BARRY Corr cannot wait to return to Roots Hall tonight.

The former Southend United striker now coaches within the youth set-up at Cambridge United.

And he will be back at Blues for this evening’s FA Youth Cup first round tie.

“It will be great to be back at Roots Hall because I have so many great memories there,” said Corr, who scored 63 goals in 185 games for the Shrimpers.

“There are so many matches and moments which immediately spring to mind when I think of Southend and I’m sure they will come flooding back tonight.

“I’ve been back a few times for matches but this time I’ll be back on the pitch for the warm-up which I’m looking forward to.

“I’ll have to make sure I take a few shots but I’ll probably end up missing them all!”

Corr helped the Shrimpers win promotion via the League Two play-offs back in 2015 before leaving to finish his career with Cambridge.

But the Irishman is now helping others to follow in his footsteps.

“I’ve been coaching at Cambridge since the summer and I’m really enjoying it,” said the 35-year-old.

“I work with the players between the under-18s and our first team and it’s been great so far.

“Nothing beats playing of course but it’s good working with the boys and I’m excited for them ahead of tonight’s game.”

Blues and Cambridge have already played each other twice this season, with the two teams claiming one victory each.

But Corr does not want to place too much significance on the latest clash.

“We build up the FA Youth Cup and it is a great competition but it’s not the end of the world for whoever loses,” said Corr.

“If we win tonight but don’t get any players through to the first team then we haven’t done our job.

“It’s about bringing players through but of course we’ll want to get the win.”

And Corr is also keen for Blues’ first team to improve.

“There have been a lot of changes since I left but I always look for the results and hopefully they can improve with Sol Campbell as manager,” said Corr.

“We played Macclesfield last season before he went in and they were all over the place but he got them organised and kept them up.

“Hopefully he can do something similar with Southend now because I would hate to see them go down.”