SOUTHEND United's under 19 side were unable to build on last week’s draw away to Maidstone United as they were defeated 6-1 at Dover Athletic.

Blues briefly restored parity when skipper Jake Huet cancelled out Henry Young’s audacious opener, but Kaeden Jefreys scored twice and Tim Marapara netted once in addition to an own goal by Oscar Jones and a Leo Dodds penalty as the hosts sealed a one-sided victory.

Boss Danny Heath made a number of tweaks to the starting line-up with the team set to be involved in another game on Wednesday afternoon at Welling United.

Aidon Shehu, Ola Shobowale, Cameron Hall, Freddie Miller, Jack Stone, Mikey Faulkner, Joe Poxon and Jones comprised eight changes from the team that kicked off at the Gallagher Stadium in their last outing.

The visitors to the Abbey School in Faversham were quickly on the back foot as Jefreys dispossessed Huet in the second minute, but goalkeeper Harvey Gluckstead got a crucial touch to divert the ball off target. Jefreys then hit the crossbar two minutes later before Jones cleared a corner off the goal-line in a frantic opening.

Dover took the lead in the eighth minute when Young picked up possession 45 yards from the Southend goal.

He flicked the ball up before nonchalantly looping the ball high over Gluckstead, who was well off his line, and into the right-hand corner of the net.

After that early setback, the teenage Shrimpers responded well and, after Stone had seen appeals for a penalty waved away, Blues equalised as a right-wing free-kick was allowed to bounce by the Dover defence and Huet ghosted in before coolly slotting inside the right-hand post.

But parity lasted just three minutes as Dover swiftly restored their advantage.

Max Woodfine made good progress down the right touchline and he delivered a pinpoint cross that Jefreys converted with a side-footed finish from close-range.

Three minutes later it was 3-1 as the breathless start to the encounter continued.

Gluckstead did well to make the initial save from Marapara, but the home attacker was on hand to squeeze the rebound into the net and Southend were quickly three goals adrift.

The hosts could have extended their lead still further in the 34th minute when they exploited the gap between Shobowale and Huet at the back and Woodfine was released in behind the back-line, but Gluckstead made a superb stop and he made another fine contribution to save from Jefreys after he had been located by Matty Holness’s right-wing cross on 39 minutes.

Hall had sent an effort over from the edge of the penalty area towards the end of the opening period, and the second half began with Blues attempting to halve their deficit, although Shobowale couldn’t keep his header down following a Ronnie Blake corner.

Tristan Holden’s long-range shot for the home side was similarly off-target before Poxon saw an attempt blocked by Dover’s Louie Procopi, having engineered himself into some space on 56 minutes. Young also steered a left-footed shot narrowly over shortly after the hour mark.

Athletic finished the match in much the same way as they started it, with a flourish, as they netted three times in 18 minutes.

The first of those goals arrived on 71 minutes when Woodfine crossed from the right for Jefreys to slot home his second of the game.

Gluckstead prevented a quickfire fifth – and a Jefreys hat-trick - when he saved following another right-wing Holness centre, but that goal eventually arrived on 75 minutes when Jake McCarthy’s delivery from the left-hand side was unfortunately diverted into his own goal by Jones.

Shobowale failed to get enough purchase on a header from a Blake corner and Blake sent a set-piece narrowly over before Stone cleared the crossbar on the counter-attack.

But Dover retained their menace and struck the woodwork with four minutes to go when Dodds initiated and ended a move that also involved Woodfine and Marapara by sending his shot against the crossbar.

The final act was delivered in the 89th minute when Dodds was upended by Shehu and he brushed himself down to send Gluckstead the wrong way from the penalty spot and add further gloss to the scoreline, which now read 6-1.

Blues will have 48 hours in order to put things right before travelling to Welling for their next National League U19 Alliance South Division fixture.

Southend United U19s:  Gluckstead, Shehu, Shobowale, Hall (Blake 46),  Jones,  Huet (Lawson 46), MacDonald (Molefi 76), Miller, Stone, Faulkner, Poxon.

Subs not used: Cerullo & Okafor.