Wayne Brown warns Colchester they are not safe yet despite win at Harrogate

Posted Sunday, April 03, 2022 by PA

Interim boss Wayne Brown insisted Colchester are not safe from relegation despite moving nine points clear of the League Two drop zone following a 2-1 win at Harrogate.

Brown was unimpressed with long periods of the U’s performance and, in particular, a start that saw them fall behind to a fourth-minute goal by Jack Muldoon.

First-half replies from Freddie Sears and Noah Chilvers went on to condemn Harrogate to a sixth home game without a win.

But Brown said: “Our mentality and the remit will not change. We still need points on the board and we’re not safe.

“We were not at our best for large spells of the game but managed to find a way to win thanks to two or three bits of quality and we scored from two of those moments.

“Then, we managed the game reasonably well in a shape where we were hard to break down.

“But the start we made was frustrating, because we gave the players all the detail and clips on Harrogate and knew they would start with a high intensity.

“It was unbelievable that we were 2-1 up at half-time because we had not performed.

“We did a bit better in the second half with our quality on the ball and could have scored a third goal. We also restricted them to very few opportunities.”

One of the moments of quality Brown referred to was Sears’ equaliser.

Brown added: “Freddie has worked extremely hard on his own at times and has been on a bit of a drought so, to show the composure that he did in front of goal, was exceptional.”

Home boss Simon Weaver pulled few punches in his assessment of his team’s shortcomings, conceding: “It was not good enough.

“We should have been more than a goal to the good up before they scored but, then, it was somebody else’s turn to switch off at the back this week and they’re level. Then, somebody doesn’t track their midfielder and he makes it 2-1.

“We are not ruthless enough at one end of the pitch and not secure enough at the other. That’s a recurring theme. It was just one little bit of movement for their equaliser and he’s got in behind both of our centre backs.

“That’s the naivety we have in the group. We are becoming known for giving people opportunities here and that has to change because I am sick and tired of conceding goals like the ones in this game.

“There will be changes made in the summer and people are playing for their livelihoods between now and then.”