Southend United skipper Kevin Maher was pleased to kill off any lingering Third Division relegation fears following Saturday's 2-0 Roots Hall triumph over Darlington.

Maher and midfield team mate Neil Jenkins got the all important goals just before the break to help Blues pass the 50-point barrier and rise one place to 13th spot in the league table.

Chase me - Mark Rawle races for the ball with Darlo's Gary Pearson Picture: STEVE O'CONNELL

And after notching his second strike of the season, 26-year-old Maher admitted it was a big three points.

"We needed to get one more win under our belts just to make sure we were safe," he said.

"The lads never thought we were in any real trouble, but you never know what might happen and we wanted to make sure we wouldn't be sucked into a late relegation battle.

"And we worked hard to get the victory against Darlington, which has seen us move on to 51 points and ensure we are out of any potential danger.

"It wasn't the greatest game to watch from a spectator's point of view, but we stuck at it and grinded out a result.

"Maybe if we had done that a few more times this season then we would be in a higher position."

Maher admitted he was amazed Darlington had chosen to play the last 15 minutes of the first-half with just ten men, after Quakers defender Craig Liddle went to the treatment room following a challenge with Blues striker Mark Rawle.

"I couldn't believe they carried on with just ten men -- it was a bizarre decision," he added. "It was a massive gamble to take and it cost them because we scored both of our goals while Liddle was off the pitch."

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Published Monday, April 7 , 2003

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