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EspañolSOUTHEND UNITED F.C.
'Southend United Football Club' is an English football team based at Roots Hall Stadium in Prittlewell, in the Borough of Southend-on-Sea, Essex, which plays in the Football League One.
History
Early history
The club was formed in 1906 and played in the Southern League until 1920 when they co-founded the Football League's new Third Division; they finished 17th in their first ever season. In 1921 the Third Division was regionalised with Southend United joining the southern section and here they remained until league re-structure in 1958. They came close to promotion twice when they finished 3rd in 1932 and 1950, their highest league positions until 1991.
First promotions and relegation
In 1958 Southend joined the new national Third Division until 1966 when they suffered their first ever relegation, dropping into the Fourth Division. Fans had to wait until 1972 to witness the club's first ever promotion when they finished runners-up behind Grimsby Town. In 1976 they suffered relegation again before grabbing another runners-up spot behind Watford in 1978. Another relegation in 1980 was immediately followed by one of the most successful seasons in the club's history when they won the Fourth Division Championship in 1981, breaking a series of club records in the process, and in the club history.
Financial nightmare
But the prospect of a "golden era" for Southend United had to be put on hold for a while after the club sold many of its talented players and the club dropped back into the basement in 1984 to embark of a fight for survival both on and off the pitch. One of the club's darkest hours saw a season average barely above 1,000 watch the Shrimpers narrowly avoid the lottery of re-election to the Football League. The club, however, managed to re-coup major financial losses by releasing the famous Southend United song "Shrimping all over the World" with Status Quo, which reached No 4 in the Belgian charts, and No 2 in the Hungarian and Estonian charts in 1993.
Back to back promotion winners
Promotion in 1987 started a period in which Southend United finally fulfilled its potential. Relegation in 1989 was a mere blip because two successive promotions in 1990 and 1991 saw the Shrimpers become "full members" of the Football League for the first time in their history and in 1992 the club finished 12th in the old Second Division, their highest ever position in the Football League to date. On New Year's Day 1992 they briefly topped the Second Division but their dismal late season form put paid to any hopes of a unique third successive promotion.
Back to back relegations and rising debts
Two torrid seasons in the late 1990s saw the Shrimpers free-fall back to the basement league in successive seasons and by 1999 they were once again fighting for survival. Off the pitch the club was close to going bust and Roots Hall, built by the supporters back in the 1950s, was sold off to clear debts by the new owners with the promise of a new stadium, which would revitalise the club, by 2003. A succession of managers couldn't bring success until ex-player Steve Tilson took over as caretaker-manager in 2003, with another ex-player Paul Brush as his assistant.
The Steve Tilson Revolution
The duo turned things around dramatically and Southend reached their first ever national cup final in 2004 when they met Blackpool in the final of the LDV Vans Trophy at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. Over 20,000 Southend fans travelled from all over the world to be part of history, but the team couldn't quite rise to the occasion and Blackpool won 2-0, however the Southend fans were in fantastic voice that day starting the iconic Southend anthem "Shrimping all over the World". In 2004 Tilson and Brush were installed as a permanent management / coaching duo and responded by not only guiding Southend to promotion via the play-offs in 2005 but also to a second successive appearance in the LDV Vans Trophy final. Once again the trophy eluded the Shrimpers, losing 2-0 to Wrexham but the third appearance at the Millennium Stadium in the League Two play-off final against Lincoln City brought success as Freddy Eastwood and Duncan Jupp scored the goals that would give the club their first ever taste of promotion via the play-off system and their first major piece of silverware since 1981.
On 29 April 2006 the Shrimpers were promoted to the Football League Championship, the second highest tier of English football after a tense 2-2 draw with Swansea City at the Welsh club's new Liberty Stadium. Southend were crowned champions on 6 May 2006, the final day of the season, after beating Bristol City 1-0 at Roots Hall in front of almost 11,400 fans. The 87th minute winner came from Wayne Gray who had come on as a substitute for Shaun Goater who was playing his last professional game. Fans from his former club Manchester City had made a special trip to the game to give their hero a special send-off at the end of a long and distinguished career. For Southend United, the championship title, the club's first in 25 years, is just one stop of an amazing three year journey from the depths of despair at the bottom of the Football League to just one level below the Premiership, a journey that has not only seen two successive promotions but also two national final appearances in Cardiff. On 6 May 2006 manager Steve Tilson was named as the League Manager Association's Manager-of-the-Season for League One.
The club has a local rivalry with fellow Essex side Colchester United. The two clubs were promoted from League One at the end of the 2005/06 season after a long, unlikely battle for top spot which was eventually won by the Shrimpers. The rivalry extends back many years. At the end of the 1989/90 season Southend promotion from the Fourth Division coincided with Colchester's fall from the Football League and the clubs had to wait almost 15 years before meeting once again in competition when they met in the Southern Final of the LDV Vans Trophy; the Shrimpers triumphed 4-3 on aggregate to secure their first ever appearance in a national cup final. The two clubs met again in the same competition the following season, with Southend emerging as the victors once more after a penalty shootout.
One of the Shrimpers' most memorable victories was won in the fourth round of the League Cup against trophy holders Manchester United on the 7th of November 2006. United fielded a side with 10 internationals including Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney. Southend won the game 1-0 thanks to a 30 yard free kick from Freddy Eastwood. Southend goalkeeper Darryl Flahavan was voted man of the match after a treble of world class saves from Manchester United's Portuguese winger Ronaldo. Southend then drew another Premiership team in the next round, Tottenham Hotspur. The Championship side forced Tottenham to extra-time, only to be undone 5 minutes from time by a Jermain Defoe goal, which replays later showed was offside.
Southend United started off the season reasonably well, beating Stoke City 1-0 on the opening day of the season 2006/07. Just a few games later, Southend beat Sunderland AFC 3-1 at Roots Hall Stadium, where the classic anthem "Shrimping All Over The World" was sang loudly in the ground and by happy Shirmpers all night. After that, Southend did not win a league game for 18 games, until this was broken on 9 December 2006 when they beat Southampton FC 2-1. The Blues then followed this up with a convincing 3-1 win over promotion-chasers West Bromwich Albion on New Year's Day 2007 and an away victory recorded over Cardiff City to take the Shrimpers to five games undefeated. A 3-1 victory away to Birmingham City on the 31st of January 2007 saw the Shrimpers lift themselves from the bottom of the Championship, moving above Leeds United on goal difference. On the 10th of February 2007 the Shrimpers defeated QPR by a scoreline of 5-0. It was to be a nightmare return for Southend's former goalkeeper Simon Royce, conceding in only the 9th minute when his attempted clearance rebounded off of the onrushing Lee Bradbury and into the net.
Southend were relegated from the Championship following a 3-1 home defeat to Luton Town on the 28th April 2007.
Southend United sold their prize asset Freddy Eastwood to Wolverhampton Wanderers for a fee of £1.5 Million during the 2007-08 pre-season. However, as a mark of respect for the Shrimpers, Eastwood is planning to release the famous Southend Utd. song "Shrimping All Over the World" with the band Fightstar, who feature ex-Busted member Charlie Simpson, as a goodbye present to the fans. The song has a download release date of 3rd September 2007.
The Steve Tilson Revolution has recently hit a hiccup as the team lost on the opening day of the 2007-08 season to Leyton Orient, 2-1, with Alan McCormack sent off.
Stadium
Main articles: Roots Hall, Fossets Farm Stadium
Southend United currently play in the 12,392 all-seater Roots Hall stadium, which has been their home since 1955, where "Shrimping All Over The World" has been sung for 52 years. The future of this location has been in doubt since it was sold to property developers in 1998. Planning permission is currently being sought for a new 22,000 seater stadium to be located on the team's training ground at Fossets Farm.
On 24 January 2007, Southend Borough Council unanimously agreed to give planning permission for the new stadium at the proposed Fossetts Farm site with Rochford District Council following suit 24 hours later. The application was subsequently submitted to Ruth Kelly, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, for government approval. However the application was unexpectedly "called in" at the beginning of April 2007, a move which at best delays the development by some considerable time and at worst might jeopardise the whole project entirely. The inquiry begins in September 2007 with it being expected to last in excess of two weeks
For a detailed view of the new ground and facilities, go to the Southend United home page, and review there.
Contact details
★ 'Postal Address' Roots Hall Stadium, Victoria Avenue, Southend-on-sea, Essex, SS2 6NQ
★ 'Telephone' 01702 30 40 50
★ 'Text Phone' 01702 30 41 17
★ 'Fax' 01702 30 41 24
★ 'Commercial' 01702 30 41 49
★ 'Media' 01702 30 41 19
★ 'Community' 01702 34 13 51
★ 'Youth' 01702 30 41 23
★ 'E-mail' info@southend-united.co.uk
★ 'Ticket Hotline' 08444 77 00 77
★ 'Blues Superstore' 01702 35 11 17
Club Honours
★ 'League One Champions:' 2006
★ 'League Two Play-off Winners:' 2005
★ 'Division Three Runners-up:' 1991
★ 'Division Four Champions:' 1981
★ 'Division Four Runners-up:' 1972, 1978
★ 'LDV Vans Trophy Runners-up:' 2004, 2005
★ 'Southern League Second Division Winners:' 1907, 1908
★ 'Southern League Second Division Runners-up:' 1913
★ 'Essex Professional Cup Winners:' 1950, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1957, 1962, 1965, 1967, 1972, 1973.
★ 'Essex Senior Cup Winners:' 1983, 1991, 1997.
★ 'Essex Thameside Trophy Winners:' 1990.
Club records
★ 'Biggest Victory:' 10-1 v Golders Green, FA Cup, 1934/35; 10-1 v Brentwood, FA Cup, 1968/69; 10-1 v Aldershot, Leyland Daf Cup, 1990/91
★ 'Heaviest Defeat:' 1-9 v Brighton & Hove Albion, 1965/66
★ 'Highest Attendance (All Comps):' 31,033 v Liverpool, FA Cup, 10 Jan 1979
★ 'Highest Attendance (League):' 21,020 v Leyton Orient, Division Three (South), 9 Sep 1955
★ 'Lowest Attendance (All Comps):' 945 v Cambridge United, Associate Members Cup, 16 Dec 1986
★ 'Highest Average Attendance:' 12,089 1949/50 Division Three (South) - Southend Stadium.
★ 'Lowest Average Attendance:' 2,103 1984/85 Division Four - Roots Hall.
★ 'Most Appearances (All Comps):' Alan Moody (506 - 1972-1984)
★ 'Most Appearances (League):' Sandy Anderson (452 - 1950-1962)
★ 'Most Appearances (FA Cup):' Alan Moody (32 - 1972-1984)
★ 'Most Appearances (League Cup):' David Martin (25 - 1986-1993)
★ 'Most Appearances (Other Cup):' Kevin Maher (25+1 - 1998 to present)
★ 'Most Goals (All Comps):' Roy Hollis (135 - 1954-1960)
★ 'Most Goals (League):' Roy Hollis (120 - 1954-1960)
★ 'Most Goals (FA Cup):' Roy Hollis (15 - 1954-1960) and Billy Best (15 - 1968-1973)
★ 'Most Goals (League Cup):' Sammy McMillan ( 5 - 1967-69) and David Martin (15 - 1986-1993)
★ 'Most Goals (Other Cup):' Brett Angell (10 - 1990-1994)
Current squad
As of 31 August, 2007:
Famous players
★ 2006 Michael Ricketts - England capped striker who was sacked by the club after only 2 substitute appearances
★ 2005-2006 Shaun Goater - Experienced Bermudian striker who ended his career with Southend in their successful League One promotion campaign
★ 2004-2007 Freddy Eastwood - A striker of Romani background who scored a hat-trick on his debut against Swansea. He was signed from Grays Athletic and went on to score a famous free kick against Manchester United in the Carling Cup. Eastwood played a major part in Southend's consecutive promotions. His caravan could be seen parked in the club car park during match days.
★ 1997-98 Neville Southall - Veteran goalkeeper who was loaned to Southend from his long-time employers Everton
★ 1996-1998 Jeroen Boere - Another ex West Ham United player he was Dutch and played as a striker, died in his Spanish home on August 16th 2007 at the age of 39.
★ 1995 Lee Chapman - Experienced striker who was loaned to the club from Ipswich Town and played just one game
★ 1995-97 Mike Marsh - Former Liverpool midfielder who had two seasons at Southend before retiring through injury
★ 1994-97 Ronnie Whelan - Experienced former Liverpool and Éire defender who had three seasons at Southend and for the latter two of those seasons was player-manager
★ 1992-93 Stan Collymore - One of the most controversial strikers in English football, Collymore established himself as a regular goalscorer before being sold to Nottingham Forest, and later represented England
★ 1990-96 Chris Powell - Talented defender who later played for Charlton and in 2001 was selected for the England team
★ 1989-1993 and 2004-2007 Spencer Prior - Tall centre back who won 4 promotions whilst with the Shrimpers. He went on to sign for Norwich, Manchester City and Cardiff City before re-joining Southend in 2004
★ 1988-90 Justin Edinburgh - Young full-back who was sold to Tottenham in 1990 and collected an F.A Cup winner's medal the following year
★ 1985-86 Frank Lampard Sr - Veteran full-back who had success earlier in his career with West Ham
★ 1984-1985 and 1985-1990 Roy McDonough - Controversial striker who held the English record for the highest number of red cards in a career
★ 1979-83 Garry Nelson - Much travelled striker who later wrote the successful book "Left Foot in the Grave".
★ 1971-73 Peter Taylor - Had short, uneventful spells as player and later manager, but enjoyed success at other clubs
★ 1965-67 Eddie Firmani - first player to score 100 goals in England and Italy
★ 1906-08 Harold Halse - Scored over 200 goals for Southend before moving to Manchester United, playing in three FA Cup Finals and turning out for England.
Famous managers
★ 1997-99 Alvin Martin: West Ham United & England - Sacked after two disastrous seasons which saw Southend fall into the bottom half of Division Three
★ 1995-97 Ronnie Whelan: Liverpool and Éire : also former player - Sacked after the first of Southend's two successive relegations in the late 1990s
★ 1993-95 Peter Taylor: Tottenham Hotspur & England : also former player - Sacked after failing to get Southend anywhere near the top of Division One
★ 1986-87 1988-92 2000-01 2003 David Webb: Chelsea - Had four spells as manager, winning two successive promotions in his second spell
★ 1984-86 Bobby Moore : West Ham United & England : captain of England 1966 World Cup Winners - Failed to make his mark in management
★ 1970-76 Arthur Rowley : holds the record for the most career goals in the Football League (434 from 619 games) - Had six years as manager during the 1970s
★ 1934-40 David Jack : Former Arsenal player: first player in the world to be worth over £10,000 - Failed to grab many headlines as a manager
International Representatives
★ Lot Jones (Wales 2 apps 1920)
★ Jimmy Evans (Wales 4 apps 1922-1923)
★ Charlie Turner (Ireland (FAI) 7 apps 1936-1937)
★ George McKenzie (Ireland (FAI) 9 apps 1937-1939)
★ Jimmy McAlinden (Ireland (IFA) 1 app 1948)
★ Tom Scannell (Republic of Ireland 1 app 1954)
★ Sam McCrory (Northern Ireland 1 app 1957)
★ Derek Spence (Northern Ireland 5 apps 1980-1982)
★ Ronnie Whelan (Republic of Ireland 2 apps 1995)
★ Tesfaye Bramble (Montserrat 1 app 2004)
★ Jamal Campbell-Ryce (Jamaica 1 app 2006)
Rivalries
Southend have a rivalry with another Essex side, Colchester United. The overall competitive head to head record for the rivalry stands at 28 wins to Southend, 23 wins for Colchester with 16 draws [1] Southend also hold by far the superior collection of honours (Colchester possessing none above non-league level) and have so far spent 7 seasons playing in the second tier of English football, whereas Colchester only completed their first in May 2007.
Southend are also rivals with Leyton Orient. Some Southend fans also regard West Ham United as rivals due to their large fan base in the town.
The closest geographical club to Southend is actually Gillingham, across the Thames in Kent, but they are not considered rivals despite sharing divisions several times.
Additionally, due to his action of jumping ship to join Birmingham City in 1993 (and taking most of the coaching staff and some of the club's more talented players), a fair majority of Southend United fans have hated any club managed by former manager Barry Fry. At the time the Shrimpers were in the unlikely position of a play-off spot for promotion to the Premier League. Some see Fry's departure as the start of a demise of the football club that resulted in two successive promotions and a close call with relegation from the Football League itself.
Press
Southend United's main press coverage is from The Echo, a local newspaper serving Essex. The current Southend United reporter is Chris Phillips.
External links
★ Southend United FC Official Site
★ The Shrimpers Trust
★ Longpier - Best blog about Southend United by journalist & fan
References
This article provided by Wikipedia. To edit the contents of this article, click here for original source.
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