Southend United Season Preview: staying within Range

Southend managed their highest finish in nearly a decade last term, having improved every season over the last five years. Supporter Callum Connolly pinpoints the main cornerstone on which this progress at Roots Hall has been built.

We’ve strived to be prudent in the transfer market and we’ve always had decent support, they’ve both played a factor. Our players tend to have a desire instilled into them never to give in, which we saw in the League Two play-off final against Wycombe and in countless games besides. It’s been an ambition of the club to get back into the Championship for a while, and we’ve shown that with our signings and general improvement on and off the pitch. We’ve added an U21 team in recent times, and we are already pushing to become a Category 2 club, with much of the club’s gratitude owed to youth coach Ricky Duncan. Things are looking up for us after a lot of hard work. Phil Brown joining the club and chairman Ron Martin’s backing of him has propelled us to having realistic dreams of being a second division outfit.

Despite the above, this blog gets a nagging sense that Phil Brown isn’t the cult hero that similarly successful managers have become elsewhere. Is there any truth in that?

I think Phil Brown will always have his critics at the club. His sometimes dramatic reaction or heavy involvement in media rubs fans the wrong way, but it is undoubted that we have progressed with him at the helm. The fact he is manager alone has drawn the likes of Simon Cox and Anton Ferdinand to Southend. However, promotion this season would dramatically change that, as we football fans are a fickle bunch!

You lost Daniel Bentley to Brentford last summer. Out of Ted Smith and Mark Oxley, which goalkeeper did the best job of replacing him?

Between the two of them, it’s hard to call. Both goalkeepers played roughly the same amount of games last season due to either form or injuries, with the pair spending the last month of the season on the treatment bench. In truth, if you asked the rest of the Shrimpers support who they thought impressed out of Smith, Oxley and loanee Christian Walton, the Brighton stopper would likely be the prime choice for most. Smith, 20, has shown glimpses of the quality that has seen him represent England at youth level but can be prone to the odd mistake. Oxley is much the same and Phil Brown remains yet undecided about who to start against Blackburn. In a fans vote on social media, Smith was the clear winner. We will see throughout the season.

Ben Coker has been among the most consistent full-backs outside the Championship while new signing Michael Kightly has thrice won promotion from that division. Excited by your left side?

Absolutely. Coker has been a fantastic servant for us and deserves to play in the Championship, and Michael Kightly is such an outstanding coup at our level – he’ll likely operate from our right side for us however, with Stephen McLaughlin on the left flank. We’ve also added Stephen Hendrie, who excelled on loan for us in an earlier spell. On both sides of the pitch we’re shaping up well.

You’ve released Luke O’Neill, who some describe as an honest but limited right-back. Does this suggest Phil Brown will build the team around the attacking verve of Jason Demetriou?

Far from it, I think. Demetriou’s pace and ability going forward is an asset for us but his defending is suspect at times. We’ll build the team around Ryan Leonard I’d imagine, our star midfielder. He has said publically that he wants to play at a higher level and we’ve rejected bids from Sheffield United and Millwall, but we’re determined to risk losing him for nothing next summer and challenge for promotion in this campaign.

Your only natural centre-back options are veterans Anton Ferdinand and Michael Turner, who have played roughly 15 league games a season for the last four years. With Adam Thompson gone, could fitness be an issue?

I’m far less worried about Ferdinand than I am with Turner. He is still more than capable of playing at this level, but the injury risk associated with him, in particular, is a concern. He was already unavailable for our last two games against Ebbsfleet and Brighton due to a hamstring issue, and it’s only pre-season. Brown is working hard to bring in a centre-back, and we are hoping that one can be recruited before our opener on the 5th of August. We’re looking to bring in another midfielder too but our lack of depth where centre-back is concerned is a major red flag at the moment.

You’ve lost creative midfielder Will Atkinson to Mansfield, who are in the division below. Do you see this as a blow?

Will was one of our most hard-working players and we were saddened and disappointed to see him depart for a level below us. Evidently, Mansfield’s seemingly endless supply of finances played a factor, but Atkinson’s lack of ambition was a shame to see in a Southend player – it’s not something we usually associate with the better players at the club. The rise of teenager Dru Yearwood has been remarkable, and the 17-year-old is in with a chance of starting the Blackburn tie. Everyone connected with the club is excited by his potential, and Atkinson has been forgotten about in truth, with the plan aiming for the club to challenge the very best in League One with the players we have.

Your other attack-minded midfielders, Anthony Wordsworth and Stephen McLaughlin, chipped in with 18 goals between them. Did they have good seasons?

Reasonably! McLaughlin was exceptional up until an injury ruled him out for a number of matches in the second-half of the season. After he returned, he didn’t quite match his form shown earlier in the campaign, but his outstanding performances helped propel the club back into play-off contention after an arduous start. Wordsworth had the unenvied task of replacing Jack Payne’s playmaking qualities following his departure to Huddersfield, and did well. In the league, the pair actually scored nineteen goals between them and created a further six. Like a number of our players, Wordsworth does struggle with injuries – he’s currently missed pre-season with a niggling problem – but he is one of our finest attacking outlets.

At the time of writing, it’s still unclear where deep-lying midfielder Ryan Leonard will be at Roots Hall this season. How important will it be to keep hold of him?

It is imperative to our promotion push to keep Lenny. Fortunately, our chairman convinced him to withdraw his transfer request and seems intent on retaining him. He has turned down a three-year deal, but isn’t the type of player to sulk and will understand the club’s decision and give his all in the blue of Southend. His inclusion in our team makes an enormous difference, and he could well be the difference between us being a League One or Championship club in 2018/19.

None of the six players released this summer started more than 10 games last year. Are you content to see all of them go?

Yeah, the club made the right call in releasing the players they did. None were good enough to play for us and are better off finding regular football elsewhere.

Nile Ranger has been jailed for eight months due to banking fraud but is contracted to Southend for another three years. Should there be a future for him at Roots Hall?

Yes, I believe there should be. Nile has been punished for a serious indiscretion but it is one he committed prior to joining us. We knew of his past when he signed last summer and the club have backed him and the fans, for the most part, have done the same. He is a very talented footballer and is one we do not wish to lose. He knows of his precarious position and will return to training at the end of this week following his prison spell. From there, he will hopefully give his all in his attempt to help fire us to promotion. Sometimes clubs like us must take risks in order to succeed.

Simon Cox grabbed 16 goals last year and is known to be a hardworking striker too. Is he an asset at this level?

Coxy is a huge asset. A natural finisher, the Irishman gives his all for the team and is a clinical finisher when on top of his game. He will be supplied by Michael Kightly on one wing, Stephen McLaughlin on the other, and by Anthony Wordsworth behind him. The service he’ll be provided should see him among the top scorers of the league again this year, and will play a pivotal rule in what is a monumentally important season for us. Earn promotion, and we keep our stars and continued to build on our future. Remain in League One, and we risk stagnation. With players like Cox,  we will be hopefully soon battle the likes of Fulham and Norwich instead of Gillingham and Wimbledon, with no disrespect intended to either team.

What are your thoughts ahead of the League One season as a whole? Any potential dark horses for you?

Bristol Rovers have made a couple of smart moves, they could well be up there this season. Bury have taken Adam Thompson from us and signed quality such as Tom Aldred, Stephen Dawson and Chris Maguire and will be aiming to finish in the upper reaches of the table instead of finding themselves in the dogfight that they did last year.

Where will you finish? Every year you’re pretty much bang on…

Provided we keep Leonard and add another centre-back, there’s absolutely no reason why we won’t be challenging. 5th.

The Football Lab’s Verdict

Southend competed well last season, with a strong midfield aided by Kightly. However, they still miss a quality goalkeeper and need a reliably fit centre-back in Thompson’s absence. Key men Leonard and Ranger have had turbulent summers for different reasons, so with big clubs coming into League One, it might be hard for the Shrimpers to keep up the pace. 12th

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