Is this the lowest southend have ever fallen?

[Shrimp and two veg]

This thread doesnt explain whats needed in terms of an answer. The lowest in terms of cup exits? Hell no, that time when we had Liverpool in the next round but lost, that really sucked in the FA cup, it might have been against Scunny. Is it the lowest ebb for the club, hell no, that was going into non league without the support of a chairman and us facing the wall of zero hope and because of Covid we had to endure games on the telly.
Oh and the actual lowest weve fallen was bottom of the NL due to the minus10 points Ron managed to get us.

 

[southendkid]

Being days from going out of business was a much bigger low than suffering a shock defeat in a cup that few care about. We're far from the only side to be humbled this year, high flying York lost to Gainsborough Trinity in the previous round for example.

 

[Leigh_Seasider]

I think a lot of the reaction to defeats is that people really thought with Ron gone we would see some instant progress on the pitch. Some may have bought ST’s with the expectation of a play off push with all the COSU excitement. With the Trophy we had Wembley in our sights, almost a consolation prize for being mid table.

That single result isn’t even close to the lowest we’ve sunk. Dropping down here to start with beats anything.

 

[Mick]

Going for Yeovil 1-0 Blues, Nov 16, 1963.
Remember, they were twice-a-week trainers back then; we were lofty Div 3 (League One).
Somehow persuaded the pater to make the near four-hour drive to the old sloping pitch Huish in the hope of a slaughter against these near amateurs.
And yeah, we were beaten 1-0: the only FL side by a non leaguer until Millwall lost in a replay to Kettering the following Monday.
I pored over the papers the following morning in the hope we were not alone. Alack!
However, on a whim a couple of years back decided to collect the entire round's programmes: 44 and four replays.
Finally made it last week.
Yup! The anorak hangs in the hall, lol!

Cup upsets were, of course, fewer and further between than they are now so despite the fact it was our fifth consecutive defeat in a run of 10 winless matches, it was a real shock. Our fortunes turned with a Boxing Day win over eventual runners-up, Crystal Palace, and a strong second half of the season left us comfortably mid-table.

Impressive collecting all the programmes. What was the hardest one to get? Netherfield perhaps?

In those days the two finalists in the Amateur Cup Final (equivalent of the Trophy, and Vase combined) got byes into the First Round Proper.

 

[Chris Powell's mate]

Cup upsets were, of course, fewer and further between than they are now so despite the fact it was our fifth consecutive defeat in a run of 10 winless matches, it was a real shock. Our fortunes turned with a Boxing Day win over eventual runners-up, Crystal Palace, and a strong second half of the season left us comfortably mid-table.

Impressive collecting all the programmes. What was the hardest one to get? Netherfield perhaps?

In those days the two finalists in the Amateur Cup Final (equivalent of the Trophy, and Vase combined) got byes into the First Round Proper.

Thanks for the interest.
How astute! Yes: could only get Netherfield as a facsimile. I even asked one of the 82-year-old players if he had a copy!
Don't ask what I paid for the single page Newport v Hereford replay!
PS. Had forgotten we were on a losing streak.
The balm came the following week when my cousin got me a ticket to see The Beatles at the old Odeon in Southend for Dec 9.

 

[Special Blue]

This thread doesnt explain whats needed in terms of an answer. The lowest in terms of cup exits? Hell no, that time when we had Liverpool in the next round but lost, that really sucked in the FA cup, it might have been against Scunny. Is it the lowest ebb for the club, hell no, that was going into non league without the support of a chairman and us facing the wall of zero hope and because of Covid we had to endure games on the telly.
Oh and the actual lowest weve fallen was bottom of the NL due to the minus10 points Ron managed to get us.

i think that may have been Scarborough rather than Scunny!
Someone with a better memory may recall.

 

[leeblue]

Another hysterical thread.
I'm not sure there's a more fragile group of snowflakes knocking around. The saddest thing is you lot literally hover over the keypad yearning for a bad result. No room for context or nuance.

 

[OldBlueLady]

Another hysterical thread.
I'm not sure there's a more fragile group of snowflakes knocking around. The saddest thing is you lot literally hover over the keypad yearning for a bad result. No room for context or nuance.

It's interesting. I sometimes think we have a whole faction of support that actually enjoys it when the team lose and they can come on here and the various Facebook groups with their vitriol, clamouring for Maher's head.

 

[Fairport]

I don't think there are many on here enjoy the team losing. Imagine 6/7 years ago someone saying we would be in the bottom half of the National League and beaten by a part time club 3 steps below us. Would people be quite content with that and say that's OK? Of course people will make negative posts, blimey, how much worse can it get.

 

[Chris Powell's mate]

Hey @Mick have just checked and noted one of the four defeats on the way to Yeovil 63 was at home to high-flying Jimmy Hill's Coventry, 2-1.
Jim Conway, making his debut, asked me in the Hall car park where to pick up complimentary tickets for his folks!
"Uhh...uhh," muttered the 11-year-old.

 

[Mick]

Hey @Mick have just checked and noted one of the four defeats on the way to Yeovil 63 was at home to high-flying Jimmy Hill's Coventry, 2-1.
Jim Conway, making his debut, asked me in the Hall car park where to pick up complimentary tickets for his folks!
"Uhh...uhh," muttered the 11-year-old.

It took him even longer to find the goal net !

That was his home debut, having made his debut at Watford in the defeat before! There was a thread about him a few months back. His first goal was in that "turning point" Boxing Day win against Palace.

 

[SuperRonnieP]

It's interesting. I sometimes think we have a whole faction of support that actually enjoys it when the team lose and they can come on here and the various Facebook groups with their vitriol, clamouring for Maher's head.

I'd agree with that. It's partly human nature, and the desire to be proved right. It also explains why some of the Maher out faction don't post after a victory. What I don't understand is why they still go if watching his sides is so detestable.

 

[blues exile]

Support is for the club. Managers come and go but for true supporters it's a lifelong endurance test passed with honours. That is why some of us are so aggrieved at the dreadful standard of football inflicted on us by Maher in the lowest league it has been our misfortune to suffer. . We have survived the likes of Alvan Williams, Dick Bate and Alvin Martin and we will surely outlast Maher. It's only a metter of time.

 

[LBBlue]

Of course when Ron was dethroned we expected that life would generally get a lot better. Sadly if anyone wants to analyse the whole debacle over this tie from the moment the draw was made through to the end of the game, they will conclude the whole thing was an embarrassing shambles.

After the draw was made I thought maybe I should go to the game, but just opening the East and part of the North was a catastrophic mis reading of the situation - I presume by Tom Lawrence. So that was me done - I’ll stay at home and listen to the BBC commentary.

So ultimately there was a crowd of nearly 5,000 - I imagine it would have been well over 5,000 if it had been treated as a normal game with the whole ground open. The message was clear from the start - the club doesn’t really treat this game as a serious fixture. Perhaps this rubbed off onto the players playing in a half opened ground in a fixture that if they’d won would have left them two fixtures from Wembley.

We had the farce of opening up half the South Upper and a small block of the West Stand for a few more Sittingbourne supporters. A bit of positivity when the draw was made would have gone a long way. It was pretty clear that for Sittingbourne this was their biggest game ever. Sadly for us, their next Trophy game will quickly become their biggest game ever and we may become just their biggest scalp.

The match, well a typical Saturday afternoon at Roots Hall, a typical performance and result - 4 wins in our last 20 Saturday home matches. Just listening it was obvious how Paul Clark was absolutely dejected at our performance or total lack of performance, our lack of urgency, our lack of work rate - superior fitness wouldn’t matter because we aren’t making them run. This was all after just 20 minutes.

We were hampered by illness which restricted availability. But even so. Our club losing to a club so low in the pyramid in a competitive match - well I think it’s the lowest of the lows so far.

On Tuesday Sittingbourne are away to Erith Town and Saturday Steyning Town. Say no more. Of course good luck to them - they treated the match seriously and got what they deserved.

We got we deserved ….

Sadly the management of this club from the top is still pretty appalling. We supporters deserve better than that.

 

[Smiffy]

Chris P's thoughts...

The final say: Defeat tough to take but what next for the Shrimpers?

A LAST look at Southend United's painful defeat to Sittingbourne.

www.echo-news.co.uk

Put simply, the 1-0 defeat to the Isthmian League South East Division part-timers is one of the most embarrassing setbacks in the club’s entire history.

And, even though I have delayed putting this piece together, it is still incredibly difficult to stomach.

Following the fortunes of the Blues, regularly brings up a wide range of contrasting and conflicting emotions.

But, on the pitch at least, losing to a Step 4 side is as bad as it has been in recent memory.

Statistically speaking, it is indeed the worst home defeat the Shrimpers have ever experienced and the first time the club have lost to a team three leagues below them since 1979.