SOUTHEND United manager Phil Brown heaped praise on his side’s attacking prowess following their 5-2 win at Oldham Athletic tonight.

Five different players were on target for the Shrimpers at Boundary Park.

But Brown was particularly pleased to see three of the front four get on the score-sheet.

“It was fantastic that Jack Payne, David Mooney and David Worrall all got goals,” said the Blues boss.

“I’ve given them the freedom to attack and they’re making the most of it.

“Lots of people are having their say on the formation and I’ve seen it described in many different ways.

“Whether it’s a 4-2-4 or a 4-4-1-1 I’m not sure but the front four we have now have a license to do what they want up there.

“And when they’re on form I truly believe they will cause any team problems at this level.

“The way they’re playing means they’re keeping out Joe Pigott at the moment and if Noel Hunt was to get back fit now they would probably be keeping him out too.

“But they need to keep it going now.”

Payne, Mooney and Worrall put Blues 3-0 up at Boundary Park with their goals.

However, Worrall was injured when scoring his goal three minutes into the second half.

And Brown felt the winger’s withdrawal helped Oldham to get back into the game.

“When Worrall came off it upset our rhythm and our ability to carry the ball into their half,” said Brown.

“He was actually completely knocked out so we had to bring him off and watching the incident back doesn’t make for nice viewing.

“He’s fine now but when he came off the game opened up.

“I don’t think either team would be able to tell you what formation they ended up in.

“But we looked a threat going forward and finished it off when Luke Prosser, who I brought on to shore things up, popped up to score.

“That completed a great night for us and I’m so pleased we could get a good win for our fans who came all the way here to see the game.”