Just watched the Southend highlights on Player

Plenty of chances as usual but too many flicked up crosses to no one in particular. Crowley seemed to get plenty of the ball and certainly looked busy, but none of his passes or crosses led to anything. Hard to see why his goal was disallowed - presume it was Watkins straying offside? Unlucky that.

We seemed to be camped in their penalty area for the last few minutes - bit like Crewe last week where we played most of the match in and around their box without making it pay.

I don't know....we really are NOT that far away from being a winning side. Plenty of talent in that team and it will come out regularly once we start winning on a consistent basis.

We can complain as much as we like about LJ and Pearson and sideways football but the fact is that unless others are making runs the man on the ball has no where to go with it, except sideways or backwards.

A few wins will instill some confidence into the players and their natural ability will do the rest. Oh, by the way. I hadn't noticed that Southend were on a six matches from the last seven winning run. Just shows how mediocre this division is. Really didn't know they were going so well. That could be US in a week or two.

 

I never once thought in the second half we'd score. Bored rigid watching us tap it about, fail to get in behind them and eventually lose the ball.

 

I was there at no point in the second half did we remotely look like scoring.

 

I've just seen the highlights on YouTube. Our penalty looked outside the box when initial contact was made and they scored a goal that wasn't offside. 3-0 with a different ref

 

Highlights are clearly misleading, Prince.

 

Watkins was a mile offside when the initial attempt was made and it was him running back from offside to put a challenge in that directly led to crowly getting the ball.

 

Me too. We had eight shots apparently, and besides the penalty, I can't actually remember any.

 

Yes I realise that ten minutes is not enough to show a full picture and I'm not defending our performance yesterday. I wasn't there, so how could I?

Just commenting on the fact that we have the attacking players to create chances but we miss most of them, or there is no one there to get on the end of it. It's frustrating but I am still of a mind that things will come right.

It might take until next Easter. It might take until this time next season, but things will turn around.

I've not been on the edge of my seat much this season but, equally, I haven't been bored throughout a whole match. Hard to say to most people "be patient" but I'm prepared to be patient because I know things will be ok eventually.

I've seen too much dross over the last fifty years or so to get on these lads's backs too much. Two wins this coming week and things will look rosy again.

It's the nature of the game following a small club. Up, down, up, down........

 

Shake it all around !

 

I'm sort of with you on all that. But aye, yesterday looked a bad performance to me.

Nowt that a couple of home wins can't solve.

 

What if we lose the next 2 though? I shudder to think, but can we honestly expect anything from them?

 

I don't disagree with much of what you put but yesterday we created virtually nothing we didn't much miss chances. T be honest I don't think we have actually created many recently but yesterday was a new low.

 

I'm told his job's safe regardless. Not sure I believe it, but can't fault the source.

 

I wasn't particularly referring to LJs job security, more the effect on the players, fans etc. I'm worrying about possible relegation for the first time in this division. If we are dragged into a relegation battle for the last month or 2 of the season I don't think we've the minerals to survive.

 

Well the ten minutes on Player tell a different story to me. I know a game looks entirely different from behind the goal and when you are actually there, but the camera angle showed us creating plenty. As I said though, too often the cross is wayward or there is no one on the end of it.

I would worry more if we had no one capable of running at a defence and at least TRYING to create something. I think our biggest problem is lack of confidence, especially at home. When a player misplaces a pass he gets a loud moan, especially from the East Stand. Understandable, I know, but not good for a young player's self esteem.

I'd rather let them see if they can play their way out of this slump rather than jumping on their backs, as many seem to do. I've had plenty of long distance disappointments. Until two years ago ALL of my home games used to be three or four hundred mile round trips, so I know what it feels like to travel home angry and wondering why I bothered

 

If we hit a bad wayward cross into a box with nobody in it then how is that a chance?

 

Hoping for an act of god?

 

We have lots of opportunity to create chances but are seriously wasteful with those opportunities.