JACK Payne is backing Southend United to secure another unexpected success when they head to Walsall this weekend.

Blues’ last three victories have all come against teams pushing for promotion.

And Payne is keen for the trend to continue against the third placed Saddlers. 

“We seem to be getting our better results against the teams towards the top so hopefully we can get another one on Saturday when we play against Walsall,” said the 21-year-old.

“They’re a good footballing side so it has the makings of a good game.

“But we’re all still hurting after conceding a late equaliser like we did against Fleetwood and we want to make sure we do much better at Walsall now.”

The Shrimpers’ 2-2 draw on Saturday saw them slip down to 11th in the League One, nine points below the play-off positions with five games to go.

A top six finish remains incredibly unlikely, especially as Blues have won just three of their last 10 games – beating Burton Albion, Barnsley and Sheffield United.

But Payne, who revealed there had no more progress with his contract discussions, is still keen for Southend to end the season on a high.

“We’re all footballers, we’re motivated and we want to do as well as we can and win every game we play,” said the midfielder.

“We want to be picking up points and we want to finish as high up the table as we can.

“On a personal note, I want to play well to help make that happen and I want to be getting a few more goals as well.”

Payne now tops the Shrimpers’ scoring charts having hit the back of the net nine times so far this season.

The attacking midfielder has scored five times in his last eight games.

But Payne is not sure if he currently enjoying the best spell of his career.

“I feel as though I’m playing well and my confidence is high but I don’t know if it’s the best I’ve played or not,” said Payne.

“It’s always a nice feeling to score goals but they don’t really mean much unless you win.

“I scored on Saturday but was still disappointed at the end of the game because we didn’t get the three points.

“I don’t want to be feeling like that after the game against Walsall and, if we play like we can, we can definitely get the three points there.”