Colchester United can claim consecutive League Two triumphs for the first time all season when they host Doncaster Rovers on Sunday at Colchester Community Stadium.
The U's are coming off a 2-0 victory over Gillingham earlier this week, putting them 15th in the table, while Rovers' title aspirations took a hit, losing 2-0 versus Walsall, dropping them down to third.
Match preview
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That solid Colchester backline has been impenetrable in recent weeks, with no goals conceded in seven consecutive matches across all competitions.
Since the beginning of November, they have only conceded one league goal but have still collected at least a point in eight successive domestic affairs.
On five separate occasions this season, Colchester have conceded the opening goal and managed to earn a point, netting three times in the 90th minute or later.
However, Danny Cowley's men have dropped five points domestically in 2024-25 when scoring first, the difference between 15th and 10th in the table for now.
They are unbeaten in their previous four home matches in this competition, and on Sunday can win consecutive games at Colchester Community Stadium for the first time since April 2023.
The side from Essex have lost their final league contest in a calendar year on three consecutive occasions, conceding 10 goals over that stretch.
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Doncaster missed a golden opportunity to gain some ground on the league leaders this week, losing for the second time in their last three domestic affairs.
As a result, their margin for error is much thinner, with Grant McCann's men now just a point above Crewe Alexandra and an automatic place in League One next season.
Several times in 2024-25, they have rescued points from losing positions, claiming five in the competition thus far, though only one came away from home (1-1 draw at MK Dons).
All season long, they have recovered nicely after a setback, following up five of their six domestic defeats with a victory while failing to lose consecutive games in 2024-25.
The South Yorkshire side are unbeaten in their final league contest of the year on six successive occasions as the visiting team after losing their prior 14 such games.
Three of their previous six visits to Colchester have ended in a victory for the Dons, who can win consecutive away fixtures against them this weekend for the first time since August 2014.
Team News
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In their previous match, Colchester were without Samson Tovide due to a knock, while Milton Oni remains a long-term absentee because of a ruptured ACL and Anthony Scully is doubtful with an ankle issue.
Lyle Taylor netted their winning goal on Thursday six minutes into the match, while John-Kymani Gordon added some insurance with a strike on 85 minutes.
On Boxing Day, the Doncaster Rovers made one change to their starting 11, with Joe Ironside coming into the team in place of Jordan Gibson.
Ironside was one of four players to get his name on the scoresheet in their previous visit to Colchester Community Stadium last season, with the others being Tom Anderson, Luke Molyneux and former midfielder Harrison Biggins in a 4-1 victory.
Colchester United possible starting lineup:
Macey; H. Anderson, Flanagan, Donnelly, Iandolo; McDonnell, Bishop; Gordon, Payne, Edwards; Taylor
Doncaster Rovers possible starting lineup:
Sharman-Lowe; Emmanuel, Olowu, McGrath, Senior; Bailey, Broadbent, Clifton; Molyneux; Hurst, Sharp
We say: Colchester United 0-1 Doncaster Rovers
Throughout the campaign, Doncaster have proven to be a resilient bunch, recovering quickly from a defeat, and we believe they will put forth another solid bounce-back performance this weekend.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joel Lefevre
