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“Did you bring your boots?” jokes a steward as Mail Sport wanders through the tunnel at Roots Hall. The reason is that Southend United are so depleted that they have named just two substitutes for the visit of National League leaders Chesterfield who are unbeaten in their last thirteen games.
The door to the dressing room at home is open and the players present, half-dressed as they change, listen to Don’t Look Back in Anger by Oasis. There is no sense of nerves among this shrunken group, even though there are TNT Sports cameras in town to tell the Southend story.
It’s a sad story for such a hospitable and historic club. A transfer ban has been in place since September 2022. They were deducted 10 points at the start of this season after failing to pay off a £275,000 HMRC debt.
Their request for a postponement of Saturday’s match was rejected despite the loss of three players to international call-ups: Noor Husin for Afghanistan, Daniel Kanu for Sierra Leone and Mauro Vilhete for Sao Tome and Principe.
Southend fans can’t wait to see the back of their owner Ron Martin. Roots Hall is a neglected site in need of love with graffiti outside saying ‘f*** off’. The letter ‘S’ is missing above the director’s entrance, leaving only ‘UFC’, and the hope here is that Martin will never slip through those blue doors again.
Southend United stormed to a surprise 2-1 victory over National League leaders Chesterfield
Southend has been under a transfer ban since September 2022 and was deducted 10 points at the start of this season after failing to repay a £275,000 HMRC debt.
The club requested a postponement of Saturday’s match after losing three players to international call-ups, but their request was denied
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John Still, the club’s head of football, sitting in the stadium’s plastic seats, confirms a takeover is imminent after further talks with a consortium led by Australian IT billionaire Justin Rees.
That news is why Dave, one of the 7,782 Southend fans rushing through the turnstiles for this match, has turned up dressed as a kangaroo, complete with an Australian flag draped over his shoulders and a yellow scarf reading : ‘Ron the Rat.’
He speaks of hope for the future and love for manager Kevin Maher, someone who doesn’t need his wallet to buy a drink in this seaside town in Essex.
Maher is a miracle worker and is here overseeing his 100th National League game. During a chat before kick-off, he says: ‘There is solidarity. Setbacks can be a basis. We talk about that with the group. You sense there is excitement about what might be around the corner.”
Mail Sport visits TNT presenter Matt Smith and experts Aaron McLean and Chris Hargreaves in their trailer. They talk about the responsibility they feel to tell Southend’s story, with Smith, experienced in Premier League and Champions League matches, saying: ‘We’ve had the glamor and success of Wrexham and to some extent Notts County .
“The investment, the happy endings and the Hollywood feel of it all. On the other hand you have a big club with a loyal fan base like Southend, which is on the verge of going bankrupt.’
Smith and Co tell the story perfectly while also showing Paul Cook’s Chesterfield – a classy club that seems destined for the Football League – the respect they deserve. Southend are hoping for promotion themselves and are bringing the game to the visitors from the start. They pass out from the back, press from the front and believe they can be the first team to beat the visitors since August.
Southend United are facing a serious shortage of players and have only named two substitutes for a match
Chesterfield score first through Will Grigg and Southend send their two substitutes to warm up. When asked why, Maher explains from his dugout that some of his players are suffering from fatigue. Understandable, because not once this season have they been able to appoint a full bench.
There is treatment for tight quads and hamstrings at half-time but Southend fights back in the second half, equalizing through a Jack Bridge penalty and scoring the winner in front of the TNT cameras when Darren Oldaker turns Wesley Fonguck’s cross into his own goal deflects.
Back in the locker room, the 13 players celebrate beating the table toppers. “Unbelievable,” says Maher, his voice hoarse as we are reminded that without the ten-point deduction they would be in the play-off positions.
The Premier League may be a polished product, but in the National League you get authenticity. The reality of this level has been felt at Roots Hall and many more, but it is hoped that a bright new future awaits Southend.
Watch the Vanarama National League on TNT Sports or via the Discovery+ streaming platform Visit: tntsports.co.uk/football