HEADING into Christmas Day just a point outside the play-offs with a game in hand is not something to be sniffed at.

We just need to make sure we carry on where we left off on Boxing Day with the local trip to London to face Orient; remember those who are going it is an early kick-off at 1pm.

The numbers of fans we have taken on the Carabao Cup run has been impressive.

Having more than 5,000 at Old Trafford shows that there are those there who will support the club.

What we need to do now is turn them from big-game day trippers to regular fans, even just for the home games to start with.

I feel there is a group who maybe tempted; we just need to keep the success on the field coming and hopefully they will come as well.

What a week it has been for Colchester United.

We have been on an adventure to Manchester United and returned home on Saturday to a very convincing win against Carlisle.

I was worried that the all-out effort at Old Trafford would have left little in the tank for our league clash with Carlisle.

Plus a few of their players' knocks that had to be managed.

But any fears were soon dashed as the starting XI was very attack-minded and that was all they had on their mind, it was attack after attack.

At times, we looked like we were going to score every time we entered their half.

After a crazy own goal that went our way for once, it was a case of how many we would score and only getting three was unlucky given the chances and effort by the lads.

A few players have come out and said that the cup run was all well and good but it is the league we need to focus on and now we have no other cups to worry about we can do just that.

Our trip to the Theatre of Dreams - that is Old Trafford - sadly ended in defeat.

But we can still be proud of what we achieved to get there in the first place and secondly how we preformed on the night.

The team Man U put out would not have looked out of place on a floodlit European night.

It shows that they are clearly aiming to add this cup to their glittering silverware collection.

We held them for 60 minutes and although it was very defensive, it was clear they were struggling to break us down.

In the end, a fast breakaway goal of top quality made the breakthrough.

The two goals that followed were unlucky, one was an own goal and the other offside.

But the 3-0 score-line was a fair result, even if it would have been a delight to see one of our own close efforts go in.

The fans were great and it sure made a good set of pictures to see us all up in the stands.

The stand was something else, very steep and I don’t think they could have fitted more steps in if they tried.

We stayed up the night and then had the delights of Christmas shopping in the Trafford Centre; oh well, the rough with the smooth I guess.

I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and see you on Boxing Day to cheer the lads to another three points.