Colchester United striker Tom Hopper happy to be team player

So, it’s probably hardly surprising that the Colchester United man is showing his competence in a range of different positions.

Hopper has made his name in the EFL as a centre-forward but this season, has displayed plenty of versatility in Danny Cowley’s U’s side.

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The 30-year-old was effectively a central midfielder in Colchester’s Bristol Street Motors Trophy game at Leyton Orient, having the previous week been utilised as a left wing-back against Carlisle United, at short notice.

And defending his own box is not unfamiliar to Hopper, either, with him being regularly found helping his team out at the back.

“It’s a change of scenery,” joked Hopper, who has featured in all but two of Colchester’s games so far, this season.

“I don’t mind it; I want to play so if I have to play midfield, that’s fine.

“It’s a different view of the game and it probably makes me think a lot differently and going back to play as a forward, you think more like a midfielder at times.

“It’s given me a better understanding of the game for sure and watching football as a fan, you envisage playing in different positions and what that looks like.

“I’ve enjoyed it and I’d be more than happy to take on that role if required again and happy to be back up front if selected as well.

“I feel like I’m capable of using my attributes, in that role and it’s probably different to how someone else might play it but that’s fine.

(Image: RICHARD BLAXALL)

“Yes, it’s slightly new to me but I’m more than up for the challenge and wherever I’m required, I’ll happily play.

“As a youngster, I played in a few different positions.

“Earlier in my career, there was an option of playing centre-half or go out on loan as a forward and I went down the route of being a forward.

“I’m more than happy to play in those different roles; I feel like I can have the attributes to play them in a certain way.

“If I’m selected anywhere on the pitch, I’ll give it my best.

“I’ve been brought up with those ethics in football – they are the non negotiables, hard work, running, all the requirements needed and then everything else will shine through.

“That’s my belief and I try and replicate that as much as possible.

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“I feel like I play my best games when I do those basics really well and everything else seems to fall into place after that.

“We have those standards as a team too and try to replicate those on a daily basis, both in training and on a matchday.”

Remarkably, Hopper is currently one of Colchester’s longest-serving players, despite having only been at the club for 21 months.

He was signed from Lincoln City in January 2023 and since then, has had four permanent managers and countless team-mates.

“There’s been a lot of changes in the time I’ve been here, playing wise, staff wise,” said the former Southend United striker.

“You get to know the core values of the club the longer you’re here and then you try to instil that into other people as well, the newcomers that come in, you want to replicate that.

(Image: STEVE BRADING)

“The club wants an upward trajectory and to be a part of that would be great.

“That’s what the ambition is and we want to now try and implement that on a matchday.

“The fans have backed us more than ever this year, they’ve been brilliant so we want to give them something to shout about.

“We absolutely have that belief that we can compete at the top end of the table.

“When you look at the squad here, we’re more than capable of doing that and we’ll be aiming to do that, for sure.

“We’ve got to start small and Saturday is that first step.

“I think it’s been a mixed first ten games.

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“I think we’ve shown glimpses of what we’re capable of, I think we’ve had some frustrating days but we’re a new group that has come together in the summer and it’s going to take a bit of time to mould.

“I think we’ve shown that when we’re at it, we’re at it really well and we can really put performances together that will cause everyone in the league a tough time.

“It’s now a case of putting all of that together, on a consistent basis.

“You need time to do that, which football is not exactly blessed with.

“It’s also down to hard work and repetition.

“The games are coming thick and fast again now, which I think is only going to help us.

(Image: RICHARD BLAXALL)

“We’ve got a big squad, a strong squad, a competitive squad and everyone is fighting for positions.

“We’ll work hard and push each other and that’s going to bring consistency in itself – we’re looking forward to that challenge.

“We’re all learning off each other, no matter what the age.

“We help each other and everyone has the same goal of trying to be successful here.

“That might look different for each person but we all want to achieve the same thing.

“We’re working hard together and trying to push each other and whoever gets chosen on a matchday will get full support from each other.”

Colchester return to action tomorrow after a two-week fixture break in League Two when they host Cheltenham Town at the JobServe Community Stadium.

Hopper added: “You don’t really get those kind of breaks in season so it’s quite nice to sit back and have a bit of a reflection on the start of the season and also time spent together on the grass as well, where we can improve and set some goals for where we want to go in the next little block of games.

“Cheltenham will have ambitions of bouncing straight back up but that’s not our problem.

“We know what we’re capable of and we’re trying to put our own consistent performances together and that’s what we’ll focus on.”