AFTER 18 years of covering Southend United you would expect to have pretty much seen it all.

But Tuesday night saw a new first - no post-match interviews.

Now, when pressure is mounting and results are not going your way I am sure having to explain another defeat is not particularly desirable.

However, facing the media is part and parcel of football management.

And you can certainly not pick and choose when you want to answer questions.

Over the years we have had some strange post-match press conferences.

Phil Brown memorably took two hours to speak to the media after losing at Swindon while Rob Newman once kept us all waiting for quite some time before saying just a few words and disappearing back up the tunnel, also at Swindon!

Furthermore, Brown twice chose to send out players who had not featured in the game or even the squad.

But Kevin Bond’s no-show was the first time I have ever returned home from reporting on a game with no quotes at all.

It is a move which would not have gone down well with the Roots Hall hierarchy and it is easy to understand why.

For not only is it actually against Football League rules but it also appears slightly gutless and disrespectful.

After all, this was not a press conference like you would see on Sky Sports News.

It was BBC Essex, the club’s official website and me.

Short answers would have sufficed but, rightly or wrongly, I actually see the media as a way of communicating with the club’s fans who - despite the awful results - continue to back the team in good numbers.

And not facing up after another defeat is a kick in the teeth for the supporters.

The harsh reality may be that the majority of the fans do not really want to hear from Bond right now as dark clouds continue to gather over the club.

Blues are currently enduring their worst ever start to a season after suffering six League defeats in succession.

Defeat in the Leasing.com Trophy at Leyton Orient made it eight setbacks in nine games across all competitions and it is hard not to feel despondent and dejected right now.

But Shrimpers chairman Ron Martin returns from holiday on Thursday and Bond is therefore likely to be facing his toughest questions yet.

And there will be no getting out of it this time.