Southend United v Yeovil Town: The Shrimpers Face Unbeaten Glovers At Roots Hall
Southend United return to Roots Hall looking to get back to winning ways, but Kieron Dyer’s side face a Yeovil Town team who arrive in Essex unbeaten after an impressive opening five matches.
Southend United return to Roots Hall on Saturday looking to get back to winning ways after a demanding Bank Holiday weekend.
The Shrimpers collected maximum points from their opening three National League matches before suffering their first setback of the campaign in a 3-1 home defeat against Kidderminster Harriers.
Monday’s trip to Woking produced a response, but there was still a feeling that Southend had allowed another opportunity to slip away.
Harry Cardwell’s first-half penalty gave Kieron Dyer’s side the lead at the Laithwaite Community Stadium before Aiden O’Brien equalised during a much-improved second-half showing from Woking.
That leaves Southend with 10 points from their opening five fixtures.
Yeovil arrive at Roots Hall one point better off and, importantly, still unbeaten.
Back To Roots Hall
There were plenty of positives to take from Southend’s performance at Woking, particularly during a first half in which The Shrimpers created enough opportunities to establish a much more comfortable advantage.
Ben Goodliffe headed wide, Lewys Twamley was denied after racing clear, Cardwell had further opportunities and captain Oli Coker fired over before the interval.
Cardwell’s penalty was ultimately the only reward.
That became costly once Woking made three half-time substitutions and changed the momentum of the match.
It followed a frustratingly similar pattern to Southend’s previous outing against Kidderminster.
The Shrimpers had been excellent during the first half at Roots Hall and led through Leon Chambers-Parillon, but failed to turn their dominance into a commanding advantage.
Kidderminster took full advantage after the break and eventually won 3-1.
One lesson from those two matches therefore looks particularly clear.
When Southend are on top, they need to make it count.
Southend’s Start
Despite taking just one point from the last six available, the overall picture remains encouraging.
Southend opened the campaign with three consecutive victories.
Southend United
Yeovil Town
The victories at Altrincham and Solihull, together with the draw at Woking, mean Southend have already collected seven points from their opening three away fixtures.
The challenge now is to rediscover the winning feeling at Roots Hall.
Yeovil Arrive Unbeaten
Saturday’s visitors could hardly arrive in better shape.
Yeovil are unbeaten after five National League matches, collecting 11 points from three victories and two draws.
The Glovers began the season with consecutive 1-1 draws against Scunthorpe United and Carlisle United before their campaign began gathering serious momentum.
A convincing 3-0 victory against Gateshead was followed by a 2-1 win away at Barrow.
Billy Rowley’s side then made it three consecutive victories by beating Tamworth 3-2.
That sequence has lifted Yeovil to fourth place heading into the weekend, one point ahead of seventh-placed Southend.
| Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yeovil Town | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 5 | +5 | 11 |
| Southend United | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 6 | +3 | 10 |
Three Wins In A Row For The Glovers
Perhaps the biggest warning for Southend is not merely that Yeovil are unbeaten, but the direction in which their form is heading.
The Glovers failed to win either of their opening two fixtures.
They haven’t failed to win since.
Three goals against Gateshead were followed by two at Barrow and another three against Tamworth.
That means Yeovil have scored eight goals across their current three-match winning run.
Southend’s defence therefore faces a side arriving in Essex with confidence and a growing attacking threat.
One To Watch: Luke McCormick
One player The Shrimpers will need to keep particularly close attention on is Luke McCormick.
The Yeovil midfielder has emerged as one of the Glovers’ major attacking threats during their impressive opening to the season.
McCormick scored twice in the 3-0 victory against Gateshead before converting a late penalty in the win at Barrow.
He was then on the scoresheet again against Tamworth.
That gives him four goals across Yeovil’s last three matches heading into Saturday.
Sam Walker has also contributed two league goals, while Michael Obeng has found the net against both Scunthorpe and Tamworth.
Yeovil’s threat clearly isn’t coming from one player alone.
Last Season: Southend Did The Double
Two Meetings, Two Southend Wins
There will also be confidence for The Shrimpers when they look back at last season’s meetings with Yeovil.
Southend won both National League encounters during the 2025/26 campaign.
The second meeting came at Roots Hall, where Southend secured a 2-1 victory in front of 7,793 supporters.
Those results will count for little once Saturday’s match begins, particularly given Yeovil’s unbeaten start, but they do provide another encouraging piece of recent history for Dyer’s side.
Familiar Faces Return To Roots Hall
Joe Gubbins And Slavi Spassov Return
Saturday’s fixture will also see two familiar faces return to Roots Hall following their departures from Southend United during the summer.
Joe Gubbins and Slavi Spassov both left The Shrimpers during the close season and are now set to return to their former home with Yeovil Town.
That adds another interesting subplot to a fixture already carrying plenty of early-season intrigue.
Both players will know Roots Hall well, while Southend supporters will be very familiar with what each can offer.
Once the match begins, however, sentiment will quickly disappear as Dyer’s side attempt to end Yeovil’s unbeaten start.
A Test For The Shrimpers
Saturday should tell us a little more about both sides.
Southend’s opening three victories demonstrated what Dyer’s new-look team are capable of.
The following two matches have demonstrated that there is still work to do.
That should not be particularly surprising at this stage of a new season.
But the manner in which Southend have surrendered promising positions in consecutive matches will certainly be something Dyer wants addressed.
Against Kidderminster it cost all three points.
At Woking it probably cost another two.
Yeovil are unlikely to be as forgiving if Southend again allow a period of dominance to pass without building a meaningful advantage.
At the same time, this represents an opportunity.
Beat an unbeaten Yeovil side at Roots Hall and The Shrimpers will move above Saturday’s opponents while immediately putting the previous two results behind them.
Possible Southend United XI
Dyer has already demonstrated that he is prepared to make changes, while the short turnaround between Kidderminster and Woking also had to be taken into consideration on Monday.
One decision could concern Darren Oldaker.
The midfielder started each of Southend’s opening three victories before being named among the substitutes at Woking and could come back into contention at Roots Hall.
There may also be concern surrounding Sahid Kamara, who appeared to suffer a hamstring problem after coming on as a substitute on Monday.
Joe Duncan produced another important performance at Woking, while Cardwell’s penalty was his second goal of the campaign.
Daley-Campbell, Goodliffe, Oyebade, Cox;
Oldaker;
Chambers-Parillon, Coker, Hartigan, Popoola;
Cardwell.
This is The Shrimpers-online’s predicted line-up and not confirmed team news.
The Shrimpers-online Prediction
This could be Southend’s toughest test at Roots Hall so far.
Yeovil are unbeaten, have won three consecutive matches and have scored eight goals during that winning sequence.
There is absolutely no reason to underestimate them.
But there is equally no reason for Southend to approach Saturday without confidence.
The Shrimpers have played some excellent football during their opening five matches and, even in the Kidderminster defeat and Woking draw, produced first-half performances which could have put both games beyond their opponents.
The lesson from those matches is straightforward.
Take the chances when they come.
With home advantage and a response required after taking one point from the previous six available, we’re backing The Shrimpers — but only just.
The Shrimpers-online View
This is exactly the sort of fixture we want to see at this stage of the season.
Five matches is nowhere near enough to start making grand conclusions about promotion challenges, play-offs or where either club will eventually finish.
But it is enough to make Saturday interesting.
Yeovil haven’t lost.
Southend have won three of five.
The Glovers have scored ten goals.
The Shrimpers have scored nine.
And only one point separates the teams.
For Southend, however, there is perhaps a little more riding on the afternoon.
Three straight victories gave Dyer’s side a superb start.
A defeat and a draw have checked that momentum.
Another victory at Roots Hall would restore it immediately.
More importantly, we’d like to see Southend learn from the last two matches.
If The Shrimpers produce another spell like the first half against Kidderminster or the opening 45 minutes at Woking, this time they need to turn that superiority into more than a one-goal advantage.
Do that and Yeovil’s unbeaten record could be facing its biggest test yet.
