Jacob Murphy believes his loan spell at Colchester United made him a better player.

The exciting young winger tomorrow returns to the Weston Homes Community Stadium for the first time since helping the U’s stay up, on the final day of last season.

Murphy, who played their part in helping Colchester avoid relegation from League One, returns to Essex with Coventry City where is currently on loan from Norwich City.

The 20-year-old said his time at the U’s under boss Tony Humes helped him progress as a footballer.

Murphy told the Daily Gazette: “I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Colchester.

“I met some great people and it was a fantastic learning experience for me.

“It was a tough time in that we were near the bottom and fighting against relegation.

“But it was character-building for me as well as a lot of the other younger players in the team.

“I still think about my time there and having been in the relegation zone for as long as we were and then to get out of it was fantastic.

“I feel that I improved as a player as it went on and playing so much and getting so many minutes on the pitch was very beneficial for me.

“It’s given me more knowledge of the game and I know what I can and can’t do.

“I got some great experience while I was there and I thank Colchester for the opportunity that they gave me.

“It’s a very well run club and they have great facilities.

“The management there were very welcoming to me and Tony Humes is a good guy.

“I got on really well with him and he looked to me to give something to the team.”

Murphy could have been lining up against Coventry rather than for them this weekend, had Colchester had their way.

The U’s were keen to bring the attacker back for a second loan spell but he instead moved to the Ricoh Arena.

Humes said: “We discussed Jacob, at the same time when we brought Callum Harriott in.

“We were looking for someone to fill that position and it was an area we needed to go into the loan market for.

“Jacob did well last season and he’s someone we were definitely considering but Norwich had already sorted for him to go to Coventry.”

For a three-page preview of the U's game with Coventry City, see Friday's Daily Gazette.