Colchester United vs Altrincham - Tough decisions to make for Colchester caretaker Wayne Brown

Posted Friday, December 04, 2015 by PA

New caretaker boss Wayne Brown has a tough choice to make to turn the fortunes round of flagging Colchester ahead of their FA Cup second-round tie with struggling Vanarama National League side Altrincham.

Midfielder Owen Garvan will be hoping to get back into the squad after overcoming a hip injury and full-back Richard Brindley could be in contention after he returned to training following a knee injury.

Brown will be hoping for a win after five straight defeats but the U's convincingly beat Wealdstone 6-2 in the first round of the FA Cup and chairman Robbie Cowling believes it could be the perfect test.

"I have got to get the right blend for the (managerial) team, and I don't feel that we've got that quite right at the moment," he told East Anglian Daily Times.

Altrincham will be without defender Gianluca Havern and midfielder Josh O'Keefe for Sunday's trip as both players start suspensions.

After the pair were sent off in last weekend's 2-0 loss at Forest Green Rovers, Havern begins a one-game ban, while O'Keefe is unavailable for the next three matches.

Captain and midfielder Shaun Densmore could make his return to the matchday squad after a spell sidelined by a medial ligament injury.

Defender Tom Marshall (ankle) is out until the new year with a broken ankle while goalkeeper Stuart Coburn (Achilles) is expected to miss the rest of the season.