Will selling star striker hurt Southend's chances of staying up?

Southend chairman Ron Martin is coming under increasing pressure not to sell the relegation-threatened side's want-away leading scorer.

A number of bigger clubs are thought to be sniffing around the 24 year old Essex based forward whose goals have made him one of the hottest properties in the January window. With the striker making his desire to move on from his local team known and with his valuation being only likely to drop before the summer chairman Ron Martin must be sorely tempted to sell high.

However whilst many fans concede that their top asset's value has never been higher, supporters argue that selling during the January window would condemn the club to relegation. Fans claim the highly sought-after hot-shot's goals will fire the Blues to safety and that those goals will be worth more than any transfer fee received.

Those protestations are likely to be all the louder if Southend were to cash in and that striker was to finally get off the mark for his new club in his sixth appearance.

Freddy Eastwood is currently Southend's leading goalscorer with 13 goals.


From our January 2007 archive.  

Freddy Eastwood was not sold that transfer window, but he only managed a further three goals that season and Southend were relegated. Whilst Eastwood was sold that summer, it was for less than he was being valued at during January and the Essex side proceeded to struggle financially.

January sales - end today!

The January sales are now in full flow and it is no different at Roots Hall when it comes to seasonal bargains for the New Year.

Our core of the side is up for sale, which includes Barnard, Francis and McCormack all with 50% of the RRP. That means you can buy our only source of goals, assists and bookings respectively.

If you need a goalscoring centre-forward then we have one available at the bargain basement price of £175,000- PLEASE NOTE THIS ITEM IS NOW SOLD OUT; a right-back/centre-half available to any interested Championship clubs (subject to personal terms) and if Millwall haven't finalised a deal already (although we'll deny that they've made a bid, despite previously having claimed otherwise), a fiery midfielder who finally looks as if he's interested again.

Don't forget, if you still have not had a chance to pick up the new Blues 2010 Calendar then do so today for an incredible £4!

With the winter weather causing havoc on the roads and last weekend's game which was nearly postponed, then why not take advantage of our online shop and let us deliver Dougie Freedman to your door.

The sale is available online, so why not check it out before all the bargains go to other League One clubs.

And remember with our special Ron Martin payment plan, you can buy today and only have to pay when the bailiffs come knocking!

New signing controversy latest

Southend's latest signing, Matt Paterson, found himself plunged into a controversy that could very well threaten his new club's future.

Paterson, was signed today on a free transfer from Southampton, to replace Lee Barnard who moved in the opposite direction for an undisclosed fee, believed to be in the region of £175,000.

The 20 year old forward was then quoted on the official site as saying "Tilly sold me the club".

However this remark has produced a furious response from Sainsburys, who claim that Steve Tilson couldn't possibly have sold him the club.

Sainsburys spokesman Jamie Oliver cited the November loan from the supermarket chain to a Martin Dawn group company, that was secured by Martin Dawn plc's shareholding in Southend United. The thick-lipped face of Sainsburys, went onto explain that this meant that the club wasn't Steve Tilson's to sell, because it was already mortgaged to the supermarket giant and Steve Tilson would have to "try something new today" to entice that centre-half that the club are supposedly also after.

2009 Christmas present review

Here at the Southend Afternoon Echo Sportsdesk we're nothing if not topical, so here's our run-down of last year's hottest Christmas stocking fillers:


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The Southend United Sat-Nav system

Tired of heading down blind allies like Damien Scannell? Looking as lost and out of place as Johnny Herd? Is your positioning all over the place like Simon Francis?

Then you need the celebratory endorsed Southend United Sat-Nav system with instructions barked out by Southend United Assistant Manager Paul Brush!

Says Southend United manager Steve Tilson about the Southend United Sat-Nav system: "like"!

RRP: £3,000
Our price: £2,999

Features include:

* The Alan McCormack pub finder
* The Ron Martin blog mode, for when you need a period of silence

Don't know where you want to go: simply choose the Francis Laurent random function!

Going abroad? Then simply upgrade to the Southend United Sat-Nav DELUXE model featuring Franck Moussa which will provide directions in French, Belgian Waffle and English.


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The Dougie Freedman Mobility Scooter

Tired of having trouble reaching that Alan McCormack misplaced pass?

Then you need the Dougie Freedman Mobility Scooter. This obsolete museum piece is guaranteed* to leave defenders in their wake. The Dougie Freedman Mobility Scooter comes with three speeds as standard: slow, slower and dummy it.

RRP: around £3,000 a week
Our price: FREE! (buyer must collect)

Says Southend United manager Steve Tilson: "like" and "I use it as much as I can."

Batteries not included.
Colours: Tommy Black or John White.


*Warning: Does not work in cold weather


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Southend United Novelty Calendar

Tired of not getting round to stuff and posting Christmas related pieces up in early January?

Then you need a Southend United themed squad calendar, featuring the entire squad and a different player for each month!

The perfect gift for any Southend United fan who wants to keep themselves organised from January (Adam Barrett) all the way through to October (Steve Parmenter)!

Featuring Ian Joyce as Mr February!!!

The perfect way for any fan to countdown the number of days left in the transfer window before Mr September (Lee Barnard) completes his move elsewhere!

Comes complete with tax return dates helpfully marked on to avoid those unnecessary train journeys up to the High Court.

RRP: £4.99
Our price: £7.99

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Sanfoka-Sudoku

Entertain the entire family with this new craze that is sweeping the country!

Simply try to figure out where Osei Sankofa fits into Steve Tilson's defence. The rules are straight forward as contestants simply have to perm the available defenders into a back four remembering that you can't play the same back four more than once! It's a lot harder than it looks, particularly when you've only got three fit defenders!!!

RRP: £200,000
Our price: free or on loan!!!

Comes complete with superfluous exclamation marks!!!


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All gifts are available from the Southend United gift shop on a buy now pay three years later basis. Ask inside for details.

Prices are either inclusive or exclusive of VAT, or at least would be if we if we paid any.
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