Southend Utd screening FA Trophy Wembley bid

Hundreds of fans will be at Roots Hall stadium to watch a live screening of the club's bid to reach Wembley in the FA Trophy.

Southend United are at Southport in the semi-finals with kick-off at 15:00 BST. The Shrimpers are bidding for another trip to the national stadium after suffering defeat to Oldham in the National League play-off final last season.

For those not travelling to the National League North side's ground on Merseyside, Southend are opening their stadium from 13:00, while BBC Essex will also have live commentary.

Southend's head coach Kevin Maher said: "We're going up against a tough opponent who have beaten teams in our league, but it's one we're looking forward to."

The club said more than 700 tickets have been sold for the screening, with tickets £5 for adults and £1 for under-16s.

Southport, managed by former Guyana international Neil Danns, are the lowest-ranked club left in the FA Trophy, and remain unbeaten at home this season.

To reach the semi-final, Southend recorded wins against Truro City, Bath City, Chatham Town and Horsham, while Southport have knocked out two National League clubs on their route to the final four.

Southend beat Southport 1-0 in the fourth found of last season's competition.

Maher added: "It's the way with cup competitions; once you get through the first few rounds, the more exciting and interesting they get. So, we're looking forward to it."

Southend have been allocated 808 tickets for Southport's Haig Avenue ground.

The other semi-final is Wealdstone v Marine.

The final at Wembley is on 17 May.

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