Post-Match Thread and Ratings Southend United 1-3 Sutton United

[Leigh_Seasider]

Were they Tuesday? I have a lot of time for Collin he has come on so well in the last 2 years but seriously he was very very lucky to get away with his appalling clearance Tuesday and yesterday he was completely caught out. Unfortunately it's not the odd occasion it's at least once every match and I find myself hiding behind my hands and shouting "just f ing kick it" when the ball is played back to him because I know the next mistake isn't far away.

If Collin is our regular keeper stop using him as an outfield player and constantly passing back to him, a shot stopper oh yeah, an outfield player he is not and the coaching staff need to finally acknowledge that and change it ASAP, football is about players being used to their best expertise and Collin is an old fashioned style goalkeeper (and a pretty good one) end of.

On Tuesday the post match thread was full of praise for the defence. Yesterday wasn’t their finest game, even Harry Taylor made errors under pressure which is unlike him.

Not to say Collin can’t improve his kicking/distribution but not sure he deserves the pile on in this thread. We passed back to him too much yesterday and Kev even highlighted that.

We’d maybe benefit from an experienced centre half to replace Kensdale, who doesn’t hesitate on the ball and can handle the physical side of things.

 

[bluethroughandthrough]

Maher's got to hold his hands up here (if he can take his hands out of his pockets for long enough)

No game management. Taking Gubbins off was a massive mistake.

As much as this is a new era, we are pinning our hopes on George Moncur who, as soon as you saw how hot it was today, you knew he wouldn't contribute much. Feels like a Ron Martin signing the more I see him play.

That Bonne miss. Jesus. A cushioned pass into the hands of Arnold. Awful.

When did Noor last have a good game?

Gsm. Top scorer. Should probably keep his mouth shut a bit more. You don't have to moan at every decision.

I said it last week, Collin isn't ready to be a number one.

More than this, I found myself looking over at Maher in the 2nd half. Either hands in his pockets or arms crossed. Hardly inspiring. He looks beaten.

I understand you can't win every game, but I'm not having getting beaten by teams like that after going in front.

This league is wide open this season and we are looking terrible. Similar vibe to the daggers game where I feel that equaliser papered over the cracks.

Bless Pebble. Works his socks off but is not the answer here when the requirement is being up top on your own.


Maher's on the radio now saying we should have been full of beans. Perhaps he should take his own advice and take his hands out of his pockets and start changing his style on the sideline.

We aren't under an embargo any more. I'm not seeing players improve. And that is a worry.

I didn’t say he should go, I just said that were overly in debt to him after his loyalty, which could be to our detriment if he fails to guide us out of the NL for several seasons. This is what, our third/fourth year in the NL? What looks different this season on the pitch to the last few years? I’m not seeing much

Well said

 

[bluesfansince1952]

Not long before they scored the equaliser Moncur worked a bit of magic on the left and played in Ralph who then put in a really dangerous ball across goal that they were somehow able to clear. If that goes it is 2-0 to us, and, end of story. Kev remains a genius, Moncur remains a super star while Collin is the greatest although his kicking needs to improve. And no SZ meltdown!

I remain convinced it was a game we should have won and I believe we almost did. Sport is unpredictable which is why we watch it. When they desperately cleared the ball following the Ralph cross no one could have guessed that the game would be transformed in the second half and they would look so good and we would play so poorly.

In respect of Collin it does seem it might be a concentration thing. In truth many of us have seen a goal like their second coming for a long time, and, sadly for us it took place at a really vital part of the game. Subsequent to the goal there was a lot more urgency about his clearances which was no bad thing. If we are going to lose possession following him moving the ball upfield it is better that happens seventy yards from our goal than thirty.

No doubt had we been winning 3-0 with twenty five minutes to go some of our players would have seemed less weary than they did at the end of yesterday's game. Nevertheless, it was a reminder that the NL is a very tough, demanding and attritional league. It is asking a lot for us to compete with our present squad size. This is no one's fault as we were very much the victim of circumstances and I am sure our brains trust is doing all it can to sort this out but until we bring in more players results like yesterday's will remain a possibility.

On to Tuesday night which will be a real test as it will be our fourth game in just ten days and it not only be away but involves a long trip.

Under KM we have usually been able to bounce back quickly following disappointing results. Tuesday will be a real test of his motivational powers as well the resilience of the players.

 

[bluethroughandthrough]

Sport is indeed unpredictable however so much of the reactions stem from, as fans, watching a team that beats the odds more often than not every game.

That consistency is what allows teams to keep winning and achieve momentary greatness.

We have flirted with that consistency for a few seasons with Maher never quite hitting the heights.

It's this inconsistency that drives the over reactions and also the reasoning and excuses such as

Embargo
Terrible owner with arterial personal financial motives
Demotion
Awful manager decisions ie bond
Overspending
Substandard refs in the NL
Under recruitment
Budget issues
Ugly bully teams
Too many young players
Not enough players
No leader players
Not enough options on the bench
Formation
Too many defensive players
Not good enough strikers
No plan B or C
Maher was a great player
Maher was an over rated player
Maher is a god and should never be removed
Maher isn't up to scratch
Not fit enough
Not enough pre season training and behind other teams
No onions....
Etc

I think my issue is that after supporting Southend for now 37 years (I do feel old in writing that) we've always had issues and greatness to contend with and enjoy in equal measure.

My enjoyment and therefore frustrations are today derived from watching a team playing inconsistently, often not attacking to score more than the other team to win (referencing one poster's reference to Michael Owens genius) and comparative benchmarks set by great entertainment great football, great players and players that really wanted to win that I've seen at roots hall in times past.

Whatever the excuses or reasons, games like yesterday or Tuesday for that matter will be divisive of opinion.

I'm very simple I just want consistency, progress and the team setup to score goals, entertain and win.

I don't think were there.

 

[Jack_23]

Think people need to remember how young Colin is , no doubt in my mind he will improve and get better , since being a starter he has saved us so many points , won countless MOM , just coz he is going through a sticky spell there’s no need to ****ing hammer the bloke

 

[nick12]

On Tuesday the post match thread was full of praise for the defence. Yesterday wasn’t their finest game, even Harry Taylor made errors under pressure which is unlike him.

Not to say Collin can’t improve his kicking/distribution but not sure he deserves the pile on in this thread. We passed back to him too much yesterday and Kev even highlighted that.

We’d maybe benefit from an experienced centre half to replace Kensdale, who doesn’t hesitate on the ball and can handle the physical side of things.

I like Collin a lot he has improved massively in the last 2 years, his shot stopping is excellent but his distribution is awful, he regularly passes to a player and puts them in trouble and he dwells far too long on the ball, not just yesterday. He was very very lucky Tuesday which could have changed the game, caught out Saturday which killed the game.

We are not Liverpool or Man City and the moment we start tippy tapping the ball around at the back (which we do far too much even when we are losing and chasing the game) you can see the opposition move up and apply pressure, every team in the league knows we are going to do it and they know our weakness so they are hunting us down straight away.

When we push up and pass forward we look great and create chances but it feels so often like no one wants to make a mistake so safety first, pass back or across the pitch and that doesn't win matches and puts huge pressure on Collin.

If a game was won on the number of sideways and backward passes in our own half we would be storming this league.

 

[Mr Browns Ghost]

Normality had definitely returned to thr Zone. We now have a scapegoat target again. It’s been a while.

Mate, you’re a bloke who thinks Roy McDonough was good .. again I’ll repeat it’s a message board it’s for opinions people think Colin is **** people think Colin is good … it’s just opinions. It’s the same rhetoric as wanting to see signings doesn’t mean we want to be Wrexham and if you Point out that clearly Colin is and has been a weak link for some time it automatically means he is a scape goat

 

[* ORM *]

Mate, you’re a bloke who thinks Roy McDonough was good .. again I’ll repeat it’s a message board it’s for opinions people think Colin is **** people think Colin is good … it’s just opinions. It’s the same rhetoric as wanting to see signings doesn’t mean we want to be Wrexham and if you Point out that clearly Colin is and has been a weak link for some time it automatically means he is a scape goat

I’ve mentioned nothing about Colin. COLLIN on the other hand deserves a bit more respect. Oh and if you think Donut wasn’t good ask Crowny what he thinks.

 

[Southend Elvis]

Really bad day at the office yesterday, we were all on a high after Tuesday and that brought us spinning back to earth.
Regarding Colin, we all see it week in and week out, he seems to not do the basics when clearing the ball. Many times he clears the ball at the absolute last moment when 2 opposition players are bearing down on him, giving us all a scare, and passing to defenders who themselves are surrounded by the othe side, who are straight away under pressure.
He really needs to work on it with the coaches, with other sports, if you can't do a something.... you don't do it, you practice it in training. What about not passing back to him as much, and why not say just clear it long when defenders are surrounded by the opposition, it may cut out some basic mistakes?

 

[dusterman]

I would’ve taken Moncur off not Morton yesterday for Keenan as he looked tired. Not sure Gubbins was the right CB to take off either.

 

[Barling Magna]

Really bad day at the office yesterday, we were all on a high after Tuesday and that brought us spinning back to earth.
Regarding Colin, we all see it week in and week out, he seems to not do the basics when clearing the ball. Many times he clears the ball at the absolute last moment when 2 opposition players are bearing down on him, giving us all a scare, and passing to defenders who themselves are surrounded by the othe side, who are straight away under pressure.
He really needs to work on it with the coaches, with other sports, if you can't do a something.... you don't do it, you practice it in training. What about not passing back to him as much, and why not say just clear it long when defenders are surrounded by the opposition, it may cut out some basic mistakes?

Following recent events we can at least be satisfied now that these basic defensive lapses are genuine errors. They are presumably being addressed in training but the message doesn't seem to be getting through - or our defenders aren't able to do it in which case I agree that we should pass back to Collin less often and focus on clearing the ball even if it means blasting it into touch.

 

[Southend Elvis]

Following recent events we can at least be satisfied now that these basic defensive lapses are genuine errors. They are presumably being addressed in training but the message doesn't seem to be getting through - or our defenders aren't able to do it in which case I agree that we should pass back to Collin less often and focus on clearing the ball even if it means blasting it into touch.

To me this stuff is basic, the goalkeeper has some sort of control of the ball so doing something simple is easier than getting technique perfect?

 

[Texas Eslan]

Lots of negativity on here, and in some cases rightly so, but after taking some time to think about it I don’t see it as being quite as bad as has been said on here.

Sure we lost 3-1 but really we should have won that game and I think the frustration of some is more from the fact that on another day we win that game comfortably (especially if we take one of the numerous chances we created in the first half).

One game lost. We aren’t on a terrible run. Bonne and KAF are both coming in without a preseason so will take some time to get fully fit. Other key players injured such as Miley and Walker.

Personally I said at the start of the season I felt we would just miss out on playoffs and my opinion is unchanged on that at the moment but we have recruited well and may just take a little time to find our rhythm.

This was always going to be a tough season after all the crap of the past few years. High expectations but difficult to deliver on them in such a short period of time. Stay patient and the rewards will come.

 

[Simon Templar]

So that was quite a bit different compared to the quality on display for the Eastleigh game. I got the impression most our team looked a bit jaded,and weren’t up for the fight. With two fixtures a week, hopefully training is at a bare minimum. Tired players won’t win matches. As for the strikers, it’s a bit early to pass judgement as they are all relatively new signings. That said, I’m not sure that despite all his hard work Bim is the answer, only time will tell. ( Bonne should have scored ) Midfielder,Appiah-Forson looks like he should start if fit enough. With regard to Collin, he is a good keeper and kept us in so many games last season. Often with outstanding saves. But he’s being asked far too often to do a defender’s job. Decent defenders push forward with the ball. All this constantly passing back and forth to the keeper would be enough to make even Gordon Banks go weak at the knees! Really thought we’d get a win, against a team who hadn’t won in five games. But the energy levels of last Tuesday just weren’t there. It’s early days I know but hopefully things will begin to improve as we move forward through the season.

 

[Texas Eslan]

Oh and while I’m here…what an absolutely dreadful referee that was yesterday.

 

[Southend Elvis]

Following recent events we can at least be satisfied now that these basic defensive lapses are genuine errors. They are presumably being addressed in training but the message doesn't seem to be getting through - or our defenders aren't able to do it in which case I agree that we should pass back to Collin less often and focus on clearing the ball even if it means blasting it into touch.

I wonder how many goals we have scored when we play it out from back compared to goals we have let in from trying it, years ago this wasn't a thing...

 

[blues exile]

Over the years that we have been stuck in the NL time and time again we have failed to deal with physical, in your face, man marking teams like Sutton, Boreham Wood, Bromley etc and until the coaching staff address this we will never get out of this league. Sometimes you have to fight fire with fire, nice tippy tappy patterns don't work against the likes of Sutton. Together with the abysmal, cowardly referring on show yesterdsy where the official was more concerned with using his spray to mark the correct spot for a freekick than blowing up for GBH by the Sutton thugs, we were doomed to lose. Tiredness, individual errors and lack of streetwise savvy all played a part of course but Maher and co must surely have done their homework and known what to expect.

 

[graingerroad54]

Could be worse, Gateshead fans have had their weekend ruined . Can you imagine our thouhts if this happens to us when we go there

 

[Shrimper83]

My view on yesterday, 1st half I thought we dominated the ball but didn't have too many chances that threatened Steve Arnold. Moncur oozes class at this level, only problem is looks like teams man Mark him so other players need to be intelligent and use the space Moncur creates by drawing players out. The mistake at half time cost us the goal obviously we didn't deserve to be level at half time. Mistakes happen totally get that. The second half before we actually got going another mistake causes us to be behind. We have seen Collin's distribution be a problem for quite a while now at Oldham Paul Clark mentioned that his distribution was poor giving balls straight back to opposition. This time they used the ball well and scored. In the first half he got caught when the ball went back to him from a closing down forward you'd think he's learn his lesson. Problem I see going forward is other teams will target him on pass backs! The third goal was well worked and we had changed formation to get the goal back so we opened up a little. Sutton look a decent outfit with a manager that will do okay.

Good to see Steve Arnold back. Didn't even realise Matty Rush had signed for these was he at Hornchurch with Morrison?

We don't have to worry about how far we are behind the leaders, I don't see a team that will run away with like chesterfield etc and looking back at last year we had 10 points deducted had hardly a squad and missed out on playoffs by 3 points!

Let's get behind the players in the ground seemed very quiet yesterday.

Player wise if we was going to bring anyone in I'd like to see another keeper brought in even just to compete for Number 1. An experienced Centre Back.
A forward even tho I did like what pebble did yesterday we need options especially as we can bring on 5 subs every game and injuries will happen

 

[They Call It Madness!!!]

Good to see Steve Arnold back. Didn't even realise Matty Rush had signed for these was he at Hornchurch with Morrison?

He started last season on fire at Aveley, Maidstone bought him and he managed to bag double figures comfortably.

Sutton signed him in pre season.