Interim head coach Scott Marshall says it has been a difficult time at Colchester but their 1-0 win over in-form Accrington has given them a welcome boost.
Ben Garner was sacked on Monday, with Matthew Etherington overseeing their win over Grimsby in midweek.
However, they found out on Friday night that Etherington could not take charge again due to a contract dispute with his previous club Crawley.
It meant Marshall was in the hot-seat and, despite 31 shots for Stanley, it was an inspired performance from U’s goalkeeper Owen Goodman and Joe Taylor’s 57th-minute solo strike that proved the difference.
The on-loan Luton striker raced from his own half, with his initial shot saved by Jon McCracken but he fired in the loose ball for his eighth goal of the season.
“It’s a difficult situation, it’s something above my head,” said Marshall. “We are happy to come away with a victory but it needs to play out and I will just have conversations about football if that’s OK?
“Ben suddenly being removed from his post gives everyone a reality check in terms of the seriousness of it. It’s been a disappointing time as well as proud of getting six points.
“To go away to Grimsby and Accrington and come away with six points is fantastic. The boys dug in and showed huge amounts of character, rode their luck, made some good saves and some good challenges at the right time.
“Once we got the goal you could see the grit and determination in the group to hang onto it.
“Owen has been fantastic and enjoying being in the thick of it. He did his bit as well as everyone else.
“We will take that, we worked hard, it’s not been easy with the travelling and the situation we are in and everyone deserves the credit for it.”
Stanley saw their four-game winning streak come to an end but they remain in the play-off places.
Manager John Coleman said: “We didn’t start well and in the first 15 minutes they could have scored two goals.
“We then had a procession of missed chances. Players don’t miss chances on purpose and, when you miss a few, you snatch at a few more as you are getting anxious and that’s what happened today.
“Sometimes you just have to take it on the chin. It was the most threatening we have looked all season against an opposition who have been in turmoil themselves, but you have days like this, they will come when you are not expecting them.
“We’ve been on a great run but it hasn’t been ended by a bad performance, it’s been ended by one of those days when you can’t put the ball in the net.
“The time to worry is when you are not creating chances. The lads gave their all and are devastated as they know it’s a missed opportunity to cement ourselves in the play-offs.”
'I want to be the best player at the Copa America' – Colombia's James has sights set on glory
James Rodriguez wants to be the Copa America's standout player, and is going some way to being just that.
Colombia reached the semi-finals with a thumping 5-0 defeat of Panama on Saturday, with James taking a starring role as Los Cafeteros claimed their biggest Copa Ameria win.
James scored a penalty and supplied two assists, including a delicious ball for Luis Diaz to make it 3-0 just before half-time.
The former Real Madrid playmaker, who hardly featured for club side Sao Paulo last season, has now created five goals at this edition of the tournament, equalling the record haul for assists (since Opta began collecting such data) at the Copa America, alongside Lionel Messi's five in 2021.
And having missed out on a call-up to Colombia's squad in 2021, James made it clear he plans on being the tournament's standout performer.
"A tough match, they are very strong, but we played well, we knew how to score the goals quickly and that gave us control of the match," James said.
"Did I want to be the best player of the Copa? Yes, I wanted to have a very good Cup, help my team-mates to go far.
"We are going until the last day, let's hope we can reach that great final that we all want, we are going through a good moment too.
"The most important thing is still to come. We hope to reach the final."
Saturday's match was the second time James has directly contributed to three goals in a competitive match for Colombia, after scoring and providing two assists against Japan in the 2014 World Cup (4-1), in which he won the Golden Boot.
Colombia are now unbeaten in 27 games, matching their best such streak, and will face Uruguay, who overcame Brazil 4-2 on penalties, for a place in the final.
Trust the process, says Pickford after penalty shootout heroics for England
England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford preached "trust the process" after his penalty shootout heroics against Switzerland.
Pickford got down low to keep out Switzerland's first spot-kick, denying Manuel Akanji.
While the 30-year-old could not prevent the Swiss scoring from their next three attempts, England stayed perfect through the shootout, with Trent Alexander-Arnold holding his nerve to send Gareth Southgate's team into the Euro 2024 semi-finals.
Pickford has now saved four of the 14 penalties he has faced in shootouts at major tournaments, twice as many as all other England goalkeepers combined saved between 1990 and 2012 (two out of 36).
Images shared widely on social media showed Pickford's water bottle had a list of each of Switzerland's penalty takers, and a direction in which he should dive.
And the Everton shot-stopper explained how he had to adapt his routine slightly in Dusseldorf, though he still trusted his process regardless.
He told ITV Sport: "The referee didn't let me do my usual process so I've had to adapt. I like to give the lads the ball, it helps me with a bit of focus, and staying calm, but I could only do it on the first one – luckily I saved it!
"I trust my process, what I do, with my mentality, that I'm going to save at least one for the lads.
"But massive respect to the lads that stood up and took one and to score in the way they did – huge credit.
Two lads making their major tournament debuts in this tournament, and then Bukayo [Saka] coming off the back of 2021 and stepping up – it shows the character in our squad.
"We've got a quick turnaround but we're still here, and that's what we want and what the nation wants."
For just the second time in their 10th shootout at a major tournament, England scored every single one of their penalties in the shootout (5/5), also doing so against Spain at Euro 1996 (4/4).
Penalty shootout victory over Brazil was winning in Uruguayan style, says Bielsa
Uruguay showed their character and the national team's "style" in their penalty shootout win over Brazil, so says Marcelo Bielsa.
Fifteen-time Copa America champions Uruguay progressed to the semi-finals at Brazil's expense with a 4-2 victory in the shootout after a 0-0 draw in Las Vegas on Saturday.
Uruguay, who have quickly adapted to Bielsa's full-throttle attacking approach, had to play out the last 20 minutes with 10 men after Nahitan Nandez was sent off for a lunge on Rodrygo.
It meant the usual offensive tactics had to make way for defensive ones, though from Nandez's red card onwards, Uruguay limited Brazil to just two attempts.
"Everything that happens, happens Uruguayan style, because the players are the ones that give their all to the team," Bielsa said.
"It was a match with very little goal opportunities, highly contested, very close, even with very little changes in possession.
"When we were one man down, we decided to dedicate ourselves to defending in our half.
"So holding on to that result as the Uruguayan team did shows the profile of Uruguayan football.
"They were very calm in the penalty shootout that demands not only accuracy but also character."
Uruguay have now kept three successive clean sheets, while they limited Brazil to 0.58 expected goals (xG), and their defensive resilience has pleased Bielsa.
"I am a bit more drawn to the offensive than the defensive game, but in a match that was as tight as this one, we created one more opportunity than our opponent and we defended well," Bielsa added.
"I do think that defensively, not because I achieved it but because the players are inherently good at defending, that they are very good at keeping a clean sheet."
This is the first time Uruguay have reached the semi-finals of the Copa America since the last time they won the trophy in 2011.
La Celeste had endured three consecutive quarter-final appearances without advancing, with two of those being decided by penalties (2019 and 2021).
Uruguay will face in-form Colombia, who hammered Paraguay 5-0, in the last four.
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