Southend United secured a 3-1 win over Solihull Moors on Saturday, moving to the summit of the National League table. Goals from Oli Coker, Josh Popoola and Charley Kendall gave the Shrimpers a third successive victory – the first time the club has won three straight games in a season since 1998.
Despite the result, manager Kieron Dyer was far from satisfied. "I’m delighted with the win but from an overall performance point of view I’m really disappointed," he said. "We didn’t really have any control in the game. We probably had a period at the end of the first half, for 20 minutes, where we looked really good. Our second goal was an unbelievable goal and there won’t be many better goals than that. But where I thought we would take over in the second half, we were on the back foot. We couldn’t complete five, six passes together."
Dyer’s criticism extended to the team’s lack of possession. "We couldn’t get a second ball and it was a real wake‑up call," he added. "The players have got loads of plaudits and rightly so but that wasn’t a performance I enjoyed today. They say a good team wins when they don’t play well so hopefully that’s a good omen but we have to improve as a team because, especially that second half performance was way off it in my opinion."
Solihull striker Jacob Wakeling saw an early penalty saved by Blues goalkeeper Joe Duncan before he bounced back to fire the home side in front. The Moors were unable to convert the other chances that came their way, allowing Southend to take advantage. Substitute Charley Kendall sealed the away win with a breakaway goal in stoppage time.
Dyer’s reaction amid the celebrations was again one of displeasure. "I don’t know if you saw me but I booted a ball in disgust," he said. "Everyone was celebrating but I try to see the bigger picture. I was so disappointed with the second half. Obviously when I get on the bus, I’ll watch it, emotions will settle down and I’ll be probably more ecstatic than I am now. But everything I hate from a control point of view is why I hated the second half."
The win means Southend have taken the first three points of the season, a feat the club has not achieved since 1998. Dyer admitted he was pleased to pick up another three points, but remained focused on the areas that need improvement.
"I’m really disappointed with the performance but deep down inside I’m doing cartwheels," he said. "To win three out of three is really, really good. I am happy."
