Post-Match Thread and Ratings Nam 1 Southend United 1

[McNasty]

Please put your reports on our rain-swept draw here please.

 

[leeblue]

The midfield three looked a bit tired tbh certainly not as industrious as usual....atkinson especially. Corr was also off his game. Bentley made some important saves. We played well in patches but then after going one up we kind of stopped. Daggers forward play was at times very good they were always a threat. Overall draw fair result.
Bentley 7 everyone else 6.

 

[Murkey_Mouse]

Yeah, I noticed the difference and we got Newport coming up on Friday and we need to make some change to freshen the team up.

 

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

My first time in the D&R terraces (usually in the seats) and its alright - fairly good view and has the aura of a cosy cowshed. The pitch looks in good nick despite the recent biblical weather. The exchange of opinions peaks with 'we hate Orient more than you'.


We are attacking throughout the team and look better than then for the first 30 minutes. We force 5 penalties and manage 1 shot on target. We are nice enough to watch but no end product. Straker shows a bit of pace, Atkinson shows a bit of vision and Corr looks like he needs a rest. They attack on the break and rarely look convincing but force Bentley into two good saves which could end in tears if the games keeps on with similar stats.

From the off the second half is a bit more urgent and less pretty. More noise from us in the terraces and the seats too. Eight minutes in and a beautiful cross from the right (probably from Hurst) leads to another corner and Hurst slams a loose ball into the net and then ditches his colleagues to run the length of the pitch to the away fans. A mini onslaught of attacking with a constant soundtrack ('sit down if you love Southend' in the terraces must test a few hip replacements) a drop in temperature and that fine rain. But we are allowing them too much space and we are only winning for 15 minutes before Norris runs through the middle and a well struck shot with a slight deflection goes into the right hand corner of Bentley's goal. Apparently though only score when it's raining and it's chucking it down now.


Timlin and Corr go off minutes later with Woodrow and a certain Lee Barnard coming on. The rest of the game is fast and frantic and lacking in a touch of class. Grit and determination are a good watch though and Coker puts in a last man tackle and wins the ball to pass upfield despite his man being (I don't really do distances, put in an impressive figure here) yards in front of him. And Atkinson storming from the back turning defence into attack for Barney to run away from goal to pass out wide and then push up for the return. And Lenny rushing through their defence trying to get into the box knowing they would have to take him down. But they had as many chances to win it as us and good fortune in goalmouth scrambles and good work from Bentley keep them out. A draw is a fair result. The match was entertaining and passionate if not a classic and all that remains is a swim through the carpark then I'm heading West.

 

[Tommy's Mooney]

Firstly a big thanks to Blues n Twos for the tickets!

After ticket confusion and and an increasingly threatening forecast, I was delighted to position myself in Row J seat 32 with an excellent view of the whole pitch.

Bentley 8 - another fine performance from Dan, only mistaking was spilling one in the first half. Beaten near post for the goal but it got a slight deflection so in my opinion not to blame.

Thompson 6 - didn't do anything wrong, should win headers against wingers and does so. Will be happier when White is back though.

Coker 7.5 - generally sound defensively and gets forward well, put Aa few decent crosses in.

Phillips 6 looks laboured at times especially on a boggy pitch, gets carried by Prosser and full backs at times.

Prosser 8 another gutsy and determined display.

Straker 6 from the sublime to the ridiculous, this man summed himself up in 5 seconds beating 3 players, falling over in the box and then throwing his hands on the ball

Hurst 7.5 deliveries worthy of a higher level, took his goal well albeit a bit scuffed and managed to keep running after an 80 yard.celebration

Leonard 7.5 our very own Stevie G, driving.runs,.spreading.passed,.dictating play. Not his best game though.

Atkinson 7 reminds me of the cocker spaniel I had as a kid, bags of enthusiasm and deserves a pat on the head

Timlin 5.5 fairly quiet, struggled to get into the game, not as influential as we have come to expect

Corr 6.5 struggled at times in the first half but overall a typical determined display. Probably would have been kept on with the worsening conditions but should think he's absolutely knackered.

Barney 5 did he get a touch?
Woodrow 6 chased down well
Clifford 6 some nice touches but not on long enough for a real influence.

Officials- 7 I might get some stick for that but overall thought they got most things right

All in all a good point away, as long as we win on Friday!

Over and out.

 

[sufc_dave]

I thought we played pretty rubbish to be honest. Didn't deserve a win.

Thought Corr looked lacklustre up front. Straker was up and down all night with his performance. Hopefully we'll have a better showing on Friday.

Defence (think it was Prosser) did not close down that Norris bloke at all for their goal. 5 minutes later they backed off him again.

 

[mrsblue]

Sorry everybody but Mr Corr is a big lumbering fella who cannot hold the ball and looks a yard off the pace every time I have seen him play.

Vital away point and it was bloody freezing.

 

[wiggy]

Thought Atkinson was a complete passenger all night, rest time!

 

[chapperzUK]

Sorry everybody but Mr Corr is a big lumbering fella who cannot hold the ball and looks a yard off the pace every time I have seen him play.

Vital away point and it was bloody freezing.

Go on, who is going to .....

:net:

 

[mrsblue]

Go on, who is going to .....

:net:

I will take the bait,It's my opinion that is all and yes I fully understand some on here think Corr is the greatest but I don't.

 

[admam89]

thought we played pretty poor tbh. hopefully a one off. the defending for their goal was criminal i thought, just stood off the player. have to say despite the weather the pitch was great for a little pub team. Thought we should have had a blatant penalty also.

all in all a draw was the fair result

support was class once again

 

[bazzashrimper]

Bentley 7 - Spilled one first half and everything else he did well with, but not exceptional

Thompson 6 - Did OK considering he's out of position, but we are missing the balance of having a more natural right back in situ
Coker 7 - A bit of a return to form for Ben - I think he's struggled of late, but did well tonight
Prosser 7.5 - Commanding performance. Harsh to blame for the goal as Atkinson went to close the player down, but was skinned - Prosser closed him down and deflected it in
Phillips 7.5 - See Coker

Leonard 7 - Some driving runs and decent passing. Not as influential as in recent weeks though
Timlin 6 - Played well in the first half, but died away in the second
Atkinson 5 - Not his best game tonight - looked tired and struggled to close players down as much as normal

Hurst 5.5 - Scored a goal, but had no real influence on the rest of the game
Straker 6 - Up and down. I wish he would stop handballing it for no blooming reason

Corr 5 - Won a couple of headers... but didn't look himself tonight

Subs
Barnard 5 - 1 great header to set us off on an attack, but other than that did little
Woodrow 6 - Chased and harried
Clifford - Not on for long, but free kick was deflected just over

Ref - Missed a stonewall penalty just before half time... and generally looks too smug for my liking

 

[Clinton Baptiste]

Thought the front three and midfield three looked very tired and lacklustre at times. Still think we could do with a pacy option up front, particularly when one recalls how well Barney linked up with Theo Robinson when he was here. Straker was awful dab should've been hauled off at half time. Can't see why Laird nor Eastwood got on. I wouldn't class Clifford or Woodrow as an impact sub. Even Gomis might've been worth a go- why sign him if not going to play him? Seems a waste of a squad space.
Definitely needs freshening up on Friday. Laird and Barney should definitely start.

 

[Lord Football]

Relieved to come away with a point, thought they'd knicked it at the end. As others have said, we looked jaded and weren't as crisp as previous games. Maybe a few changes for Newport to allow some to rest their legs.

Dagenham though aren't a bad side, and I am surprised they're not in the play off picture.

Looking forward to reading the comments about the first half "stonewall" penalty that wasn't given. Interestingly, I saw three refs in my block, and none of us moved when Atkinson fell over their player.

 

[Lord Football]

Ref - Missed a stonewall penalty just before half time... and generally looks too smug for my liking

..and there's the first.

 

[RobM]

No penalty, as a Shrimper and a referee!

 

[North Banker]

Just dried out from my swim through the car park on the way out. Corr really struggled but it wasn't through lack of effort - he just didn't look fit. I don't know why PB didn't make any changes from Saturday's team, as most of them looked tired and we had some decent replacements on the bench. I was very impressed with what I saw of Gomis in the warm up so perhaps it might be time to give him a chance, after all we went to so much effort to sign him.

Excellent support from the travelling fans once again, very vocal and almost outnumbering the home crowd.

 

[Neil_F]

It was my first game since Hartlepool away. Overall I thought it was a good point after doing okay but not much more.

It was a small pitch and the slope is a big factor. We had a lot of possession and territory down the slope in the first half and they did likewise to us in the second. Despite that we didn't create much, although Thompson had a great chance from a corner and I thought we should have had a penalty. Dagenham were strong on the break. I like 4-3-3 but the weakness is the full backs can get isolated. Against Hines and Elito that was dangerous.

Our goal was a shocker. Pinball in the box and then Hurst scuffed it in to the corner of the net.

The equaliser came after Norris turned Atkinson and then Prosser couldn't close it down quick enough. I think it was deflected but I didn't have a great view. We somehow hacked one off the line from a corner and then had a great chance to win it from a free kick. I couldn't see who it was that didn't make good contact.

Bentley - 7 - Sone good saves, especially to a shot that moved in the air.

Thompson - 6 - Had a tough evening against Hines but did alright. Doesn't offer anything going forward and rarely goes past Hurst.

Coker - 7 - solid and some good link up play.

Prosser - 7 - Won most things and dominated.

Phillips - 6 - Does what needs to be done.

Leonard - 7 - Won a lot of the ball, especially in the air and rarely gives it away. Had two driving runs into the box that nearly came off. I wonder whether Laird playing the holding role would allow Leonard to influence the game further upfield and get in the box.

Atkinson - 6 - Did alright. Not much in the final third.

Timlin - 6 - I like Timlin. He has good vision and tends to do things in fewer touches than most other players. He was tidy but, much like Atkinson, didn't do much in the final third.

Straker - 6 - Not much came off but kept being direct.

Hurst - 6 - Not his best game but can always create something from nothing.

Corr - 6 - Always a nuisance but sometimes isolated. Playing as a lone striker is tough when the midfield don't make much of an impact.

finally, I am amazed by our support sometimes. I thought this was a good point yet there were boos at the end. A little bit of realism goes a long way.

 

[shrimperjon]

Tough game, in tough conditions against a tough opponent. Happy with the draw, although disappointed at the same time especially after taking the lead. The players as others have said looked tired and a yard off the pace at times. Hard to be too critical of PB after the season we've had, but really think the likes of Laird, Clifford, Fred, Barney should get a run out on Friday. This starting 11 can not start on Friday.

The game itself was fairly even although Bentley was defo the busier of the keepers. Think their goal took a deflection on its way past Bentley. Ref was awful at times and as far as we were all concerned we should have had two penalties, one on Atkinson first half, he wasn't getting the ball but was cleaned out, as was Thompson in the second half, the defender made no attempt to play the ball but just shoved Thompson off the ball. Hard to be too critical of the players, they all tried hard but just lacked some energy, certainly a point gained and if we win on Friday then this will look a good point.

A word for for the fans, 1306 of us in a crowd of 2624. Great noise but also a little subdued at times, a bit like the performance.

So in conclusion, a tough night but another game undefeated in the league and still positives to take from it. Roll on Friday and hoping PB freshen things up a bit.

 

[North Banker]

finally, I am amazed by our support sometimes. I thought this was a good point yet there were boos at the end. A little bit of realism goes a long way.

I'm pretty sure these were aimed at the ref.