Aston Villa boss Steve Bruce called for his players to create a winning mentality before this one and that’s exactly what they did as the rain hammered down in Essex last night.
From the off you sensed it was going to be a long night for Colchester. Some of their fans decided to leave it until the last minute before braving the conditions.
They probably wished they had not bothered when Scott Hogan struck in the seventh minute.
The ball had come loose in the Colchester penalty area after Andre Green went down on the slippery surface and appeared to take goalkeeper Sam Walker with him.