Colchester United took on AFC Wimbledon in League Two

The U's suffered their seventh defeat in eight matches after they were defeated by Johnnie Jackson's Dons, at Plough Lane.

Colchester had held their own in a frantic first half and went in level at 2-2 at the break, thanks to goals from Cameron McGeehan and Joe Taylor.

But the second half was a different story and the Dons scored three times before Tom Dallison's stoppage-time strike to claim victory and inflict more woe on boss Matty Etherington and his struggling side, who finished the game with ten men after McGeehan was sent off in the closing stages.

Etherington made two changes to his starting line-up, with Matt Jay and Will Greenidge recalled.

Chay Cooper dropped to the bench after starting at MK Dons and Mandela Egbo missed out through injury.

The first half was a hugely entertaining affair and the game started in breathless fashion, with two goals in the first seven minutes and five opportunities in total.

Colchester fell behind in the fourth minute when Josh Davison slotted home from close range after Ali Al Hamadi had escaped down the right and delivered a low cross into the six-yard box.

The U’s wasted a chance to respond within two minutes when Jay ballooned the ball over from a good position in the area, after being picked out by Arthur Read.

And at the other end, Al Hamadi escaped the attentions of the Colchester defence in the area but shot over the bar.

However, Colchester were level in the seventh minute through McGeehan, who converted from close range after Jay had slotted the ball into his path at the far post.

The chances kept coming for both sides and Wimbledon almost regained their lead in the 12th minute when Armani Little blasted over the bar after the ball had fallen fortuitously into his path, following Al Hamadi's deflected shot.

And soon after, Colchester almost went ahead through Noah Chilvers, who fired a shot just wide after Jayden Fevrier had done brilliantly in the area to pick him out.

Colchester goalkeeper Owen Goodman did brilliantly to deny Al Hamadi who was through on goal midway through the first half but the visitors took the lead in the 25th minute when Taylor finished clinically past goalkeeper Alex Bass for his 12th goal of the season, after being released by Jay.

The contest continued to ebb and flow and Goodman made another fine save to deny Omar Bugiel’s close-range header, after Al Hamadi had crossed into the box.

And the U’s keeper did well again to get down low and save Little’s shot, as the Dons pressed for an equaliser.

It came in the 42nd minute when Joe Lewis cleverly directed a header into the net from Jake Reeves’ corner to cancel out Colchester’s lead, before half-time.

Wimbledon started the second half well and Connor Lemonheigh-Evans blasted a great chance over from close range just after the restart, while Al Hamadi should have scored when he missed from six yards, soon after.

And Colchester fell behind again in the 52nd minute when Davison controlled Lewis's long pass before drilling a fine shot past Goodman from a tight angle.

It was a fine finish but the U's will be disappointed how easy it was for the goal to be scored, as they seemed to switch off.

Zach Mitchell saved off the line from Davison after Goodman had failed to hold a ball into the box while at the other end, Colchester broke away on the counter attack but Taylor blasted the ball wastefully over the bar when he had options to pass.

But it was 4-2 in the 67th minute when Al Hamadi's shot flew past Goodman and in after he had been released by Little's pass in space. 

Colchester came close to pulling a goal back with eight minutes remaining when Read's 25-yard free-kick whistled past the post but the U's finished the game with only ten men after McGeehan was sent off for a second bookable offence, after taking his protests too far towards the referee.

Lewis tapped in a fifth for Wimbledon in the second minute of stoppage time after substitute Harry Pell's free-kick had only been pushed into his path.

And although substitute Dallison pulled a goal back two minutes later when he tapped home from Read's corner which Bass had failed to hold, it was a bad night for Colchester.

MATCH FACTS: COLCHESTER UNITED: Goodman, Greenidge (sub Kazeem, 59), Hall, Mitchell, Iandolo (sub Dallison, 59), Read, McGeehan, Chilvers, Jay (sub Akinde, 59), Fevrier, Taylor.

Substitutes (not used): Cooper, Hopper, Ihionvien, Hornby.

AFC Wimbledon: Bass, Biler, Reeves, Johnson, Lemonheigh-Evans, Currie, Lewis, Little, Bugiel (sub Pell, 83), Al-Hamadi, Davison (sub Neufville, 83).

Subs (not used): Brown, Pell, Tilley, Pearce, Bell, Tzanev.

Goals: Colchester: McGeehan (7), Taylor (25), Dallison (90). AFC Wimbledon: Davison (4, 52), Lewis (42, 90), Al Hamadi (67).

Bookings: Colchester: Chilvers (foul, 39), McGeehan (unsporting behaviour, 67, 89). AFC Wimbledon: Davison (unsporting behaviour, 67), Biler (foul, 80), Bugiel (foul, 81).

Red card: McGeehan (two bookable offences, 89).

Referee: Ben Atkinson.

Attendance: 8,062 (490 U's fans).