BEN Coker took centre stage on and off the pitch on Saturday after inspiring Southend United to a 2-1 triumph against Scunthorpe.

The left-back continued his impressive start to the season by capping another man of the match display with the game’s decisive goal.

But he then opted to speak out about the criticism coming the way of the Shrimpers from the stands at Roots Hall.

Interestingly enough, Coker’s comments were met with mostly words of praise from fans on social media.

And it should not be forgotten that the vast majority of Blues’ supporters remain right behind their side.

Away from home in particular, the Shrimpers boast some of the best fans in the lower leagues.

But there can be no denying there remains a sense of unnecessary negativity from sections of the home support.

Yes, fans are entitled to opinions, they pay hard earned money to watch the team in action and expect to see something worthwhile in return.

And while Blues’ home matches have often been lacking in excitement nobody can knock the success which has been secured in the past few seasons.

On top of that, League One football is never going to be without mistakes.

Players will misplace passes, waste good goalscoring chances, make wrong decisions and concede goals.

And, of course, that is going to lead to obvious frustration But shouting out abuse at the earliest possible opportunity is only going to make matters worse and can actually often led to younger players starting to go into their shells and not wanting to get on the ball.

Sadly, the situation is nothing new and it has often been the subject of many off the record conversations I have had with past players and managers in the last 14 years.

Without wanting to abuse anyone’s trust, certain managers have often felt unable to pick particular players at Roots Hall due to the reaction they would receive and how it would affect them.

Other managers have asked for advice on how best to address the situation while trying not to antagonise the hard-core fans.

All of them have tried in subtle ways through interviews or columns to get their message across and ex players have done exactly the same.

Some of them have often suggested it was a factor in Blues faring better away from home while, many seasons ago, one seriously contemplated taking to the field with cotton wool in his ears.

Ultimately the player decided against it as he did not want to appear too soft and the majority of players share that stance.

But, following last season’s win against Northampton Town, Michael Timlin voiced his displeasure at the abuse being directed at the players in the hope of it making some kind of difference.

And perhaps for a while his words did spark a slight change.

However, Saturday showed there still remains a problem which continues to aggravate the players.

The Shrimpers squad do certainly not feel above criticism and often get plenty of it on these pages.

But that will always be justified and balanced, unlike some of the taunts from the terraces where there does seem to be an unrealistic level of expectation.

Blues battled hard to win promotion from the League Two play-offs last season and are now finding their feet at a higher level.

On top of that, they will now be facing sides of great quality and clubs boasting budgets at least double the size of their own.

Subsequently, times of struggle are to be expected and it is exactly at that point when the support will be needed most.

A mid-table finish would have to be seen as a huge success for the Shrimpers this season.

And the chances of that happening will massively increase if a far more positive atmosphere can be created at their own ground.