THE midweek trip to Bristol Rovers was in all honesty much better that I feared it would be.

In a game against a team in a purple patch and with our patchy at best away form, it had all the makings of a day to forget.

But although we lost and failed to bring any points back to Essex, that did not tell the full story.

I felt that we played well, with chances cleared off the line by the hosts' defence.

On another day with a bit of luck on our side, we would have come home with a hard-fought and deserved point.

But as we all know in football, it's not how you play but the points that you pick up.

With teams around us failing to capitalise on our lack of fixture at the weekend, it hasn't been a bad week and the pressure of relegation has lifted ever so slightly.

That said, there is still games to be won but at least we are slowly getting control of our own destiny and not reliant on totally on other results.

I know in this league that can change in a heartbeat but it's better to be the masters of our own fate come what may.

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Moving forward, we have the very rare spectacle of the Sky Sports cameras coming to town tonight when we play the League Two leaders Forest Green.

I'm under no illusions that at the time of scheduling, Forest Green could well have gained promotion with a win here but as results have gone since then, this is not the case.

However with the events in Ukraine capturing everyone’s attention, it was a masterstroke by Robbie Cowling to bill this as ‘A Game For Ukraine’.

This is not a publicity stunt or for any financial game for the club, rather an opportunity our chairman has taken to use the game as a way to highlight the plight and put his money where his mouth is.

Instead of just saying the right things and changing social media profile pictures on the club's channels, he has done something that will actually help those who need it.

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No matter what you think of the man and how he runs the club, personally I hope this can all be put aside and everyone supports the idea.

What could be better? Monday night football under the lights, a packed stadium and a U’s win live on TV.

Ok that may be wishful thinking about the win but why not dream? We play better against better teams, plus Forest Green's form is a bit hit and miss, so why can’t we beat them?

Whatever happens, it has the makings of a good night, all for a cause and I’m sure it will have hit home with many of you.

Hopefully see you all there to make it a great atmosphere and all being well, more points in our battle for League survival. Up the U’s.