Colchester United can rise to occasion against Wrexham

The visit of promotion-chasing Wrexham and Stockport County to the JobServe Community Stadium in the space of a few days certainly represents a challenge for Danny Cowley and his side.

But the task that awaits the U’s can actually work in their favour.

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And with the club with the Hollywood owners in town this weekend, the U’s still have the opportunity to write their own script in front of a big audience and ensure this season has a glorious and happy ending.

A sell-out crowd will flock to the stadium on Saturday when Phil Parkinson’s Wrexham are the visitors.

It promises to be quite an atmosphere against the so-called Hollywood club and one that Colchester can use to their advantage.

It will be a chance for the U’s to rise to the occasion and thrive in front of a bigger crowd.

It has been done before, at the stadium.

Colchester’s memorable win over Spurs in the EFL Cup in 2019 was played out in front of a capacity crowd, with the home players rising to the challenge in style.

And who could forget the final day of the 2014-15 season when against all the odds, a George Moncur strike helped the U’s beat promotion-chasing Preston North End 1-0 to stay in League One.

Of course, there have been occasions since Colchester moved to the Community Stadium in 2008 where the opposite has been true in front of a sold-out stadium; the 5-0 defeat to Paul Lambert’s Norwich City turned out to be a damp squib, on a rain-sodden pitch.

But that is in the past; the U’s must seize the opportunity and rise to the occasion as quite simply, their Football League existence is on the line.

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It hasn't quite got to that stage of that Preston scenario yet but with only seven games remaining, it’s now or never for Colchester.

Despite now finding themselves in the League Two relegation zone, the U’s can certainly take heart from their recent performances.

They are unbeaten in four matches, including a creditable away draw at promotion-chasing Mansfield Town and are yet to lose at the Community Stadium under the Cowleys.

Colchester are looking particularly hard to beat, having lost only two of their last 13 games.

Even in this most disappointing of seasons, the U’s still have the chance to cast themselves as heroes by producing a blockbuster ending and securing their Football League status.