Simon Weaver saluted Harrogate’s performance after they claimed a 1-0 win at Colchester.
Sam Folarin grabbed Town’s winner in the 68th minute when he capitalised on a mix-up between Colchester goalkeeper Matt Macey and defender Rob Hunt and tapped into the vacant net.
Colchester created the vast majority of the game’s chances, but Harrogate defended well to secure victory.
Weaver said: “It was always going to be a difficult game because they’ve got a lot of experience in their squad and the quality on their bench to be able to change it and refresh it.
“We weathered a couple of storms out there and didn’t buckle under the strain.
“We kept a clean sheet; there was a phenomenal save by Belly (James Belshaw) from the free-kick but other than that, there’s some defenders showing great vitality in our box, anticipating danger.
“We did what we had to do to preserve a clean sheet and then we looked dangerous on the counter.
“We started growing in confidence and putting two or three passes together without that killer pass at the end of it.
“But in the second half, we looked even more dangerous on the counter attack and it was good to protect our lead and everybody worked so hard for the three points.”
Colchester were frustrated by Harrogate goalkeeper Belshaw, particularly in the first half.
Belshaw brilliantly tipped away Teddy Bishop’s curled free-kick and soon after, made a fine save from Samson Tovide’s powerful shot.
John-Kymani Gordon dragged a shot wide before half-time for Colchester, who had a penalty appeal rejected when Tovide appeared to be pulled back by Matty Foulds in the area.
Belshaw made another fine stop to deny Tovide from point-blank range, before Folarin struck.
Colchester boss Danny Cowley said: “It’s a tough one for us to take.
“I’ve managed nearly 900 games and I can’t remember ever being as dominant and not winning, let alone losing.
“We’ve had 30 shots; we try to stay process-orientated and we did a lot right and our performance was good.
“You could argue that we’re probably not clinical enough and I think that would be a fair criticism.
“Maybe we get a little bit emotional off the back of them scoring and they play a little bit, but it was a pretty good performance. I suppose it’s why we love football.
“Harrogate have done that twice to us since I’ve been here.
“We went to Harrogate and had 24 shots and the goalkeeper made some brilliant saves, and he’s more than entitled to do that so credit to him.
“But for us, we’re going to be a good team and we did a lot right.”
Interim boss Stephen Frail expects Motherwell to appoint a new manager next week and admits their first job will be to lift the players’ confidence after a 3-0 mauling at home to Ross County.A double from Ronan Hale and Connor Randall’s last-minute strike secured an impressive victory for the Staggies at Fir Park.Defeat sees the Steelmen drop into the bottom half of the Premiership tab...
Mark Hughes heaped praise on goalkeeper Gabe Breeze after Carlisle picked up a vital point in the League Two relegation battle with a goalless draw against in-form Colchester at Brunton Park.Breeze made two excellent saves from Lyle Taylor as the Cumbrians ended a four-game losing run and the former Man City boss was astounded by the 21-year-old’s performance.He said: “The game had som...
Chesterfield boss Paul Cook launched a scathing attack on his play-off hopefuls after they surrendered an early lead to lose 3-1 at Sky Bet League Two table-toppers Walsall.The Spireites enjoyed a rapid start when Jamie Grimes’ eighth-minute header put them ahead against a wobbling Walsall side, who were winless in five matches with the chasing pack closing in.However, Bim Pepple and Dylan D...
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has allayed fears of an injury scare to top scorer Erling Haaland ahead of next week’s Champions League trip to Real Madrid.Haaland went down clutching his leg in the latter stages of the champions’ 4-0 Premier League thrashing of Newcastle at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday and was immediately substituted.Losing the Norwegian would be a major blow to ...
Rotherham manager Steve Evans described Thomas Parsons’ performance as “atrocious” after the referee awarded a stoppage-time penalty from which Reading snatched a 2-1 victory in League One.Reading had led 1-0 at half-time through top scorer Harvey Knibbs but Sam Nombe levelled for Rotherham from a spot-kick in the 57th minute.With the game heading for a draw, Parsons adjudged Mil...
Michael Flynn believes his team can make a charge towards the League Two play-offs places after watching them come from 2-0 down to beat Barrow 3-2 at home.Matty Taylor scored twice before fellow substitute Ashley Hay hit the winner as the Robins continued their perfect home record in 2025.Cheltenham climbed to 13th in the table and sit eight points off seventh-placed Crewe with two games in hand....
Birmingham manager Chris Davies praised Jay Stansfield’s work ethic after he lit up St Andrew’s with the only goal of a 1-0 win to sink play-off chasing Charlton.Stansfield’s 23rd-minute strike stretched City’s lead to nine points ahead of second-placed Wycombe, with Blues boasting a game in hand.Victory was City’s 30th in all competitions as they extended their unbea...
Andoni Iraola refused to get carried away after Bournemouth fans were left dreaming of a potential Champions League adventure following a first league double over south-coast rivals Southampton.Travelling Cherries fans chanted of playing in European football’s premier competition next season after their side soared to fifth spot in the Premier League table thanks to a deserved 3-1 success at...
Norwich head coach Johannes Hoff Thorup praised his side for fighting back to draw 1-1 at Hull after he demanded “I want to see my football team back”.The Norwich boss had some tough words for his team as they trailed 1-0 at half-time to the relegation-threatened side, including for Kellen Fisher – but the player then delivered the assist for Josh Sargent’s equaliser.The Un...
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers says Jota has a chance of starting against Bayern Munich after scoring and impressing in a 3-0 victory over Dundee United.Jota earned the club’s man-of-the-match award after cutting in from the left and curling home from 18 yards to double the lead given to the hosts by another impressive finish from Callum McGregor.The Portuguese winger has now started two gam...
