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Post-Match Thread and Ratings Southend United 1-2 Aldershot Town

Totally unacceptable from our team today.

Forever grateful for their loyalty, perseverance and dedication in what cannot only be described as the darkest of times in recent months.

This however does not excuse today and does not make them exempt from criticism.

I saw a complete lack of intensity and basic quality.

What is abundantly clear is the majority of this squad lack the quality for the club to progress back into the EFL.

There are players I like.

GSM would run-through walls for the team. What he won't do is improve at the rate nesscerary. His crossing has actually deteriated and I counted at least 5 attempts today where he didn't even look up before crossing.

I've seen several games with both Wes and Taylor and I still couldn't tell you what type of midfielder either is.

My brother often talks of our game against Altrincham last season (a game I missed) where a lad called mooney ran the show and was a real prospect. Good pass aside for the goal, spent much of the 2nd half one the halfway line passing sideways. Did he sign when injured? I want to believe, but I just don't see it.

Totally appreciate the situation with the embargo and yes fresh blood would no doubt help. But what is our plan b? What do we actually set up to do?

Out bright spark Bridge has been rumbled. If the opposition scouting teams so their home work, they see he's our only creative outlet and mark him out of the game.

Sadly, powell anonymous again. Though not to our back of shirt sponsor Workplace Safety Solutions Ltd, whose attention to detail making him player of the match after 10 minutes and 2 touches is a bit concerning.

Maher the player, captain and manager clearly loves the club, but we haven't got any other ideas. Benton, widely regarded during his recent loan is getting the start of the season treatment Bridge received and not getting on the pitch.

Wheres Sandat? An actual striker not on the bench when powell, not a striker is and is used to replace ironically, a striker.

Fair play to Murphy. Very critical of him during his spell but worked his bolllocks off today.

Ref was the best I've seen this year.

Need more effort please team. That includes the management team too please.

Thr playoffs are gone. That's fine. Wrexham or Notts would have smashed us to peices anyway.

Let's use the remaining games to suss out the current squad.

Some big and tough decisions to be made in the close season.
 
Great to see other fans finally seeing the 532 bxllxcks for what it is.

It's all opinions of course, but I fundamentally believe this sits at the core of our issues. My stuck record opinion of having too many defensive players on the pitch but having players that are better than most of the teams in the division could be contributing better.

I'd love to see something like this where players are back in their right places. Might take a few games to get 532 out of the system but we have the players to execute. By freeing up one player from defense allows us that other player to get into the box.

Arnold
Gus Lomas kensdale ralph
Miley fonguck
Powell Mooney bridge
Cardwell

Subs Hobson husin wreh Murphy Benton

Or

Arnold
Gus Lomas kensdale ralph
Husin Miley fonguck
Mooney cardwell bridge

Subs Hobson Taylor wreh Powell Murphy

Even our inspiration Brentford has returned to a back 4 (playing a neat 433) and that's in the premier League.
 
Great to see other fans finally seeing the 532 bxllxcks for what it is.

It's all opinions of course, but I fundamentally believe this sits at the core of our issues. My stuck record opinion of having too many defensive players on the pitch but having players that are better than most of the teams in the division could be contributing better.

I'd love to see something like this where players are back in their right places. Might take a few games to get 532 out of the system but we have the players to execute. By freeing up one player from defense allows us that other player to get into the box.

Arnold
Gus Lomas kensdale ralph
Miley fonguck
Powell Mooney bridge
Cardwell

Subs Hobson husin wreh Murphy Benton

Or

Arnold
Gus Lomas kensdale ralph
Husin Miley fonguck
Mooney cardwell bridge

Subs Hobson Taylor wreh Powell Murphy

Even our inspiration Brentford has returned to a back 4 (playing a neat 433) and that's in the premier League.
If you looked at the career goals for that entire side would you get to 50..?
 
Oh well. Even forced my son to attend as we always win when he goes. Went 1-0 up and just after a steward informed him that his occasional puff on his vape meant another puff and he would have to be thrown out. So he went. And we lost. Sitting outside, in open air we worry about a strawberry and raspberry vape. After he left those around said the rather pleasant aroma was a 1000 times better and less of a health hazard than the hot dogs and pies…this country is truly disintegrating around us.

Rant over…in truth we are moving forward but aren’t yet good enough. As said before if we managed the playoffs we wouldn’t come out on top barring a significant slice of good fortune (and we generally get the opposite).

There is nothing wrong with the formation and how we look to play. The baby shouldn’t go out with the bath water. We just don’t have the quality we need in key positions. In particular, as is our affliction, we have assembled a team where most of the team has a well proven history of not scoring regularly (particularly CMF) and hence, surprise surprise we don’t. I remember with the famed Southend nil teams listing the entire 11’s career games and goals. It screamed this lot won’t score!!! Now it’s not so dissimilar now. If a CM has played 200 games and scored 10 goals don’t expect that to change.

Mooney is not a number 10 (yet at least) but a least it indicated the management team acknowledge there is an issue. But the CM still treat the penalty area as if it’s protected by an electric fence. Imagine a Jack Payne or Wordsworth in the role and you would have 10 goals straight away. Fonguck, skilful player, works hard, can’t shoot, never gets in the box. Taylor…Husin…Miley I excuse - holding midfielder let him get on with it,

Murphy- oh only if he could stay fit. Movement excellent. Has stopped falling over. Clever play. If he and Cardwell stayed match fit I would stick with them and find another couple of quality forwards (but not made of china). Bridge worth his place absolutely- but over relying on him makes us easy to defend against.

In think the problem is we have team of very decent hard working players who play for the shirt. Most are not truly top quality at this level. But if we can add that, and the league is minus Wrexham and Notts County then competing toward the very top is not impossible.

The players who are at a level where they could risk selection for the top 2 - Arnold, Gus, Hobson, Ralph, Murphy, Cardwell. IMO

You're not allowed to smoke in the ground, including vaping. I hate the fact that many places have allowed vaping in doors as if it's ok, it's not. Fair enough, it may not be as bad as smoking, but it still isn't healthy, and I for one, don't want to inhale that crap.

Rant over 🙂
 
So we are ten points behind Eastleigh with 2 games in hand. I think we need to get to that 75 point mark to make the play offs. Win 7, Draw 1 and lose 1. That’s the only way I see us making play offs. Doubt it will happen now though but it’s not over just yet, Eastleigh slip up and we take advantage then it’s still on. We just need that one weekend or two where it swings in our favour before the final 3/4 games.
 
So we are ten points behind Eastleigh with 2 games in hand. I think we need to get to that 75 point mark to make the play offs. Win 7, Draw 1 and lose 1. That’s the only way I see us making play offs. Doubt it will happen now though but it’s not over just yet, Eastleigh slip up and we take advantage then it’s still on. We just need that one weekend or two where it swings in our favour before the final 3/4 games.

We've just lost 5 in a row and we looked like a shambles.

It's over.
 
Great to see other fans finally seeing the 532 bxllxcks for what it is.

It's all opinions of course, but I fundamentally believe this sits at the core of our issues. My stuck record opinion of having too many defensive players on the pitch but having players that are better than most of the teams in the division could be contributing better.

I'd love to see something like this where players are back in their right places. Might take a few games to get 532 out of the system but we have the players to execute. By freeing up one player from defense allows us that other player to get into the box.

Arnold
Gus Lomas kensdale ralph
Miley fonguck
Powell Mooney bridge
Cardwell

Subs Hobson husin wreh Murphy Benton

Or

Arnold
Gus Lomas kensdale ralph
Husin Miley fonguck
Mooney cardwell bridge

Subs Hobson Taylor wreh Powell Murphy

Even our inspiration Brentford has returned to a back 4 (playing a neat 433) and that's in the premier League.
The system is not the issue. Neither is the way we set up and the way the coaching team want/drill the team to play.

We lack quality and consistent crossers, movers, passers and finishers in the final third. Switching to 442 (which I sense some posters are itching to suggest) isn't going to start making us turn territorial and possession dominance into goals.

The tactical and coaching quality is there for all with an eye for the details to see. There is absolutely no chance in hell that Maher and Co. want their players to be going backwards and sideways all the time. Yes, they want them to probe and be patient if they need to be and would far rather they retain possession, reset and go again than go for passes that aren't there and surrender possession - but that is absolutely not how the players are coached to actually approach the game.

The sort of stuff we were playing earlier in the season pre-financial issues when morale and spirit was high - away at Barnet and Maidstone, etc. - that is how the coaching team want them to play, and that football is the best I've seen a Southend team play since the high points of Tilson's reign. Technically, it might be *the* best I've seen. The performance at Barnet was the certainly the most complete Southend performance I've seen since then, and that should be the template.

Due to various circumstances, it's not clicking like that anymore but it's not an issue with the formation and tactics. Players at this level lack the mentality, football brains, etc. to consistently perform at high levels and their form is much more susceptible to outside influences. That's why they play at this level.

We don't play 532 anyway. 352 perhaps. 3412 today to start off with. Occasionally a 343. Drives me mad to see people linking how we play and set up with the negative "5 at the back!" cries of the Phil Brown days. Worlds apart.
 
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The system is not the issue. Neither is the way we set up and the way the coaching team want/drill the team to play.

We lack quality and consistent crossers, movers, passers and finishers in the final third. Switching to 442 (which I sense some posters are itching to suggest) isn't going to start making us turn territorial and possession dominance into goals.

The tactical and coaching quality is there for all with an eye for the details to see. There is absolutely no chance in hell that Maher and Co. want their players to be going backwards and sideways all the time. Yes, they want them to probe and be patient if they need to be and would far rather they retain possession, reset and go again than go for passes that aren't there and surrender possession - but that is absolutely not how the players are coached to actually approach the game.

The sort of stuff we were playing earlier in the season pre-financial issues when morale and spirit was high - away at Barnet and Maidstone, etc. - that is how the coaching team want them to play, and that football is the best I've seen a Southend team play since the high points of Tilson's reign. Technically, it might be *the* best I've seen. The performance at Barnet was the certainly the most complete Southend performance I've seen since then, and that should be the template.

Due to various circumstances, it's not clicking like that anymore but it's not an issue with the formation and tactics. Players at this level lack the mentality, football brains, etc. to consistently perform at high levels and their form is much more susceptible to outside influences. That's why they play at this level.

We don't play 532 anyway. 352 perhaps. 3412 today to start off with. Occasionally a 343. Drives me mad to see people linking how we play and set up with the negative "5 at the back!" cries of the Phil Brown days. Worlds apart.
Have to agree to disagree to most of your post.

Agreed on the 352/343. The latter of which gets consistently found out with only 2 in midfield.

Agreed on the football brain element which makes an intricate 352 formation even harder to implement.

I disagree that this is not the issue. It's fundamentally flawed. Too many people in defence, expecting defenders to be both defenders and wingers. Unless you're bridge and we expect him to try defend instead (which makes the team lop sided and unbalanced). Remove bridge and play with proper defensive wing backs we are absolutely toothless (which goes some way to proving the point).

We have 2 defensive mids sat in front of 3 defenders. We play Ralph and Gus in the wing backs you have at least 7 defensive players. Doesn't matter how much you attack if you dont have the mix and balance of players to unlock a defence, making runs you can play all day and not score. How many times this season has that been the norm.

442 isn't necessarily the answer in much the same way 343 doesn't work. But one extra attacking player would make a massive difference in supporting the team forward movement and numbers in the box.
 
I was lost for words yesterday, very poor in every department and totally unacceptable. I believed Lopata was out best signing for years and looks what happened since he's not played.

Our style of football is so predictable and the same week in, week out and every team has worked us out now because we only ever play one way, 20 to 30 passes in midfield before lumping it or 9 times out of 10 looking for JB to perform miracles on the left wing while surrounded by 3 players.

We have been through more than enough this season and I hate critising the 3 Amigos but I have been saying the same thing for weeks on here, if we don't learn how to play this league we will be here for a long time. Wrexham have learnt and do it brilliantly well (albeit with money) and why they are top, Notts C are by far the better footballing side and will probably end up with another season in the NL with us.

Feel very down today and dreading another season watching the dross in this league 😞

UTB 💙
 
Agreed on the football brain element which makes an intricate 352 formation even harder to implement.

I disagree that this is not the issue. It's fundamentally flawed. Too many people in defence, expecting defenders to be both defenders and wingers. Unless you're bridge and we expect him to try defend instead (which makes the team lop sided and unbalanced). Remove bridge and play with proper defensive wing backs we are absolutely toothless (which goes some way to proving the point).

We have 2 defensive mids sat in front of 3 defenders. We play Ralph and Gus in the wing backs you have at least 7 defensive players. Doesn't matter how much you attack if you dont have the mix and balance of players to unlock a defence, making runs you can play all day and not score. How many times this season has that been the norm.

442 isn't necessarily the answer in much the same way 343 doesn't work. But one extra attacking player would make a massive difference in supporting the team forward movement and numbers in the box.
I see where your thinking is coming from but in a 4-2-3-1 you have Ralph as a left back. No thanks. Mooney as what, a false 9? With his propensity to drift sideways can’t see that working. But I see your vision there.

Yesterday it wasn’t the formation that was the issue. Replace Fonguck/Taylor/Husin with a real decent quality midfielder who knows how to feed the strikers (bit like Mooney did for Murphy) and knows where the goal is. I rate Gus but not recently. Back up needed, we need to be a threat from both wings. Too often we pass side, back, side, over to Jack. Vary it a bit. Hey imagine we had a striker who could stay fit, a real decent quality one. Someone who could take set pieces.

Kensdale, Hobson and Ralph are a decent enough ‘back 3’ but yesterday was a poor day at the office that cost us points. Earlier in the season a back 3 kept us many clean sheets.

I’d stick with Kev AND the formation and have faith in the football department to find the players who can thrive in it .. that’s if they’re allowed to.
 
Oh dear, oh dear. I really had high hopes for yesterday's game, I thought Friday's news would have put an injection of excitement into everyone and that we'd have an exciting game with some goals to celebrate. How wrong was I?

Ok, the conditions were poor, having been on the pitch before the start with the flag bearers, I can say that it wouldn't have suited some of our players who would have found it heavy going. Felt sorry for the Aldershot player who skidded off the pitch in front of the South stand first half who would have definitely landed in some of the numerous piles of fox poo on the perimeter walkway, which we had to dodge on our way back to the West!

Felt things had been changed to accommodate Mooney and while we saw the results of that early on with a well worked goal, I felt him having free rein stifled Gus in particular and rendered Fonguck jobless. Time and again Gus offered himself for a ball out and it bypassed him to Mooney or went to the left. I don't know why as Gus has been a fantastic player for us and great at charging forwards with the ball. On the other side, Ralph got forwards ahead of Bridge several times, and looked to be playing the LWB role himself - what was that all about? Was it to try and exploit the space left by Aldershot doubling up on Bridge? Whatever was going on, we looked unbalanced.

No idea if the loss of Lopata has affected our defenders or not, but Kensdale was definitely out of sorts. I am surprised at criticism of Hobson who I thought was easily our best defender. For me, we've got to start looking at a change to a back 4 at times when the 3 plus wing backs isn't working, as was the case yesterday. Far, far too much passing the ball back and across as well, little of the forward nature.

I agree with those who thought Cordner was carrying a bit of timber, but it made him a very solid defender and I thought he had a great game for them. They were a niggly team but I thought that the officials had things pretty much spot on throughout - though was surprised Arnold wasn't sent for the penalty.

Arnold - 6, suicide ball back to him which led to the penalty, no complaints. Didn't always choose the best option for distribution
Scott-Morriss - 6, always an option but largely over-looked
Hobson - 7, MOTM, had to work hard defensively
Kensdale - 5, he'll want to forget that
Ralph - 6, thought he did reasonably ok, got forwards well and won lots of headers
Bridge - 6, tried hard and got some decent crosses in but our strikers weren't anywhere near
Miley - 7, never afraid to get a foot in and challenge, great engine
Fonguck - 5, added very little
Mooney - 7, great opening half an hour but tired, didn't think his corners were great and felt that Bridge and Miley had better success
Murphy - 6, good to see a forward actually trying to bully opposition defences
Cardwell - 6, not as effective as Murphy

Subs:
Powell for Murphy - 6, felt it could have been the game for him, the ground should have suited him. We saw a few runs and he got some crosses in but MOTM???? No!
Taylor for Fonguck - 5, poor, think he started the move which led to the penalty
Wreh for Mooney - did he touch the ball?

Some work for the management team ahead. I hope these players haven't decided they're off in the summer so that's it for them, they might as well stop playing. If that is the case, then get Benton and Sandat out there and get Jack Wood back from Tonbridge where he seems to be having a great time!
 
Oh well. Even forced my son to attend as we always win when he goes. Went 1-0 up and just after a steward informed him that his occasional puff on his vape meant another puff and he would have to be thrown out. So he went. And we lost. Sitting outside, in open air we worry about a strawberry and raspberry vape. After he left those around said the rather pleasant aroma was a 1000 times better and less of a health hazard than the hot dogs and pies…this country is truly disintegrating around us.
You are not allowed to vape in the ground. Simple as that. Same rules as for smoking. I certainly don't want to be shrouded in clouds of foul smelling vape fumes.
 
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Players looked absolutely shattered yesterday. Apart from the goal we didn’t test the keeper until stoppage time and I don’t think he was that good, his handling looked dodgy in the warm up. Not enough creativity and we are becoming predictable- teams have enough time to double on Bridge (which effectively kills all of our chances). I do agree that a change to a 4 at the back needs to happen.
 
So we are ten points behind Eastleigh with 2 games in hand. I think we need to get to that 75 point mark to make the play offs. Win 7, Draw 1 and lose 1. That’s the only way I see us making play offs. Doubt it will happen now though but it’s not over just yet, Eastleigh slip up and we take advantage then it’s still on. We just need that one weekend or two where it swings in our favour before the final 3/4 games.
You're meant to be a realist, the wheels have fallen off and there's no spare !
Kev needs to play fully fit players like Sandat and Benton, we have players who seem to be regaining fitness playing first team games and being kept on to long imo
The 2nd half midfield dissapearing act was like going back in time of the PB team in this division!
Bridge needs resting , Mooney and Powell 1/2 game each , Murphy , Hyde and Wreh the same if we must play unfit players .
 
In case it hasn't been mentioned, and for the stato's on here, yesterday's attendance was: 5,990 (420 away fans).
Wow great turnout by Aldershot. What was the deal with them by the way, the balloons and banners etc. .. some kind of special occasion?
 
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