Kieron Dyer watched Southend United leave Kingfield Stadium with a 1-1 draw after Joe Duncan’s late saves held Woking at bay. Harry Cardwell’s 38th-minute penalty had put Southend United ahead, but Aiden O'Brien levelled on the hour-mark and Duncan then tipped Jake Forster-Caskey’s 88th-minute free-kick over the bar.
Cardwell’s penalty in the 38th
Harry Cardwell gave Southend United the lead in the 38th minute, turning a tight National League away match into one that looked under control. Will Jaaskelainen kept Woking in it with a fine stop from Cardwell on the stroke of half time, which stopped the margin from stretching before the break.
Kieron Dyer takes charge as Southend United visit Altrincham in season opener sits in the wider run of Southend United fixtures, but this result belongs to the road point they took at Woking. The numbers from the first half told one story; the saves after it told another.
Duncan stops the equaliser
Joe Duncan had already denied Liam Dulson an equaliser in the opening period before Woking finally got through at the hour-mark. Aiden O'Brien prodded home at the third attempt, and the sequence matters because it shows Southend United were defending repeated pressure rather than a single loose chance.
That pressure never really stopped. Duncan later saved from Dulson and Syla before O'Brien scored, then reached Jake Forster-Caskey’s 88th-minute free-kick and tipped it over the bar to keep the score level. Those late interventions preserved the point Southend United had built through Cardwell’s penalty.
Dyer’s read on Woking
“I had a feeling Woking might score” matches the shape of the match rather than dressing it up. Southend United had the lead, Woking kept forcing entries, and the equaliser arrived after the keeper had already been busy; the draw reads like a result Southend United had to defend, not one they cruised through.
For Southend United, the useful part is simple: an away point in the National League and a goalkeeper who turned the final minutes into a one-goal game they could actually finish with. For Woking, the late free-kick and the equaliser show they created enough to turn the match, even if Duncan shut the door at the end.
