RENE Gilmartin is ready to seize his opportunity after being handed his Colchester United league debut.

The U’s player-coach was handed a rare start by head coach John McGreal against Crawley Town, last weekend.

Gilmartin had not previously played a league game since starting in goal for Plymouth Argyle against Accrington Stanley in January, 2013.

But after playing second fiddle to Dillon Barnes and prior to that Sam Walker, the 31-year-old started for Colchester.

And the former Watford goalkeeper insists he is now eager to play more football, after replacing Barnes between the sticks.

Gilmartin said: “I’ve worked very hard throughout my career ready for any opportunity that comes my way and an opportunity has at this moment in time, so I’m ready to take it.

“It was a great privilege and I was delighted to get my league debut for Colchester.

“I want to play more football and that’s not being selfish, from the other goalkeepers’ point of view.

“I’m trying to do as well as I can with the two sides of my job.

“Whatever the team needs, that’s my job and the other goalkeepers’ job if they’re called upon.

“I’ve bided my time because Sam Walker was doing superbly well last season and now he’s broken into the Reading side.

“And I’ve had good exposure with Dillon Barnes in training and he’s done really well and got into the team.

“He’s put in some really good performances, for a young man getting his first taste of league football.

“I think Dillon’s been superb, even with his reaction to coming out of the team.

“Yes he’ll be annoyed because naturally, he will be but he’s done exceptionally well as a young goalkeeper coming into the team and played his part in some clean sheets and good performances.

“He knows that my purpose of being here is a part of developing him, Ethan Ross and Bailey Vose.

“There’s goalkeepers at this football club that have massive potential and it’s my job that I get that potential out of them, whether it’s me in goal or one of them.”

Gilmartin says he will analyse his performance against Crawley, where he was only beaten by Filipe Morais’s first-half penalty.

“I enjoyed it but I’ll look back on it and reflect,” added

“I’ll speak to the coaches and go through my game and develop it, in the same way I want to develop the goalkeepers who are at the football club.

“The irony is that I’ve played against a goalkeeper in Glenn Morris who’s the exact same.

“He’s a player-coach too at Crawley Town and we had a chat at the end.

“That’s the contract I’ve signed and that’s what I’ve decided to do, to be a player-coach.

“I’m young enough to be able to play football and enjoy my football but I am a coach as well and I’ll focus on both things.

“It was a very good victory – the boys are resolute and we again scored goals at home without conceding many.

“The penalty was questionable but aside from that, it’s a good positive result and performance.”