"He's done brilliantly to turn things around" - Southend United v FC Halifax Town: Opposition Focus

How have Southend been doing of late?

Blues got back to winning ways at Barnet on Monday which ended a run of five successive defeats.

It had actually been six defeats in seven games but before that Southend had been unbeaten in 13 league games so it has gone from one extreme to the other.

But the main objection of the management team when they came to the club in October was to ensure Blues stayed up and they’ve done well to achieve that so early given what a mess the club were in when they took over.

How is the mood and morale among the squad?

Everything seems good where that is concerned and the win on Monday would certainly have helped with the confidence of the team too.

What difference has Kevin Maher made since he took charge?

He’s made a really big difference. I think we all thought Blues were destined for a third successive relegation earlier on in the season so he’s done brilliantly to turn things around and that shouldn’t be forgotten even though results haven’t been too good more recently.

Who will be your dangermen on Saturday and why?

The form hasn’t been quite so good lately so there haven’t been so many stand out performers as there had been in the weeks before.

But Harry Cardwell took his penalty well at the weekend and he’s fully fit again after a hamstring problem so he will be looking to kick on once again.

They're not going to get promoted or relegated, so what is their motivation between now and the end of the season?

We ask this question most weeks right now!

The answer is to always pick up as many points as they can to build momentum to take into next season.

Players are also playing for new contracts too.

What is their style of play - what can Halifax expect to come up against?

Blues will try to mix it up a bit. They’re not really much of a physical side but they do have the option to go long due to Sam Dalby’s hold up play and Harry Cardwell’s ability in the air.”

Injuries/suspensions?

There are no suspensions but Nathan Ralph (thigh), Abu Ogogo (heart), Rhys Murphy (knee) and Simeon Akinola (knee) will all be missing. Harrison Neal (hamstring) and Tom Clifford (hip) will both have late fitness tests too.

Likely line up and formation?

The formation changed a little bit against Barnet but prior to that it had been 5-3-2. It switched to three up front at Barnet but I’m not sure they will go with that against a team as strong as Halifax. Much will also depend on the fitness on Tom Clifford and Harrison Neal so it’s quite a tough team to predict. My prediction would be (5-3-2): Arnold, Demetriou, Hobson, Clark, Gubbins, Clifford, Neal, Atkinson, Husin, Dalby, Cardwell.