Post-Match Thread and Ratings Southend United 1-2 Torquay United

[Cricko]

A very disappointing afternoon when it seemed we didnt get going until the second half. Credit to Torquay who harassed every ball, took the midfield first half and defended everything we threw at them in the second half. Once again our shooting and finishing left a lot to be desired and needs to improve drastically. I think they only had 2 or 3 shots and scored from 2 of them, we had about 5000 and missed most of them.

Over to you.

 

[Strykr]

Well we are where we are sadly. A mid table non league side.

Hopefully things will gel a bit more and we find a way of breaking down teams like this and flirt with the playoffs.

 

[LennySUFC]

Sides who are serious about pushing for promotion:

Dagenham 0-5 Notts County
Dorking 0-5 Wrexham
Solihull 5-1 Altrincham

Meanwhile we lost 2-1 to that mob. Really highlights just how far short we are right now.

There’s a long way to go and a lot of important players to return from injury, but it’s eye opening for those who think we will walk top 7 this season.

 

[blueblueblue]

We're about as good as we were last season, no real progress really.......

 

[Strykr]

Sides who are serious about pushing for promotion:

Dagenham 0-5 Notts County
Dorking 0-5 Wrexham
Solihull 5-1 Altrincham

Meanwhile we lost 2-1 to that mob. Really highlights just how far short we are right now.

There’s a long way to go and a lot of important players to return from injury, but it’s eye opening for those who think we will walk top 7 this season.

Precisely. There are many teams in this league that are better then us right now, thats just reality.

Need to get our injured players back to really see where we are at, but we are dropping a lot of points

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

The good news is....chances created, the bad news is.... all in for shooting practice on Monday. The times they shot over or wide is unforgivable.

 

[Jim Levenstein]

Credit to Torquay they defended like their lives depended on it. Threw themselves in front of everything

 

[Andyhsufc]

So first time seen them this season. We play some nice football but we are clearly lacking a focal point. We really need to get Cardwell, Murphy and Hyde fit (or at least two of them). I didn't think that Torquay were all that and other than the two goals (one having an awful deflection) they didn't really trouble us. If we can get a striker fit then I would hazard a guess that we will finish above them.

 

[kentblues]

Third worst goals scored in the league. Yet if you look at shots, balls in the box, corners I suspect we are at the other end of the table. This suggests our finishing/conversion rates are shocking.

Powell and Mooney will chip with a share of goals, they will be inconsistent, but if there is a striker or two doing their job it’s a great combination. Unfortunately Hyde, Murphy and Cardwell are injured…

Wreh is probably the most natural finisher we have fit..Cosgrave works hard but why develop someone else’s loanee with a very average goal record ahead of our own player who knows at least where the onion bag is..

So many good things happening it is maddening for this continuing failing to visit us it seems season to season.

Hopefully next week we start with Wreh and at least Hyde is back.

 

[Evening Echo]

SOUTHEND United slumped to a frustrating 2-1 defeat against Torquay United at Roots Hall this afternoon.

Read more on this story


Help with Echo links

 

[thenobster]

Funny old game, last week, promotion candidates, yesterday.. the new messiah returned.. today.. mid table non league team who haven’t improved much since last season (quotes from other posts)

 

[Medway Blue]

Can't bring myself to do a full report with ratings, but that was ****ing infuriating.

Possibly the worst and most anti-football team I've ever seen come to Roots Hall. Time wasting, kicking the ball away and rolling on the floor from the 10th minute. I get it, it happens at this level, although I would be embarrassed as a fan if my team ever did it to that extent........but we need stronger officials to deal with it (absolute ****ing incompetent wet wipe in charge again today, letting them get away with it) and we need to be stronger and front it up more too, because it's a fact of life that is never going to change in this division.

That isn't why we lost though. As eye-catching and dangerous as I thought our approach play was once again, we are simply not clinical enough in front of goal. It's not even a problem with breaking them down, I feel like we did break them down. We had more than enough chances to bury it today, and yeah we can say "it's one of those days, the ball just wouldn't go in" all we like, but it's not a luck thing. It's a huge lack of quality in the finishing department. If we can't/won't get some proper quality in up top then we can't gift away teams like that sloppy goals, especially that early in the game because you know exactly what they are going to do. Until that changes, we are mid-table at best and will continue to drop silly points at home against the utter guff that this division has to offer like that lot today.

Suggestions that we're no better than last season are harsh. We are a much better team and pose much more of a threat than we did last season. Way more chances being created. Just nobody clinical enough to finish them off consistently and it's that which puts us way off the pace of the likes of Wrexham and Notts Co.....they are putting 5 past guff, and we're losing 2-1 at home to it.

Can't help but feel like we should have bitten the bullet and paid for Alfie Rutherford's insurance premium. He was the National League South equivalent of Matty Longstaff last season and, like Longstaff, he's a natural and instinctive finisher. Put Rutherford in this Southend team and he'd be banging them in like Langstaff is for Notts Co.

 

[kentblues]

Precisely. There are many teams in this league that are better then us right now, thats just reality.

Did they create a lot more chances, have more corners, more crosses, have more possession? I suspect that will tell the main story…

 

[yogi bear up the cagire]

Sides who are serious about pushing for promotion:

Dagenham 0-5 Notts County
Dorking 0-5 Wrexham
Solihull 5-1 Altrincham

Meanwhile we lost 2-1 to that mob. Really highlights just how far short we are right now.

There’s a long way to go and a lot of important players to return from injury, but it’s eye opening for those who think we will walk top 7 this season.

That's exactly what I was thinking. Totally frustrating but there are afternoons like that and it's still very early doors in the season. The more worrying thing is that the teams you named above (and you could add Solihull Moors) are starting to brush sides like Torquay away with consummate ease

 

[kentblues]

Can't bring myself to do a full report with ratings, but that was ****ing infuriating.

Possibly the worst and most anti-football team I've ever seen come to Roots Hall. Time wasting, kicking the ball away and rolling on the floor from the 10th minute. I get it, it happens at this level, although I would be embarrassed as a fan if my team ever did it to that extent........but we need stronger officials to deal with it (absolute ****ing incompetent wet wipe in charge again today, letting them get away with it), and we need to be stronger and front it up more too.

That being said, as much as I liked a lot of our approach play once again, we are simply not clinical enough in the final third. It's not even a problem with breaking them down, I feel like we did break them down. We had more than enough chances to bury it today, and yeah we can say "it's one of those days, the ball just wouldn't go in" all we like, but it's not a luck thing. It's a huge lack of quality in the finishing department. Until we get some proper quality in/back from injury up top, we are mid-table at best and will continue to drop silly points at home against the utter guff that this division has to offer like that lot today. Didn't help ourselves defensively mind, 2 sloppy goals to concede and you can't gift away teams like that a 1-0 lead that early because you know exactly what they are going to do.

Can't help but feel like we should have bitten the bullet and paid for Alfie Rutherford's insurance premium. He was the National League South equivalent of Matty Longstaff last season and, like Longstaff, he's a natural and instinctive finisher. Put Rutherford in this Southend team and he'd be banging them in like Langstaff is for Notts Co.

Apparently it was the same ref as BW? Deja vu therefore..

 

[Mr. Benedict]

It's all well and good complaining about 'anti-football' and yes it's frustrating to watch but not many teams are going to just let us pass the ball around them until we score. We need to learn to deal with these teams and start getting points from them or we're not going to rise much higher in the league than mid table. Today was a frustrating watch, we are suffering without a decent striker in the middle. On the plus side at least we are actually creating chances to miss.

 

[GNH]

As has been said above already, that is what happens when you are a team full of non league players, the final ball/shot will be woeful most of the time.

Sad reality check, which is a shame because we played some really good football, especially in the second half.

Special mention to the Torquay 'keeper who started his time wasting antics in the 7th minute of the game, prick.

 

[kentblues]

As has been said above already, that is what happens when you are a team full of non league players, the final ball/shot will be woeful most of the time.

Sad reality check, which is a shame because we played some really good football, especially in the second half.

Special mention to the Tprquay 'keeper who started his time wasting antics in the 7th minute of the game, prick.

The keeper did it because the “official” allowed him to. He played the ref.

 

[GNH]

Also worth pointing out that Cosgrave doesn't seem any better than Wreh, much the opposite, so I have no idea why he starts.

I also wonder how many of Maher's cats Bridge has run over because how he is not starting is a mystery

 

[blueblueblue]

I'm surprised no one has asked the question why Lopata didn't start!!!! He's head and shoulders above what we've got, had a pre season with one of the top 25 clubs in England, yet he didn't start. Why not!!!!!