Southend have often visited the ground, although in recent times, pre-season friendlies against Chelmsford City, who are now ground-sharing with Braintree Town in the mid-west Essex region, as well as an Essex Senior Cup clash with the Clarets with ended in an ignominious 2-0 defeat under the stewardship of Rob Newman. However, it has been some time since Billericay hosted the Seasiders.
The side that travels fifteen or so miles to the west of Southend, though, is unlikely to be a full-strength Shrimpers side, with two separate teams having taken on Dagenham & Redbridge on Saturday afternoon in a thrilling 3-3 draw, and with the more prestigious opposition of Brighton & Hove Albion visiting Roots Hall on Wednesday evening.
Manager Steve Tilson and head coach Paul Brush will have a dilemma in the fact that Ross McLaren’s youth side were also in action on Saturday, are due to travel to Aston Villa tomorrow afternoon to take on the Premiership’s Academy side and also have their own match against Town on Friday afternoon.
As a result, in addition to regular squad members Michael Kightly and Stuart Williams, Tilson has decided to hand Ben Price, who netted a hat-trick of set-pieces for the club’s Under-18s on Saturday morning against Great Wakering Rovers, and Max Porter to his side to travel to New Lodge, with the rest made up of the eighteen involved for the first-team later that day.
One forward, Lawrie Dudfield, will make another appearance on his road back from injury, but speedy striker Michael Husbands faces a late fitness test on a tight hamstring which left him sitting frustrated on the substitutes’ bench at the weekend. Husbands had earlier been involved in two consecutive matches, playing more football than any other member of the squad in the two home fixtures against Canvey Island and Millwall.
Another who is in doubt for tonight’s clash is right-back Duncan Jupp. He had to limp out of the match against Conference outfit Daggers with a slight thigh twinge, and if there is any chance that the injury could be more serious, a combination of Williams, Che Wilson and Lewis Hunt could all be used to fill the void.
Fellow defender Spencer Prior remains a doubt to join the Shrimpers after he told boss Tilson that he needed more time. Colchester United had been interested in the 32-year-old, but refused him after a trial, and although Prior is still training with the Seasiders’ squad, fellow League One clubs Peterborough United and Brentford are just two rumoured still to be interested in taking him away from Blues. With a contract offer on the table, Tilson is anxious to complete his work on building a squad at the Hall.
The goalkeeping position continues to cause friction at Southend. Darryl Flahavan seems to have a cult following with the Shrimpers support, and as a result new shotstopper Bart Griemink has been the subject of some scrutinising eyes. A slight error for Dagenham’s second goal has brought the daggers out, so to speak, but both are again likely to be included in the side as Tilson and Brush search for their premier number one.
In defence, Price is likely to be left on the bench at the outset, with Adam Barrett to start after being left out of the starting line-up at the weekend. Williams, Nicky Nicolau and Andy Edwards could all be included from the outset, with Hunt, Jupp, Price and Wilson all lying in wait for a chance to shine. Wilson, in particular, has impressed this season in a varying number of roles.
Midfielders Mark Bentley, Jay Smith and Carl Pettefer remain out of contention, and are causing a headache for the coaching staff. A number of players have filled in alongside captain Kevin Maher, who has been ever-present so far. This evening, with Ben Surey having left the club, he could be joined by Jimmy Corbett again, with the former Blackburn Rovers man trying to carve a new niche for himself. Mark Gower, Kightly and Husbands could all battle for the wide positions, with Porter another option in the centre of the park.
Goals have not been too hard to come by – twelve in the four games with only the clash with Millwall ending without a strike in the back of the net on the Shrimpers’ side. Wayne Gray has bagged five of those, with Tesfaye Bramble mightily impressive alongside him. Lawrie Dudfield’s understanding with Drewe Broughton, first spotted while he was on loan from Northampton Town last season, means that those two partnerships are likely to continue in either half.
United will come up against a familiar face this evening as Dave McSweeney continues to trial with Billericay. Justin Edinburgh, the ex-Southend defender, is the manager at New Lodge, and has been at pains to get the Basildon-born youngster to sign a permanent deal with his side, and he should come up against his old team-mates tonight. Admission is £5 for adults and £1 for concessions, and kick-off is at 7:30 p.m.
Southend United squad: Bart Griemink, Darryl Flahavan; Duncan Jupp, Stuart Williams, Lewis Hunt, Andy Edwards, Adam Barrett, Ben Price, Che Wilson, Nicky Nicolau; Michael Husbands, Michael Kightly, Mark Gower, James Corbett, Max Porter, Kevin Maher; Tesfaye Bramble, Lawrie Dudfield, Wayne Gray, Drewe Broughton.
Robert Craven
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