Jon Waldron: My views on the U's (From Gazette)

Jon Waldron: My views on the U's

2:40pm Tuesday 23rd October 2012 in Colchester Utd By Jonathan Waldron

The beaming smiles on show at the Weston Homes Community Stadium on Saturday afternoon served to reflect the new-found feel-good factor currently evident at Colchester United.

The U’s silky football against Carlisle United had their fans purring with delight for the second successive Saturday.

It’s quite a contrast from the atmosphere evident at their opening home games this season, when the more cautious approach adopted under previous manager John Ward often made for a frustrating experience for most Colchester fans.

It’s still early days but the improvement is so far palpable under Ward’s successor, Joe Dunne.

Caution and vigilance has been replaced with freedom and artistry in the U’s side, not to mention more points.

And their fans are seemingly loving every minute of it, after seeing their team record three successive wins on home soil and move slowly but surely up the table. It was wonderful to see so many happy faces around the stadium on Saturday and not just after the final whistle, either.

Indeed, it may have taken a little while but Colchester are giving spectators a fulfilling matchday experience, both on and off the field.

Some of the statistics that emanated from the BBC’s Price of Football Survey did not read particularly well for Colchester, when taken in isolation.

But they did not do justice to the overall package that the U’s offer their supporters - and the fact that they have listened to their fans and are now getting things right in many different areas.

So much so, in fact, that it now seems that there is a Barside-like spirit being generated which is not too dissimilar to that felt in Layer Road’s latter years.

The sight of suspended striker Clinton Morrison mingling with fans outside the ground before the Carlisle game was a case in point.

There can’t be too many other Football League grounds up and down the country where a former Premier League striker and ex-international footballer was giving out tickets for collection, on a Saturday afternoon.

With Dunne getting things right on the field and things constantly improving off it, no wonder life is good at the U’s at the moment.