Latest news with #Shrimpers
The Irish Sun
5 days ago
- The Irish Sun
Brits beg American tourists to stop ‘annoying' travel trend that creates ‘unnecessary layer of friction'
BRITS are begging American tourists to stop an annoying travel trend that creates an "unnecessary layer of friction". Londoners have taken to social media in an attempt to Americans visiting the capital to stop this one act. 1 Brits are begging American tourists to stop an annoying travel trend Credit: Getty One Reddit user posted to the r/London group titled: "PSA to Americans visiting this summer: we do not shorten place names here." They added that American tourists were shortening location names when asking for help with directions. The post explained: "Was hanging out around Victoria/Pimlico yesterday having coffee and food with friends and we had three separate occasions of holidaying Americans asking for directions or help. "First was how to get to 'Green' (Green Park), and that they'd come via 'Edgware' (Edgware Road - obviously a totally different part of the city to Edgware itself). Read more News "The next wanted to find their hotel in 'Holland' (Holland Park, obviously not the country region)." They added: "An unnecessary layer of friction and could quite easily end up catastrophic if you're googling the wrong thing, asking for directions, researching somewhere (Gloucester instead of Gloucester Road, Liverpool instead of Liverpool Street, Leicester instead of Leicester Square, etc, etc)." It's not the first time frustrated Londoners have encountered American tourists confusing locations either. Another Reddit user shared their own experiences: "Can confirm from working on the railway that this is a genuine problem. Most read in The Sun "Once sold about £200 worth of tickets to Gloucester when a group wanted Gloucester Road. "Before selling them, I'd asked in every conceivable way I could think of if it was really Gloucester they wanted (It's not a top US tourist destination!)." Popular Italian holiday hotspot bans walking barefoot, booze & picnics with rules-breaking tourists facing hefty fines A third user said: "Growing up in a touristy town outside of London, we'd get a lot of American visitors asking for train tickets to Charing rather than "Charing of course being a town in Kent some 50 odd miles away." It's not just trains that Americans visiting the capital have a problem with either. The Sun reported in April how a tourist planning a gentle sight-seeing trip on the River Thames instead boarded a party boat full of boozy football fans by mistake. American Evan Johnston got on the vessel with 150 The student, 21, thought they were all going to see London's landmarks. The fans had hired a party boat from Tower Millennium Pier to Blackfriars Pier to catch a train to the ground. But the Shrimpers fans welcomed Evan — taking him to his first ever match, buying all his drinks and chanting: 'Evan is a Shrimper, la la la la.'
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Shrimpers fans queue to purchase new home shirts
Popular - Southend United fans queued to buy the new home shirt (Image: NICKY HAYES) SOUTHEND United fans queued in advance to purchase the new Shrimpers' home shirt this morning. The club shop at Roots Hall opened at 10am by which time around 80 fans were already waiting, including Henry Goodwin. Advertisement The 25-year-old from Southend said: "I like the shirt and wanted to make sure I got one. "It's been tough to get a shirt in the last few seasons as they haven't got many in so I wanted to get here early. "The new shirt coming out makes me more excited for the season ahead too."
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
‘I know how special this club is': Kevin Maher's Southend close to EFL return
Kevin Maher is no stranger to winning promotion with his beloved Southend. The club stalwart helped them earn back-to-back promotions as a player in 2005 and 2006 and was a near ever-present in their season in the Championship in 2006-07. Now he stands on the verge of a managerial achievement that could possibly eclipse anything from his playing days, given the Shrimpers' recent travails. Even the lofty heights of League Two have seemed unreachable in the past few years. Many Southend fans assumed for a long time that a route back to the Football League this season would prove beyond them after finishing seventh, 28 points behind second-placed York. But those struggles on and off the pitch help to explain why Maher is so keen to grasp this opportunity, as Southend prepare to face Oldham in the National League playoff final at Wembley on Sunday. Advertisement Related: The accidental Shrimper: American student becomes Southend fan after boarding wrong boat Maher says it will be a proud moment to lead out his players given his affiliation to the club, which dates back to 1998 when he signed as a 22-year-old from Tottenham. He never got the chance to play at Wembley despite competing in three playoff finals – all were staged in Cardiff as England's national stadium was being rebuilt. Yet despite the emotion his approach is a calm and measured one. 'It's not the occasion, it's what it entails, it's the game itself,' he says. 'Hopefully we've got many more days to come with success for the football club and this is an opportunity we want to take. Playoff games are cup games, so anything can happen. What you've got to do is come out on the right side of results and we've managed to do that so far.' Peaking in the playoffs is always an art form and Southend have indeed come good at the right time, battling past Rochdale and Forest Green, who finished fourth and third in the league respectively, to reach Wembley, where they will be backed by close to 25,000 fans – the capacity of the game upped to 50,000 after Shrimpers' fans lobbied MPs for their ticket allocation to be increased. It could have been more but for unfortunately timed engineering works closing Wembley Park tube station. Advertisement 'It's madness,' says Maher. 'I guess us and Oldham have put a spanner in the works. We as a club could have taken close to 40,000 with us . So you could have had 70,000 in the stadium for a game in the fifth tier of English football. 'I'm gutted for the fans who have missed out. It always seems to be fans who suffer when there's bureaucracy going on.' The demand for tickets shows not only the size and history of Southend but the belief and passion Maher has instilled in the club. They finished the regular season with home attendances at Roots Hall nearing 10,000 – double what they were attracting when he took over in October 2021. Back then the club had just endured back-to-back relegations, falling into non-league in a tailspin of debt, missed wage payments and winding-up orders from the high court. In 2023 the situation was so dire fans started making plans for a phoenix club, and there was a points deduction in 2023-24 before finally a sale to Justin Rees, the new chair, saved the club from liquidation. Advertisement Maher remained in his post through all the chaos, a guiding hand on the tiller. Few understand the club's history like him. 'It's the story of what the club is,' he says of the era of financial struggles. 'We don't shy away from that or dismiss what's come before. First and foremost we should be proud that we have a football club. You wouldn't have this football club without people sticking with us and being loyal. But we always look forward as well. 'I've been at this football club and we've won things, even as under-23s manager, and that's my focus. We will be incredibly proud of the players no matter what they do, but the focus is winning.' Perhaps that is where Maher's vast experience will truly count. He knows results will ultimately define him and Southend, and how badly the club need Football League status to continue their story. Oldham, for a long time rivals of the Shrimpers in League One and Two, are apt opponents in the playoff final and crave promotion for similar reasons. So what would victory on Sunday mean to Maher? 'It would mean everything, of course, that's an easy one. I know how special Southend is as a club. But I don't allow myself to get carried away because I've got too much respect for our opponents. We'll make sure we are ready when we cross the white line. It's about performing on the day. You enjoy it more when you win.'
The Guardian
31-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
‘I know how special this club is': Kevin Maher's Southend close to EFL return
Kevin Maher is no stranger to winning promotion with his beloved Southend. The club stalwart helped them earn back-to-back promotions as a player in 2005 and 2006 and was a near ever-present in their season in the Championship in 2006-07. Now he stands on the verge of a managerial achievement that could possibly eclipse anything from his playing days, given the Shrimpers' recent travails. Even the lofty heights of League Two have seemed unreachable in the past few years. Many Southend fans assumed for a long time that a route back to the Football League this season would prove beyond them after finishing seventh, 28 points behind second-placed York. But those struggles on and off the pitch help to explain why Maher is so keen to grasp this opportunity, as Southend prepare to face Oldham in the National League playoff final at Wembley on Sunday. Maher says it will be a proud moment to lead out his players given his affiliation to the club, which dates back to 1998 when he signed as a 22-year-old from Tottenham. He never got the chance to play at Wembley despite competing in three playoff finals – all were staged in Cardiff as England's national stadium was being rebuilt. Yet despite the emotion his approach is a calm and measured one. 'It's not the occasion, it's what it entails, it's the game itself,' he says. 'Hopefully we've got many more days to come with success for the football club and this is an opportunity we want to take. Playoff games are cup games, so anything can happen. What you've got to do is come out on the right side of results and we've managed to do that so far.' Peaking in the playoffs is always an art form and Southend have indeed come good at the right time, battling past Rochdale and Forest Green, who finished fourth and third in the league respectively, to reach Wembley, where they will be backed by close to 25,000 fans – the capacity of the game upped to 50,000 after Shrimpers' fans lobbied MPs for their ticket allocation to be increased. It could have been more but for unfortunately timed engineering works closing Wembley Park tube station. 'It's madness,' says Maher. 'I guess us and Oldham have put a spanner in the works. We as a club could have taken close to 40,000 with us . So you could have had 70,000 in the stadium for a game in the fifth tier of English football. 'I'm gutted for the fans who have missed out. It always seems to be fans who suffer when there's bureaucracy going on.' The demand for tickets shows not only the size and history of Southend but the belief and passion Maher has instilled in the club. They finished the regular season with home attendances at Roots Hall nearing 10,000 – double what they were attracting when he took over in October 2021. Back then the club had just endured back-to-back relegations, falling into non-league in a tailspin of debt, missed wage payments and winding-up orders from the high court. In 2023 the situation was so dire fans started making plans for a phoenix club, and there was a points deduction in 2023-24 before finally a sale to Justin Rees, the new chair, saved the club from liquidation. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion Maher remained in his post through all the chaos, a guiding hand on the tiller. Few understand the club's history like him. 'It's the story of what the club is,' he says of the era of financial struggles. 'We don't shy away from that or dismiss what's come before. First and foremost we should be proud that we have a football club. You wouldn't have this football club without people sticking with us and being loyal. But we always look forward as well. 'I've been at this football club and we've won things, even as under-23s manager, and that's my focus. We will be incredibly proud of the players no matter what they do, but the focus is winning.' Perhaps that is where Maher's vast experience will truly count. He knows results will ultimately define him and Southend, and how badly the club need Football League status to continue their story. Oldham, for a long time rivals of the Shrimpers in League One and Two, are apt opponents in the playoff final and crave promotion for similar reasons. So what would victory on Sunday mean to Maher? 'It would mean everything, of course, that's an easy one. I know how special Southend is as a club. But I don't allow myself to get carried away because I've got too much respect for our opponents. We'll make sure we are ready when we cross the white line. It's about performing on the day. You enjoy it more when you win.'
BBC News
30-05-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
TikToker to host fan zone at Southend v Oldham Wembley final
A TikToker said he was "absolutely buzzing" to have been invited to host a fanzone during the National League play-off final at Wembley Cassar said he would be interviewing fans and former Southend United players at Boxpark Wembley when the Blues meet Oldham Athletic on Essex club confirmed the partnership with the social media star on its own TikTok account."I'm absolutely buzzing but a bit nervous, though, because on my TikTok I can cut things… here, people will really see the real me," said the 26-year-old, whose videos showcasing his love of Leigh-on-Sea have attracted millions of views. Up to 50,000 fans will travel to Wembley for the match, which will mark the end of a turbulent few years for Blues fans who have backed their team through financial turmoil and the threat of told BBC Essex: "I think it's fair to say I don't think any Southend supporter thought they'd be in this position at the start of the year, even mid-way through the year. "I think we can go to Wembley with nothing to lose."Alexis said he had been "manifesting" tickets for Sunday's clash after failing to secure a matchday capacity was initially limited because of the closure of Wembley Park Tube station for engineering the Shrimpers first got in touch, he "thought it would be filming something at Roots Hall… but for some reason I knew I'd end up at Wembley on Sunday". The content creator said he started posting videos on TikTok about 18 months ago and documented a trip to Thailand earlier this "just fell into place" when he returned to Essex with his videos amassing 1.7 million said he filmed a lot of content in Leigh-on-Sea, which he called LOS, because it was "probably one of the best places in Essex, if not the best place"."A few people started saying LOS to me when I walked past them, and I was like, 'right, I'm the LOS man now, that's me'."Asked about the future, he said he had no plans to leave his career in finance, adding: "There's no end goal. Let's just keep seeing where things go, inspiring people and making people laugh." Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
