Five footballers who were in the squad that lost so woefully at Peterborough on Saturday are battling to save their careers at Colchester United.

U's boss Steve Whitton admitted today that goalkeeper Simon Brown, defenders Alan White and Ross Johnson, midfielder Bobby Bowry and utility-man David Gregory have another seven games to prove they deserve another contract.

Midfielder Micky Stockwell, utility player Gavin Johnson, central defender Ollie Blackwell, plus long-term injury victims Joe Dunne and Chris Keeble are also looking to secure new deals.

Whitton said: "It is fair to say all of those lads are playing for their futures at Layer Road.

"Although in Joe Dunne and Chris Keeble's case the situation is a little different.

"Losing Joe the way we did, along with our captain Simon Clark, was a massive blows to us.

"Joe's fighting qualities were exactly the sort of thing we missed badly at Peterborough and we'll be looking at him again once he gets fit and back into action.

"The same goes for Chris. We are very disappointed that he is still not fully fit having missed the entire season.

"He's got to get some football in as quickly as possible, but the club have paid him all season and it is not my intention to throw him on the scrapheap."

Whitton also said that he needs three or four new faces now, with at least two of them arriving at the club, possibly on loan, before this season's March 28 transfer deadline.

One of those players could be former Torquay captain and left-sided defender Lee Russell who turned out in yesterday's 3-1 reserve team success against Millwall.

Gregory, Adrian Coote and Dean Morgan scored the goals, but the fact that Russell is not a dominant header of the ball might weigh against him.

Whitton also expressed disappointment that the U's, who have produced some of their brightest football for years, are currently five points worse off, while conceding 20 more goals, than at the same stage last season.

He said: "We have fallen well short of the standards we set ourselves in the first half of the season."

More on Colchester United FC

How do you think Colchester are playing this season? Have your say on our Views on the U's bulletin board

Published Tuesday, March 12, 2002