Colchester United visit Forest Green Rovers in League Two

The U's travel to Gloucestershire looking to get back to winning ways against a Rovers side who lie bottom of the League Two table and have lost their last six games, in the division.

Colchester are aiming for a win to move up the table but U's head coach Garner feels Rovers are in a false position and is ready for a tough test.

READ MORE: Ben Garner confident of better times ahead for Colchester

Garner said: “They’ve had some performances this season that are actually really good where they should have won or drawn games, a little bit similar to us.

“I’m not looking at it and going ‘this is a team that’s in a bad place’ – they’re not.

“They’ve got good players and they’ve got a nice structure to how they play.

“They’re just in a little bit of a rut themselves but there’ll be no underestimating, on our part.

“If you look at some of the quality that’s in their squad and some of the players who have played above this level and what they’ve done in their careers, we have to go there very humble and full of respect for them.

“Our focus has to be on making sure that we perform, we’re intense and get our principles right.

“If we do that, then we’ve got a fantastic chance of winning the game but we know that Forest Green are going to be a really tough test for us.

“We had a good run of games; against Tranmere and Mansfield at home we were excellent, bar the first eight minutes of Crewe, we were outstanding and then the Notts County game.

READ MORE: Tom Smith aiming to profit from opportunities on and off the pitch

“There were four games in a row where we felt there was consistency and we were turning up and playing really well; unfortunately, we dropped off that and it’s now about getting back to those levels again and doing it over a consistent run of games."

Tom Smith is in line to make his first appearance of the season for Colchester this afternoon.

He is set to play in place of Owen Goodman, who is currently away on international duty with England U20s.

Sam Hornby is set to be called into the Colchester squad and Garner says both goalkeepers are eager to get game time.

He said: “It provides an opportunity for Tom Smith to come in and play and Sam Hornby also, to come into the squad.

“It’s great for them because they’ve worked really hard all season and they’re both chomping at the bit for their opportunities to play.

READ MORE: Owen Goodman starts for England under-20s against Romania

“Having three good goalkeepers is huge for us and it also makes a difference in terms of the quality of the training sessions.

“The fact that Owen has gone away with England and we’ve still got three good goalkeepers to call upon means that that department is really strong.

“It’s nice recognition for Owen for what he’s done this season and nice for him and his family and his parent club as well as us, to see him go away with them."

Colchester will be without midfielder Arthur Read for today's game, due to suspension.

But defender Tom Dallison is set to be named in the U's matchday 18, after nearly two months out due to injury.