Southend United 0-3 BFC, Saturday 2nd March 2019

‘Sky TV is f***ing s***, Sky TV is f***ing s***.’

Welcome to...Fenchurch St. Station, actually (no trains from Liv. St.)

A 12:30 kick-off for Southend United versus Barnsley?  Does the nation REALLY insist on seeing midtable league one be outclassed by highflying superstars (for that will surely happen)?  Very probably they do, but it does zero for the loyal travelling support, as a mere 475 come to witness the best team in the division, the lowest (league) away following of the season, ‘beating’ the midweek 657 who went to Oxford (and that’s hardly closely to Barnsley).  A week after we took 2,000 to Pompey.  I s’pose those who stayed up in Barnsley and watched on TV would have still felt good value, but twas a shame they missed one of the best performances of the season in the flesh…

4 likely looking Londontykes head towards Roots Hall

There was fight, there was no stone unturned, there was no backing down…and that was just half-time, as the stewards and some of our more ‘passionate’ and younger fans had a punch up with the stewards.  Rumour has it that it started cos stewards wanted someone to stop standing on a chair, which seems fair enough, and a bit of windmilling ensued.  Both sides ended up trading punches (and believe me, their stewards were big lads) but the weight of numbers brought a tactical retreat for the stewards, thankfully before things really got out of hand.  But where does that leave us?  Our support will be the first to whinge about coppers rather than stewards handling our contingent, but that’s where we’ll be heading.

No.

Course, I had a decent view cos I was standing on a chair (!).  I can’t help but think it wouldn’t have happened had we a) been winning and b) had our full complement of 11 men, but things looked frosty by half time as, despite being the better side, it was 0-0 and Brown had been sent off for a dangerous lunge.  (I missed this, having nipped out for a pee; this after missing 2 of our goals in the cup game this season for same.)  Still, plenty of ‘yoofs’ had their phones out to record the fighting, so I expect one of them to be ‘intelligent’ enough to put it on youtube so the police can nick all of their mates.  No need to arrest the main man tho; when we went one-up, he was on the pitch having another to-do with stewards.  Only this time he didn’t have his mates to drag him to safety.  I expect he got some kicking off them stewards, cos they didn’t look the types to let bygones be bygones.

The 'other' half time entertainment; hit a penalty through the hole.  (What did you think???)

Oh yes, down to 10 men, we absolutely RAN the show, second half.  Like at Accrington.  Everyone stepped up to the mark, everyone had a good game and only one team ever looked like scoring (even if Davies did make a couple of saves and Pinnock and Lindsay cleared well).  Still, the luck was with us, as the ball hit McGeehan on the back before he reacted first to bury the ball into the bottom corner, right in front of us.  You Reds!!!!!!!!!!

The Super Reds celebrate another goal.

An injury-plagued Southend then had to come out and play and we simply picked them off.  A fast break down the left has Bahre rounding a defender and laying it off for Cauley to drill it across the keeper and into the far corner.  From one end to the other with 2 or 3 one-touch passes; if this was the Premiership, Wrighty and Shearer would be creaming themselves.  Bahre also runs out of legs when clean through and goes for the pass rather than have a shot, before the manager takes off our defensive midfielder for a winger.  With 10 men!  Absolutely mental, but I like his style – and Jordan Green bags his first goal for the Super Reds after McGeehan’s toe-poke is saved.  ‘EASY!  EASY!’ sang a crowing away end.  These are the performances of champions.  Imperious.

Onwards and upwards!

*** Pinnock.  Won headers, played it out and fabulous double-clearance at nil-nil. 

** Cavare.  Up and down that right wing and more than made up for losing Jacob.

* McGeehan.  Another cracking performance, putting us ahead and being key to counter-attacks.

Londontykes' MOTM: 1= McGeehan/Pinnock  3. Cavare

'I've got a shed...' etc

Despatches:Shame Brown got himself sent off.  Nothing like celebrating your EFL Young Player of the Month in style.  Davies made a couple of smart saves and had safe handling and kicking all match.  Penniless was solid, and in Lindsay and Pinnock surely we have the best central defensive partnership in the division.  Mowatt was tidy, while I never noticed Dougall (but he must have been doing something right).  Thiam threatened early (but the fans got out of the way) while Cauley is every inch a Championship striker playing in division 3.  Was it his 14^th of the season?  If he stays fit, he’ll bag 20.

Course, despite all my optimism, I can’t resist a bet AGAINST what my heart says, so pre-match, I had a tenner on with Loko that we WON’T go up.  By Satdy evening, he’d put his 60 quid against my 30.  I’ll start saving.  Jonesy’s tenner that we’ll get 85 or more points is looking good for him, but I can’t see Chris getting a tenner for Thiam scoring 13.  Not in this lifetime.

And talking of Nice Guy Chris, guess who told an anxious looking steward pre-match that he’d have ‘nothing to worry about today’!?  (The steward reminded him later of what he said.)

The Super Reds (pacifist branch).

Drink du jour: all sorts, inc 4 beers even before (12:30) KO.\

Away: 475 some.  Thanks, Sky.

The Damage:
£9 train
£22 ent
£3 prog
= £34

The Tunes:
An Awesome Wave (Alt-J)
Low (David Bowie)
Lunatico (Gotan Project)

Roots Hall panorama

Club car park and Main Stand.

Visitors turnstiles.

Action in front of the East Stand.

Sarfend Ultras.  'You can stick your f***ing drum....' etc

A most outstanding camera gantry.

The 'other' side of the away end.

Buxom cheerleaders.

BFC flags.

Down to 10 men and on comes a winger for a defensive midfielder.

Stop being so soft...

Homeward bound, past the Tower of London.  A rare treat.

Southend United 2-4 BFC, Saturday 1st December 2018

‘Flowers?  Get her a f***ing cauliflower and tell ‘er to get t’dinner on’

Welcome to...wherever this is.

Have you ever seen a 6 goal non-thriller?  Well, I have now.  We tipped up to the seaside (without actually seeing any of it) to see the Super Reds forge to the 3^rd round of the FA Cup and the dream draw of someone like Birmingham City away.  It was comfortable stuff too, too comfortable, as we start showboating at 3-1, concede an unnecessary 2^nd, before quite the oddest 45 seconds I’ve seen in a while: Southend ‘equalise’ (but I’ve seen the linesman stick his flag up straight away, so no goal).  Southend fans are jumping around, before the Reds’ end does the same.  Then the ref goes over to the linesman for a chat.  Never a good sign.  He appears to point to the halfway line so Southend go potty again.  Only the game restarts with a Davies free kick.  Our turn again.  Anyone would think it was panto season; ‘it’s a goal.’  ‘Oh no it isn’t.’  ‘Oh yes it is.’  Anyway, it made for a talking point, before Bahre put the game to bed, latching onto a Moncur-induced rebound, 4-2.

The players celebrate Bahre's clincher.

As I said, not much happened, before it did.  We had a shot at the far end with 5 mins of the 1^st half left, and the keeper saved it.  Moore then put us ahead from the resultant corner.  My overwhelming feeling was one of relief – but then again, I WAS having a p*** at the time.  I hadn’t realised we’d got a corner and so nipped off.  B*gger.  Mind, I was there for the equaliser, in the 4^th or 5^th minute of injury time, when Moore appeared to get his legs tangled and put the ball in his own net.  I’m normally used to watching Thiam try to send signals to his feet, but I don’t know what Moore was doing.  Everyone around us thought it was an own goal, so I’m baffled as to how it was given to their player.

Dave's new hat.  A corker.

Still, we were confident.  There’d only been one team in it and 10 mins or so into to the 2^nd half, Woodrow bagged another, a simple finish (to the composured).  What would REALLY give us a chance though is if I went to the toilet again.  I did.  We scored.  3-1.  Allegedly Woodrow again.  We were now as good as through, so instead of trying to score anymore, we concentrated on p***ing around until that late commotion.  (As I said, it was at the far end, so who knows whether it was offside or not.  Though I bet Andy Jones can tell me it was offside without even seeing it.)

The teams line up.

Job done, bring on the Big Boys (and Arsenal).  All that was left was for Berserker to row with a station assistant who was trying to tell us our tickets from Southend could only be used from Central and not Victoria.  Let’s just say Andy told her…

Despatches:

No Cavare or Thiam this week (both benched).  Can’t say I missed them, but Brown must be a confused lad. I’ve not known anyone regularly switch between centre forward and right back.  He was right back today.  Davies saved his usual (zero).  They scored 2 from 2 on target.  Or two from one on target if we credit Moore with their equaliser.  I’d be lying if I said I noticed the rest of ‘em, low as we were behind the goal on a pitch floodlit by candlelight.  Mowatt looked tidy, Moncur didn’t do owt till the 90^th minute and McGeehan trod water.  But they were all that little bit better than Sarfend.

Time also to get a programme after the game.  Called in at club shop.  ‘Sorry, we don’t have any, try the ticket office next door.’  ‘No.we don’t have any.  Have you tried the main reception?’  It’s ok, Southend, if you don’t want my money, you don’t have to take it.

Onwards and upwards!

*** Woodrow.  Scored 2 apparently, so why not? 

** Pinnock.  Cool.

* Moore.  Scored 2, so why not?

Into the blue seats...

Drink du jour: Leffe in the Railway.  Joy!  But it tasted just that little bit flat.  Despite the cracking nature of the pub, everyone felt there was just that little something wrong with the beer.  Nevermind the number of beers that were off, or the (vegan) kitchen being closed.  Must do better.  Still, after a Stella for the train back, let’s hit Bierschenke in Liverpool St for German wheat beer.  That was great, less so the downstairs (where we’d planned to eat) as it had been taken over en-masse by pr*cks.  Still, there’s always the latest South London hipster joint, the Mercato Metropolitano, ‘the first sustainable and inclusive community market with an Italian soul.’  Whatevs.  I think I was only the 2^nd oldest person there…. 

Away: c400

The Damage:
£8.85 train (Dave, I still owe you 15p!)
£12 ent
prog?  Good luck.
=£20.85

The Tunes:
Claustrophobia (Scuba)
Ill Communication (Beastie Boys)

Roots Hall panorama

The Railway.

The Londontykes' flag is put up.

Behind the goal as the teams come out.

THIS is a view.  Pitchside at Roots Hall.

The Main Stand.

The away end and its barrel roof.

The corner gantry.