Colchester United 1-1 Crewe Alex 25-26 Review - Ok

I don't like Colchester's ground. I don't like the journey there, even if I didn't make it in person yesterday. I don't like the wide open sterile ground that kills atmosphere, with their noisy fans located at the other end of the stadium to away supporters. Whilst the Alex have had some fun trips there, for the most part their games there have been a struggle.

As it was in this one. Here is my review of their draw at Colchester after watching it back today:

Away Performance

We'd all love it if the Alex could perform how they did at Salford and Fleetwood in every away game. But that's just not realistic. They aren't going to blow teams away and score 3s and 4s every week. Games like Gillingham and this one, where they dig in and grind out results, are going to be more common. The fact is, in their first 4 away games, they've gone to sides predicted to finish 8th, 9th, 10th and 5th and got 7 points, with their only defeat being in a game where they deserved at least a draw.

I didn't watch this game live, but watching it on replay, I was actually ok with how they performed, for the first 65 minutes anway. There are concerns however.

Flipped

It was concerning how quickly the game went from in the Alex's control to out of it. Up until the 65th minute, they were solid. Colchester had had little on goal to trouble Booth. The Alex were looking comfortable and even sporadically threatening a 2nd. But in the blink of an eye, the ball was up their end and in the net.

The goal was woeful from multiple players. Hutchinson was beaten too easily to give away the free kick. Booth let what seemed to be a catchable ball sail over his head. And the defenders at the back post were pushed aside like they weren't even there. From then on, there was only one side who looked likely to win it. Which is worrying.

Discipline

I'm worried about the discipline of this group once again. Given both the manager and chairman talked about making sure they improved in this area, the players have fallen short of that so far. Through 7 games, they rank 2nd in fouls per game, joint 2nd in yellow cards and joint 3rd in penalties conceded.

Reece Hutchinson picked up his 4th yellow today and he now has a 12 game tightrope to walk to avoid a 5th and a 1 game ban. James Connolly and Tommi O'Reilly got their 3rd cards as well. We've seen them talk the talk about getting better in this area, but they are falling short of that expectation and it's going to cost them in the long run.

Off the Pace

The Alex's problems are, in part, that they have been too reliant on a core of 11 players to carry them through the first month with no need for the depth to contribute. Well, now that depth is needed and unfortunately, a lot of them are off the pace. Powell looks done as an EFL footballer. Golding, Rankine, Mingi and Holicek lack match fitness, which is to be expected. I don't think Tezgel leading the line by himself will work and the league contributions from the likes of Finney and Moult have been negligible at best.

They are going to need more from these players in the coming weeks. With no midweek games now until October at the earliest and their next 2 trips sitting in the mid range of their travel distances, they have a chance to take stock, rest up and try to get some work into these players, both tactically and physically.

Positives

This game does have positives to it, unlike against Swindon. The return of Matus Holicek and the debuts of Jay Mingi and Dion Rankine were good to see. Josh March grabbing his 2nd goal of the season. And of course, a point taken from their 4th longest trip of the season, in a ground where they often struggle, against a side that have lost 7 of 36 at home heading into the game.

This point snaps the losing run and gives them a solid platform to build on ahead of a pivotal game against Barnet next Saturday.

Ref Assessment

It was indeed Mr Rollason for the 2nd Alex game in a row. And whilst I thought he was maybe a touch harsh to give cards to Golding and O'Reilly, I do get why he gave them. He was fine once again.

Management Assessment

I get the changes both to the starting XI and off the bench, but for me they can learn some lessons from this. Like James Golding isn't a midfielder. Like Jack Powell's usefulness is less than they think it is. They need to get more from this group than we've seen in the last few games.

Player Assessments

Tom Booth

It was a strange game where he was generally decent, but his actions for the goal conceded were baffling. Letting what seemed to be a very catchable ball go over his head under no pressure was strange. I think he can do better there, but other than that, he was good.

Lewis Billington MOTM

Maybe an odd choice, but in a field of ok performances, I thought he was decent in what he was asked to do. Yes, the lack of attacking threat remains his big weakness, but defensively he was solid and contained the lively Edwards all game.

James Connolly

He was fine for the most part, but the free kick in the first half and his tactical booking in the 2nd were problems. If they were to drop him to get a look at Golding at CB next week, I wouldn't complain.

Mickey Demetriou

A decent performance, but his role in the equaliser shouldn't be forgotten. He has to be stronger there.

Reece Hutchinson

The assist for March's goal is nice, I fully appreciate that. But his 4th booking in just 7 games is just not acceptable.

James Golding

I thought he was better than some will say. Yes, he picked up a yellow and then walked the tightrope, but he was ok in winning the ball back on occasions. I'm not sure I'd make him a starter in midfield again though, he's too big and lacks the mobility to play there.

Max Sanders

Solid, but unspectacular. I had no issues with his performance.

Owen Lunt

It's a shame he went off when he did, as he was growing into the game and starting to influence things after a quiet 1st half. He seemed to be hobbling as he came off, so hopefully that's not an injury issue.

Tommi O'Reilly

Lively once again, but as has happened on a few occasions, not much came off for him. I do like what he brings, but getting him the ball more often has to be a priority, as currently he looks like their most creative player.

Emre Tezgel

Did what he could, but had no service and, on too many occasions, no support around him. I think playing him and March in a 2 upfront could work, but him as the lone striker isn't a long term solution for me.

Josh March

Also fed on scraps, but took his one chance really well for his 2nd of the season. Worked hard as usual, but he needs help from the other attackers.

Subs:

Dion Rankine

Lively down the left, but couldn't get much going. There will be games where he's very effective hopefully and I'm intruiged to see how he gets on in the coming weeks.

Jack Powell

Slow on and off the ball, he almost cost them a goal when he misjudged a loose ball and let the Colchester man in. I thought after Fleetwood he had gas left in the tank. I now don't think that. He looks done.

Matus Holicek

Nice to see him back and getting 40 minutes of game time. They need help from the depth and his return gives them that.

Louis Moult

I'm not sure where he was playing, but whilst his impact was non-existent, I don't blame him when he's getting 5 minutes a game.

Jay Mingi

A late sub, he came on too late to affect anything.

Overall Verdict

It's a point gained, but the concerns are growing. They now face a fairly decisive pair of games against 2 teams who've had poor starts and you'd like to be targeting 4-6 points against. Fail to win either and I think for the first time this season, we can say pressure will be mounting on Bell. Let's hope that isn't the case.