was the biggest ****ing baby I've ever seen. In the 4th officials ear, in his face after every single decision. Embarrassing. Where's the respect? The timewasting as well was physically painful to watch. I'm done with this season now, bring on the summer.

wakes123 said:

Who is the Bradford assistant manager? He was the biggest ****ing baby I've ever seen. In the 4th officials ear, in his face after every single decision. Embarrassing. Where's the respect? The timewasting as well was physically painful to watch. I'm done with this season now, bring on the summer.

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I find the "4th official" and "technical areas" to be an odd idea and always have done.

I can understand that there is a substitute official to cover for injuries (or the unexpected) and whilst they are there why not get them to help manage substitutions and the like ........... and they get to see how decisions on the pitch can be interpreted by club managers and fans as well ......... but then the 4th official seems to be the target of abuse and unpleasantness from managers (and their assistants) who cannot cope with the "stress" of the job and should really be setting an example in good behaviour and not bad. I don't remember Webby getting all arsey with people and that is the way it should be.

As for the technical area - you could call it the "children's play area" the way that some managers act. Action to improve poor managerial behaviour (by the minority) is required - we have seen significant progress in areas such as getting the wall back 10 yards and players kicking the ball away so it can be done. Simply get the culprit sent to the stands and then back it up with further bans if the behaviour continues. :thumbsup: