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SOUTHEND
UNITED - TUESDAY 08/04/08 |
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IMAGES
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| Following
Saturdays defeat against Port Vale, three points
against Southend was Brightons only really hope
of making the play offs. Unfortunately, the
Albion hadn't won at Roots Hall for what seemed
like hundreds of years. This didn't deter the
Crocs though, as they handed a debut to Ali
Jenkins and McCarthy undertook a round trip of
500 miles to view what would be the last throw
of the play off dice |
| Mode
of Transport: |
McCarthy
was behind the wheel, driving to Southend from
Cheltenham via Portsmouth and Haywards Heath
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| Team: |
Mr
Wilkins chose to name a 4-4-2 line up consisting
of: Kuipers, Whing, Elphick, Butters, Mayo; Cox,
Racon,
Thomson, Westlake; Murray, Forster
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| Kit: |
Southend
were in their home kits consisting of dark blue
shirts, shorts and socks. Brighton went for
their alternative away colours of all white.
Michel Kuipers appeared in his aqua and gold
jersey alongside navy shorts and socks. Special
note must also go to Southend keeper Daryl
Flahavan for flairing it up in an all green kit
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| Dean
Wilkins Attire: |
Mr
Wilkins was once present and he was suited and
booted
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| Weather: |
A
warm day throughout, which presented problems
due to an air conditioning problem in the
McCarthy Mobile
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| Stadium
Rating: |
An
old school stadium, Southend are in their final
few years at Roots Hall. A small main stand is
faced by an equally sized stand opposite, while
behind one goal is a classic double decker
effort, with away fans being housed behind the
opposite goal in a small seated affair with a
barrel roof that afford very little leg room but
very much atmosphere. Also worth noting is the
lack of burger hatch, with a room entitled
"The Restaurant" instead. Flair to the
maximum. 5/10
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| Food
Rating: |
Hotdogs
were of a decent standard, while pies came with
a plate which was rather novel. There was nearly
drama though when McCarthy told the canteen
staff that Potter hadn't paid when he had,
although thankfully the confussion was sorted
out quickly. 7/10
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| Entertainment: |
Cheerleaders
were present, and up there in standard with the
Doncaster offering. Also on show was a mascot
that was supposed to represent the clubs
nickname of The Shrimps, although it excitingly
looked more like a Ku Klux Klan member
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| Friendliness
of Locals: |
We
met several friendly locals, although this was
probably diluted due to the manner of their
victory. Several stereotypical Essex girls were
also spotted in the town, and often greeted with
a hooting of McCarthys horn and a round of abuse
from Rumble. 7/10
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| Standard
of Local Females: |
Essex
Girls aplenty. While they may have been what is
more commonly known as prostitutes, they were
still fine. 8/10
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| Steward
Rating: |
Knew
that the situation of their stadium denoted that
people would stand to be able to see the game,
and stewarded things very sensibly. 8/10
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| Flag
Attention: |
We
were unable to gauge the attention of the flag
as it is currently in Nottingham. Somewhere
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| Match
Report: |
Brightons
chances of reaching the play off were all but
ended by a rampant and impressive Southend side.
An extremely poor first half saw Southend
completely outplay their fellow seaside club to
go in leading 2-0 at the break with two goals of
the highest quality. A much improved Albion
performance in the second half wasn't enough to
gain anything from the trip to Essex, and two
extremely disappointing defeats in the last four
days should ensure that it is League One
football for the third season running in
2008-2009
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| Thought
of the Day: |
McCarthy
was explaining to the car how he had a vital
shorthand lesson to attend tomorrow morning at
9.15am, when Rumble questioned if it was a class
in which he learnt about the life and times of
Jeremy Beadle
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