Colchester United

The midfielder fires in the first shot of the new season. His 20-yarder is straight into the arms of Doyle, however.3 minutes:

5 minutes: Moncur’s new neon pink boots the boots receive a bit of a scuff as Brad Potts treads on his right foot.

7 minutes: The 21-year old almost threads a ball through to skipper Porter, but the big man can’t quite get on the end of it.

19 minutes: Blackpool keeper Colin Doyle spills a free kick and it falls to the ex-West Ham man but he can’t work enough space to pull the trigger himself, electing instead to lay it out wide to Massey whose shot is deflected harmlessly back to the still-prone Doyle.

Moncur and Ambrose have been at the heart of the majority of Colchester attacks in the early going. The final ball is still lacking at times, but almost all traffic is coming from one or both of them.

34 minutes: Moncur is penalised for a trip after he concedes possession following a cheap Colchester corner.

Of note: Moncur is always on the edge of both boxes either tidying up at the back or sniffing around for a 20-yarder. Just needs someone to look up and find him.

40 minutes: There he is again on the edge of the box - fakes the drive with his left foot, checks back into the space he’s just created for himself, but can’t get his effort past the first defender.

50 minutes: The ball is zipped into the box from a corner and flicks off Moncur’s head but Blackpool clear.

52 minutes: United recycle the ball well a couple times on the edge of the box with Moncur the central pivot. He then sets Brindley for a shot but it is blocked.

54 minutes: Once again Moncur is the central figure in a Col U attack. He bursts past his man but nothing comes of it after a 1-2 with Gilbey.

61 minutes: George sets goalscorer Ambrose up for a drilled effort on the edge of the box but it’s saved.

67 minutes: The new number 10 scuffs his shot after a quick U’s break.

91 minutes: Moncur is nearly the hero as he nicks possession in the Blackpool half and wriggles his way through the defence. He gets a shot away, however it is blocked and he is forced to turn back and set up Gavin Massey for a drive of his own.

93 minutes: And again! This time the midfielder uses his strength to hold off his man before hitting a left-footed shot which sails just wide of the post.

The experience of last season’s great escape will have helped not only George but the rest of the squad to grow and develop as footballers - this was evident this afternoon as he continually demanded the ball off his teammates.

Ultimately if he continues in a similar vein then there’s every chance he could have himself quite a year.

There was a lull in the game and his influence in the final 20 or so minutes, but he kept plugging away and getting himself into the right areas and was almost rewarded as the game moved into injury time with a couple of close chances.

Moncur was at the heart of the majority of the attacking play from the U’s, but bizarrely wasn’t involved in either of the two goals.