Colchester's miserable form in national cup competitions continued when they were unceremoniously dumped out of the Powergen Vase.
However, they had the first chance to score after five minutes, but James Gee's penalty went wide.
This proved one of the few opportunities Colchester were to have, as Stowmarket put them under pressure.
The last 20 minutes were scrappy, but it was Stowmarket's day and they fully deserved their first-ever victory over Colchester.
Colchester were able to take heart from fly-half Mark Sawtell's debut performance that showed he has the potential to cause defences problems, but overall the team looked uninspired.
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