Southend United welcome Tamworth to Roots Hall for a National League fixture on Tuesday evening. The Blues are aiming to turn a series of draws into a decisive victory as they continue their season.
Kevin Maher's side come into the match following a dramatic 2-2 draw away at Carlisle United last Saturday. They twice came from behind, with late goals from Luke Chambers-Parillon and Kian McAdam securing a point in stoppage time. Southend's recent form shows two wins, two draws and a loss from their last five matches. The team's next fixture after this is a home game against Worthing in January.
Team news and selection
The starting lineup from their last home game, a 3-2 win over Yeovil Town, featured Jack Duncan in goal behind a defence of Vontae Daley-Campbell, Harry Taylor, Dan Cox and Kian McAdam. The midfield trio of Danny Oldaker, Lewys Twamley and Oli Coker supported forwards Luke Chambers-Parillon, Harry Cardwell and Rhys Colclough. Maher may consider changes after the energy-sapping trip to Cumbria.
Tamworth, managed by Andy Peaks, arrive after a 5-1 thrashing of Braintree in their last match. Their likely side includes goalkeeper Ryley Lovett, with a defence marshalled by Jaden Rye and Jai Cullinane-Liburd. Their attack is led by Danny Creaney, who will test a Southend defence that has conceded 47 goals across the campaign so far.
The context
Southend finished sixth last season with 81 points and will view this home game as a key opportunity. A win could help close the gap to the early pacesetters, though they currently sit 27 points behind York City. The full schedule of upcoming matches is available on our fixtures page.
The match kicks off at 18:45 UTC at Roots Hall.
