Alan Little

Former Southend midfielder Alan Little was appointed by John Main to stop the slide and establish a youth policy to improve the team and bring in some much needed transfer fees.<br><br> Little had had some success at York City, but they had been relegated and parted company. He used his York contacts to bring a number of ex-players to Roots Hall and some, notably Mark Tinkler were clearly excellent and former York loanee Martin Carruthers who's goals ensured the Shrimpers had no fear of relegation. <br><br>Poor results at the start of the 2000-01 season including a 5-0 home thrashing by Birmingham made dismissal likely, but when Ron Martin finally showed him the door it was on the back of three draws then two wins. The reappointment of Blues icon Dave Webb later in the month soon erased memories of Alan.