Chrisb
Forever Blue⭐⭐🦐
Agree, Coker is willing to take a shot at goal, even if that forces a save then hopefully someone in for the rebound. Reckon that is what is needed for the last two games.
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Pre-Match Thread Southend United v Wealdstone, Saturday 26th April, 17:30 ko, NL
- Thread starter Shrimpergonzo
- Start date
overseas shrimper
Life President⭐🦐
Well done, you gone and right f****d it now!
Blues4LifeDan
Manager
Totally agree. Coker's goal away at daggers last season springs to mind, when he swept it into the top corner from the edge of the box. He had a similar shot saved at Ebbsfleet before he scored. The one key thing about his game is he isn't afraid to try.
As much as I am a huge admirer of Parillon, all of his efforts have been very tame thus far. Hopefully that will change when he gets a full time pre-season into his legs. KAF scored a fantastic goal at Solihull but you don't feel he is going to get you 10-15 goals from midfield, more of a ball carrier and linkup player. Husin, Miley and Morton definitely won't get many goals. Coker is the only one at the moment that has the tools to do so. Therefore, he starts for me.
Exiled Shrimper
Manager
League goals per start/game by central midfielders (minimum 10 starts):
Appiah-Forson 2 in 13/34 (0.15 per start/0.06 per game)
Coker 11 in 45/66 (0.24/0.17)
Husin 8 in 119/130 (0.07/0.06)
Miley 2 in 93/105 (0.02/0.02)
Morton 1 in 42/60 (0.02/0.02)
Parillon 0 in 11/16 (0.00/0.00)
—
Moncur 0 in 12/13 (0.00/0.00)
Fonguck 5 in 53/73 (0.09/0.07)
Atkinson 10 in 160/187 (0.06/0.05)
Dunne 2 in 18/23 (0.11/0.09)
Ferguson 3 in 28/39 (0.11/0.08)
Neal 0 in 19/22 (0.00/0.00)
Dieng 8 in 94/100 (0.09/0.08)
Hutchinson 1 in 16/32 (0.06/0.03)
McCormack 18 in 145/166 (0.12/0.11)
Olayinka 2 in 17/20 (0.12/0.10)
K Taylor 1 in 21/31 (0.05/0.03)
Hamilton 0 in 12/14 (0.00/0.00)
Hyam 1 in 13/23 (0.08/0.04)
Mantom 7 in 70/72 (0.10/0.10)
Kightly 7 in 43/73 (0.16/0.10)
Yearwood 0 in 45/53 (0.00/0.00)
Timlin 13 in 207/222 (0.06/0.06)
Wordsworth 18 in 69/79 (0.26/0.23)
Wright 1 in 19/23 (0.05/0.04)
In short, we’ve not had a central midfielder as prolific as Oli Coker since Anthony Wordsworth.
Appiah-Forson 2 in 13/34 (0.15 per start/0.06 per game)
Coker 11 in 45/66 (0.24/0.17)
Husin 8 in 119/130 (0.07/0.06)
Miley 2 in 93/105 (0.02/0.02)
Morton 1 in 42/60 (0.02/0.02)
Parillon 0 in 11/16 (0.00/0.00)
—
Moncur 0 in 12/13 (0.00/0.00)
Fonguck 5 in 53/73 (0.09/0.07)
Atkinson 10 in 160/187 (0.06/0.05)
Dunne 2 in 18/23 (0.11/0.09)
Ferguson 3 in 28/39 (0.11/0.08)
Neal 0 in 19/22 (0.00/0.00)
Dieng 8 in 94/100 (0.09/0.08)
Hutchinson 1 in 16/32 (0.06/0.03)
McCormack 18 in 145/166 (0.12/0.11)
Olayinka 2 in 17/20 (0.12/0.10)
K Taylor 1 in 21/31 (0.05/0.03)
Hamilton 0 in 12/14 (0.00/0.00)
Hyam 1 in 13/23 (0.08/0.04)
Mantom 7 in 70/72 (0.10/0.10)
Kightly 7 in 43/73 (0.16/0.10)
Yearwood 0 in 45/53 (0.00/0.00)
Timlin 13 in 207/222 (0.06/0.06)
Wordsworth 18 in 69/79 (0.26/0.23)
Wright 1 in 19/23 (0.05/0.04)
In short, we’ve not had a central midfielder as prolific as Oli Coker since Anthony Wordsworth.
Blues4LifeDan
Manager
Husin's stats are absolutely horrid for such a talented player. I'm pretty sure his assist tally isn't much better either.
kentblues
Director⭐
Midfielders who score exist - we simply don’t seem interested in signing them. If Coker wasn’t already ours maybe we wouldn’t take sign him either.
Local boy Josh Rees has 75 goals in 295 appearances (start or sub) in the NL with 21 assists.
29 goals and 11 assists in 89 appearances most recently at Daggers…
352 provides a great opportunity to accommodate an attacking MF
Other alternatives exist.
No doubt would involve a level of investing in the team but what is the point of 9k plus gates if you can’t compete with Daggers…
Last edited:
Magnum PI
Private Detective
Phil Brown preferred James Dunne and the Rees deal fell through. Good old Phil
Blues4LifeDan
Manager
I've constantly voiced my desire to sign Rees for several seasons. Given up now!
* ORM *
Still Loves Emma Bunton. Roy McDonough is God!
Alan Devonshire 358 games for the Hammers 29 goals. That’s 3-4 per season. Hardly prolific but undroppable. Then again when you have Trevor Brooking 88 in 528 goalscoring isn’t your primary asset.
We have the former, just need the latter. We’ve been blessed with some greats over the years. Maybe Parillon fits the bill or maybe that’s a between season target. FWIW Coker and KAF both excite me but I’m sure we can upgrade on at least one of them.
We have the former, just need the latter. We’ve been blessed with some greats over the years. Maybe Parillon fits the bill or maybe that’s a between season target. FWIW Coker and KAF both excite me but I’m sure we can upgrade on at least one of them.
Somerset Ex-TTB
Members
Coker was one of my first names on the team sheet at the start of the season, but he had a massive drop off of from mid season, and looked like a Sunday league player at times.
Last couple of games he has looking much more like his early season self.
Last couple of games he has looking much more like his early season self.
pottster
Schoolboy⭐
Should be a good turn out, and a great atmosphere at the game. However, who knows what team is going to turn up and play. The team is so inconsistent that any result is possible. I don't think it's a problem just linked with southend, all the teams in this league seem to be like it!
Me too, but I suspect that ship has sailed now.
Rees will be 32 in October, so will have limited shelf life now for a box to box midfielder. I suspect we'll be looking for a younger player if we're in the market for another central midfielder (which I'm not sure we will be with Miley, Morton, Husin, Coker, Parillon and Appiah-Forson all under contract for at least another year).
Anyway, back on topic - which of these should start tomorrow?
If Morton is not fully fit (which it sounds like he's not from Kev's pre-match interview), I'm not sure why Miley isn't being considered in the holding role which may allow us to play Keenan and Parillon from the start and really go at Wealdstone. I'm worried if we start with Coker and Husin then we might be a bit tippy tappy across the pitch again and struggle to break them down, like against Braintree.
Exiled Shrimper
Manager
Goal involvements for central midfielders 2024/25 (league only):
Coker: 5 goals + 4 assists in 1899 minutes (a goal involvement every 211 minutes)
Parillon: 0 goals + 4 assists in 995 minutes (a goal involvement every 249 minutes)
Appiah-Forson: 2 goals + 1 assist in 1635 minutes (a goal involvement every 545 minutes)
Morton: 0 goals + 2 assists in 3101 minutes (a goal involvement every 1551 minutes)
Husin: 1 goal + 0 assists in 3281 minutes (a goal involvement every 3281 minutes)
Miley: 0 goals + 0 assists in 1258 minutes (no goal involvements)
Last season Husin scored 4 league goals and contributed 1 assist in 3690 minutes, so a goal involvement every 738 minutes. I would say that he (as well as Coker (6+3 in 2274 minutes, a goal involvement every 253 minutes) on occasions) was deployed in a more deep-lying role at times when Miley wasn't available so this season, with Miley or Morton able to perform that role more often, this demonstrates how disappointing a campaign Husin has had. Husin had an average of 1.5 shots per game in 2023/24; this season that has dropped significantly to 0.9.
Just for comparison, Josh Rees has 13 goals and 4 assists in 3510 minutes (in a struggling Daggers team) this season, which is a goal involvement every 207 minutes, so Coker compares fairly well with that.
The Academy has consistently produced decent attacking midfield options to play either in midfield or as a number 10 in modern parlance. Jack Bridge came through in that position, then Jack Payne, followed by Coker and then Henry Sandat, so I don't believe it's a role that the club ignores purposefully, even if we haven't necessarily recruited heavily in that position.
I actually think, and have said before, Coker is a more rounded player now than he was coming through in the Academy, and his output shouldn't just be judged by goal involvements (as, indeed, it's not worth doing with Morton and Miley because they are performing a different role for the team). He does a lot of unfussy, unnoticed things in midfield; he makes intelligent runs off the ball, he links play with crisper passing than many of his team-mates and defensively he is improving; if you check out Pepple's goal at Halifax, which was largely heralded as a goal out of nothing, it came about before Morton pressed an opponent into a mistake, turning over possession, and that was only possible because Coker swept round to cover the space he would normally occupy, creating a solid base from which to press from.
I suspect the club have plenty of data on Parillon that isn't as freely available on the internet, and that he is being eyed as the preferred option in an attacking midfield role, but I agree that 3-5-2 provides an opportunity to play at least one goalscoring midfielder, if not two options in that role.
As for tomorrow, I'd probably stick with the midfield that started at Ebbsfleet, allowing us to bring Parillon off the bench as a genuine attacking option if the game is tight and we need something in the second half, although I appreciate there's also a valid argument for starting with Parillon and Coker and trying to get ahead of the game early.
SUFCGoals
Striker
Some of those stats don’t seem too accurate at the top. The best source for accurate stats is Playmaker Stats.
Blues4LifeDan
Manager
On the eve of such a huge game, the feeling I've currently got is so weird but also so wonderful. I've not felt it as a Southend fan for so long. I'm absolutely buzzing but nervous in equal measure. Those are contrasting feelings in football that are only felt when something super positive could potentially happen. How long has it been since we can say we've felt that way?!!!
It's honestly unbelievable to try and fathom the feelings that were felt over a year ago before attending matches. That gut-wrenching feeling of dread, not knowing if the game would even go ahead as our water may be cut off or that we couldn't turn the lights on, or worst still, the club had died! We were living on life support, minute to minute and any comprehension of positive energy was totally unthinkable. It was the darkest black hole that any fan could endure.
Yet, I sit here giddily typing away with true excitement running through my veins and it makes me realise how grateful and happy I am that tomorrow is even possible. Let's enjoy the occasion and bask in the knowledge that our incredible club is back. Enjoy fellow shrimpers. Utb!
It's honestly unbelievable to try and fathom the feelings that were felt over a year ago before attending matches. That gut-wrenching feeling of dread, not knowing if the game would even go ahead as our water may be cut off or that we couldn't turn the lights on, or worst still, the club had died! We were living on life support, minute to minute and any comprehension of positive energy was totally unthinkable. It was the darkest black hole that any fan could endure.
Yet, I sit here giddily typing away with true excitement running through my veins and it makes me realise how grateful and happy I am that tomorrow is even possible. Let's enjoy the occasion and bask in the knowledge that our incredible club is back. Enjoy fellow shrimpers. Utb!
Exiled Shrimper
Manager
Thanks for the heads-up. Those states were from Sofascore, but here's the Playmaker Stats numbers:
Parillon: 0 goals + 5 assists in 928 minutes (a goal involvement every 186 minutes)
Coker: 5 goals + 4 assists in 1748 minutes (a goal involvement every 194 minutes)
Appiah-Forson: 2 goals + 1 assist in 1394 minutes (a goal involvement every 465 minutes)
Morton: 0 goals + 4 assists in 2868 minutes (a goal involvement every 717 minutes)
Husin: 1 goal + 1 assists in 3025 minutes (a goal involvement every 1513 minutes)
Miley: 0 goals + 0 assists in 1115 minutes (no goal involvements)
Rees: 12 goals + 6 assists in 3233 minutes (a goal involvement every 180 minutes)
So, although the stats differ slightly (mainly in terms of assists, which is always a subjective topic, but in some cases the minutes played), the points raised stand.
Fairport
Coach⭐
Yes I fully agree re Coker, should have mentioned him also.
shrimperjon
President
I thought that Chris Phillips mentioned that Morton was top of the assist list with something like 9
Exiled Shrimper
Manager
Assists are extremely subjective. For example, Morton hasn't officially been credited with an assist for Goodliffe's goal at Sutton, where he delivered a corner that was flicked-on at the near post before being volleyed home at the back post. Yet Gus Scott-Morriss has been credited with one for a header on the halfway line that was picked up by Josh Walker, who out-fought an opponent for the ball, carried it 30 yards and arrowed into the corner against AFC Fylde. I would argue Morton played a greater part in Goodliffe scoring at Sutton than Scott-Morriss did for Walker against Fylde.
Stuart W
A word to the wise is enough
I think this just goes to show how meaningless a statistic assists really are. Up there with Expected Goals.
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