Dagenham & Redbridge suffer derby defeat to Southend United

Dagenham & Redbridge suffered derby-day defeat in their first home game of the National League season at Victoria Road. 

Having snatched a last-gasp point at Altrincham in their opener a week earlier, Daggers saw Lewis Page pick up an early booking after just two minutes.

Josh Rees had his name taken moments later in a feisty start to the derby, with Southend – 4-0 winners over Oldham Athletic seven days earlier – on top.

Nathan Ralph had a shot deflected behind after a driving run, but the visitors took the lead on 19 minutes when Harry Cardwell finished off a good move by sliding home a low cross from Jack Bridge.

And it was nearly 2-0 when Bridge crossed for Cardwell again, whose header was saved by Elliot Justham before the rebound was cleared off the line by Tom Eastman.

Page made way for Elliott Johnson in an enforced change for the hosts just before the half-hour mark, with Gus Scott-Morriss denied by a good block after Wes Fonguck got to the byline and put in a cross on 33 minutes.

Fonguck then played the ball through for Cardwell, but a good sliding tackle denied him the opportunity at the expense of a corner, before Harry Taylor’s super challenge at the other end stopped Sydney Ibie in his tracks.

Scott-Morriss was booked seconds after the restart, with Sam Ling’s deflected effort from a free-kick almost troubling Collin Andeng-Ndi on 50 minutes.

And Ben Strevens made his second change soon after as Frank Vincent made way for Conor Lawless, with Daggers enjoying a good spell around the hour mark.

But Jake Hessenthaler was booked for a foul on Cardwell on 63 minutes, with Noor Husin shooting inches wide when Callum Powell’s wayward effort fell into his path.

Charley Kendall was replaced by Myles Weston with a quarter of an hour remaining in the third and final change for Daggers, but Southend sealed the points in stoppage time when Oli Coker found space and curled a shot into the net.

Dagenham & Redbridge: Justham, Eastman, Hessenthaler, Vincent (Lawless 55), Rees, Effiong, Page (Johnson 29), Phipps, Kendall (Weston 75), Ling, Ibie.

Unused subs: Tavares, Weston, Blair.

Attendance: 3,233 (including 1,198 Southend fans).