Was better than 8 in first game
Jones: That
AN OLLY Lee-inspired Luton Town bounced back in style from their first League Two defeat to cruise past Colchester United.
Lee scored on the stroke of half-time before Luton pulled away in the second half with two further goals.
And manager Nathan Jones was so impressed by his team he dubbed the display better than the 8-2 win over Yeovil on the opening day.
He said: “I thought it was a better performance than Yeovil in terms of a more complete one, as defensively we were excellent too.
“We started slowly, the first 15 minutes and then had a real good tempo to our play, carved open a lot of opportunities before we finally got the first.
“In the second half we showed a clinical edge and a real professionalism as well because we limited to them to anything outside the box, and that was pretty much it. I was very, very pleased, it was excellent.”
Lee had scored with virtually the last kick of the first half, having previously been denied by keeper Sam Walker, the only United man to cover himself in glory.
Had it not been for the goalie’s heroics including a stunner to tip over from Alan McCormack’s rocket the scoreline could have been nearer the eight that the Hatters gubbed Yeovil with on the opening day.
James Collins curled in his fourth in two home appearances seven minutes after the interval and Town’s quality told for the rest of the contest.
Dan Potts steered in the third late on, though former Czech international Marek Stech produced one worldclass save to deny Sammie Szmodics and preserve Luton’s first clean sheet of the campaign.
It moved the hosts to third in the division and Jones added: “We’re disappointed to be third but we’re pleased, after last week [against Barnet], that we’ve bounced back.”
Meanwhile, for Colchester boss John McGreal, the goal right on the stroke of half-time was a sucker punch from which his team could never really recover.
He said: “The goal killed us, right on half time, and gave us a different team talk. The last 15-20 minutes of the first half, Sam has made one or two saves but we’re playing against a good Luton team who are going to be there or thereabouts.
“We’ll get back to the drawing board. The boys are putting the work in but they’ve just got to have that little more belief at the right times.
“A little more rub of the green and I think we’ll be all right.”