In front of just 4707 supporters, swelled by a healthy Lancastrian contingent, the Shrimpers waved goodbye to their loyal supporters by completing a brief lap-of-honour at the end of the ninety minutes, which were preceded by some entertainment provided by Essex FM. The show itself was received without any great fanfare, many supporters preferring instead to remain in the local pubs rather than see out the year with boy band 4-Play and London two-piece Urban Lady. Just prior to kick-off, Leon Cort was rightfully presented with the Player of the Year award – in all seriousness there have been no other contenders.
Two minutes into the ‘real’ action, George Clegg set Jon Newby away in the inside left channel, but he fired the ball straight into the arms of Darryl Flahavan, who kept goal behind a side that witnessed a single change – fit-again Tesfaye Bramble replacing Mark Salter up front. Four minutes later, a long Flahavan goal-kick picked out Brett Darby on the right wing, who managed to win a corner. Captain Kevin Maher’s flag-kick found Mark Rawle, but the former Boston United forward headed at Steve Redmond, who hacked the ball away. From the throw-in, Rawle tried to find Bramble, but goalkeeper Glyn Garner punched clear.
Within three further minutes the visitors were ahead. Damon Searle suffered a flashback to Easter Monday at York Street and lofted a bouncing back pass away from Flahavan and out for a corner. Clegg’s right-wing set-piece picked out captain Michael Nelson, only cleared to play hours before the game with a knee problem, and the tall central defender nodded powerfully past the static custodian.
However, the advantage was short-lived as less than three minutes later Blues were level. Maher’s long-range free-kick on the left-hand side of midfield was headed away initially by the Bury back-line, but the ball fell kindly for Darby, who squared it to Cort, remaining up for the set-piece, and the London-born defender turned on the half-volley and struck convincingly right-footed past Garner and inside the bottom left corner of the North Bank net.
The rest of the first period was relatively even, with neither side realistically threatening the goals at either end. Just past the quarter-of-an-hour mark, ex-Liverpool man Newby flicked a Jamie Stuart corner towards the top right corner, but as Cort headed out, referee Paul Taylor blew his whistle for an infringement. Two minutes on, Bramble beat Redmond and Lee Connell on the right, and after advancing to the edge of the box, squared the ball for Mark Rawle, who dragged his 22-yard effort wide of the right-hand upright. Then, a chipped ball forwards from Maher found Dave McSweeney on the left wing, but his cross was also punched out by Garner with Bramble underneath it.
At the other end, Martyn Forrest’s through-ball found striker Colin Cramb, but McSweeney did enough to force the one-time Fortuna Sittard man to push his shot tamely wide. On the half-hour, Mark Beard launched a right flank cross into the Shakers penalty area, but Rawle flicked the header wide with Bramble waiting for the initial cross. Damon Searle then slipped, and Newby burst in behind him, failing to control the ball and shinning it out of play for a goal-kick. As play switched to the Bury end, McSweeney released Darby on the right, and he found Jenkins cutting back in the area. The former Wimbledon man the picked out Bramble, but his forceful shot was charged down by goalscorer Nelson.
With less than ten minutes to go until the break, Rawle won the ball from Stuart, and with the goal gaping and Garner committed, the Leicester-born front-runner smashed his 14-yard effort along the floor, managing to his the shotstopper’s legs and watching as the ball was cleared away. Three minutes later, a Maher free-kick just in front of the halfway line was headed across goal by Cort with no one able to take advantage.
The half drew to a close as an excellent Seasiders passing move found Searle on the edge of the Bury area, but his flicked ball inside to Jenkins with the outside of his right boot was harshly deemed to set the England Under-20 star into an offside position. Another Maher set-piece then hit the head of ex-Cambridge City striker Bramble, who could not control his effort and the ball drifted out of play. The final action saw Cort’s aerial clearance fall to Chris Billy, but his tame shot from thirty yards only fell into Flahavan’s hands.
The second half began with the Shakers once again taking the lead, this time decisively. The ball fell to Jon Newby, who had pulled away to the left touchline inside two minutes of the restart, and the forward crossed to an unchallenged Connell sixteen yards out, with his bullet header leaving Flahavan stranded and the ball nestling in the back of the net having cannoned off of the underside of the crossbar.
A sustained period of inactivity followed as Bury effectively closed out the fixture and settled for the 2-1 scoreline, with United offering little, if any penetration. Midway through the half, Bramble beat Nelson on the right-hand side, and as he rampaged into the penalty area, he appeared to be hauled to the ground by the away team’s skipper. Referee Paul Taylor of Hertfordshire waved play on, and Bramble was pushed wide, lashing his eventual shot into the hands of Garner. As Mark Salter replaced Gavin Strachan and Bramble was pushed wide, and Steven Clark came on for Brett Darby, new boss Steve Wignall hoped his charges would rally.
Southend did manage to dominate the chances created, but they still remained a goal behind, Rawle’s through-ball finding Salter, but Nelson making a hard challenge on 72 minutes. Kevin Maher and Clark exchanged over-hit crosses six minutes later, but the outcome was only that one-time Frome Town man Salter headed over from close-range. At the other end, a Forrest ball over the top picked out Cramb, but the marksman’s lob sailed over both Flahavan and crossbar.
With the home season almost at its end, Rawle repeatedly held off the attentions of he experienced Redmond, and having had one shot blocked, found Bramble in the inside-left channel. His long cross to the far post was again headed over the South Stand net by Salter. A 35-yard Maher free-kick was whipped into the far post, but Cort misdirected his header wide. An extremely skilful looped ball from the captain then found Salter again, but the former non-League hotshot’s diving header was saved well by Garner.
Another Maher set-piece saw a Cort header deflected, but just seconds from time, Salter’s through-ball found Rawle, and his shot was touched away by Redmond. The match itself may have ended in a flurry, but Southend’s season did not as they collapsed to a record tenth home League defeat of the season. Exeter City, like Bury, have everything to play for next Saturday as the campaign finally draws to a close. The Shrimpers talents have nothing but contracts to do likewise, although the travelling fans will want to see an improved performance.
TEAM DETAILS
Southend United (4-4-2; dark blue shirts with white trim, dark blue shorts, dark blue socks with grey stripe; with player ratings out of 10): Darryl Flahavan 6; Mark Beard 6 (Stuart Thurgood 88, 6), Leon Cort 7, Dave McSweeney 6, Damon Searle 5; Brett Darby 5 (Steven Clark 69, 5), Gavin Strachan 5 (Mark Salter 63, 6), Kevin Maher 7, Neil Jenkins 5; Tesfaye Bramble 6, Mark Rawle 6. Subs not used: Danny Gay, Ronnie Henry.
Bury (3-5-2; white shirts with royal blue trim; royal blue shorts, white socks with royal blue stripes; with player ratings out of 10): Glyn Garner 6; Steve Redmond 6, Colin Woodthorpe 6, Michael Nelson 8; Lee Connell 7, Chris Billy 6, Martyn Forrest 7, George Clegg 7, Jamie Stuart 6; Jon Newby 7, Colin Cramb 6. Subs not used: Lee Unsworth, Andy Preece, Paul O’Shaughnessy, Terry Dunfield, Simon Whaley.
OFFICIALS
Referee: Mr. Paul Taylor (Hertfordshire), 7 out of 10
Assistant Referees: Mr. Darren Deadman (Hertfordshire) and Mr, Ray Lee (Essex)
Fourth Official: Mr. A. J. Conn
The Little Gazette Southend United Man-of-the-Match: Kevin Maher
In front of the Shrimpers supporters for possibly the last time as captain, giving the type of gritty performance that he has generally attempted to create all year. However, that has not been the case, and this afternoon was the exception, Maher marshalling the troops for one last effort, but sadly not getting much response. He made a number of potentially telling crosses, from set-pieces and open play, but nobody could quite manage to score that vital equaliser at the end.
MATCH STATISTICS
Match: Southend United vs. Bury
Competition: Nationwide League Division Three
Venue: Roots Hall, Southend-on-Sea, Essex
Kick-Off Time: 3 p.m.
Attendance: 4,707 (approximately 350 Bury supporters)
Match Time: 95 minutes, 23 seconds (first half: 46 minutes, 17 seconds; second half: 49 minutes, 6 seconds)
Goals: Michael Nelson 10 (Bury; 0-1; goal timed at 9 minutes, 23 seconds; strong header inside six-yard box from George Clegg corner), Leon Cort 13 (Southend United; 1-1; goal timed at 12 minutes, 12 seconds; right-footed half-volley from 20 yards after initial free-kick by Kevin Maher was not cleared), Lee Connell 48 (Bury; 1-2; goal timed at 47 minutes, 4 seconds; strong header from inside penalty area from Jon Newby’s left-wing cross)
Yellow Cards: Mark Beard 82 (Southend United; professional foul)
Red Cards: none
Shots/Headers On Target: Southend United 4, Bury 2
Shots/Headers Off Target: Southend United 6, Bury 5
Shots/Headers Blocked: Southend United 2, Bury 0
Shots/Headers Against Woodwork: Southend United 0, Bury 0
Free-Kicks Awarded: Southend United 13, Bury 5
Corners Awarded: Southend United 11, Bury 8
Caught Offside: Southend United 0, Bury 5
Robert Craven
www.thelittlegazette.com