Boss desperate to win crunch clash

STILL SMILING . . . David Dunn remains upbeat as he looks forward with hope to a New Year revival for Athletic.

IT WON’T have caught the eye in the fixtures list pre-season, but for David Dunn, Colchester at home on the second day of 2016 represents the biggest 90 minutes of his managerial career.

Dunn has yet to experience a home victory in the league and there’s no time like the present — particularly with the Essex side on a run of nine defeats.

Dunn will be forced to make changes as his side tries to start a climb out of the relegation pit, a plight that has brought five defeats in the last six winless outings.

“It’s probably our biggest fixture of the season so far,” the manager said.

“It is a really big game — and we need three points. We might have to shuffle the pack a bit but within our squad we are equipped to deal with that.

“I watched Colchester a couple of times and they have some dangerous players, including Marvin Sordell, and they will be a threat. But like I keep saying, if we can eliminate those sloppy goals we have been conceding we can be a threat for anyone.”

Despite adverse results, Athletic have failed to score themselves only twice in the last eight outings and for the manager, keeping clear of errors at the back for as long as possible is vital.