Half-way

[Shrimper]

So, we're now past the half-way mark and i was wondering what people felt about the season so far.

If i'm honest it's be disastrous, we've won once in 11 games, simply nto good enough for a supposed promotion chasing side. We're miles behind Scunthorpe, MK Dons and Leicester. We just don't have the quality and the lack of any player rumours this month is really beginning to worry me now. It reinds me of our predicament in the summer where we had 11 players ahead of our opening league encounter with Leyton Borient. I went on holiday and we came back to see 4 new faces. Furlong , Betsy , Grant and Sankofa if i can remember well.

Whilst we have brought in loanees we've not going to have a chance in getting any of them permantley . Do we really have a chance of getting a £1million rated winger? a £1million rated goalkeeper? a £200,000 rated left back? But the thing is we need these players. Surely there must be cheaper alternatives? Anyone think of any players that would come, i can't. But what i don't get is why we don't look at the released players and give them trials in the reserves.

I hope that we can pick up results up and finish in the top 10 but my mind just says that we can't do it and will finish around where we are now. I really hope we don't as i'd love to see us take on bigger teams but i just can't see us getting any better unless Tilson actually pulls his finger out, uses the money made from the Chelsea games and get's soem decent players in, mainly defenders.

 

[Jay_Shrimper]

The season has had it's fair few ups and downs.

I think we need to get this season out of the way and concentrate on next season. I think we all know this season hasn't gone as well as we had hoped - but I think the last few years success, has, if I'm being honest, made fans expectations too high. We've been beaten by our own success and now that we can't reach the same expectations it all appears to be "going wrong".

Until we get the new stadium, which will be used to bring in more attractive players - we are nothing more than a medium sized league one team.

We all know Roots Hall is falling too pieces, and for the sake of the future of the club, I would rather pull the finances shut and remain in this league however we can, eg. Loanees - instead of running the club into financial melt-down to try and achieve promotion over the stadium which will give us the foundations to push on in the future and hopefully make us a championship club.

With regards to players at the club - individually they are all good enough to play in League One and achieve a satisfactory place, but at the moment something is not clicking within the team. Once it clicks, I have no doubt we will finish the season 'in comfort' and hopefully we will be able to build upon it next season.

Tilly has the money to spend if he so wishes - but remember, his big-spends haven't been the best signings, eg. Eastwood and Macca. If he doesn't think the right player is available at the right price then I am happy to stick with the current squad and see what happens in the summer.
With regards to signings during this windows, I think we need a left-back, a centre-back and a couple of creative midfields, but as for names.. I haven't got the foggiest - thats for Tilly & Co. to decide on!

Onwards and upwards they say, support the team through thick and thin!

UP THE BLUES!

 

[BrettieAngell]

Our first game was against Orient?

 

[Shrimper]

Hmm, i could've sworn it was. Must've been last season then. Wait, it was Peterborough wasn't it?

 

[BrettieAngell]

Hmm, i could've sworn it was. Must've been last season then. Wait, it was Peterborough wasn't it?

Yes and yes!

 

[Jay_Shrimper]

Peterborough at home was the first match of the season.

We played orient on the 2nd Sept at home in the JPT.

 

[JoshC]

It hasn't been disasterous, it has been a poor season yes but to suggest that its disasterous is over the top.

 

[Clinton Baptiste]

Positives-Johnny Herd, Sawyers performances, Christophe, Mildenhall coming good after patchy start, Revs doing well.
Negatives- Mccormack and Francis awful, no decent wide players, too many injury prone strikers, players getting dropped or sent out on loan with no explanation, poor tactics away from home and no money or signings on the horizon.

Predicted finish- 19th.

 

[SUFCStu]

Been a bit of bad season compared to last season

But we knew this year was about building and trying to get new faces gelling.

Going away from home and getting thumped isnt good though.

Must invest before 2nd feb.

 

[Csboy]

It hasn't been disasterous, it has been a poor season yes but to suggest that its disasterous is over the top.

A disastrous season is the one Luton are having. The only Southend fans calling this a disastrous season are the band wagon fans. Some of us have seen far far worse seasons than this. Seasons 1984-85 and 1998-99 spring to mind.

 

[leeblue]

certainly not the worst season ever and certainly not a disaster, over the top reactions from a few people who seem to think we have some devine right to challenge for the top spots, where has this expectancy level come from? I know tilly has delivered glory in the past but for a club like ours it doesnt happen every season(see most of our 100 year history for mediocre seasons) to be a stable league one club is no mean feat for SUFC, yes we should be ambitious and want to grow as a club but growth can take time, tilly will have us at the top again prob not this season but maybe next or the one after that.

 

[shrimperjon]

Disaterous is a bit harsh. We have been very poor and as has been mentioned before we do have the nucleous of a good team. We are however at least 4 players short of competeing at this level. To keep going away from home and rolling over is crazy. our home form is ok but we appear to be struggling at home as well now. tilly must get new players in as perms not loanees and get some sort of consistency going in the team. on current results we will get relegated. i am goin tomrow and away to leeds but dont expect much from either. in the space of the next 4 games we could find ourselves in the relegation zone which is simply not good enough. we need the team to play as a TEAM. come on tilly sort it out or it could be time to let someone else try!

 

[fatshrimp]

This season is more of a disappointment rather than a disaster. I hope there'll be some lessons learned by all ahead of next season.

 

[Mick]

A disastrous season is the one Luton are having. The only Southend fans calling this a disastrous season are the band wagon fans. Some of us have seen far far worse seasons than this. Seasons 1984-85 and 1998-99 spring to mind.

Luton have won 30 points this season with a goal difference of minus 7.

We have won 30 points with a goal difference of minus 10

It was their "pre-season" which was really disastrous.

I wouldn't describe our season as disastrous .... yet.

It is a disappointing one with the potential to become either disastrous or average.

 

[silentshrimper]

Oh yes, I remember why I stopped posting here for quite a while!

To much negativeness. It hasn't been the best season, but after growing up as a shrimper seeing us playing right at the bottom (started supporting us the season we went down from the then division 1) I am completly used to seeing us fail!

Injuries, suspensions are what have cost us this season. We showed earlier in the season we can mix it with the better teams at times.

The only critisism I can have of Tilson and Brush, maybe Martin as well this season, is that they like to keep a small squad here, sending players out on loan when we need them here more. Also the inability to get players on long term loans. Basically we have had to change our squad way to many times this season in the midfield especially.

Kanu, Stanislas, Milsom, Sawyer, Cristoph, Moussa, Grant, Macca, Betsy, Scannell all have been used in midfield this season, doesn't give much time for them to gel together!

To think over the last few seasons we have depended on only having to make few changes. So basically I think Tilsons need to have a small squad has finally backfired after working well for the last few seasons very well.

Strikers have also struggled through lack of consistant selections, although I do think we have enough now, 4 good strikers I would say, can we keep them fit though?

We never seem to have a back up centre back either! Francis can probably do a job there and I heard Sankofa can play there also, I would prefer a decent through and through centre back who could challenge Clarke and Adam though.

I think we will finish round about where we are now, which wouldn't be bad at all, we arn't going up and arn't going down. If Tilson can find 2 quality players by the end of January for the future (or either just to cover us to the end of the season) I would be happy as that would be a good start towards next season.