Oldham Athletic will travel to Southend, looking to kick off their 2023/24 National League season with a win.

David Unsworth’s team move into the league season after a good pre-season, despite the defeat to Mansfield at the end of July.

New signings James Norwood and Brennan Dickenson are available to make their Latics debuts, whilst Shaun Hobson will visit his former side.

The Opposition

Southend enter this season with the club’s future in jeopardy, and under financial pressure.

Although they’ve been able to hold onto some of their standout players from last season, Jack Bridge, Dan Mooney, and Gus Scott-Morriss to name a few, a number of their starmen have left, including Shaun Hobson.

Watch out for

Dan Mooney caused Latics a lot of problems during their last trip to Roots Hall, and could well do so again this season.

The midfielder joined the Blues from Altrincham, having bagged 12 from the wing in 21/22. Although he failed to produce such numbers last season, he was still an attacking threat in a dangerous Southend side.

In the dugout

Southend are managed by former Latics midfielder, Kevin Maher.

The 46-year-old spent one season at Boundary Park, having spent ten at his current employers, Southend, and retired in 2015.

After spells as a coach and caretaker manager, he became Southend’s gaffer in October 2021 as they faced relegation to the National League South.

He turned their season around, seeing them finish in a respectable 13th, before mounting a promotion push last season.

Although it faltered towards the end, as they lost all seven matches during March, Maher’s side still finished the season strongly, picking up five wins from their last seven.

Match officials

The referee is Richie Watkins, and he’ll be assisted by Andy Gray and Christopher Darling. Phil Knight will take up the role of fourth official.

Match coverage and information 

Live audio commentary is available on Latics Player, guiding you through the match. 

For more information, visit the Latics Player page by clicking here. 

Alternatively, supporters can also follow the game with live updates on the club's official Twitter account: @OfficialOAFC 

As this game is being played within the blocked broadcast hours stipulated by Uefa, live streaming will not be available in the UK. 

As always, we will endeavour to ensure confirmation of the line-up is published as soon as possible on social media. 

However, supporters should note that team sheets in the National League are not exchanged until an hour before kick-off. This is 15 minutes later than in the EFL and as a result, the line-up is likely to be published slightly later than in previous seasons.