U’s come off ropes to deliver knockout

JOHN McGreal hailed Colchester’s bouncebackability after they came from behind to beat high-flying Newport.

Tristan Abrahams had given the Exiles a fifth-minute lead, the U’s roared back with goals from

Ryan Jackson, a Ben Stevenson curler, and Courtney Senior.

McGreal said: “I thought that we showed a lot of endeavour and character, after going behind after a few minutes – after what happened last week (against Morecambe) we could have easily folded.

“We didn’t, though – we got a goal back and we kept going, getting into the final third and getting our shots away, so credit to the boys.

“We’ve got to get back to what we’re trying to do.

“We let ourselves and the fans down (against Morecambe) and we had to bounce back.”

Newport were ahead in the fifth minute when Abrahams ran on to Padraig Amond’s fine low pass and slotted the ball past the on-rushing Dean Gerken.

But Colchester responded well, with Luke Norris’s header cleared off the line and Courtney Senior curling just over.

The hosts equalised in the 33rd minute when Jackson’s deflected shot from the right side of the area sailed past keeper Tom King.

King brilliantly denied Senior, before Colchester took a 43rd-minute lead, as Stevenson curled a superb shot past King from Cohen Bramall’s short pass.

Bramall’s excellent 25-yard strike flew just over before Colchester went further ahead with 15 minutes remaining.

After some patient build-up play, Bramall found

Senior, who advanced towards goal before slamming in a shot that beat King at his near post.

King brilliantly pushed over Norris’s freekick late on.

Newport manager Michael Flynn said: “It’s tough to take because we didn’t deserve anything. “Colchester deserved to win and there’s not much more that you can say about it.

“We gave it a go – everything started well for us but they deserved to win.

“It’s a tough place for us to come but it is what it is.

“We were too deep and we gave them too much space. In the first half, they had so many free shots on the edge of our area which is very unlike us so that shows how deep we were.”