THE DAY WE HAD DREAMT ABOUT

AT 4.40pm on Tuesday afternoon, Southend United fans finally got the club statement they have been waiting – and waiting – so long for.

- Mitul Samji

“We can confirm that an agreement for the sale of the club has been reached with a consortium led by Justin Rees,” it read. “Everyone is working towards a completion date of 1 November 2023, that is when the consortium will formally take control of the Club.

“The collaborative approach to agreeing this deal would not have been possible without the support of creditors and the assistance from the Leader of Southend City Council.

“We recognise that this has been a stressful time for all associated with the Club. We would like to thank our staff for their incredible loyalty and also thank all our stakeholders for their patience.”

Stressful is one way of putting it. There have been times where Shrimpers fans thought they might not have a team to support.

“If this were not a football club, with the particular attachment to its fans, I would be winding them up today,” Judge Sebastian Prentis concluded at a winding up order hearing over a £275,000 tax debt in August before adjourning the case and marking it ‘final’.