Danny Cowley spoke to the Colchester United media team following his side’s hugely important 3-2 victory at Crawley Town.
Cowley’s men had endured a tough week, going down 2-1 to the now-promoted pair of Wrexham and Stockport County. This left The U’s in the final relegation position, two points behind Sutton United.
The manager spoke of the importance of taking home three points.
“I think a really important win after a challenging week. I was really proud of the group today because we put a huge amount of energy into the Wrexham and Stockport games and probably didn’t get what we deserved.”
The two defeats, both at home, could have harmed the resolve of the players, but the former Lincoln City boss was delighted with how his players responded.
“When you’re in the position we are in, it’s really easy to feel sorry for yourself but we didn’t. We stayed really resilient, really determined. I thought it was a gritty performance against a very good Crawley team.”
“I thought we looked a really organised and really disciplined team today.”
The Colchester management team made four changes to their starting lineup today, including handing a first appearance of the season to goalkeeper Sam Hornby.
The 29-year-old took his place between the sticks in place of on-loan Crystal Palace keeper Owen Goodman. Cowley was delighted with Hornby.
“I thought it was an excellent performance from Sam. We have a lot of trust in him, I think he’s a brilliant professional. He’s really experienced, really reliable.”
Besides a brief loan spell at Solihull Moors, the former Bradford City stopper has played second-fiddle to the impressive Goodman. His manager was full of praise for his number two.
“He’s been a great team member. Being a number two goalkeeper is the hardest position in the squad yet every day he’s attacked it with vigour and energy and enthusiasm.”
“He’s supported Owen through the good times and the bad times brilliantly and always put the team before himself.”
“We just thought it was the right time. The right time for Owen to give him a break. We know he’s going to go on and be a brilliant goalkeeper, but we thought it was time to bring Sam and his experience and reliability to the group.”
Another player to be given plaudits was two-goal hero Tom Hopper, but it wasn’t just his goals his boss was impressed with.
“It’s always lovely to win when your selfless players play such a part in the outcome. Tom is another great team member, he’s such an important player to us.”
“The way we like to play and the way we like to press, our 9s are our first defenders. He puts a huge energy into the game, runs so hard and he should have had a hat-trick today. Unfortunately, his third goal was wrongly disallowed. I thought it was an immaculate performance.”
The 45-year-old was also full of praise for the man who scored the other goal today, Cameron McGeehan.
“Cam is a top player at this level, he’s a really good finisher. He practices so hard. He’s great for the young players at this club because every day he does extras on his finishing.”
Coming up against playoff-chasing Crawley was never going to be an easy task for the men from Essex. The experienced manager knew he needed a side that could handle the opposition.
“We knew today we would have to run hard, we picked a team that could run because we knew we would have to run today.”
Colchester’s task got even harder following the sending-off of Samson Tovide just before the lengthy injury time. Cowley was frustrated with some of the decisions his side received.
“Yeah, it’s really frustrating actually because we are 3-1 up, we should be 4-1 up. We should actually be 4-0 up because their first goal is offside. That was annoying and then we go down to ten men and we have to really dig deep.”
He was delighted with how his players responded, not only to the tough week they’ve had but also to the Crawley goal.
“After the week we’ve had we could have easily gone under but were made of much tighter stuff now. Even when the first goal is conceded, you see our response. We’re not a team that feels sorry for themselves anymore, we play with a lot of fight, a lot of grit and a lot of resilience. I was really proud of the efforts of the players today.”
Despite securing a victory that sees The U’s move out do the drop zone, Cowley will not be enjoying the three points for too long.
“No, I don’t think we can(enjoy it), maybe till 6 o’clock. We have to turn our focus straight away to Tuesday night. we have to make sure that we are really professional, that we are diligent with our recovery because we have another huge game in the history of this football club on Tuesday night.”
He finished by giving special praise to the travelling fans, who he felt got right behind their team.
“I thought they were incredible today. To see that many to come and support us, they just took over the stadium. They all respected the amount of effort the boys have put into the games this week and you could sense in the warm-up they just wanted to get behind the group and drive the energy.”
“Honestly, it was a really proud day for me because when you come to a football club and you see how much the club means to so many people. I find it really inspiring.”
Writer’s View
This was a huge win for Colchester United in their quest for survival. They have to have been favourites to stay up due to having games in hand but three points were proving elusive.
Danny and Nicky Cowley are excellent at getting teams over the line and making big decisions when needed, such as the change of goalkeeper today.
The relegation scrap may still go down to the wire but a win at home to Grimsby Town on Tuesday will put The U’s on the brink of safety.
A primary school teacher turned writer, Tom has been part of The Real EFL for two years. He focuses on predictions, deep dives, and insightful content.
