NEWLY appointed head coach Danny Cleare is desperate to stop the rot at Southend Saxons.

Southend have suffered six defeats in succession to slide down to 11th in the National Three London & SE standings, just four points and one place above the relegation zone.

And Cleare is now keen for the wretched run to come an end at home to bottom of the table Amersham & Chiltern this weekend.

“This game is huge because we need to stop the rot,” said Cleare.

“Losing numerous games back to back really dents morale and confidence and it’s important we change that momentum as soon as possible.”

Cleare, a long-term player at the club, had previously been acting as the club’s interim director of rugby before another shake up in the coaching set up at Warners Bridge late last week.

Southend parted company with head coach Nick Greenhall and assistant coach Spencer Williams with Martin Jones being appointed the club’s director of rugby.

But Cleare is not sure what kind of impact the coaching alterations will have on the team.

“I have no idea until Saturday but hopefully it’s going to have a positive effect,” said Cleare, who is also director of rugby at Seevic College.

“ I’ve known a lot of the players for many years now so I would like to think I know where their strengths lay and how we can get the best out of them.

“Martin is also very experienced and I believe that will be crucial to us getting back on track.”

That aim begins with a crunch clash this weekend as Southend host rock-bottom Amersham who have triumphed just once in 14 games so far this season.

The Buckinghamshire based side are 18 points behind the Saxons.

But Cleare is still expecting a difficult encounter tomorrow.

“Amersham showed in their last game against Hertford they are no pushovers as they only lost by a couple of points,” said Cleare.

“Like us, they have had a lot of injuries but players have started to return and I’ve also heard they have strengthened their squad by making a few new signings as well.”

“When we played them earlier on in the season at their place they looked to move the ball out wide.

“They had some good players so it will be tough and we will need to respect them.”

The game will also be Southend’s first since losing to local rivals Westcliff in mid-December.

The Saxons, who were relegated from National Two South last season, won 40-19 in the reverse fixture back in September but will be missing full-back Iain Meads this weekend.