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Match Reports

U's Maintain Unbeaten Away Record

Thriller at Boundary Park ends 3-3

22 September 2018

Colchester United have drawn 3-3 at Oldham Athletic to maintain their unbeaten away record.

Luke Norris scored the only goal in the first half, before Harry Pell doubled the U's lead five minutes after the break.

Sam Surridge got one back on the hour, but Norris got a third for the U's to make it 3-1.

Surridge flicked home and then Peter Clarke scored from another header to level things up two minutes from time.

The U’s kicked the game off, and had an effort at goal within a minute of the start.

Luke Norris made a strong run centrally, found Brennan Dickenson on the left, and his shot took a slight deflection on its way into the grasp of the home keeper.

The home side then had the better of things and there was a big shout for a red card when Dillon Barnes left his area and upended Laing.

The card was yellow though, and the resultant free-kick from the angle of the area came to nothing.

That came on nine minutes, but five minutes later it was the U’s who opened the scoring.

Laing hit a terrible pass back to Edmonson and conceded an extremely cheap corner.

It proved to be expensive for the hosts, as Luke Prosser flicked on Dickenson’s near post corner and Norris at the stretch volleyed home at the far post.

On eighteen minutes, Barnes made a great save from O’Grady as he needed a strong hand to keep out an angled shot from the Oldham forward.

He then tipped a Sam Surridge shot wide and then watched an O’Grady effort go wide – that was probably the hosts’ best chance of the half.

The score remained 1-0 to the U’s when the referee blew for half time after two minutes of injury time.

If the U’s were in a good position at the break, it got even better five minutes into the second period, when Harry Pell doubled the advantage.

Frankie Kent challenged as a corner came in from the left, the ball fell to Pell just inside the box and his half volley flew unerringly into the top corner giving Iverson no chance.

The hosts didn’t seem too concerned with being two down, and continued to try and move the ball well across the pitch.

After a spell of pressure, they got a goal back when Surridge tapped in at the far post from a Taylor cross.

A great block from Luke Prosser and then a volleyed clearance from Frank Nouble preserved the lead as Oldham looked for an equaliser.

And that resilience was rewarded on sixty seven minutes when the two goal lead was regained.

A bit of head tennis between the teams ended with Pell’s header over the home defence, allowing Norris to beat Edmonson and then hold off a second defender.

Once he was goal side of that second defender, he kept a cool head and slotted his left foot shot past Iverson to make it 3-1.

At no time did Oldham look out of it though, but even their most optimistic of fans wouldn’t have thought they would get back in the game once the clock was ticking over to eighty four minutes.

A Baxter free kick was flicked in by Surridge to give the home side hope, and then four minutes later, they got the equaliser they were chasing.

A corner was put into the U’s box and Oldham captain Peter Clarke rose highest and powered his header past Barnes.

Nouble almost got a sight of goal in the six minutes of injury time, but the whistle went on a terrific game, and the U’s maintained their unbeaten away record.


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