Southend United have won an appeal against the National League’s decision to impose a £1m bond on the club. The bond was sought to guarantee that the Shrimpers could fulfil their financial commitments next season.
The decision will be a relief to everybody connected with the club, especially as United have relatively recently undergone a takeover.
A takeover finally completed
A consortium led by Australian businessman Jason Rees has completed the club’s takeover. The club’s former owner, Ron Martin, put it up for sale in December 2023.
The deal took months to finalise due to issues surrounding the club’s plans to move to Fossetts Farm. However, the club now looks set to remain at Roots Hall, its historic home since 1955.
The takeover was confirmed in a statement on the club’s official website, which read: “The consortium is delighted to announce that the purchase of Southend United Football Club has been successfully completed,”
“The process, which began in July 2023, was complex and, as a result, has taken longer than any of us anticipated. Completing a complicated deal such as this requires hard work and compromise on all sides.
“With that in mind, we would like to extend our thanks to Ron and Jack Martin, who have acted with integrity and professionalism throughout our dealings, aiming to find solutions as quickly as possible to the many complex and challenging changes that arose along the way.”
The club’s new consortium includes Southend fans, even if Jason Rees will become chairman. The members of the group include John Watson, Gary Lockett, Tom Arnold, David Kreyling, Paul Redbourn, Ian Redbourn, George Taylor, Jason Brown, and Lawrence, with the latter retaining the role of chief executive.
The consortium intends to repay the money owed to the Shrimpers Trust, who loaned the club money to survive financially. Hopefully, for the club’s sake, the financial issues are now behind them.
A fall from grace
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Southend United’s financial issues haven’t helped the team on the pitch. The Shrimpers have been in the National League for the last three seasons, but before that, they were a mainstay in the EFL for much of their history.
In fact, from season 1920/21, United had not been outside the top four divisions of the English game. The highlight of Southend’s history was playing in the English second tier in the season 2006/07.
Unfortunately, their time in the Championship lasted just a season. They finished 22nd place in the table, having won the League One title the previous campaign.
Striker Freddy Eastwood played a vital role during that time. The former West Ham star scored 25 goals in the third tier, 24 the next season, and then a respectable 16 in the English second tier.
The goals turned Eastwood into a club icon, and the forward finished his career with a second spell before retiring in 2014. He is still the club’s record goalscorer in all competitions, having scored 73 goals for the Shrimpers.
Can Southend make an impact in the National League in season 2024/25?
The Shrimpers have been hamstrung by their financial issues in recent seasons, which have led to 13th, 8th and 9th place finishes in their three National League campaigns.
As you would expect for a club shrouded in financial uncertainty, Southend has not been the busiest club when it comes to bringing in fresh recruits. However, Joe Gubbins, James Hillson and Josh Walker have all arrived on free transfers.
The latter has a decent goalscoring record in the National League, having scored 32 goals in 106 appearances in the fifth tier. Gubbins has previously played 13 games in the National League but has also featured at a higher level. United snapped him up on a free transfer from Burton Albion.
Hillson is a slightly unknown quantity. The 23-year-old arrived at the club after being released by Premier League Arsenal. He has yet to play any league football, having spent his whole career in the club’s under-18 and Premier League 2 squads. The move could well ignite his professional career, as it’s his chance to prove himself in senior football.
The outgoings include goalkeeper David Martin retiring, Callum Powell leaving for Braintree, and Wesley Fonguck, who joined Ebbsfleet. The latter pair exited the club without a fee.
Powell scored 12 goals in 70 appearances in all competitions since joining the club from Kettering in 2022. Fonguck also joined the Shrimpers in 2022 and made 74 appearances for United.
Martin featured on just nine occasions for United last season, with Cameroonian goalkeeper Collin Andeng-Ndi first-choice, and making 33 appearances in the National League.
It is hard to judge how Southend will fare on the pitch in the new season. It depends on how the new players settle and the effect that the few changes have on the squad. They drew their opening National League game 1-1 at home against York City.
While the situation on the pitch may be unpredictable, it seems that, for now, at least, the club’s financial situation after the takeover is looking far more positive. Hopefully, this will be the start of a recovery for Southend and a return to the EFL for the club.