A selection of youth teamers, new signings and fringe players combine to dismiss a limited Southend United side from the League Cup.

Report by Matthew Rudd.

Straightforward, not mesmerising, and progress to the third round of the Carling Cup passed by smoothly enough. What was a pleasant bonus, however, was that all three of the Tigers' goals were out-of-the-box belters.

Phil Brown made 11 changes from the team that beat Bolton. Not wholly surprising; indeed quite welcome given that it proved the Tigers possessed like-for-like players in every position, if you can put your reality threshold on hold for a tick and tell yourself Peter Halmosi really is a left back.

Thus, in squally showers and before a crowd feigning interest, we carded...

Warner
Doyle Mouyokolo Cooper Halmosi
Barmby Featherstone Cairney Atkinson
Altidore Fagan

Nick Barmby wore the armband, and City attacked the North Stand, when they felt it was really necessary. Southend United quickly proved themselves to be the archetypal League One team; sure of foot, blessed with enthusiasm, not exactly brimming with great quality. Some of the handful who turned up felt the need to laugh at their shortcomings, clearly forgetting - or, more likely, not even knowing - that City were at this level too a few short years ago.

The visitors created the first chance when Adam Barrett crossed and Alex Revell headed goalwards but Tony Warner, at the commencement of a performance which was part goalkeeper, part circus clown, saved with little hardship. City had total dominance through the early stages though, and Fagan typically missed his header from Doyle's inviting cross before a sublime goal broke the deadlock.

Think of the great City players who have undertaken the full voyage through the system to become top-line, fully comp footballers for their team. You have to think back a bit, as producing proper talent through our youth system that isn't destined for Church Road at the age of 19 has proved a bit hard to come by of late. But Tom Cairney, who impressed a lot of people in China who weren't under the influence of dodgy meat and corrosive liquor, looks like he might - might - be the one who persuades us all that Phil Brown is taking a spot of notice of the kids who hose down the dugouts and sandblast the saunas after each home game.

What else was remarkable before the goal itself was that Fagan had taken a clout around the head from a centre back's sharpened elbow, and was flat out, face down, but neither the referee nor his own team mates felt the urge to cease play and check he was okay. Swiftly, the ball was played back to Cairney who, 25 yards from goal and with total appreciation of where the keeper was, chipped the ball into the back of the net with barely a bounce of apology, such was the perfection of the ball's trajectory. How to cheer up a crowd attending solely due to a sense of duty. Fagan got up and jogged back to the halfway line, with both bonce and pride hurt.

Southend replied with Lee Barnard shooting over, and then winning a free kick which gave us all a genuine excuse to laugh at them, as one player touched the ball for a second's presumed run-up, only for him to not notice or react, allowing Nicky Featherstone to start a counter attack. We were still laughing as the attack broke down, with interest in City's eventual surrender of the ball barely registering.

Half time approached with little of further consequence. Altidore, grateful for the gametime, as he may be wont to say, was tackled supremely by Jean-Yves M'Voto as he latched on to a sly through ball from Barmby. Shortly afterwards, the well-proportioned American was brought down from 25 yards out and duly smacked a low shot into the net at the near post with vigour, aplomb and an overriding feeling that the keeper should have saved it.

Should have been 2-0 at the break then, but Southend hit back with a smart goal from Franck Moussa, who beat a statuesque Warner with a crisp shot after a long free kick had been delicately nodded his way. This had not been a good half for custodians, really.

Second half. Simon Francis, a right back whom we won't be signing, starts the proceedings with a shot of such wild speculative traits that even Geovanni would have shrugged his shoulders. The ball reaches the 100 or so Essex travellers who'd made their way north. Not a tremendous start to the half, but Southend seem ready, quite rightly, to have a go for 45 minutes and Warner needs to start making proper saves, as if he were an actual goalkeeper.

Anthony Grant plays a tidy ball through the inside right channel and Alex Revell gets a shot in but Warner, aware and alert, is at his feet to block. Grant then arrives entirely unattended at the far post after Barnard steps over a low cross but Warner again was quick to close the gp and save with his feet.

By now, Geovanni is on for Barmby, and shortly afterwards Kevin Kilbane and Kamel Ghilas replace two of the kiddlings, the excellent Cairney and the anonymous Will Atkinson. Soon the scary period is bedded forever as Halmosi gives Doyle time and room for a shot. Doyle, being Doyle, chooses instead to fanny about with stepovers and is tackled with ease, but the ball lands on the Geovanni instep and half a second later is in the net.

Game over, unconvincingly so, but it's enough. Geovanni, Altidore and Fagan all have reasonable chances to increase the lead further but fail to take them, while Moussa nearly gets the heroic score of respectability the visitors deserve with a turn that leaves Liam Cooper stranded and a shot that Warner saves with comfort.

Not pretty, but progress to round three is secure, the goals were excellent and the workout will have benefitted everyone, especially Altidore, who looks hungry and eager for as much of this as he can get. Wolves may soon not know what has hit them.

HULL CITY (4-4-2): Warner; Doyle, Mouyokolo, Cooper, Halmosi; Barmby, Cairney, Featherstone, Atkinson; Altidore, Fagan.  Subs: Geovanni (for Barmby, 59), Kilbane (for Cairney, 73), Ghilas (for Atkinson, 73), Mendy, Zayatte, Cousin, Duke.

Goals: Cairney 7; Altidore 42; Geovanni 75

Booked: Atkinson, Doyle

Sent Off: None

SOUTHEND UNITED: Mildenhall, Francis, Heath, Barrett, Mvoto, Grant, Christophe, McCormack, Moussa, Barnard, Revell.  Subs: Betsy (for Grant, 69), Sawyer (for Christophe, 78), Walker (for Barnard, 83), Joyce, Scannell, Sankofa, Freedman.

Goals: Moussa 45

Booked: Christophe, Sawyer

Sent Off: None

REFEREE:    N Swarbrick

ATTENDANCE: 7,994