Ahead of the game, Dawes acknowledged Rovers supporters’ recent frustrations, stating, “Our fans possess excellent football knowledge, I’ve consistently affirmed that.
“They are results-driven, they’d do anything to win games of football, they love winning games. If we’re all honest with ourselves, the position we’re in at the moment is not where we wanted to be.
“However, we are very confident and we have a big belief that moving forward on Saturday, it’s got to happen.”
 Colchester United 2 | v | 0 Tranmere Rovers  |
| Taylor (11′) Ihionvien (87′) | Goals | |
| Read (11′) | Assists | |
| HT 1-0 |
Tranmere Rovers suffered a 2-0 loss at Colchester United, with goals scored by Joe Taylor and Brad Ihionvien.
The home team began the match strongly, with Dan Pike making a vital block when Samson Tovide found room in the penalty area.
Colchester took the lead in the 11th minute, as Joe Taylor broke through the Rovers’ defence.
Shortly after, Pike forced a save from the home team’s goalkeeper, Owen Goodman, with a cross-shot.
Pike remained a constant threat in his wing-back position, creating difficulties for the hosts on their left flank.
On the half-hour mark, Luke McGee made an excellent one-on-one save to deny Noah Chilvers from chipping the ball over him.
The home team persisted in their offensive efforts as the first half progressed, but McGee played a crucial role in maintaining the scoreline.
During eight minutes of added time, Regan Hendry and Connor Jennings came close to equalizing, but the hosts entered the half-time break with a one-goal lead.
Shortly after the restart, Reece McAlear and Charlie Jolley joined the action, with the former delivering a precise cross from the right that Jennings narrowly headed over.
Sam Taylor and Jolley combined on the counter-attack to create an excellent opportunity for Rovers shortly after the 60-minute mark, but the latter’s shot narrowly missed the target.
McGee delivered a goalkeeping masterclass in the second half, thwarting several one-on-one chances for Colchester.
During the second of two drinks breaks in the Essex sunshine, Connor Wood made his Rovers debut alongside Josh Hawkes, replacing Regan Hendry and Sam Taylor.
The hosts extended their lead to 2-0 in the 87th minute, courtesy of substitute Brad Ihionvien.
There were 11 additional minutes of added time during which Rovers attempted to score, but ultimately, the hosts secured the victory in Essex.
Tap or click to like birkenhead.news on Facebook
Tap or click to follow birkenhead.news on Twitter Post Match Interview
Line-ups
Colchester United – Formation 3-1-4-2
1 Owen Goodman GK
18 Mandela Egbo DF
15 Zach Mitchell DF
5 Connor Hall (C) DF
30 Al-Amin Kazeem MF
42 Jayden Fevrier MF
16 Arthur Read MF
13 Cameron McGeehan MF
10 Noah Chilvers MF
9 Samson Tovide FW
25 Joseph Taylor FW
Substitutes
12 Tom Smith SUB
2 William Greenidge SUB
8 Mauro Bandeira SUB
20 Jade Jay Mingi SUB
31 Donnell Thomas SUB
24 John Akinde SUB
48 Bradley Ihionvien SUB
Manager
Ben Garner
Match Officials
Referee: Declan Bourne
Assistants: Stephen Brown and Christopher Wade
Fourth official: Alan Cresswell