JOE Dunne is a 'fantastic addition' to Colchester United's coaching staff.

That is the view of U's interim first-team coach Wayne Brown, who believes the club's popular former player and manager will provide invaluable experience in the final weeks of the League Two campaign.

Dunne, who spent nearly two years in charge as Colchester boss between 2012 and 2014, has returned to the JobServe Community Stadium to work alongside Brown and assistant manager Hayden Mullins.

The 47-year-old played more than 160 league games as a right-back for the U’s, before progressing through the coaching ranks at the club.

And Dunne's former team-mate and coaching colleague Brown says bringing the Irishman back is a big boost.

Brown said: “Everybody knows Joe and what this club means to him.

“It’s one of those at the moment where he finds himself out of work and I feel that his knowledge of players and teams in this division is going to be priceless to us.

“It’s another experienced pair of eyes that we need to get us over the line.

“I think he’ll be a fantastic addition, for the last nine games."

Dunne represented Colchester as a player, manager, caretaker manager, assistant manager and under-18 coach.

Earlier this season, he had a brief spell as Stevenage's assistant manager working alongside Alex Revell.

He had previously been manager and assistant manager at Cambridge United and also worked as Mansfield Town's number two alongside boss Graham Coughlan, with the pair having earlier teamed up at Bristol Rovers.

Meanwhile, Brown is confident they will start chalking up vital wins – providing they keep their performance levels high.

The U’s play host to Bradford City at the JobServe Community Stadium on Saturday, on the back of an encouraging display in their 2-2 draw with high-flying Tranmere Rovers.

Colchester lie seven points above the League Two relegation zone, with nine games remaining.

Brown said: “All you can do is put on good performances.

“If you do that, with men out there taking on roles and responsibilities and the information you’ve put into them, we can build on that because the results will come.

“If you keep playing well and you keep doing the right things in the right areas of the pitch, results will come.

“It’s a really positive pleasing performance but we have to do it again and we have to build on this.

“We’re going to keep positive and we’re going to keep building on performances, because if you keep performances at a level, the results will come – fact.

“We’ll continue to do what we’re doing, continue to work hard in training and the results will come.”