COLCHESTER United's caretaker manager, Joe Dunne, praised his players for a gutsy display in last night's exhilarating 2-1 win over Gillingham.But he also admitted that he is unlikely to be a candidate to succeed Paul Lambert as the new permanent manager.

Carl Marston

COLCHESTER United's caretaker manager, Joe Dunne, praised his players for a gutsy display in last night's exhilarating 2-1 win over Gillingham.

But he also admitted that he is unlikely to be a candidate to succeed Paul Lambert as the new permanent manager.

"It's been such a manic day for me, but it was a good night. Any night is a good one when you are top of the league!" insisted Dunne.

"The fans were brilliant and the players were excellent, especially as some of the lads did not even know that the manager had gone until late in the day, and some didn't even know until they arrived at the ground!

"A lot has been said all over the place, and so much has been going on, so in a way I'm just glad that this game is now out of the way.

"I haven't heard so much noise from a Colchester crowd for a long time, back to the Layer Road days, and for me this has been one of the biggest football moments of my career.

"Some people might say that I haven't done very much in my career then, but it was a great privilege to stand out there in front of the fans, who I respect.

"However, I don't consider myself a candidate for the job. There are so many quality people out there, who are candidates to be the next Colchester manager, and 18 months seems to be the life-span for a manager these days," added Dunne.