Season overview 2015–16 Colchester United F.C. season

1 season overview

1.1 pre-season
1.2 league one

1.2.1 august
1.2.2 september
1.2.3 october
1.2.4 november
1.2.5 december
1.2.6 january
1.2.7 february
1.2.8 march
1.2.9 april
1.2.10 may


1.3 league cup
1.4 football league trophy
1.5 fa cup

season overview
pre-season

just 2 days after colchester united had secured league 1 status year, club began making changes playing staff. following public disagreement manager tony humes in february 2015 when substituted in game against doncaster rovers, sean clohessy had contract terminated 1 year two-year deal, having made 37 appearances club , captained side. following him out exit door dominic smith, made 1 , first-team appearance in humes first game in charge against walsall in september 2014, following expiry of one-year deal.

three players extended contracts colchester on 8 may, jack curtis, byron lawrence , michael o donoghue remaining club further year. after featuring club 8 times during 2014–15 season, released rotherham united defender richard brindley held talks colchester view joining club on permanent basis. announced on 15 may club captain magnus okuonghae not offered new deal remain club when deal expired. okuonghae, had spent 6 years u s, played 215 games club, ruptured achilles tendon in previous campaign brought premature end season. tony humes described okuonghae excellent servant club . leaving colchester community stadium colchester united influential sports scientist dave carolan, headed birmingham city take role head of sports science championship club. meanwhile, winger dion sembie-ferris, made first-team debut against cardiff city in fa cup third round last season, committed future club signing new three-year deal.

tony humes continued clear out of players in preparation new season. leaving club winger sanchez watt, jabo ibehre , academy defender kevin lokko, out of contract , out of favour under humes. colchester considering making offers former loanees elliott hewitt , matthew briggs following release ipswich town , millwall respectively, while had offered new contract david fox following expiry of short-term deal club.

richard brindley became tony humes first signing of summer on 2 june, joining rotherham united following release.

richard brindley became first new signing of summer on 2 june, joining rotherham after release. signed two-year deal u s following loan spell club @ end of 2014–15 season. on 10 june, announced former west ham united youngster kieran bailey had signed development contract club, after had featured john mcgreal s under-21 squad during closing stages of 2014–15 season. former loanee signed u s on permanent basis on 22 june, matthew briggs signing two-year contract on free transfer after expiry of contract millwall. stand-in captain david fox decided against signing new contract u s in order return north west of england family situated in late june. left-back ben gordon allowed leave club on 1 july, having been displaced in first-team matthew briggs last season , subsequent arrival on permanent basis. 1 year two-year deal.

after rejecting reduced-terms contract offer oldham athletic, colchester re-signed george elokobi on two-year contract on 3 july, having spent 2004 2008 u s. colchester announced signing of former yeovil town midfielder , captain joe edwards on 6 july on free transfer, joining on one-year contract option of further year.

after returning pre-season training on 1 july, players had first friendly match @ scraley road on 11 july against heybridge swifts. humes fielded 2 different teams in either half, both scoring 4 , not conceding hand u s comfortable 8–0 win. chris porter, captained side during first-half, scored opening goal after 24 minutes richard brindley cross. brindley again provider triallist olly lee score second after. porter scored second penalty after dan holman had been fouled in area, before george moncur rounded off scoring first-half. drey wright scored 30 yards bring score 5–0 in second-half, macauley bonne finding of net, , sammie szmodics lifting ball on onrushing heybridge goalkeeper. wright scored second late on seal victory. colchester played similar format in next friendly @ brentwood town on 14 july, same team played in final 45 minutes of win on heybridge starting against brentwood, switch between brindley , tosin olufemi. gavin massey scored opening 2 goals, first of volley, , second szmodics pass. szmodics scored himself, bonne registering second of pre-season 1 minute later. u s went in @ half-time 4–0 up, , scores remained same until final whistle, entire team substituted @ half-time started against heybridge.

after appearing in both of colchester s pre-season friendlies, announced second year scholar cameron james had signed four-year professional contract club. joining defender in signing fellow scholar , forward tariq issa.

colchester defeated bishop s stortford 3–2 on 18 july, coming 1 goal down win. after sheldon sellears opened scoring home side, colchester hit through jack curtis after interval. dan holman added u s second, before macauley bonne scoring third goal in 3 games wrap win visitors. kenzer lee pulled goal stortford, colchester held on victory.

chris porter named colchester s new captain on 21 july following magnus okuonghae s exit.

chris porter announced colchester united s new club captain on 21 july, alex gilbey vice-captain. news came ahead of colchester s first home friendly of season against west ham. george moncur converted 13th minute free kick hand u s 1–0 win on premier league counterparts. goalkeeper elliot parish, had appeared in of colchester s previous friendlies including full 90 minutes against west ham, signed one-year contract colchester on 23 july battle against both chris lewington , sam walker, had missed previous pre-season matches through injury. development squad goalkeeper james bransgrove had been ruled out injury until september.

the u s suffered first defeat of pre-season on 25 july when hosted leyton orient @ community stadium, losing 3–0 during game saw return of sam walker injury. in penultimate friendly of pre-season, colchester welcomed ipswich community stadium regular pre-season friendly. town took lead through kévin bru before half-time, alex gilbey equalised 7 minutes after restart taken low shot. ipswich again took lead on 64 minutes penalty david mcgoldrick after alex wynter judged have handled ball inside box. however, gilbey once again equalised u s shot outside box 5 minutes full-time, there enough time colchester grab winner, gavin massey heading ball in on line after jack curtis shot had been deflected. final pre-season friendly @ home fulham xi on 1 august. played in front of crowd of 642, fulham earned 1–0 win through moussa dembélé, while goalkeeper sam walker played 45 minutes in comeback injury.

having been on trial colchester during 2014–15 pre-season, midfielder darren ambrose joined club on one-year contract on 6 august following release ipswich. final business prior start of campaign came when youngsters tyler brampton , david segura joined david wright s maldon & tiptree on loan. wide-player brampton joined 3 months, while spanish forward segura signed until january 2016.

league one
august

darren ambrose made goalscoring debut colchester during 2–2 opening day draw blackpool.

the u s kicked off league 1 campaign @ home blackpool on 8 august. match saw debuts of goalkeeper elliot parish, joe edwards , darren ambrose, second debut both matthew briggs , richard brindley, while kane vincent-young brought on eleven minutes remaining make professional bow. visitors took 18th-minute lead through mark cullen, lead lasted 4 minutes volley alex gilbey. in first-half injury time, cullen struck again put blackpool 2–1 ahead going break. debutant darren ambrose rescued point u s in second half when slotted home gavin massey pass on 56 minutes level game @ 2–2. following debut, vincent-young signed two-year contract extension club on 14 august. ahead of colchester s second league game of season, out of favour striker dan holman sent out on month-long loan national league side woking.

with chris porter ruled out through injury, macauley bonne handed start in place u s trip peterborough united on 15 august. scored game s opening goal on 30 minutes, lead lasted 1 minute before marcus maddison equaliser levelled scores. 3 minutes later , peterborough ahead, maddison registering second , proving difference between 2 sides. kane vincent-young had more game time after replacing injured matthew briggs prior half-time in colchester s 2–1 defeat. u s followed defeat goalless draw against oldham athletic @ community stadium on 18 august.

colchester s trip fleetwood town on 22 august saw them concede 2 goals in either half without reply continue winless start season. colchester boosted ranks on 27 august signing of former crystal palace , ipswich town midfielder owen garvan on short-term contract until january, before reinforcing midfield further loan signing of charlton athletic winger callum harriott on loan until 2 january 2016.

the u s guaranteed winless start new season on 29 august when fought 2 goals down draw 2–2 scunthorpe united @ community stadium. after kevin van veen , paddy madden had put visitors 2 ahead 18th minute, george moncur scored first goal of campaign 15 minutes later reduce deficit. colchester left late score leveller. george elokobi scored first goal club since summer return 81st-minute header harriott corner.

september

tony humes brought in former burnley striker marvin sordell on free transfer on 10 september.

with transfer window closing on 1 september, tony humes made no further signings, did tie down promising triallist goalkeeper dillon barnes permanent contract. however, following barnes arrival, chris lewington allowed leave club mutual consent on 3 september after making 2 appearances club. on 10 september, colchester brought in forward marvin sordell on contract until end of season after release burnley earlier in month. sordell s signing followed loan arrival of preston north end goalkeeper jamie jones on 11 september joined 93 days. colchester s first league match september followed on 12 september, both new signings starting. game tipped u s advantage after 16 minutes when chesterfield had drew talbot sent off, colchester first concede defender daniel jones putting home side ahead free kick on 22 minutes. u s responded gavin massey s first goal of season on 29 minutes, scores remained until half-time. in second half, colchester fell behind once again when lee novak scored close range, before falling further behind on 74 minutes through captain sam morsy. deficit reduced 2 minutes later, george moncur scoring second goal of season. game levelled in added time when chesterfield defender charlie raglan put ball own net draw game 3–3.

a late penalty save jamie jones ensured colchester held on lead , first win of season on 15 september edged out 3–2 winners against sheffield united @ brammall lane. george moncur scored third , fourth goals of season give away side 2–0 lead @ interval, blades clawed score 2–2 midway point of second half billy sharp penalty , martyn woolford equaliser. marvin sordell scored first goal club in 82nd minute hand lead u s, before jones penalty save after george elokobi had fouled in penalty area , received second yellow card efforts. win moved colchester out of relegation places 19th position in league one.

george moncur s performances throughout september earned him pfa fan s player of month award.

another penalty save jamie jones gifted u s first home victory of campaign on 19 september in 2–1 win on table-topping gillingham. gavin massey scored second league goal of campaign after 4 minutes of play, callum harriott providing assist. colchester pegged 3 minutes later when luke norris scored. callum harriott restored side s lead on 29 minutes first goal club. frankie kent, making first league start of season, conceded penalty in 33rd minute of play, jones, confident match-winning penalty save in last league game, saved cody mcdonald s effort in centre of goal. scores remained same through second-half, colchester moving 12th in league 1 standings , inflicting first league defeat of season on gillingham. 1 month after signing five-month deal club, on 25 september, owen garvan signed contract extension until summer of 2017.

colchester recorded third consecutive win @ swindon town on 26 september 2–1 win. george moncur scored fifth goal of season after 3 minutes hand u s lead, before 22nd-minute equaliser town s wes thomas. callum harriott scored second goal in many games put side ahead once again 3 minutes before interval, while goalless second half pushed colchester 10th position in league one.

ahead of colchester s final game of month on 29 september, callum harriott named in football league team of week matchday 9 on of run of form , goal against swindon previous weekend. there further news 2 more colchester players, both jamie jones , george moncur shortlisted pfa fans player of month award league 1 september.

the u s ensured went month of september unbeaten in league fourth consecutive win on 29 september 2–0 victory on bradford city. callum harriott made 3 goals in 3 games when opened scoring after 7 minutes, before marvin sordell doubled colchester s advantage after picked out owen garvan. win moved team eighth position in league one.

george moncur named pfa s fans player of month september on 6 october, seeing off competition fellow finalists adam armstrong of coventry city , burton albion s stuart beavon. meanwhile, boss tony humes nominated league 1 manager of month award on 7 october. faced competition bury s david flitcroft, burton albion s jimmy floyd hasselbaink , southend united s phil brown. despite losing out on pfa fans player of month award, jamie jones nominated league s player of month award. in running against walsall s forward tom bradshaw, rochdale midfielder peter vincenti , bury s leon clarke.

october

colchester played hosts in-from bury on 3 october. despite dominating play, bury goalkeeper rob lainton kept u s forward line @ bay, making saves joe edwards , george moncur in first-half. leon clarke made breakthrough away side after 75 minutes hold on to, ending u s winning run. on 10 october, u s travelled shrewsbury town. during first half of limited opportunities, colchester took lead on 36 minutes when shrewsbury defender mark ellis put ball own net. 3 minutes later, tom eastman scored first goal of season give side 2–0 half-time lead. @ beginning of poor second-half display colchester, shrewsbury hit when substitute tyrone barnett scored close range after 39-seconds of play. scored again in 59th-minute level scores, before fellow half-time substitute sullay kaikai gave them lead. kaikai scored second goal in 81st-minute inflict 4–2 defeat on colchester.

four first-half goals home side wigan athletic dumped colchester united bottom-half of league 1 table on 17 october. 4 goals arrived in 28 minutes, before late fifth ensured 5–0 defeat woeful colchester. club returned winning ways in home encounter port vale on 20 october, picking first win in 3 games 2–1 victory. george elokobi s second goal of campaign set u s on way, vale s colin daniel equalised on stroke of half-time. marvin sordell scored midway through second half earn side 3 points.

owen garvan scored first goal colchester during 4–4 draw walsall on 24 october.

on 24 october, colchester hosted walsall @ community stadium. u s found @ two-goal disadvantage within opening half hour, before had goal of own ruled out offside. walsall held onto lead until 4 minutes second period. george moncur s sixth goal of season gave colchester lifeline, , 3 minutes later equalised marvin sordell s second goal in many matches. walsall reinstated advantage on 57 minutes, 3 minutes later united again level after owen garvan scored first goal club. ten minutes time, u s took lead first time in game when darren ambrose scored. held lead until first minute of stoppage time, when walsall equalised through james o connor, resulting in 4–4 draw. darren ambrose s performance in match earned him place in football league team of week after goal , 2 assists.

after struggling make impression in first-team term, sammie szmodics loaned out national league club braintree town on 30 october in initial month-long deal.

colchester travelled doncaster rovers final fixture of month on 31 october. u s defensive frailties once again showed beaten 2–0 goal in either half of match.

november

on of fa cup first round win, u s hosted coventry city on 14 november, held former colchester loanee jacob murphy amongst ranks. home side took lead in 17th minute, macauley bonne scoring 8 goal of season following four-goal haul against wealdstone. murphy equalised visitors on 32 minutes, before putting coventry ahead 5 minutes prior interval. game sealed in city s favour 4 minutes after restart when marc-antoine fortuné scored deliver 3–1 win coventry. colchester lost third successive league game on 21 november when visited millwall. having trailed 2–0 @ break, half-time substitute chris porter scored first goal of season reduce deficit, 2 further goals home side dealt u s 4–1 defeat. defeat followed on 24 november u s fell late 3–2 home loss bottom of league crewe alexandra despite having held 2–0 lead. callum harriott s fourth goal club put u s ahead on 40 minutes, before lead doubled george moncur s eighth of season. crewe pulled 1 goal through ryan colclough on 61 minutes, before equalised through marcus haber ten minutes remaining. loanee ryan lowe scored crewe s winning goal in second minute of injury time.

on of 7 defeats in 9 league 1 games , 3–2 home defeat crewe, manager tony humes dismissed club on 26 november, richard hall , john mcgreal taking temporary charge. newly installed management team recalled sammie szmodics braintree town loan on 27 november ahead of colchester s trip burton albion. pair took charge of first team affairs colchester s first ever trip high-flying burton albion on 28 november. side had best-possible start when callum harriott opened scoring away team four-minutes match. burton equalised after 24-minutes through abdenasser el khayati, before took lead in 34th minute through birmingham city loanee mark duffy. burton extended lead six-minutes second-half through tom naylor, , lucas akins made 4–1 on 72 minutes. timmy thiele completed rout on 81-minutes ensure fifth consecutive league defeat club.

december

kevin keen named new colchester united manager on 21 december.

chairman robbie cowling decided install caretaker manager on 2 december in shape of former u s defender , under-18 coach wayne brown, mcgreal assisting while hall remain club. following fa cup victory, brown s first league match in charge resulted in sixth consecutive defeat u s on 12 december. on hour mark, colchester found 3–0 down @ community stadium against barnsley after goals conor hourihane, adam hammill , ivan toney. spirited fight-back saw colchester reduce deficit 1 goal after 2 goals in 3 minutes george moncur , chris porter, couldn t find equaliser. result saw club drop relegation zone first time since winless start season.

following wayne brown s withdrawal running next colchester united manager, club hit bottom of table on 19 december after 3–1 defeat away rochdale. u s had taken lead through chris porter after 21-minutes, scored second goal in many games, before ex-colchester man ian henderson equalised penalty spot on 30-minutes. 4 minutes later, home side took 2–1 lead through donal mcdermott , olly lancashire sealed win midway through second-half.

colchester named former reading , west bromwich albion assistant manager kevin keen manager on 21 december, david wright promoted assistant after working both coach club , part-time manager of maldon & tiptree. news of new managerial appointment, injured sam walker signed two-and-a-half year contract extension on 22 december remain club until summer of 2018.

in first match in charge, keen oversaw boxing day essex derby match against southend united. after goalless first-half, 2 former colchester players scored against old club hand southend 2–0 victory. first, john white, colchester united youth team product, scored elusive goal visitors on 49-minutes, third career goal. then, on 73 minutes, former loanee dave mooney scored after george elokobi robbed of ball. in final game of 2015, colchester ensured equalled club-record 9 consecutive league defeats after former colchester loanee, dominic samuel, scored goal of game in close affair gillingham @ priestfield on 28 december.

january

goalkeeper jake kean became kevin keen s first signing colchester manager, joining on loan norwich city on 7 january.

january started on better note colchester, earning 1–1 draw away oldham athletic on 2 january 2016 moved them off foot of table. rhys murphy opened scoring oldham after 5 minutes, late chris porter strike against former club ensured colchester not earn unwanted record of ten consecutive league defeats. keen s first transfer movements of january window occurred on 5 january, dan holman allowed leave club on free transfer, joining national league leaders cheltenham town. made first signing of transfer window on 7 january, bringing in norwich city s reserve goalkeeper jake kean on initial 28-day loan deal. meanwhile, youth-team member marley andrews loaned out steve ball s maldon & tiptree 1 month. club tied down promising louis dunne, son of former u s manager , player joe dunne, three-year development contract on 14 january.

colchester continued winless run in league on 16 january. u s having not registered win in league 1 in 3 months, welcomed sheffield united community stadium, , buoyed fa cup victory on charlton week prior, colchester looked capitalise on , push on faltering league season. blades opened scoring on 20-minutes through billy sharp, had scored in reverse fixture earlier in campaign. after break, u s equalised when tom eastman headed in marvin sordell s cross. point looked on cards colchester, chris basham, scored 91st-minute winner away side. on 18 january, u s saw 1 arrival , 1 exit. incoming former west ham loanee elliot lee, joined second spell club until end of season. leaving mutual consent byron lawrence, after 1 first-team appearance left club mutual consent. following day, fleetwood town visitors in 1–1 draw. alex gilbey scored opening goal on 38 minutes, before eggert jónsson equalised on hour mark. scores remained, , colchester moved 22nd in league 1 table, 5 points fleetwood in 20th position , safety.

kevin keen made first permanent signing on 20 january, bringing in former england international defender nicky shorey on deal until end of season. while james bransgrove became latest player join maldon & tiptree on loan on 22 january, reported club had turned down offer alex gilbey championship side bristol city. keen later described offer gilbey joke .

colchester cast further safety on 23 january after beaten 3–0 away scunthorpe united. 3 goals in space of 8 second-half minutes home side left u s 7 points shrewsbury in 20th-position.

february

with norwich loanee jake kean returning parent club due couple of things unhappy @ colchester united, goalkeeper elliot parish once again returned first-team action u s in essex derby away fixture southend. despite losing alex gilbey after 36 minutes having been sent off challenge on southend s ryan leonard, colchester put in solid defensive display against county neighbour ten men. defence soaked pressure until 82nd minute, when former colchester player anthony wordsworth struck 20-yard effort. short while later, home side s lead doubled when adam barrett headed in jack payne s corner kick. barrett celebrated running length of pitch celebrate in front of colchester fans. tensions rising between 2 sets of supporters, lone southend fan jumped onto pitch, ran towards away fans , began throwing punches crowd. other southend supporters followed jumping onto pitch before stewards , players attempted defuse situation, while police said investigation incident launched. southend added third goal in third minute of injury time when on-loan southampton winger sam mcqueen scored close range.

leo chambers arrived defensive reinforcement on loan west ham united on 26 february.

colchester extended winless run 16 league games on 13 february visit of swindon community stadium. 2 nicky ajose goals, in 36th , 56th minutes, put visitors 2 ahead, before michael doughty added third 2 minutes later. half-volley joe edwards saw him score first goal club after 64 minutes give u s hope, doughty strike again in 72nd minute inflict 4–1 defeat on colchester. in home encounter chesterfield on 16 february, u s looked capitalise on red card chesterfield s gary liddle after foul on kane vincent-young. took lead through macauley bonne on 69 minutes, lead lasted 3 minutes when lee novak equalised penalty spot after richard brindley brought ollie banks down in area. score remained @ 1–1 colchester remaining bottom of league , 8 points safety.

on of move maldon & tiptree, femi akinwande given squad number of 16 on 19 february when named in u s squad travel bury fixture on 20 february. same day, keen announced owen garvan take on club captaincy chris porter foreseeable future , take little of responsibility off him [porter] .

colchester on 20 february took 2–0 lead after 17 minutes of game @ bury. having been relieved of captaincy duties, chris porter scored after 4 minutes of play. gavin massey doubled visitors lead, second yellow card tom eastman after 33 minutes reduced colchester ten men. resultant free-kick, ryan lowe scored against colchester having scored against u s crewe while on loan earlier in season. colchester held on 2–1 lead through half-time, conceded twice in space of 1 minute 2 andrew tutte efforts. craig jones added fourth bury after 56 minutes, before tutte sealed hat-trick in 62nd minute inflict 5–2 defeat on colchester.

with tom eastman suspended following red card @ bury, reinforcements arrived west ham on 26 february, leo chambers joining initial month-long loan, while tottenham winger nathan oduwa signed month. chambers started colchester s home match shrewsbury on 27 february, while oduwa introduced 82nd-minute substitute gavin massey sides drew 0–0.

march

on 1 march, announced tony humes making return club of 7 march in director of football role, tony ashby taking position of football operations manager. after 19 league 1 games without victory, colchester broke duck on 1 march during away trip bradford city. colchester first concede, play-off chasing bradford striking first in 17th-minute through wes thomas. home side s lead lasted 6 minutes when darren ambrose s volleyed shot earned u s equaliser. struck again in 57th-minute give colchester long-awaited victory, despite win, club remained ten points safety.

colchester fell familiar ways 2–0 away defeat @ port vale on 5 march. goal in either half ensured u s remained bottom of table. keen moments away picking second league win on 12 march @ home wigan athletic last minute equaliser grigg. handing professional debut femi akinwande, keen s colchester side fell behind wigan on 36-minutes when yanic wildschut scored, 4 minutes later, alex gilbey equalised long-range strike. u s went half-time 2–1 down, conceding 1 minute before interval ryan colclough goal had scored crewe against colchester earlier in season. elliot lee scored first goal in second spell club level score @ 2–2 on 50-minutes, , ten minutes later george moncur scored first time in two-months penalty spot after being fouled reece wabara. louis dunne replaced lee make professional debut after 77-minutes before grigg scored late equaliser.

another precious win cruelly stolen colchester walsall on 19 march @ bescot stadium when 2 goals in final minutes of game home side consigned u s 2–1 defeat. alex gilbey headed in owen garvan s cross in first-half injury time 5 visitors lead hold onto until 89th-minute. tom bradshaw equalised before defender matt preston s shot in fourth minute of added time found of net.

several loan transfer movements made ahead of easter weekend. on 23 march, youngsters tyler brampton , joe tennent joined isthmian league premier division side grays athletic. brampton s second loan of season see him remain grays until end of campaign, while tennent made first move away colchester on work experience. meanwhile, dion sembie-ferris allowed leave club on temporary basis having not made appearance in first-team under kevin keen. joined national league south outfit margate until end of season on 24 march.

colchester lifted foot of table first time in 9 games on 25 march after beating doncaster rovers 4–1 @ community stadium. doncaster took lead after-21 minutes through gary mcsheffrey after frankie kent had been introduced replace injured leo chambers. stirring second-half performance saw colchester first equalise when chris porter netted in 62nd-minute , take lead through elliot lee on 71-minutes. 1 minute later, alex gilbey scored third goal in 3 games put u s 3–1 , there still time substitute richard brindley score first ever league goal 3 minutes time. u s picked first back-to-back wins since september on 29 march overcame coventry single goal @ ricoh arena. gavin massey scored decisive goal in 1–0 win. win came on of news of west ham loanee leo chambers extending loan deal until end of season.

colchester s result against coventry earned club league managers association performance of week award, voted panel consisting of lma chairman howard wilkinson, alex ferguson, joe royle, dave bassett , barry fry. keen nominated league 1 manager of month award march.

april

colchester s first match in april home game play-off hopefuls millwall. in match u s had better of chances, game ended 0–0 meaning colchester remained 7 points adrift of safety 6 games remaining. on 9 april, chris porter goal proved difference between colchester , blackpool u s won third match in 4 games @ bloomfield road. colchester s survival hopes dealt blow when, despite having better of game defeated 4–1 peterborough united on 16 april leave them nine-points adrift. jon taylor s goal put visitors in lead after two-minutes before george moncur had penalty saved peterborough goalkeeper ben alnwick. in second-half, 2 goals in 2 minutes put peterborough 3–0 up, before moncur pulled goal back. scoring complete in fourth minute of injury time when marcus maddison scored third goal of season against u s.

assistant manager david wright placed in temporary charge of colchester on 26 april following keen s exit.

a late crewe equaliser denied u s opportunity close gap on teams above them in table on 19 april. having led 1–0 since 65th-minute when george moncur converted penalty, crewe scored through callum saunders header in first minute of second-half stoppage time. fate sealed on 23 april when beaten 3–0 @ home promotion hopefuls burton, spelling return fourth tier of english football first time in 18-years. kevin keen dropped alex gilbey , george moncur starting eleven, preferring louis dunne in midfield made first senior start. match got off bad start u s when joe edwards sent off challenge on matt palmer in 17th-minute, before falling behind first of 3 lucas akins goals on stroke of half-time. took him 4 minutes after restart score second, , game on over hour mark when scored third. edwards red card later rescinded on 26 april.

following colchester s relegation, keen left club mutual consent on 26 april. david wright placed in temporary charge colchester s final 2 games of season. meanwhile, club confirmed contract extensions alex wynter, signed further two-years, , young goalkeeper james bransgrove, signed until 2019.

wright s newly acquired side battled 2–1 down secure point against barnsley on 30 april equaliser deep in added time. george moncur s 14th goal of season gave colchester lead in 42nd-minute , side went break in winning position. after interval, barnsley equalised through ashley fletcher on 57-minutes, , fletcher gave side lead ten minutes remaining. tom lapslie scored first league goal of season in eighth minute of stoppage time earn u s draw.

may

chairman robbie cowling quick announce keen s successor. on 4 may, revealed john mcgreal taking role of manager steve ball assistant ahead of colchester s final game of season. mcgreal s role set commence following colchester s game rochdale on 8 may, ball named club s fifth caretaker manager of season after david wright made unavailable personal reasons .

ahead of final game of campaign, 3 development squad players signed new one-year deals club, charley edge, michael o donoghue , chris regis agreeing new contracts.

colchester ended campaign in defeat against rochdale on 8 may. caretaker manager steve ball had named dillon barnes in first-team goalkeeper, have been professional debut following elliot parish s injury previous weekend. however, barnes caught in traffic, , james bransgrove stepped in instead make professional bow. u s behind after 18-minutes when nathaniel mendez-laing scored. joe edwards levelled scores eight-minutes after interval had go off injured after 64-minutes. replacement, cameron james, became second player of day make professional debut. 5 minutes later, rochdale scored winner calvin andrew end colchester s miserable season in yet defeat.

league cup

colchester hosted championship opposition in first round of league cup, reading coming community stadium first time. match saw sam walker make first appearance of season, replaced elliot parish before hour mark following injury. match went time, reading nicking late goal through chris gunter send u s out of competition in first round fifth successive season.

football league trophy

the football league trophy first round handed colchester trip league 2 northampton town on 1 september. dominic calvert-lewin opened scoring hosts after 9 minutes, macauley bonne scored second of season level scores on 32 minutes. in second half, ryan watson once again gave northampton lead, before bonne struck again score first brace colchester in 82nd minute. 3 minutes later however, northampton in front through marc richards. score remained @ 3–2 until full-time ensure colchester s second exit of season cup competition @ first round stage.

fa cup

colchester pitted away national league south side wealdstone in first round draw of fa cup made on 26 october. 2 sides have twice met in competition, firstly in 1949 when u s defeated 1–0 away, , more in 1983 when won 4–0 @ layer road. colchester s game on 7 november proved fruitful previous encounter, recording 6–2 victory @ freebets.co.uk stadium. macauley bonne opened scoring following goalless first 26 minutes, u s pegged sixth tier opponents 5 minutes later when jefferson louis converted penalty after joe edwards had fouled in area. colchester fell behind on 38 minutes when bradley hudson-odoi scored close range make 2–1 home side, bonne levelled score second on 44 minutes, heading in callum harriott s cross. bonne sealed hat-trick two-minutes after half-time reinstate colchester s lead, before scoring fourth goal on 68 minutes. george moncur scored colchester s fifth goal in 82nd-minute, before marvin sordell rounded off match 90th-minute effort. bonne brought off in final minute of stoppage time, making way debutant midfielder jack curtis experience first brief taste of professional football. bonne s goal haul first time colchester united player had scored hat-trick since jamie cureton against southend united on 6 april 2007, , equalled colchester s record goals in competitive game single player. joined likes of arthur pritchard, arthur turner, vic keeble, neil langman, bobby hunt, martyn king, bobby svarc, roy mcdonough, , chris iwelumo, last of whom scored recent quadruple against hull city @ layer road on 28 november 2006.

in second round draw on 9 november, u s handed home tie against national league side altrincham. caretaker manager wayne brown led side victory in first match in charge callum harriott goal in fourth minute of stoppage time beat national league outfit 3–2. altincham had opened scoring after 3 minutes @ community stadium through jake moult, lobbed 25-yard shot caught goalkeeper jamie jones off line. u s equalised after 14-minutes, when harriott scored third goal in many games assist marvin sordell. score remained level through half-time, colchester fell behind 18-seconds after restart when michael rankine beat george elokobi , placed shot past jones. colchester again had come behind equalise in 53rd-minute tom lapslie scored first goal of season following chipped cross sordell. prospect of replay trip altrincham looming, harriott struck score second of game , see u s through third round second successive season.

the draw third round of fa cup, took place on 7 december saw u s handed home tie against struggling championship opposition in shape of charlton athletic. kevin keen managed side first win under stewardship against second tier opposition on 9 january 2016. george moncur s tenth goal of campaign handed u s 1–0 lead after 28-minutes, before assist-provider marvin sordell doubled colchester s advantage 4 minutes before interval, moncur returning favour. charlton rallied late on grab consolation goal in second minute of added time, colchester held on find in draw fourth round first time in ten years.

a home match against premier league team tottenham hotspur set after club beat leicester city 2-0 @ king power stadium on 20 january 2016. game scheduled played between 29 january , 1 february. on 20 january, tottenham beat leicester 2–0 in replay match @ king power stadium set fourth round tie u s. first time 2 sides meet in competitive fixture. sickening clash of heads between colchester defenders tom eastman , alex wynter in opening 2 minutes of game put home side on foot in game on 30 january. wynter taken hospital after suffering concussion , seizure on pitch , replaced frankie kent after several minutes of treatment on field. after being bandaged up, eastman continued play, withdrawn , replaced matthew briggs after 21-minutes of match. after dominating of play, spurs opened scoring through nacer chadli s fine curling 20-yard effort midway through first-half, , score remained same until 64th-minute when eric dier scored deflected shot. chadli scored second of match after 78-minutes, 2 minutes later, colchester scored consolation goal after gavin massey s driven shot turned own net ben davies. two-minutes passed before tottenham scored fourth goal seal game tom carroll firing ball home.