Good evening and welcome to the live commentary of the first leg of the League Two playoff semi-final clash between Stevenage and Southend United.

Stevenage have the opportunity to earn promotion straight back to League One following their relegation last season. Boro finished rock bottom of the third tier last season and were tipped to struggle to regain their place, but Graham Westley has done well to lift his team to a sixth-place finish this season to earn a chance at promotion.

Westley's men were on course to enter the playoffs on the back on a solid unbeaten run as they managed to go through April unbeaten, a run that stretched for seven matches. However, the Boro boss opted to rotate his team on the final day to rest his key players which resulted in a 2-0 defeat to Luton Town. It will be curious to see if that decision is a good one or a bad one come the end of the match tonight.

The Shrimpers missed out on automatic promotion by the finest of margins as they narrowly missed out on the final day of the season as they fell to a 3-1 defeat to Morecambe, allowing Bury to clinch their place in the third tier. Phil Brown will have a major task on his hand to reinvigorate his side for the playoffs to try to advance to Wembley and earn promotion the hard way.

The defeat to Morecambe was a huge surprise as Southend were the form team in the division as they had won their last seven games on the spin, which earned Brown the Manager of the Month award. The Shrimpers also hadn't conceded since March and shipped three goals in the loss, which shows how pressure can affect even the best of sides.

The team news has been announced and we'll start with the home side.

STEVENAGE STARTING XI: Day, Whelpdale, Wells, Dembele, Okimo, Pett, Bond, Parrett, Deacon, Lee, Beardsley
Subs: Beasant, Ashton, Walton, Zola, Conlon, Kennedy, Martin

SOUTHEND STARTING XI: Bentley, White, Coker, Worrall, Timlin, Corr, Atkinson, Bolger, Leonard, McLaughlin, Barrett
Subs: Prosser, Weston, Smith, Payne, Deegan, Cassidy, Pigott

Westley rings the changes tonight as he recalls several first-team players after they were rested against Luton. Only Chris Day, Charlie Lee and Roarie Deacon keep their places in the starting lineup from the final day. Meanwhile, Chris Beardsley, Tom Pett and Andrew Bond all come back into the side.

Brown has made two changes to his side from their 3-1 defeat to Morecambe on the final day. John White and Stephen McLaughlin come into the starting lineup at the expense of Jack Payne and Gary Deegan at the ​Lamex Stadium.

Westley believes that his side have to be ready for a backlash from Southend following their disappointing result last week, but feels that his team have enough to edge past them to reach Wembley.

He told BBC Sport: You have 180 minutes to earn a result in the play-off semi-finals, and they're not for the faint-hearted - it's about making sure you go into the second leg in the best shape possible.

"Southend are a very, very good side, their recent form shows what they're capable of, they have a very experienced manager at the helm, and I'm sure they'll react to what happened to them last weekend in the best possible way.

"Both sides have earned the right to be there and will be using everything in their power to get through to Wembley."

Brown is adamant that his side are over their disappointment from last week and has urged his players to take the initiative in the tie to give them a strong platform for the second leg.

He told BBC Sport: "It was easy to pick people up after last weekend's defeat to Morecambe. It was a sickener but we were our own worst enemies. But we've moved on very quickly to focus on what we hope is now a three-game season.

"We've got to go to Stevenage and get a foothold in the tie. We'll be tested, there's no doubt about it."

"I think {Stevenage manager] Graham [Westley] is a very clever man. He paints a picture of a strong, ugly, physical team. But I think deep down they play some good stuff."

Southend are readying for the off as we approach kickoff at the Lamex Stadium.

PAST MEETINGS! Stevenage ran out 4-2 victors in the meeting between the sides at the Lamex Stadium in February thanks to a second-half comeback. United secured a 2-0 win in the clash at Roots Hall in August thanks to goals from Myles Weston and Ben Coker.

Stevenage have one of the best home records in the division as they claimed 48 of their 72 points at the Lamex Stadium. Boro won 15 of their 23 matches and lost only fives games, the last of which came back in March against Dagenham and Redbridge.

Southend have the fourth best record in League Two on their travels in the campaign. The Shrimpers won 12 of their 23 matches away from Roots Hall, losing seven matches.

NOTE! Dave Beasant is the substitute keeper for Stevenage this evening at the ripe old age of 56. Between me and you I think the home crowd will not be hoping to see him between the sticks at any time tonight.

MEN TO WATCH! Barry Corr leads the way for goals this season for the Shrimpers as he has scored 15 in all competitions, while Charlie Lee is Boro's leading marksman in the campaign with nine strikes. Definitely players to monitor this evening

The players are out on the pitch so we should be underway very shortly.

KICKOFF! We're underway in the first leg of this playoff tie.

Early pressure from the home side as a corner comes in from the right. Wells heads the ball into a posse of players in the six-yard box, but the visitors manage to clear their lines enough as the ball goes behind for another corner.

CHANCE! Another scramble in the box from a corner and this time the ball falls at the feet of Lee, who tries to wheel away from his marker, but his effort on the turn is tame and straight at Bentley.

Solid defending from Barrett as he fends of the challenge of Lee to shepherd the ball out of play for a goal kick. However, not good news for the camerawoman behind the line as the defender almost clatters into her and her camera.

Ambitious effort from Lee as he receives the ball down the left and tries to catch Bentley unawares at his near post, but the keeper is able to make a comfortable save.

CHANCE! A great chance for the visitors as McLaughlin releases the run of Corr down the inside right channel. The striker does well to hold the ball up and then turn to play it into the path of the advancing Timlin, but the midfielder can only direct his left-footed strike past the post. A huge opportunity for the midfielder.

Worrall earns his side a free kick in a dangerous position down the right, and I say earned as he took a tumble with minimal contact from Dembele. Good chance to Coker to whip the ball into the penalty area.

Coker's delivery is pinpoint into the box and Barrett rises highest in the box to head at goal, but can't keep his effort down as the ball sails well over the crossbar.

Southend work the ball well between Corr and Timlin who arrives from deep to support, but the backline of the home side does well to repel the midfielder as he tries to advance into the box. Coker then tries to whip a cross into the box from the left, but Dembele heads clear with authority. Even match so far.

CHANCE! Stevenage's turn to attack as they work the ball well in the final third, which allows Beardsley space and time to line up a strike on the edge of the box. The forward's effort is on target, but Bentley is able to make a comfortable save to hold the ball.

Wells dives in to try to clear a long ball forward from the back from the visitors as he slides in front of Atkinson. However, he misses the ball completely to leave Atkinson with a path to goal, but the referee bails the defender out by awarding a free kick for a push. There was minimal contact there from Atkinson.

Atkinson throws the ball long into the box looking for the big frame of Bolger up from the back, but the ball travels right through the box. McLaughlin latches onto the ball and stoops to head at goal, but he gets his effort wrong as the ball goes well past the post.

YELLOW CARD! Corr goes into the book for Southend as he clutches at the leg of Dembele after the two had battled in the air.

CHANCE! Beardsley threads the ball through to Petty in the inside right channel and the midfielder turns his man to fire a low ball across the face of goal where he finds Deacon, but the forward can only prod his effort into the arms of Bentley.

NASTY BLOW! Timlin and Dembele clash in the air and both players come off worse for wear as their heads crash together. Dembele hits the turf and looks to be in a bad way as the stretcher comes on the field, while Timlin has blood pouring from a cut on his head. Likely to be a lengthy delay here, we just hope that everyone is ok.

Timlin is being heavily bandaged is unlikely to continue as the material is being placed over his eye. Dembele is being throughougly checked over by doctors on the pitch to ensure he has not got a concussion. The defender is sitting down and communicating with the medical staff, but it's doubtful that he will be ok to continue.

SUBSTITUTION: Timlin has been replaced Deegan as we await the outcome of Dembele's injury.

Dembele is back on his feet and is walking off under his own steam and looks to be ok to continue here.

We're back underway following a seven-minute delay.

Stevenage raid forward in numbers in the final third and Pett finds Deacon on the edge of the area and looks for the return ball. However, Deacon decides to go on his own and fires a left-footed strike well over the bar and his teammate does not look overly pleased with him.

Day is down now for the home side as he falls awkwardly as he collects the ball. We couldn't possibly see Dave Beasant between the sticks at the age of 56, could we?

No we won't as Day looks to be ok to continue.

YELLOW CARD! Bolger goes into the book for the visitors for a poor challenge on Beardsley.

Stevenage threaten as the free kick is launched into the box from the left. Dembele goes up but the visitors clear only as far as Wells who volleys an effort towards goal which looks to be heading towards Lee, but the ball is just out of his reach as he attemps to head goal.

CHANCE! Southend's turn to come close from a free kick as Worrall whips the ball onto the box with pace and Barrett rises highest on the penalty spot to power a header at goal, but his effort goes just over the crossbar.

There will be nine minutes of added time because of the stoppage for the Dembele and Timlin injuries.

The home side raid forward with Pett and he finds the run of Beardlsey who has support on the edge of the box, but he decides to shoot at goal and his effort is blocked by Barrett. Not much quality in the final third in the first half.

CHANCE! A long ball is pumped into the box from White and Corr does well to knock the ball into the path of Atkinson, who tries to control the ball and fire at goal. However, he scuffs his strike well over the bar when well placed in the box.

The home side build down the right and Parrett raids down the flank to dig out space for a cross, and puts the ball into a decent area, but Beardsley can only head his effort wide of the target.

CHANCE! Worrall has a glorious chance to put Southend ahead as the home side fail to clear the danger from a cross into the box and the ball falls kindly for the midfielder. He pokes the ball at goal from close range, but Day reacts to make an excellent stop with his feet to steer the ball away from goal.

One last chance to threaten in the first half as Southend win a free kick down the right close to the byline. Atkinson lifts the ball into the box, but Bolger can't direct his header on target as Day is able to collect with ease.

Finally the half-time whistle blows at the Lamex Stadium. The game has lacked quality in the final third as both teams have missed decent chances to break the deadlock this evening, but neither have had the composure to find the net. The best opportunity fell to Southend just before the whistle as David Worrall missed from close range, while at the other end Stevenage have only been able to muster tame efforts at Daniel Bentley.

The half's major incident was the clash of heads between Bira Dembele and Michael Timlin, which left both players on the ground. Dembele somehow managed to continue despite looking like he had suffered a concussion, but Timlin was forced from the pitch with a gruesome wound just above his eye. The image is not for the faint-hearted.

SUBSTITUTIONS: Dembele has been replaced at half time by Ashton following the clash of heads with Timlin. Deacon also goes off for the home side as Kennedy comes on.

RESTART! We're back underway at the Lamex Stadium.

CHANCE! Okimo picks the ball 30 yards from goal and runs at the Southend defence and beats two man to get into the box. He tries to pull the trigger, but Bolger gets back at him just in time with a well-timed tackle to force the goal kick. Good play all around there.

YELLOW CARD! Lee goes into the book for the home side for a late challenge on Atkinson.

Stevenage take the lead through a brilliant strike from Parrett as he finds the back of the net from 20 yards. Lee picked out the run of his teammate on the edge of the box and the midfielder struck the ball with his left foot across Bentley to find the top corner. Parrett was off balance as he hit the ball, which makes his strike even more impressive.

Southend have dominated possession since the goal, but have not been able to use it effectively in the final third of the pitch to carve out any openings. Brown's side have a lot of work to do to get back into the match.

The visitors raid into a dangerous area of the pitch as Deegan comes forward with the ball. The midfielder tries to pick out the run of McLaughlin, but the two aren't on the same page and the ball travels out for a goal kick.

Southend get back on level terms as they win a corner down the right. Coker lifts the ball into the box with his left foot and Corr rises highest at the back post to head at goal and his effort takes a deflection off Bond and past Day into the net.

The visitors threaten again as Coker raids down the left and lifts a cross into the box for McLaughlin, but he can't guide his effort on target as his header goes past the post.

YELLOW CARD! Worrall goes into the book for a challenge on Kennedy.

The tempo of the game has dropped off slightly as both teams appear to be wary of making a mistake. The quality of the pitch at the Lamex Stadium hasn't helped matter as well tonight.

Stevenage work the ball well down the left wing and Pett tries to advance past White down the wing, but the defender barges the winger to the ground and the ball goes out for a goal kick. Pett may have had a case for a free kick there, but the referee was unmoved.

SAVE! Southend are denied the lead by an excellent save by Day as he gets his fingertips to a strike from White to stop the ball from finding the top corner. The full-back collected the ball 25 yards from goal and blasted a strike towards the bottom corner, his effort took a deflection off Ashton and sped towards the net, but Day reacted quickly to make the stop.

INJURY UPDATE! Timlin is out on the touchline watching the match, although he did require 15 stitches to his head wound to repair the damage. Dembele is also watching from the sidelines and appears to be ok.

CHANCE! Kennedy cuts inside from the right for the home side and drills an effort with his left foot towards goal and Bentley reacts quickly to palm the ball away with a quality stop. The ball was moving away from the keeper and he did well to watch it and get it away from the net.

SUBSTITUTIONS: Weston replaces McLaughlin for the visitors, while Conlon comes on for Pett for Westley's men.

YELLOW CARD! Whelpdale pulls back Worrall as the winger tried to raid past him and the Stevenage man is duly booked.

SUBSTITUTION: Southend's goalscorer Corr makes way for Piggot.

Stevenage put the pressure on in the final third as Kennedy raids down the right flank to win a corner, but the visitors manage to clear their lines from the resulting ball into the box. A moment of quality for either team now could be so crucial in deciding which side goes to Wembley.

YELLOW CARD! Deegan hauls down Parrett as he tries to speed away from him and is yellow-carded.

Miscommunication at the wrong time for the home side as Lee tries to slip a through ball down the flank for Parrett, but the winger is not aware what his teammate is planning and the ball goes behind for a goal kick.

A good chance to threaten for the home side as Okimo is brought down on the left wing by Leonard.

Southend clear the free kick from Kennedy, but only as far as Whelpdale on the edge of the box. The midfielder takes a touch to control the ball, but his strike hits a solid wall of yellow as he tried to put an effort on target.

CHANCE! Worrall almost finds the net with a spectacular volley as he leaves his feet to guide the ball towards the far corner, but his strike goes agonisingly past the post. Weston carved out the opening as he kept the ball alive down the right flank and whipped a dangerous cross to the back post, but it just wasn't to be for the midfielder.

There will be four minutes of added time.

CHANCE! Southend have a great chance to steal the win as they break away from corner through Weston. The forward speeds past Ashton and tries to curl an effort past Day from a tight angle on the byline. However, the keeper comes up with a big save to keep the scores level.

Weston brings down Okimo down the left and the home side have one last chance to whip a cross into the box.

CHANCE! The free-kick routine doesn't work between Kennedy and Parrett, but the latter still curls a ball into the box. Southend clear the danger as far as Conlon, who lashes a volley towards goal, but his strike is deflected just wide of the post. The home side have muted claims of handball, but the referee blows his whistle for full time.

The first leg of the semi-final finishes all square, leaving the match wide open for the clash at Roots Hall next Thursday. The result is fair as neither side did enough to secure the win, although both had chances which on another day could have yielded further goals at the Lamex Stadium. Both managers will be satisfied with the result as neither team dominated the contest as Dean Parrett's strike was quickly cancelled out by Barry Corr.

Thanks for joining our commentary this evening. Be sure to stick with Sports Mole for all the reaction from today's matches. But from me, it's goodbye.