Post-Match Thread and Ratings Southend United 2-0 Boston United

[CM2 Blue]

Good to see such a controlled performance last night although I felt we had more in the tank than we showed. Pleasing to see the sharpness was considerably improved compared to our rather leggy performance against York and with it came greater movement and speed of pass. All in all a decent performance against a side clearly trying to find their feet in the NL.

Like others on here I think there is a decent player in Waldron. With more game time I think he will show what Maher saw in him to bring him here although I agree another striker with perhaps a more natural instinct for goal is needed to turn the chances we create in to goals.

I know Mooney didn’t deliver what we hoped he would when he was with us but I was disappointed to hear the boos as he left the field. I thought he deserved more respect.

 

[RHB]

Taylor is always MOM lol, you just know he is going to make the tackle.

Tatlor's defending, tackling and general cover is first class, so why do I shudder when he marauds forward into the oppo's half? Probably because neither he nor I know what he's going to do with ball when he gets to where he's going. Stick to your half of the pitch Harry, mate, you know it makes sense.

 

[RHB]

The outlook from Boston. Rather cloudy with occasional showers by the look of things.

Southend A

Southend A

www.bufc.drfox.org.uk

 

[Supershrimper]

The outlook from Boston. Rather cloudy with occasional showers by the look of things.

Southend A

Southend A

www.bufc.drfox.org.uk

Real hive of activity on that forum.

 

[Chris Powell's mate]

Also thought Waldron put a great shift in tonight. Doesn’t deserve half the stick he has got on here

As said earlier, it's not about the work rate: it's about the product.

 

[Barling Magna]

I too thought the floodlights looked dim last night on the live stream. Someone had accidentally turned down the wick?

 

[kentblues]

Os fan (and closet Shrimper due to family) here in peace. Moncur is a class act but don't wait for him to be fit, he's never been fit. He was top player here in E10 but only for half a game and not the guy you need when you have to scrap. I hope he can provide what you need but don't wish for too much too often. I understand we're still paying a huge chunk of his massive wages.

Yes thank you sincerely for subsidising our wage bill. It is much appreciated.

From last night it was obvious he brings exactly what we need in the retention and creativity department- something we have particularly needed.

It was however alarming when he decided to track back 60m make a last ditch interception in our box, dribble out and spray a pass to set up a counter attack- we certainly suspect that was an aberration. And he was blowing a bit for a minute of two after.

Our level and his role in a 5 across midfield (we play genuine wing backs) I think will suit him very well and certainly he will get more minutes as a result. Frankly 60m minutes of him at this level, and given it’s more than ever a squad game, is a big win.

Good luck in the season- spend the wages freed up wisely.

 

[kentblues]

Really enjoyed that tonight. Should have been more but 3 points and a clean sheet so more than happy with that. Think Collin was great tonight with the ball at his feet. Always an option for the defence too which was great to see.

Yes his distribution is really coming on- clearly something he has worked on very hard

 

[BoyWonder2]

Firstly, I thought that was an incredibly thoroughly and professional performance.

Credit to Boston. I don’t think our early goal helped them, that would have certainly changed their game plan, but I felt they tried their best to keep the football, play out from the back and work hard. They lacked a bit of quality, and it could be a long season for them, but their fans did them proud too. Yes, we could and should have scored more, but we did what we needed to do. I also didn’t like the reaction our fans gave to Mooney. He was part of a horrible period here, had a lot of off the field battles, suffered with homesickness too, and didn’t deserve to have his every touch booed. I thought he might have got a nice reception when he came off, but the booing continued which was a real shame to see. A lot of our boys went and found him at full time and plenty of hugs with them, which was nice to see.

Cards’ goal, which I thought the referee would blow for, really set us up, and showed both him and Waldron had the beating of them for pace. Often Ralph played that ball over the top and we created chances, won corners and throw ins and so forth from them. Couple of people around me didn’t like it, but it was working so go with it is my thought.

Boston will have to make changes to how they play. They played a very high line and we created chances from that. They needed to drop 10/15 yards deeper and ask questions of us instead of giving us an easy out. It was football suicide, akin to Spurs last season with 9 men against Chelsea.

We kept hold of the ball very well, and I don’t feel like we hit top gear, but played well and was probably a 7.5 out of 10. Two goals, hit the bar, keeper made a great save off Cards, Waldron could have had a couple too.

Brilliant to see Noor back. I think him, and Bridge will really click with Moncur. They’ll play some delightful football between them three.

One player, who hasn’t been highlighted so far, but I’m going to do it is Oli Coker. The general consensus is our midfield three will be Miley, Husin and Moncur, and one paper that is the best combination. However, I feel Coker is really growing into a tidy player, in the mould of his manager. He is generally a 7 out of 10, without ever really grabbing the headlines. He does chip in with the odd goal, but feel like he can box crash more and up with goal contribution numbers. I felt he looked assured and kept us ticking over nicely.

Final word on Moncur. He looks a player, and a 60% fit Moncur is going to be better than a lot of National League players. He isn’t going to be a 90 minute player, and I doubt he plays Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday especially when the pitches get heavy, but he just glides across the pitch and you can see he is a real technician. His first contribution to the game was to drop his shoulder and ghost past his man, who brought him down for a yellow card. His 60 yard sprint back to intercept a dangerous counter attack, and then have the composure on the ball to find Bridge was terrific. We might have to pick and choose when we use him, maybe more at home to break down those sides that sit in a low block, rather than away from home, but what a joy he is to watch. Worth the wait with that transfer saga.

 

[henry18]

Well last night showed the difference in class between the relegation sides to the sides chasing a playoff spot.

Colin was in pretty much playing as a sweeper last night but as others have mentioned his distribution was spot on, his a goalkeeper that is very confident to receive the ball to feet and that is imperative to the way Kev wants us playing.

Man of the match for me was Ralph, he is so much better playing in that LCB position and he linked up really well with bridge last night, clipped some perfect balls into the channels for the forwards to chase (and win 9/10).

I feel for Boston, they lost there 2 strikers from last season and looking on last nights showing have far from replaced them ! Let’s hope we can take that into Barnet on Saturday as that will be a completely different game.

 

[Fairport]

I too thought the floodlights looked dim last night on the live stream. Someone had accidentally turned down the wick?

They need upgrading like most areas of the stadium.

 

[RHB]

They need upgrading like most areas of the stadium.

The list of stuff to be done at Roots Hall is probably long and daunting, but the flood lights would be nowhere near the top of any list of mine. The lighting was more than adequate, there was no shadowing on any area of the pitch and all bulbs appeared present. Now, the chaos that is at the rear of the West stand is an entirely different matter.

 

[Thundersley Blue]

Difficult to gauge this performance in view of how poor Boston were. We should have scored more than two and maybe try to keep in on the deck more with through balls to the front runners instead of too many hit and hope crosses. The high point was seeing what a proper attacking midfielder looks like at last. Moncur was a class above and so encouraging to see him make an instant impact. Sterner tests to come but plenty to take heart from.

I disagree with your assessment. They played as a team and never stopped trying. However, they are a decent side playing a level too high, but that doesn't make them poor. I will reserve judgement on Moncur until he is fit enough to play a full game. Mind a midfield that can include Husin and Moncur at some point should be a joy to watch.

 

[Hawkwell Blue]

Final word on Moncur. He looks a player, and a 60% fit Moncur is going to be better than a lot of National League players. He isn’t going to be a 90 minute player, and I doubt he plays Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday especially when the pitches get heavy, but he just glides across the pitch and you can see he is a real technician. His first contribution to the game was to drop his shoulder and ghost past his man, who brought him down for a yellow card. His 60 yard sprint back to intercept a dangerous counter attack, and then have the composure on the ball to find Bridge was terrific. We might have to pick and choose when we use him, maybe more at home to break down those sides that sit in a low block, rather than away from home, but what a joy he is to watch. Worth the wait with that transfer saga.

So he should be okay on Saturday and Monday then

 

[Jmayhew32]

I start by saying I wasn't at the hall yesterday to see the game, but note that some say that we should be beating teams like Boston by more than 2 goals. I don't disagree but this feels similar to that 0-0 against Oxford last season where it stopped a run of defeats and added confidence to the side.

This win, albeit 2-0 against relegation favourites Boston, just gives us that confidence to kick on now, and hopefully we can back that up by avoiding defeat against Barnet, and a win on Monday against Dagenham. 4-6 points from the next two games will be very nice indeed.

 

[Barry.C]

Just a quick sub note on the subs !

Pleased to see Wind get a brief cameo in which he looked very good. Did my eyed decieve me or did Moreton show a turn of pace id not seen before. I think as fellow Christians he will do very well with Moncur on and off he pitch. Gubbins fitted in quickly at the back and made a couple of decent key interventions

What a delight though to see such a craftsmen as George Moncur, Fabulous skills on display and more to come

A full 7 on the bench was great and one of quality. At some stage Wood will get a turn and certainly Crowther a star waiting to shine. ? Probably get more goals from set pieces with him when we need it

Only concern at the moment is one more Hammy upfront and Gubbins is in the forward line? slight exaggeration perhaps but 7 on average per season is to be expected and with Pedder and Walker weve succumbed to two early doors, which is fairly common

 

[HertfordshireBlue]

I think Waldron is struggling due to the player we thought we were going to get - a poacher and bagsman but we haven’t seen that side which is probably a detriment to how we view his game - but his impact on the game cannot be understated he was nothing but a nuisance in Boston’s back line causing mayhem and was the main reason why Cardwell was allowed to shine.. I recall tailing off towards the end of last year he really impressed me with his work rate, strength and determination and as stated above - although not scoring - he’s definitely earning his place in that starting 11.

 

[Supa Shrimpa]

What was up with Walker, by the way ? Injured ?

 

[BoyWonder2]

What was up with Walker, by the way ? Injured ?

Yes. Felt him hamstring at the end of training on Monday.

This is from the Echo:

SOUTHEND United striker Josh Walker was forced to miss tonight's 2-0 win against Boston United due to a hamstring injury.


Walker, who started the first two games of the season, picked up the problem towards the end of training on Monday.

But Blues boss Kevin Maher is still unsure how serious the injury setback will prove to be.

"It was only at the end of training yesterday he felt something so we’ll have to see how that settles down," said Maher.

"We’ll have to see what the damage is but fingers crossed it won’t be too bad."


Walker was replaced in attack by Danny Waldron who made his first start of the season.

And Maher was pleased with the forward's work-rate.

"He ran the channels ever so well and had the chance he couldn’t quite take," said Maher.

"Overall it was really pleasing."

But Maher is still on the look-out for another striker.

"It’s easy to sign players but you have to sign the right ones," said Maher.

"That’s the most important thing and we’re looking.

"Whether it’s before Saturday though I don’t know."

 

[Blues4LifeDan]

Firstly, what a great evening and performance, utterly dominant.

I called for Husin to start and I felt that was better than coming on, I'm glad Kev did. Wow that lad has an engine on him, he was everywhere and we look a totally different team when he plays. Coker was equally at it too, covering every blade of grass and constantly showing for the ball.

Some will say Bridge had a quieter game but just having him on that lefthand side, makes the opposition shuffle over, which releases the right hand side. We looked far more balanced with him there. It makes Ralph play better too.

Defense were their solid self (1 goal conceded in 3 games, not too shabby) and why Maher changed that back 3 still bewilders me, but one hopes that won't happen again.

Cards is just such a good player and I feel a little underrated at times. He's never going to produce McCallum numbers but he does so much more. His work rate, pace, power, hold-up play, knock-ons and goals make him a complete forward. There aren't many out there and we need to enjoy him. Waldron also worked his socks off and should have taken his chance. If he is going to get goals, you feel it would be against sides like Boston.

Anyone moaning about not scoring more needs to take a moment. We played free flowing, attacking football and won comfortably. Many need to get out of this elitist mentality and just enjoy and support what's in front of them. No one can come away from last night and say they were disappointed or not entertained. I for one cannot wait to see how we fair against the promotion favourites (bookies favourites preseason) on Saturday. Bring it on! Utb!