SOUTHEND United snatched defeat from the jaws of victory following a kamikaze conclusion to Saturday’s clash at Stevenage.

With 16 minutes of the match remaining at Broadhall Way, Blues seemed well set for another win on the road as a speculative start to the second half saw them overturn a one goal deficit to lead 2-1.

But from nowhere, the Shrimpers suddenly capitulated in the closing stages and conceded three times in quick succession to suffer arguably their most frustrating setback of the season so far.

Stevenage substitute Ben Kennedy played a large part in Graham Westley’s side winning 4-2 to claim the club’s first ever victory against Southend.

However, such was the manner of the defeat and how the match unfolded, that it was an extremely difficult defeat for Blues to take as they could and most probably should have taken something from the game.

The reverse was also Southend’s second in succession and left them five points behind the automatic promotion places.

But a team with realistic aspirations of a top three finish can simply not afford to crumble like Southend did at the weekend.

Somehow or other, sides who go on to win promotion consistently find a way to see out matches and pick up points even when not at their best.

And that is exactly what Blues must start doing if they are to work their way back in to League One.

They can certainly not afford to drop cheap points, like on Saturday and also in recent weeks when they failed to hold on to leads they took against Shrewsbury and Northampton Town.

In both of those matches and, again at the weekend, Blues conceded late on and, since mid December, eight of the 15 goals Phil Brown’s side have conceded have come in the final 25 minutes of their games.

Keeping concentration is therefore key and so too is deciding upon the best back four in order for a stable platform to be provided.

John White and Ben Coker remain the obvious choices in the full-back positions, along with Daniel Bentley in goal if he is fully fit which in truth may not have been the case at the weekend.

But it is the two central defensive positions which are currently causing a selection headache for Brown.

Adam Thompson and Jerome Binnom-Williams both paid the price for the 2-1 defeat to Accrington Stanley which left the Blues boss labelling his side young and inexperienced.

Adam Barrett and, more surprisingly, Cian Bolger were therefore selected at the weekend but, after Blues shipped in four goals, it remains to be seen whether or not they will keep their places.

Luke Prosser must surely now be considered for a recall after being Blues’ most steady centre-back during the first half of the season and for me, either Barrett or Thompson would be best alongside him.

Prosser has not featured in the last eight games after being shown a soft red card in the dying seconds at Northampton.

However, the time now seems right for him to be recalled, starting with Saturday's vital clash with Carlisle United at Roots Hall.

But that competition for places at the back and, in most other areas of the pitch, underlines the strength of the current Shrimpers squad and just why a top three finish should be possible for this group of players.

As a result, they are now under pressure – along with Brown – to get things right during the remainder of the campaign.

The Blues boss made six changes to the team against Stevenage and, until the eventful ending, they seemed to have made a difference.

However, the same cannot be said of his substitutions as the alterations seemed to weaken the line-up and the shape of the side.

Lessons now need to be learnt from what went wrong, because Saturday's struggles were simply not acceptable.

And the Shrimpers cannot afford to suffer a repeat if they are to fulfil their potential this season and secure a top three finish.