Duffers' Marks Out Of Ten

Darryl Flahavan | Mins on pitch: 90 | Goals Conceded: 1 | Rating: 7
An easy day at the office for the confident custodian. As Swindon rarely mustered up any chances, there wasn’t much to say about the former Woking stopper’s display other than he did everything that was asked of him. Confident when collecting crosses, and as usual superb at stopping goalbound shots, Flahavan’s confidence will be increasing.

Lewis Hunt | Minutes on pitch: 90 | Goals: 0 | Assists: 0 | Rating: 6
Not much for Hunt to do today as most of Swindon’s attacking play came down the right hand side of the field. The former Derby defender did superbly well however when it came to winning tackles and helped both Adam Barrett and Andy Edwards block any shots Town had on goal – showing 100% commitment. Lewis will be hoping that this reasonable performance will be enough to keep Duncan Jupp out of the side for a least a week or two.

Andy Edwards | Minutes on pitch: 90 | Goals: 0 | Assists: 0 | Rating: 6.5
Yet another competent effort from ‘eagle’ and one Spencer Prior will now have to wonder if he will ever redeem his place in the starting line-up. Edwards battled hard at the heart of the defence, winning almost everything in the air and kept tall striker Rory Fallon extremely quiet until his last minute goal. Other than the odd lapse in concentration, Edwards can be very happy with his display.

Che Wilson | Minutes on pitch: 90 | Goals: 0 | Assists: 0 | Rating: 6
A quiet game for the full back as he rarely contributed to the game. However, Wilson didn’t allow much to come from Swindon’s left hand side and he certainly didn’t make any mistakes. In the end, just a decent enough game from the in-form left back.

Mark Gower| Minutes on pitch: 90| Goals: 0 | Assists: 0 | Rating: 7
Another good performance by Gower and one that certainly matched his game against Oldham Athletic. The highly rated winger was looking in much better condition – looking sharp, not the sluggish Mark Gower that never seems to perform on the big occasion. The Epping born winger also looked very creative, frequently getting to the by-line and delivering a cross that either gave the Swindon defence problems or forced a corner. Gower also could have doubled his tally for the season when his header bounced narrowly wide of the post, but at least he got 90 minutes of the match and hopefully we are starting to see some consistency from a player with such potential.

Luke Guttridge | Mins on pitch: 85| Goals: 0 | Assists: 0 | Rating: 6.5
Guttridge was okay in this match. That is the only way to describe it. The former Cambridge United man did nothing wrong and at the same time wasn’t really much of a threat. However, Guttridge did well when it came to keeping possession and showed enough composure to ensure his place in the side for next week’s home clash against Tranmere Rovers.

Kevin Maher | Minutes on pitch: 90 | Goals: 0 | Assists: 2 | Rating: 7.5
Another excellent display from the skipper, as he’s season continues to blossom. A huge contender for man of the match, it was only the superb performance of Adam Barrett that actually prevented the one time Republic of Ireland under 21 international that feat. Bar orchestrating the midfield, Maher provided both of the assists for the goals; two unstoppable inswinging crosses that were in the end easy to convert. So that’s three assists in two games for Maher, and I’m sure that equals a very happy Steve Tilson.

Mitchell Cole| Mins on pitch: 90 | Goals: 0 | Assists: 2 | Rating: 6.5
A decent performance from Cole. Although it would have been fair to say that he didn’t do an awful lot, Cole always seemed in control and was extremely consistent in the quality of his crossing, which is an element of his game that he has been criticised on already in his short Southend career. In both Mark Gower and Mitchell, I believe Southend have for the first time in a few years two wingers that are creative enough to give the two strikers some decent service.

James Lawson| Minutes on pitch: 66 | Goals: 0 | Assists: 0 | Rating: 7
Following on from his dream debut against Oldham Athletic, Lawson proved that he’s not a one-match wonder by playing excellently well against Swindon. Lawson looked surprisingly experienced for such a young player – he knew exactly what to do with the ball and was never fearful of taking on a defender. He also didn’t give the ball away unnecessarily. The one downside to Lawson’s game was that he didn’t really get any shots in on goal, but I am sure that when he does, more often than not he will hit the back of the net.

Shaun Goater| Mins on pitch: 90 | Goals: 0 | Assists: 0 | Rating: 5.5
‘The Goat’ didn’t have a great game on Saturday to be quite perfectly honest, his touch was iffy at times and he never really threatened the Swindon defence. He did hold onto possession well, but I suppose you should expect that from an experienced player. However, I don’t want to be too negative about Goater’s performance – he has done a terrific job in helping James Lawson along so far – and no doubt the goat will only aid Lawson’s progression in the game.

Wayne Gray | Mins on pitch: 34 | Goals: 1 | Assists: 0 | Rating: 6.5
Wayne has got to be happy with this game. Afterall, having come off of the bench for the promising James Lawson, the pressure was on Gray to make an impact…and he did just that. On 88 minutes Gray met Kevin Maher’s cross with a thumping header that proved to be the winning goal, and I am sure somewhat of a confidence booster to Wayne. A winning goal having come off of the subs bench – enough said.

Mark Bentley | Minutes on pitch: 5 | Goals: 0 | Assists: 0 | Rating: 6
Mark barely had time to make a contribution, however he did take two defenders out of the game for Wayne Gray’s winning goal, which I suppose counts as one of the most important contributions in the match!