Colchester were some people's favourites to struggle in the Championship following their promotion from League One last season. However, so far the U's are belying their long pre-season odds, with last weekend’s 2-0 victory against Southampton elevating the Essex outfit to 10th place in the table. Kevin McLeod marked his first start for the club with Saturday’s opener against the Saints since a free transfer switch from Swansea in August. McLeod will be hoping to retain his place in the starting line-up for tonight's trip to Norwich, as the Canaries look to bounce from Saturday’s disappointing 5-0 defeat at Stoke. Givemefootball's Mark Shail is the man with the questions.
Q:YOU MUST HAVE BEEN DELIGHTED WITH A GOAL ON YOUR FULL DEBUT AT THE WEEKEND?
A:Yes, I was very pleased. I've sat on the bench for a few games so it was nice to make a contribution in my first start. But the result was the most important thing and I thought we deserved the three points.
Q:THINGS SEEM TO BE GOING VERY WELL FOR THE TEAM THIS SEASON?
A:There's a good bunch of lads here, who stick together, and I think we’ve surprised a few people so far. I don't think too many sides will relish coming to play at our place this season.
Q:WERE YOU DISAPPOINTED TO LEAVE SWANSEA?
A:To be honest, I didn't really leave the club on very good terms in the end, but now I'm just happy to be back playing for a club that are performing well and have made me feel very welcome. The training here is excellent and I'm just pleased to have got the opportunity to perform at a higher level than I was previously playing.
Q:WHAT MADE YOU OPT TO SIGN FOR COLCHESTER?
A:When I played against them last season I always thought they were a hard-working side that played an attractive style of football. At Championship level you are allowed that little bit more time on the ball and I felt that would suit my game. We've opened a few eyes so far and hopefully we'll continue to hold our own at this level.
Q:WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS AHEAD OF THE NORWICH GAME TONIGHT?
A:They are coming into this match on the back of a 5-0 defeat on Saturday, so Peter Grant will obviously be looking for a reaction from his players – so from that point of view it's probably not the ideal time to come here. But we're playing with a lot of confidence right now and normally games at Carrow Road are quite open.
Q:WHAT ARE YOUR PERSONAL TARGETS THIS SEASON?
A:In the short term, I want to get as fit as I can because there’s still room for improvement in terms of my conditioning. Then, I obviously want to cement my place in side and play as many matches as I can this season.
Q:WHAT ABOUT A TARGET FOR THE TEAM?
A:Staying in this league was the priority at the start of the season, so we will be looking to get enough points on the board to be safe as soon as we possibly can. Perhaps then we can revaluate the situation, but we’re not taking anything for granted – we're just taking it match by match and we won't be looking any further than the Norwich game this evening.
