COLCHESTER United boss Phil Parkinson was full of praise for his side's rousing performance against promotion rivals Brentford, even though their domination was not translated into a win.

By Carl Marston

COLCHESTER United boss Phil Parkinson was full of praise for his side's rousing performance against promotion rivals Brentford, even though their domination was not translated into a win.

The U's would have moved level on points with second-placed Brentford if they had managed to cap an energetic display with a winning goal in a one-sided second half.

But there was still much to encourage Parkinson, and the U's supporters, after what was one of the best performances of an already-successful campaign.

“It was an outstanding performance, and we are disappointed not to have got the win,” explained Parkinson. “We played at a very high tempo, and I'm pleased with the reaction of the players to going a goal down so early in the match. They did what we set out to do. We played some excellent stuff.

“Our wide players saw a lot of the ball, and we continued to press throughout. We created loads of chances, but the hardest thing in football is putting the ball in the back of the net.

“You usually find that the teams up there at the end of the season have the leading goalscorers. We had three or four efforts cleared off the goalline, and it's a game that we should have won.

“But it's still a good point. I thought that at times we were unstoppable. It was a first-class performance, and we're now unbeaten in four games.

“Our supporters were fantastic. It's nice for them to be cheering us on, in terms of trying to get promotion, rather than just trying to stave off relegation.

“There were a lot of positives to come from this game. The lads proved that they are hungry for it,” added Parkinson.

Brentford boss Martin Allen was just relieved to escape from Layer Road with a point, enabling the Londoners to retain their place in the top two.

The Bees had ridden their luck to beat MK Dons 1-0 in midweek, benefiting from a missed penalty, and they were hanging on grimly for most of the afternoon in north Essex.

Allen confessed: “That was tough, especially in the second half. I thought it was a great game, but we had to weather the storm.

“There were signs of us looking tired. It's been a very tough week, and we have been lucky to get four points from the two games. Losing the previous three games had also been mentally draining.

“Colchester are a big team. They bombarded us with a lot of long throws and long balls. They are a very direct team to play against, and we were certainly not at our best. They have some class players.

“But we battled hard, and it's a good point. I'm very proud of my players, especially some of their defending, which was fantastic,” added Allen.