COLCHESTER United celebrate 12 years at the JobServe Community Stadium today.

The U's made the move to the venue in the summer of 2008, after leaving Layer Road.

They played their first-ever game at the venue on August 4, 2008 when they took on La Liga outfit Athletic Bilbao in a friendly match.

There have been plenty of memorable moments since the stadium opened - here's a look at some of the best.

The cup upset

COLCHESTER United had not enjoyed too many cup triumphs at the Community Stadium, prior to last season.

But their huge victory over Premier League giants Spurs in the Carabao Cup more than made up for any shortage of success in the knockout competitions.

Tottenham Hotspur had travelled to North Essex having reached the Champions League Final, the previous season.

However, they could not get past the U's, who claimed a magnificent penalty shoot-out victory in the third-round tie after the game had finished goal-less after 90 minutes.

The first game

ATHLETIC Bilbao provided the opposition for Colchester United in a pre-season friendly, in their first-ever game at the Community Stadium.

Having waved an emotional farewell to the club's beloved Layer Road ground a few months earlier, U's fans were eager to get their first glimpse of the brand-new 10,000-capacity home.

A crowd of around 6,000 was present when captain Chris Coyne led Colchester out for the first time in the new stadium.

The U’s, managed by Geraint Williams, went behind to Aritz Aduriz’s opener but Scott Vernon scored a penalty to equalise, before half-time.

The Spaniards were reduced to ten men in the second half when Ander Murillo was dismissed for violent conduct but Bilbao claimed victory thanks to David Lopez’s penalty.

A dramatic final day

IT'S unlikely that anyone who was at the Community Stadium for the U's dramatic final-day game against Preston North End on May 3, 2015 will forget the day.

The odds were stacked against the U's, in their bid to preserve their League One status.

Tony Humes’ side knew that to avoid relegation to the fourth tier, they needed to beat a Preston North End side who themselves required a victory to seal promotion to the Championship and had previously not lost in the league for more than three months.

The U’s also needed results elsewhere to go for them and on arguably the most dramatic day in the stadium’s history, it all went in their favour in front of a crowd of more than 8,400.

When Chris Porter missed a second-half penalty for Colchester, it looked as though it might not be their day.

But George Moncur's fine 82nd-minute strike sealed an unlikely win for Tony Humes' side, in front of an ecstatic home crowd.

Emotional scenes

COLCHESTER United went into their home game against Gillingham in August, 2009 still reeling from the departure of their manager Paul Lambert to Norwich City and skipper Dean Hammond, to Southampton.

But with Joe Dunne in caretaker charge against his former club Gillingham, they rose to the occasion to win 2-1 and move to the top of League One.

They had to overcome adversity both on and off the pitch to get the victory, after Jon Nutter had given the Gills the lead after 11 minutes.

But Scott Vernon equalised for the U’s before half-time and Kevin Lisbie netted their winner in the second half, as the club came together both on and off the pitch to get the desired result.

Bees blown away

COLCHESTER United went into their home game with already-promoted Brentford on April 26, 2014 knowing that they needed a win to help preserve their League One status.

It was not going to be an easy task for them against a Bees side who had just gone up to the Championship but Joe Dunne’s side served up one of the best performances of the season, in front of a crowd of 6,400.

Marcus Bean scored against his old club to start the rout and Alex Wynter powered home a fine header, before Freddie Sears scored from the spot to make it 3-0.

Stuart Dallas pulled a goal back for Brentford but Sears thumped into an empty net to wrap up Colchester’s emphatic 4-1 win.