Bond despondent as Blues throw it away

Wycombe Wanderers 4-3 Southend United

KEVIN BOND was left shocked and deflated after witnessing his Southend United side’s Sky Bet League One capitulation at in-form Wycombe Wanderers on Saturday.

Blues led 2-0 through Brandon Goodship and Stephen Humphrys, then 3-1 with little over half an hour remaining after Humphrys added his second.

However, Scott Kashket reduced the arrears, then Anthony Stewart levelled the contest in the final minutes. Southend’s misery was compounded when Kashket gabbed a dramatic winner for the Chairboys in stoppage time, handing the Blues their fifth-successive League One defeat, leaving them pointless and above only troubled Bolton and Bury who started the campaign with a points deduction.

“As you can imagine, it’s like a knife to the heart,” Bond told www.southendunited.co.uk.

“It’s bitterly disappointing but we’ve really only got ourselves to blame. We got a two-goal lead, then another two-goal lead with 35 minutes to play and we can’t defend a two-goal lead.

“Rarely have we been in front and had a lead to defend, so today we gave ourselves a two-goal lead with half an hour to go and we couldn’t do it. Words fail me when it’s so important to us at this stage, everybody was aware of that. I would expect us to see the game out.

Bond continued: “Personally, it’s killing me. I understand as a manager you need to get results; I completely understand that. But it hurts so badly when we got ourselves into a two-goal lead on two occasions and couldn’t see the game out.”

The Blues chief was heavily criticised by sections of the travelling support after substituting goalscorers Humphrys and Goodship in a bid to close pout the contest. And he insisted in hindsight he wouldn’t have changed that philosophy. 

“I don’t think so,” he added.

“There were a lot of tired legs out there from a number of people as the game progressed, but the substitutes that we made were substitutes that we felt we had to make because they were flagging more than the others.

“I thought Layton Ndukwu would help us keep the ball, which he did in fairness, and I thought Andre Blackman might help us keep the ball as Elvis Bwomono was out on his feet. At that stage, Stephen Humphrys was out on his feet and Brandon Goodship was really tired.

“Would it have been different if we’d made another one? Possibly. But was it down to that? Absolutely not.”

Southend United now turns their attention to the Carabao Cup, facing Milton Keynes Dons in a second-round tie on Tuesday, August 27 (7:45pm).

Blues return to Sky Bet League One action on Saturday, August 31 when Rochdale are the visitors to Roots Hall Stadium (3pm)

Wycombe Wanderers: Allsop, Grimmer, Jacobson, Stewart, Charles, Gape, Bloomfield (capt), Pattison (Akinfenwa 55’), Kashket, Onyedinma (Wheeler 45’), Samuel (Freeman 78’). Subs not used: Yates, Mascoll, Phillips, Parker

Southend United: Bishop, Bwomono (Blackman 89’), Ralph, Milligan (capt), Humphrys (Robinson 71’), Goodship (Ndukwu 60’), Hamilton, Mantom, Shaughnessy, Lennon, White. Subs not used: Oxley, Hyam, Cox, Kiernan

Referee: Darren Drysdale

Assistants: Ollie Williams and Leigh Crowhurst

Fourth Official: Mike Desborough

Attendance: 4,196