Colchester United can start planning for League Two future

It might only be a five-word sentence but nevertheless, it's an extremely important one to U's fans.

Colchester had gone into their final game of the season against Crewe Alexandra with the odds on them staying up at the expense of Sutton United stacked in their favour.

But the U’s still had to get the job done, resulting in a potentially nervy afternoon for their supporters.

READ MORE: Colchester boss Danny Cowley on Crewe Alexandra draw

In the end though, the outcome was never really in doubt.

Colchester performed well in a crucial game; had they held onto their first-half lead given to them by the impressive Noah Chilvers, the win would have been fully deserved.

As it was, Elliott Nevitt’s stoppage-time equaliser denied Danny Cowley’s side a final-day victory to secure the visitors a play-off place but that could not detract from the sense of relief at the JobServe Community Stadium.

Meanwhile, at Stadium MK, eight goals were scored but there was never any hint of the unlikely away victory and goal swing that Sutton needed to achieve, to send the U’s down.

Now everything is done and dusted, it is only natural to look back at many different defining moments, reach conclusions about how the season has gone and just why Colchester have found themselves in a position of peril for the fourth successive season.

That will perhaps be for the days and weeks to come but there have undoubtedly been key moments in determining their fate, not least Owen Goodman’s crucial penalty save from Harry Smith in the 1-1 draw at Gander Green Lane in February, which ultimately proved crucial.

But U’s fans might also point to the equalising goals by Sutton and Forest Green Rovers that denied their team important home wins, against their relegation rivals.

Ultimately, as the old cliché goes, the league table doesn’t lie and you finish where you deserve.

READ MORE: Colchester United 1 Crewe Alexandra 1 - match report

The fact is that Colchester were the 22nd best team in League Two and secured enough points to stay in the Football League.

After a season of struggle, they have avoided relegation.

And a great deal of that is down to Danny and Nicky Cowley, who inherited a woefully out-of-form side at the beginning of the year who had just lost eight out of nine games and were situated just above the relegation zone.

A final word for the brilliant Colchester United supporters; they have been fantastic this season and nearly 6,500 were at the Community Stadium to see their final-day draw with Crewe.

A firm connection has already been established between the Cowleys and the U’s fanbase over a four-month period and there is real potential for that to grow, as things improve on the pitch.

The Cowleys are set to hold meetings with their players at the start of next week, as they begin to plan for a brighter future as a Football League club.

But having successfully achieved their objective of keeping the U’s up, the hard-working brothers deserve to put their feet up at least for a day or two, safe in the knowledge that their mission has been accomplished.