1 week Ago
The Shrimpers suffered a disappointing 1-0 defeat at the hands of Solihull Moors at Roots Hall to leave their lingering hopes of a play-off place hanging by a thread. And the setback was again largely the result of a lack of quality in the final third. Blues had plenty of possession and territorial pressure but were unable to find their way past a well organised Moors defence.
Southend’s task was made even more difficult after just 10 minutes when Elliot Thorpe scored what proved to be the only goal of the game. Thorpe cut in from the left hand side before delivering a cross-shot which seemed to deceive Shrimpers goalkeeper Nick Hayes who appeared not to raise his arms before the ball hit the right hand of the net. The goal made it two Roots Hall matches in a row where a 10th minute strike in front of the North Bank proved to be the difference between the two teams – only this time it went against the Shrimpers.
Solihull – who came into the clash with just one win in 2025 – sat even deeper after the taking lead and were efficiently able to keep Blues at bay. The well-organised display ultimately condemned the Shrimpers to a defeat which leaves them four points outside the play-offs. A top seven finish therefore remains unlikely but that is not really down to Saturday’s setback or even the late leveller conceded at Sutton United last time out.
The bottom line is Blues were too inconsistent throughout the first half of the season during an unpredictable time where the team was looking to rediscover its identity. After overcoming those difficulties, the Shrimpers have actually done well to even be in contention for a place in the top seven. But all that has been achieved while Blues have still been struggling to score.
One look at the league table, underlines that rather obvious observation as Southend have now netted 52 goals in 42 games – the second lowest amount in the top half of the table. However, finding regular goal-getters is easier said than done – especially when you are playing in the National League. Most teams throughout the divisions will be looking to improve in attack meaning players who do possess goalscoring abilities will have offers to play far higher for wages above Blues’ budget too.
But the Shrimpers’ mission has been made even more difficult this season as they have had to find strikers on several different occasions. It makes tough reading now, but the league’s top scorer Ollie Pearce would have joined Southend before York City had a transfer embargo not stopped that happening. Adding to that, last season’s top scorer Harry Cardwell soon made a lucrative switch to Forest Green Rovers – meaning Blues were threadbare in forward positions.
Bim Pepple was soon snapped up on loan from Luton Town and, after getting grips with first team football, he started to impress. Pepple possessed an ability to score goals from nothing but his fine form soon alerted sides from a higher level and he opted to see out the season with Chesterfield in League Two. Had Pepple remained at Roots Hall, I firmly believe Blues would be in the play-offs now.
But his departure meant the Shrimpers were back to square one in terms of attacking options. The current crop of forwards offer incredible work-rate, energy and aerial ability but the harsh reality is there is very little in terms of goalscoring prowess – meaning Blues are very reliant on others scoring from elsewhere. Set pieces therefore become even more important but the decision making around them on Saturday beggared belief at times.
Twice late on, Blues opted to play corners short rather than getting a guaranteed ball into the box and summed up a somewhat sobering afternoon for Southend and their supporters. A crowd of 8,668 – the largest of the season in the league – witnessed the depressing defeat, including the club’s newest and arguably most famous fan Evan Johnston. The American’s story has gone all round the world since accidentally becoming a Shrimpers supporter.
His antics generated unprecedented publicity for the club and rather refreshingly shone a light on the positive side of football. But, on the pitch, the chances are Blues will be remaining in the National League for at least another season. And top of the shopping list this summer must be finding strikers of match-winning standard to ensure frustrating afternoons like Saturday become far less frequent.
.
