COLCHESTER United got their pre-season fixtures underway at the weekend with a win at Pitching In Isthmian League division north side Maldon and Tiptree.
The Gazette takes a look at five aspects of the U's 2-0 victory, at Park Drive.
LINING UP
YOU can’t really read too much into friendlies, especially the first of the summer.
Nevertheless, Colchester United’s opening pre-season game at Maldon and Tiptree was a fascinating watch for U's fans, as Danny Cowley begins his first full campaign in charge of the U’s.
Perhaps most intriguing was the two line-ups that were selected to play each half, with the intention of giving every player 45 minutes each.
It is still early days but the team selected for the first half against the Jammers perhaps resembled more the side that might start at AFC Wimbledon in the U’s curtain-raiser, on August 10.
It featured six of Colchester’s summer signings, along with last season’s player of the year Arthur Read and the likes of Fiacre Kelleher, Ellis Iandolo and Tom Hopper.
The U’s second-half side had a more youthful look to it, something that ultimately showed after goals after half-time from Frankie Edwards and Bradley Ihionvien sealed a 2-0 win at Park Drive.
In both halves, Colchester adopted a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Hopper leading the line in the first half and Ihionvien in the second, supported by some positive wing play from the likes of JK Gordon and Owura Edwards, who looked lively in the time he was on the pitch and won the U's a penalty.
NEW FACES
COLCHESTER United got their first glimpse of some of the club’s summer signings, at Park Drive.
JK Gordon, Matt Macey, Rob Hunt, Alex Woodyard, Jack Payne and Harry Anderson all featured for the U’s, in the friendly win.
Ben Goodliffe and Lyle Taylor were also at the game but Danny Cowley said afterwards he chose to protect the duo, as he felt the pitch was not right for them.
Goodliffe and Taylor, along with Samson Tovide who also missed the Maldon game, are expected to feature in the U’s next pre-season friendly, a behind-closed-doors game at Wycombe Wanderers, on Saturday.
Of the signings that did play, Woodyard caught the eye with his tenacity and determination, Payne and Gordon with their skill and trickery and Hunt for his defensive solidity.
LEADING THE WAY
WITH Connor Hall having now departed for pastures new, Colchester are now on the lookout for a new captain.
As Danny Cowley told the Gazette last week, there are plenty of candidates to be the U’s new skipper; the U’s boss wants leadership all over the pitch.
For the record, Ellis Iandolo was handed the captain’s armband for the first half against Maldon, with Mandela Egbo skippering the team in the second half.
The likes of Woodyard, Payne and Hopper have all been captains at their previous clubs as has Ben Goodliffe, so Cowley is certainly not short of options when selecting his new skipper.
PRECAUTIONARY TALE
THE only downside for Colchester in their opening friendly was the loss of John-Kemani Gordon due to injury, midway through the first half.
Danny Cowley said afterwards that the former Crystal Palace youngster was taken off as a precaution after suffering a dead leg in a challenge, so hopefully it was nothing too serious.
It was a shame, as Gordon had caught the eye in the first quarter of the game with his skill and trickery on the left flank.
On a positive note, it was great to see Harry Anderson and Mandela Egbo both back out on the pitch, following their untimely injuries in the second half of last season.
Both could prove to be key players for Colchester, in the 2024-25 campaign.
CHILVERS CROSSROADS
A LOT of the chatter among the Colchester fans who had made the trip to Maldon and Tiptree to watch their team was about Noah Chilvers.
The U’s academy product was absent from the game at Park Drive, as he and the club attempt to resolve his future.
Chilvers is currently out of contract and is yet to sign the new deal presented to him by the U’s, at the end of last season.
The situation is complicated by the fact that Chilvers is under the age of 24, meaning compensation will need to be agreed with the U’s by any club looking to secure the talented attacker’s services.
It is an important decision for Chilvers and it needs to be the right one and Colchester will need to be suitably compensated for a player they have helped to develop, so it is understandable that is taking time to find a resolution.
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