nickbennett_blog

Category: Football

  • Ron’s Q and A

    Arrogant, condescending, and rude, but also determined and loyal. After Ron Martin’s Q and A on Monday I personally feel at least a little reassured. The answers Mr Martin gave weren’t always what the fans wanted to hear but came across very honestly. My key fear was that we’d pre-sold assets from the new stadium to Sainsbury’s. Assets which without would mean the club would not be self-sufficient in the future. These fears were laid to rest as it was explained that Sainsbury’s loan was secured against other land held by Ron Martin’s company.

    According to the chairman we haven’t been self-sufficient for a while and it’s only due to some generous handouts from himself that we’ve managed to remain debt free. We’ve never been asked to pay rent on Roots Hall and we wouldn’t for the near future in the new stadium. Ron couldn’t guarantee for how long this would continue. If he was to sell it who knows what the new owners would do.

    This precarious reliance on a benefactor to financially support a club isn’t new. It’s not just at this level either and in fact, I think clubs in the lower leagues are at slightly less risk than Premier league teams. Look at Chelsea and Manchester City. If their playboy owners ever get bored and decide to move on they may struggle to find someone with enough capital to take on all of those expensive player contracts. Fans are sometimes put in a difficult situation where they want to make their feelings known but why bite the hand that feeds you. The financial potential of Southend United currently isn’t a great one. This means that a potential buyer to replace the current chairman isn’t an option.

    If the goals that Mr Martin has set out are accomplished then a Championship side, in a new stadium/retail park with a solid 15,000-20,000 fan base would be a tempting viable investment. This would be good news for everyone involved in the club, including Mr Ron Martin. This dream is a long way off for a team currently in the relegation zone of League 1 and the inability to pay its playing staff. The 14th April deadline set by HMRC could ultimately be the end of the line. So in Ron we trust. Let’s hope he’s a man of his word.

  • Martin’s Shaken and Stirred

    It seems that my pre-season pessimism was not completely unfounded. The Chairman has since proved to be the swindling swine I’d hoped he wouldn’t be. It turns out you do need to replace your defenders if they leave. And not paying any of your staff does wonders for morale. With relegation looming there are few positive notes to take from this season. Supporting a team at this level really is a rollercoaster ride, but I don’t remember it being much lower than this.

    Let’s start with the off-the-field shenanigans shall we? The troubles seem to have come from trying to get the finances together for a new stadium. The Chairman has my sympathies here as no one had predicted how much the economy would slump. However, there are examples of other teams that seemed to have coped perfectly well in these conditions and have actually thrived in them. It pains me to say it but we need to look at Colchester United as an example of how to run a club. With half the gate we get they’ve managed to build a new stadium, get a play-off challenging squad together and have enough surplus playing staff that they can bail out their local misfits by loaning players out.

    I love my club to bits but as an organisation it’s a complete mess. From Season Cards not functioning correctly to the failure to organise eight people around a table in the Blues lounge. All these basic things that shouldn’t be an issue always have been. It needs someone with a bit of know-how to come in and review everything the club is doing and turn it on its head. On Saturday I learned that The Groundsman’s bar is actually run by the brewery, another revenue stream turned away. Everything at the club seems to have been done to make a quick buck without any forethought into long-term revenue!

    They’ve made some good marketing campaigns. I loved the shareholder brochures and the season card renewal booklets. And the little things like the Christmas Card and the Birthday letters are all nice touches. This year’s birthday letter wasn’t on the usual nice-headed paper though, which to be honest I’d rather they saved their stamp money. I’ve recently started following the club shop on Twitter. On the first game they were meant to send a half-time offer, I didn’t receive this because of ‘technical difficulties’. It’s a Tweet for crying out loud! It takes literally 3 seconds to do from any smartphone.

    I showed my concern after the game on Saturday by joining the 100-strong protests. Ron Martin has since organised a Q & A this Monday. I fear that this PR Guru will manage to avoid any of the meaningful questions by spinning some legal/financial spiel.

    Martin out!

  • Happy New Year!

    A new year is upon us (again!) and with it the optimism. We have a World Cup this year and the closest Premiership for years. Correct, I’m quite clearly shifting focus away from the Blues. I fear for the Blues this year. If we can get through the transfer window without any loss of playing staff and perhaps several new faces, we could, I say could be alright.

    We’ve already almost lost Simon Francis and I fear Lee Barnard won’t be far behind. We’ll just have to see how things pan out. Good luck to your boys and let’s get behind England for the World Cup. If they win my season ticket money will be refunded! Scam?!? I think not.

  • Gumshields, Gumshields!!!

    I’m all up for sport evolution but it needs to be in the right areas. I’m fed up with FIFA making excuses as to why we shouldn’t introduce technology into Football. Every other sport is moving quicker than Football. There have been enough comments made about the need for technology so I’m not going to waste my time. Just be very assured that I, Nick Bennett believe technology needs to be introduced into the game of Football. There…done and dusted.

    But Nick you said the game is evolving in the wrong areas? Which areas could you possibly mean? OK, Football in its grassroots used to be a working-class sport where it wasn’t uncommon to find someone had urinated in your pocket while you stood watching your favourite team. I can only imagine the relief some of our Northern brothers would have felt knowing that there was a source of warmth waiting for their hands. The players were hard back then too. You could go into a neck-high challenge and no one would bat an eyelid. I’ve seen footage of Goalies being bundled across the line, and the goal is given.

    I’m not a barbarian, so I understand it had to be ‘toned’ down a tad. If you want to watch that sort of behaviour you can go and watch the ‘gentleman’ play rugby. What I have a problem with (and it’s been escalating for a while) are player’s protective accessories. There’s an infamous rumour that Steven Gerrard’s Father (after traveling a distance to see his son play) got in the car and went home after spotting Stevie G wearing gloves. I like this rumour and hope it’s true. The latest fad in player pampering is gum shields! The only exception I will allow is Heurelho Gomes as his Mum has provided a note after he was bullied for his first 3 months in the Country. Mr Gallas, there is no excuse! I’m not going to make some stereotypical comment about the French introducing these footballing must haves but if I had any stats I’m sure they’d be compelling.

    What does the future hold then? I can see the footballers of tomorrow wearing the same protective garments as seen in Police Dog training centers. Yet, ironically, being more flimsy under a challenge and more accomplished at diving than Tom Daley. How can they get away with this in the future? Because we will be relying on the short-sighted man in black to make all of the decisions silly!

    p.s. Southend have lost their last 3 games so I’m sulking

  • Beloved Blues Saved!

    Talk about last-minute reprieve. On the doorsteps of the courtroom, it was announced that the chairman Mr Ron Martin would settle the outstanding tax bill this Friday. Ron had promised that it ‘would go down to the wire’ and he wasn’t wrong. The more cynical side of me is thinking that maybe our media-hungry chairman had the money the entire time and the last-minute shenanigans were a bit of a PR stunt. The fans were not happy with Mr Martin being in this predicament in the first place. Especially as there was a promise made earlier in the year that we would have no problem in settling this bill. I’m hoping that this will be an end to the matter and that after Friday we can close this chapter on Southend United’s darkest hour….watch this space.

    Southend join several other clubs named recently as being taken to court by HMRC. Is it just the current global economic climate that so many clubs find themselves in this situation or is this the Government being tougher in an attempt to re-coop funds to make inroads in the country’s huge deficit? Either way, I believe although on the face of it football could be seen as a luxury item, it needs to survive for the sanity of everyone. With nothing but doom and gloom on every corner, it’s great to spend at least an hour and a half every week away from it all.

    As a club, we’ve never been excessive in any way. Our biggest-ever signing was Mike Marsh from Galatasaray in 1995 for £500k, we’ve been at the hall for over 30 years and have a history of selling on our biggest assets (most recently Freddie Eastwood and Nicky Bailey). The only reason we’ve come to this is that we’ve been trying to move the club forward into a new stadium. Then the economic meltdown happened…typical. The next hurdle for us is survival which even with our 10 points intact is still going to be a big test. Our fragile squad was tested last week, with Steve Tilson (our manager) dusting off the boots to take part in a mid-week Essex Senior Cup tie.

    Friday’s showdown with Gillingham was always going to be an uphill struggle. For once though luck was on our side. The Gills had a shot cleared off the line (which looked dubious) and a perfectly good free kick chalked off for pushing. The second half was completely dominated by Gillingham who brought on 3 subs and looked the fresher side. Then in the 92 minute, an intricate control/shot from Lee Barnard lifted all the blues supporter’s spirits, and the administrative hearing was forgotten (well at least for a brief moment). This blogger started hugging the old man next to him and it seemed appropriate at the time. So the FA cup is next up but we need something nearing a miracle as without top scorer Barnard and midfield lynchpin Alan McCormack I cannot see us getting anything at Gillingham. A real shame as the money from a Cup run could be very handy at the moment.

  • Lee Barnard My Lord!

    Two losses and a win and I’m still none the wiser as to how this season will pan out. What has to be said though, is that in Lee Barnard we may have found someone to replace the goal-scoring prowess of Freddie Eastwood. With 12 goals already this campaign Lee ‘Barney’ Barnard looks set to grasp his hands on the converted golden boot already! We came a cropper against Southampton at home last Friday on an awful night at Roots Hall. The second game running where a dubious goal was given. Steve Mildenhall (our goalie) grasped the ball only to have it kicked from his grasp into the goal. Confusion ensued with the majority of Roots Hall looking at the Ref to blow for the foul….he never did! Instead, the goal was given and our run of poor luck continued. A rain-soaked evening dampened the mood of everyone bar the traveling Southampton fans. It got worse for the blues after a deflected shot hit the back of the net and a missed header from Adam Barrat led to Southampton’s third. The only highlight of the game was a stunning free kick from George Friend reminiscent of Eastwood’s Manchester United humbler. Hat off to the Southampton fans, although still didn’t compare to us on the last day of the season at St Marys.

    Bristol Rovers had been flying high before their visit to roots hall, and if their recent form was to go by this should have been a shoo-in for Rovers. However this is football, and Barnard and co had other ideas. Francis Laurent caused havoc in his new favored position on the right, the Bristol Rover’s left back looking constantly frustrated at the ease with which he was being passed. The goal came from some brilliant individual work from Barnard who took the ball in his stride and placed the ball in the top right-hand corner from outside the box. The second goal came early in the second half, so early in fact that this fan was still taking his seat. A lovely cross-field pass from McCormack was comfortably slotted home by Barnard. Southend were playing Midfielder Anthony Grant at Center Half and he never looked comfortable. This was proven when he accidentally turned the ball into his own net. The blues managed to hold on and everyone left the ground with a smile on their face. A great game, especially for the neutral.

    Oh by the way Southend has a new youth player on its books only available on my copy of FIFA!

    Nick Bennett FIFA Avatar
    New youth signing is outstanding

  • Sinking Feeling!

    The topsy-turvy season is never truer than at this level. On paper this week should have been our big push toward the playoffs, instead, we are lingering in the bottom half. Things started badly on Saturday with another laughable decision by the inept officials. I wish someone could clarify what the referee’s assistant can and cannot make decisions on. Here is the way I see it. The linesman seems to have incidents that happen near them which they don’t even act upon. Is there a look toward the referee to see if he shares the linesman’s opinion? Or is he/she acting as another set of eyes altogether? The game against Oldham left me none the wiser. A lunge by an Oldham player (removing half the Roots Hall turf) was ignored by the referee’s assistant despite it happening under his nose?!? Say or wave something man!!

    The very same assistant took it upon himself to give a penalty that was missed by the referee, all playing staff, and 6000 of the Southend faithful?!? The resultant penalty was scored so the blues dropped a point. There’s quite clearly a case of sour grapes about this blog (rant) but it’s because I don’t quite understand the duties of the linesman. They should either be assistants and give their opinions when asked or be more headstrong in their decisions. I’m assuming the first of these two options is true, in which case how can a linesman have the authority to give penalties against the judgment of the referee?

    Next up was Brentford away. My only away game so far this campaign. Griffin Park is a typical old-school ground with seats that are clearly designed for people under 5 feet tall. I settled in nicely squeezing my head between my knees. Early on in the game came the strangest goal I’ve ever seen. A free kick about 25 yards out was curled under the post by Simon Francis. The keeper caught the ball above his head and seemed to drift backward with the ball still in his hands. The linesman gave it as a goal! The crowd and the Southend players were stunned. It was only when the players started to huddle that the fans accepted it was a goal and started to celebrate. The linesman had clearly got the memo about our previous experience with assistant referees.

    Two penalties in the second half put a dampener on proceedings especially as the second was given in the 94th minute. Brentford weren’t particularly good but then neither were we. A draw would have been fair, but Southend decided to self-destruct…again! Looking at the positives though, we are on target with my pre-season target of ‘avoid relegation’!

    Crossed the line?
    Crossed the line?

  • Blues halt rampant Leeds

    Another Friday night at the Hall, and another entertaining game. Despite there being no goals the game itself was as exciting as they come. Great saves, missed penalties, last-ditch challenges, and friendly crowd banter. Captain Adam Barrett was immense at the back with countless Bobby Moore’esq tackles keeping us in the game. The main talking point happened in the 66th minute when a hopeful ball played into the Leeds area forced a reckless challenge, Penalty!

    Lee ‘Barney’ Barnard had scored 2 penalties at the same time last week (the first having to be retaken) so the crowd was full of confidence when he stepped up. Unfortunately for us the keeper guessed the right way and managed to get an outstretched hand to the ball. On the face of it, a great point but can’t help but feel disappointed to let them off the hook. Next up Brighton away!

    Just like to congratulate the England team who did a fantastic job in qualifying. Just shows what some technical know-how and a strict approach can achieve. I like to believe the rumours that John Terry asked permission for the team to have some nuts on a flight to an away game. Capello simply shook his head….brilliant!

  • Week of turmoil ends on high

    So Chelsea fans will be appreciating the same lack of transfer action that Southend fans have suffered for the last 2 years. The last day of the transfer window should be one of intrigue and excitement, but following the blues has always meant this day has been approached with a due sense of trepidation. It seems that this fear was again warranted as within the final hour of deadline day the blues website was updated twice to inform us that our already depleted squad would be 2 players lighter. The most difficult thing to accept with this news is the almost pantomime’esq PR spin applied to the news. Geoffrey King (our chief executive) was the one to announce the release of the crowd favourite Alex Revell. His comments seemed cold and harsh, especially as the player in question gave his all and was plagued with injury.

    A second announcement informed us that Kevin Betsy would also be leaving us. This news was delivered in a more traditional matter-of-fact dates and stats kind of way. After the deadline, the final site update came with the news that we had turned down an offer for our midfield lynchpin Alan McCormack. This so-called ‘good news’ was delivered by none other than our chairman Mr Ron Martin.

    Now I can appreciate that if the club is in financial trouble, and that freeing up two squad players to free up some money to bring in fresh blood makes good business sense. But this message is never conveyed by the people that run the club. Maybe the reason behind this is to prevent mass hysteria but to be quite frank it’s fairly obvious that all is not well.

    I can never appreciate the full complexities of running a football club, so I’m sure the chairman and directors have a very tricky job. However, all the fans ever really want is clarity of the situation. Too often fans are left in the dark when they have a right to know the truth.

    Fans had promised a demonstration at last night’s Leyton Orient game. This as far as I could make out from the East bank consisted of one banner asking politely for Geoffrey King to hand in his resignation. Maybe the fan’s anger was eased by the impressive performance of the team. A 3-0 victory against the old enemy was what everyone at the club needed. I think however that later on in the season when we get some injuries/suspensions to our 16-man squad, and the results aren’t going our way this ill feeling will return.

    Just to finish off I’d like to thank Steve Tilson and Paul Brush. Both have acted dignified throughout the whole affair and are doing an incredible job. I just hope that their heads don’t ever start to rule over their hearts and that they decide to move on.

    Up the blues!

  • Banging our heads against a Millwall

    So we were given a flashback to the violent 80’s this week. Some bloggers have commented that ‘they’ve not enjoyed an atmosphere like that for years’. We hosted the infamous inter-city firm last Friday, and intimidation was the order of the day. It’s easy just to be dismissive of their behavior, however, there were elements of their support that made me envious. The camoradary spirit is second to none and their vocal support is an amazing carcophony of noise. There’s a few things have been said in the press by commentators who’ve been into the game for 5 minutes and think they’ve got all the answers. Needless to say I’ve not agreed with any. So here are my unique and slightly controversial thoughts on the matter. For starters I’ve always found football is a very tribal affair. In a multi-cultural society, it’s challenging for your average Caucasian male to find an identity that makes him stand out. Your average hooligan is unlikely to be accepted into the local yacht club!

    To feel a sense of belonging and purpose they pledge their allegiance to a football side. This gives them the opportunity to become part of a unique family. This is one of the best things about supporting a team. I’ve been going to the hall for 16 years and in that time I’ve met some great characters. For me though I’ll always have things I’ll want to do outside of football. Some individuals will live and die for their team which is excellent if they focus their energy correctly. Too many of the Millwall fans want to focus their energy on violence. Part of the problem is the reputation that Millwall has gained for itself. Every new generation of fans will feel obliged to ensure that Millwall’s bite is as bad as its bark.

    The most upsetting thing about football violence is when innocent people that are there purely to enjoy football are caught up in the violence. I’ve never been to a ground where there wasn’t a section of the crowd that was there purely to fight someone. These groups have been meeting each other for years under the radar meeting at venues to have their punch-ups. This is an ideal solution for all concerned as long as the venues are somewhere where innocent people are unlikely to be. Any team whose fans try to bring this violence into the ground should be docked points or have their fans banned from away grounds. Too often we’re seeing the same away fans getting away with murder at grounds because the authorities are afraid to act.

    So what’s been happening on the pitch I hear you ask. Well, Millwall was 0-0 and we lost at Swindon yesterday. You’ll find more professional match reports out there than I could give. Besides at the Millwall game, I spent 90 minutes watching my back. An amusing incident did take place in the East bank though. One of the Southend youth players is a Millwall fan (and very unprofessional) and got a whack for his over-exuberant support of the opposition. Only at Roots Hall ladies and gentlemen!