CONSISTENTLY inconsistent would perhaps be the best way to describe Southend United’s season so far.

But, even by their own up and down fortunes in form, the contrast in the Shrimpers’ past two performances has been quite extreme.

Blues headed to Bradford on the back of a dismally disappointing 3-2 defeat against struggling Plymouth Argyle at Roots Hall.

Two late goals restored a little pride for the Shrimpers that afternoon but Chris Powell’s side lacked attacking intent for most of the encounter and the final scoreline was perhaps a little flattering for the home side.

However, fast forward seven days and Southend produced their best performance of the season to record an impressive and well-deserved 4-0 win at Valley Parade.

A quick look at the League One standings, showing Bradford sitting second from bottom, might suggest the Shrimpers were facing a side in poor form destined for the drop.

But that could not be further from the truth. For since the departure of controversial joint-chairman Edin Rahic, the Bantams have become a completely different proposition.

With ex-Shrimper Jack Payne pulling the strings, Bradford had won four of their previous six games and sat second in the form guide, for the past six matches, heading into Saturday’s showdown.

The Bantams had also won their last four home games and had not even conceded a League goal at Valley Parade since the start of November.

And those statistics further underline just how well the Shrimpers performed at the weekend.

The display was by far the best of the season so far and contained three of the finest goals Blues have scored this term.

Two of those were scored by debutant striker Stephen Humphrys and his arrival was certainly the catalyst for the significant improvement in performance.

The Shrimpers have been hit by a succession of serious injuries this season.

But none probably hit them harder than Tom Hopper being forced out for the rest of the campaign. Hopper suffered a cruciate ligament injury during Blues’ 3-0 win against Walsall in October when he led the scoring charts with seven goals in 14 games.

And, without him, the Shrimpers have found it tough to pose problems in attack.

Those coming into the team to try and replace him have not been up to the same standard and have struggled to make much of an impression on a consistent basis.

Others, such as Harry Bunn and Timothee Dieng, have been pushed further forward, away from their natural positions, in a bid to fill the void while some untried and untested youngsters were also given fleeting opportunities to impress.

Given the lack of options, Southend were often short of a spark in the final third, although they did not always help their own cause by not committing enough men forward. However, that was certainly not the case at the weekend as new boy Humphrys produced perhaps the best Blues debut since a certain Freddy Eastwood way back in 2004.

Humphrys gave Bradford’s back four nightmares all afternoon with his physical presence, aerial ability and awareness. His inclusion also meant the Shrimpers were able to keep the ball in attack instead of the ball instantly coming back to invite pressure back onto themselves.

Humphrys bagged two brilliant goals to cap his memorable debut and he also helped to bring the very best out of Simon Cox alongside him. Cox has often been an isolated figure lacking support and service for the Shrimpers but he revelled in having Humphrys next to him on Saturday.

At the other end of the field, Sam Hart also made his debut at left wing-back. And, after a slightly nervy start, he settled down to help Southend secure a clean sheet.

But that was only possible due to a fine save from Blues shot-stopper Nathan Bishop at the start of the second half.

The youngster, who continues to grow in confidence between the sticks, did superbly well to keep out George Miller’s close range header when the Shrimpers led 2-0 and that stop was certainly a significant moment in the match.

However, just as a defeat should not be greeted with over the top dejection, victory should not be met with immense elation.

Because, when it comes to Southend United, who knows just what the next game will bring?