New Southend signing Greg Halford said his eyes were drawn to the Boxing Day clash against his former club Colchester when he looked at the League Two club’s fixture list.

The struggling Shrimpers have handed a one-month deal to the 36-year-old defender before naming him on the bench for Tuesday’s clash with Grimsby.

Halford, who started his career with Essex rivals Colchester, told Southend’s official website: “I looked at the fixture list over the weekend and Colchester popped up on Boxing Day.

“It will be the first time I’ve played against them competitively since leaving them, which was 14 years ago now. It will be a good game, they’re doing quite well in the league but I’m here to help Southend.”

The former Sunderland and Nottingham Forest man had been without a club since his short stint with Aberdeen in 2019.

He added: “It’s been a long time since I played the game so I’m really looking forward to getting some games under my belt and showing that I can still do it.”