sufcintheprem
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I was very unsure what to expect today against an Oldham side who had made a decent start to the season but I knew little about. By chance, I ended up going to the game with an Oldham fan who was visiting a mate of mine but from his dramtic reactions, it was difficult to get much information out of him!
The first half was, without doubt, Southend's and the scoreline very much reflected the dominance. Oldham were poor and with Maher and Guttridge in the middle, Southend had both the guile to use the ball well and the tenacity to win it back. Oldham, when they got the ball down looked as though they had a decent style about their play if they could get going but clearly the overawing prospect of Roots Hall had reduced them to sloppy touches and misplaced passes. Not normal misplaced passes, passes that bisected the angle between teammates. Equally, not normal sloppy touches but touches whereby you are caught in possession on the half way line without even a challenge to the player who ahs dispossessed you.
I freely admit I have not seen a lot of Lawson but he was linking up well with Goater who, again, looked a class above with some of his touches but seemed slightly baffled by our tactical rejigging in the second half. Lawson had shown good movement, anticipation and remarkable composure in the game and it would be deemed fairytale stuff if only a signing from Grays last year hadn't forced a rewrite of fairytales for fear of them being too realistic.
Another Grays signing, Cole, picked the ball up after a dangerous Gower cross had eluded everyone and stood the ball up for the unmarked Lawson to nod the ball in the far corner. He didn't make the contact he would have liked but the ball ended up in the net and the look on his face was priceless.
Oldham were at sixes and sevens and continued to return the ball cheaply to us every time and Goater hit the bar with a great header after an excellent whipped delivery from Gower. The subdued crowd livened up a bit in response to the game and it was no surprise when Cole was again provider as he cut inside and curled a ball to the back post with his wrong foot where Gower finished expertly with a diving header. At the time, I thought it was routine. Certainly TV replays show that it was a decent finish on the run.
Half time came and whilst we were two nil up, I really felt that we should have had three and killed off the game. Teams rarely play poorly for the whole 90 minutes and Ronnie Moore has certainly been around enough to recognise that changes were needed.
In spite of Oldham raising their game in the second half, not a lot seemed to happen in the first 15 minutes as Southend continued to press in midfield and cause problems up front. It was only when Oldham switched things around that they suddenly looked more menacing. Certainly, Liddell got more of the ball and I'm not sure whether this is a weakness of ours but he managed to get a lot of joy by clipping a ball in between Che and the centre backs to onrushing midfielders.
Oldham deservedly clawed one back when, again I think it came down our left, a ball went in to the box and the striker and midfielder linked up superbly for a layoff to be smashed in first time on the run. Excellent goal really but we needed to make it harder for their big frontman to play how he wanted.
I have no idea what happened but for an unknown reason, the defence made a handful of serious mistakes in the second half and indeed throughout the match that I thought we were lucky to get away with. In fact, Hunt and Edwards seemed to play very well and keep their side quiet but Barrett was conspicuous with some poor decisions and whilst Che was generally solid, one pass in the second half, straight to their attacker, could have cost us dear.
In spite of the defence, the midfield continued to dominate the centre of the park and Maher and Guttridge started supporting the defence. Both were superb today and Guttridge is really showing signs of being a complete midfeilder with tough tackling, neat passing and a threat going forwards.
It did get a bit nervy towards the end as we failed to keep the ball away from our goal and Oldham corners always looked dangerous but were just about kept out by Flahavan.
Overall, I think we deserved the win but do not think it was comfortable by any means. Regrettably, we didn't have the game dead and buried in the first half but points win prizes and if we dot hat every home game for the rest of the year, I'll be happy.
Actually seems to have turned int o a match report. Oh well.
Player ratings
Flahavan - 7 - Did all that was required. His handling definitely seems to have improved but those corners still give me the heeby jeebies!
Hunt - 8 - I was informed that their left winger was quite quick but apart from one first half instance, I think Lewis kept him very quiet. Linked up well with the midfield.
Edwards - 8 - Tricky game against a very physical attack and lots of long stuff. Rarely got caught out and certainly looked the senior of the back four.
Barrett - 6 - Tried hard but at times tried too much and could have been punished either side of half time. A few more hoofs and a bit less dance out of defence and the rating would be higher.
Wilson - 6 - Generally looked pretty solid but failed to impose himself on the game. Happy enough with him there and he won't be found wanting for effort but still the odd moment still happens regularly.
Cole - 6 - Mixed game for Mitch really. Created both goals with well placed cross but the defence assisted by not marking. Again, showed glimpses of his talent. Will definitely get better.
Maher - 8 - Typical Maher performance. Always demanding the ball and keeping the play moving whilst working tirelessly to defend the back four. Seems to relish playing with Gutts. Could be tricky for Bents/Smith
Guttridge - 9 - MOTM - I think we are starting to see the best of this boy. Touch, vision, passing range and an eager and fierce tackler. Seems like a steal from Cambridge and took a lot of the burden off of Maher to make things happen. It will be horses for courses as far as his, Bents' and Smith's appearances go but we look so wonderfully fluid with him and Maher together.
Gower - 7.5 - Did a lot well and is looking much better than alst year. Well taken goal and a beautiful cross for Goater's crossbar-bound effort.
Goater - 8 - Just looks class! Really will be an asset this season and today he showed that, although he waned slightly at the end, he'll still be playing a lot of minutes. Desperately unlucky with a header that had Root Hall on its feet.
Lawson - 7.5 - Very good first half but struggled a little in teh second with less midfield support. In terms of a prospect though, he seems to be the best homegrown player we've had since Roget.
SUBS:
Bentley - 6 - Never looked comfortable on the wing and made little impact.
Smith - 6.5 - Not sure where he was playing becuase of the apparent switch to 4-5-1 and he seemed unsure himself. Still needs a few more matches but he does seem to have bulked out a bit.
Prior - 5 - Not sure what he was sent on to do but I'm pretty sure he didn't do it! My only guess is to help out with corners
OLDHAM:
Much like Port Vale, I felt, they came down and only played one good half of football. Too many silly mistakes and long balls and thirty minutes of decent football generally doesn't get you points. Can almost certainly play better and Moore will be letting them know this.
The first half was, without doubt, Southend's and the scoreline very much reflected the dominance. Oldham were poor and with Maher and Guttridge in the middle, Southend had both the guile to use the ball well and the tenacity to win it back. Oldham, when they got the ball down looked as though they had a decent style about their play if they could get going but clearly the overawing prospect of Roots Hall had reduced them to sloppy touches and misplaced passes. Not normal misplaced passes, passes that bisected the angle between teammates. Equally, not normal sloppy touches but touches whereby you are caught in possession on the half way line without even a challenge to the player who ahs dispossessed you.
I freely admit I have not seen a lot of Lawson but he was linking up well with Goater who, again, looked a class above with some of his touches but seemed slightly baffled by our tactical rejigging in the second half. Lawson had shown good movement, anticipation and remarkable composure in the game and it would be deemed fairytale stuff if only a signing from Grays last year hadn't forced a rewrite of fairytales for fear of them being too realistic.
Another Grays signing, Cole, picked the ball up after a dangerous Gower cross had eluded everyone and stood the ball up for the unmarked Lawson to nod the ball in the far corner. He didn't make the contact he would have liked but the ball ended up in the net and the look on his face was priceless.
Oldham were at sixes and sevens and continued to return the ball cheaply to us every time and Goater hit the bar with a great header after an excellent whipped delivery from Gower. The subdued crowd livened up a bit in response to the game and it was no surprise when Cole was again provider as he cut inside and curled a ball to the back post with his wrong foot where Gower finished expertly with a diving header. At the time, I thought it was routine. Certainly TV replays show that it was a decent finish on the run.
Half time came and whilst we were two nil up, I really felt that we should have had three and killed off the game. Teams rarely play poorly for the whole 90 minutes and Ronnie Moore has certainly been around enough to recognise that changes were needed.
In spite of Oldham raising their game in the second half, not a lot seemed to happen in the first 15 minutes as Southend continued to press in midfield and cause problems up front. It was only when Oldham switched things around that they suddenly looked more menacing. Certainly, Liddell got more of the ball and I'm not sure whether this is a weakness of ours but he managed to get a lot of joy by clipping a ball in between Che and the centre backs to onrushing midfielders.
Oldham deservedly clawed one back when, again I think it came down our left, a ball went in to the box and the striker and midfielder linked up superbly for a layoff to be smashed in first time on the run. Excellent goal really but we needed to make it harder for their big frontman to play how he wanted.
I have no idea what happened but for an unknown reason, the defence made a handful of serious mistakes in the second half and indeed throughout the match that I thought we were lucky to get away with. In fact, Hunt and Edwards seemed to play very well and keep their side quiet but Barrett was conspicuous with some poor decisions and whilst Che was generally solid, one pass in the second half, straight to their attacker, could have cost us dear.
In spite of the defence, the midfield continued to dominate the centre of the park and Maher and Guttridge started supporting the defence. Both were superb today and Guttridge is really showing signs of being a complete midfeilder with tough tackling, neat passing and a threat going forwards.
It did get a bit nervy towards the end as we failed to keep the ball away from our goal and Oldham corners always looked dangerous but were just about kept out by Flahavan.
Overall, I think we deserved the win but do not think it was comfortable by any means. Regrettably, we didn't have the game dead and buried in the first half but points win prizes and if we dot hat every home game for the rest of the year, I'll be happy.
Actually seems to have turned int o a match report. Oh well.
Player ratings
Flahavan - 7 - Did all that was required. His handling definitely seems to have improved but those corners still give me the heeby jeebies!
Hunt - 8 - I was informed that their left winger was quite quick but apart from one first half instance, I think Lewis kept him very quiet. Linked up well with the midfield.
Edwards - 8 - Tricky game against a very physical attack and lots of long stuff. Rarely got caught out and certainly looked the senior of the back four.
Barrett - 6 - Tried hard but at times tried too much and could have been punished either side of half time. A few more hoofs and a bit less dance out of defence and the rating would be higher.
Wilson - 6 - Generally looked pretty solid but failed to impose himself on the game. Happy enough with him there and he won't be found wanting for effort but still the odd moment still happens regularly.
Cole - 6 - Mixed game for Mitch really. Created both goals with well placed cross but the defence assisted by not marking. Again, showed glimpses of his talent. Will definitely get better.
Maher - 8 - Typical Maher performance. Always demanding the ball and keeping the play moving whilst working tirelessly to defend the back four. Seems to relish playing with Gutts. Could be tricky for Bents/Smith
Guttridge - 9 - MOTM - I think we are starting to see the best of this boy. Touch, vision, passing range and an eager and fierce tackler. Seems like a steal from Cambridge and took a lot of the burden off of Maher to make things happen. It will be horses for courses as far as his, Bents' and Smith's appearances go but we look so wonderfully fluid with him and Maher together.
Gower - 7.5 - Did a lot well and is looking much better than alst year. Well taken goal and a beautiful cross for Goater's crossbar-bound effort.
Goater - 8 - Just looks class! Really will be an asset this season and today he showed that, although he waned slightly at the end, he'll still be playing a lot of minutes. Desperately unlucky with a header that had Root Hall on its feet.
Lawson - 7.5 - Very good first half but struggled a little in teh second with less midfield support. In terms of a prospect though, he seems to be the best homegrown player we've had since Roget.
SUBS:
Bentley - 6 - Never looked comfortable on the wing and made little impact.
Smith - 6.5 - Not sure where he was playing becuase of the apparent switch to 4-5-1 and he seemed unsure himself. Still needs a few more matches but he does seem to have bulked out a bit.
Prior - 5 - Not sure what he was sent on to do but I'm pretty sure he didn't do it! My only guess is to help out with corners
OLDHAM:
Much like Port Vale, I felt, they came down and only played one good half of football. Too many silly mistakes and long balls and thirty minutes of decent football generally doesn't get you points. Can almost certainly play better and Moore will be letting them know this.
