Goalscorer Jabo Ibehre revealed clear-the-air talks between Colchester United’s players provided the foundation for their victory at Oldham Athletic.

The U’s bounced back from their home mauling at the hands of Notts County with a convincing 2-0 win at Boundary Park.

Ibehre scored Colchester’s second goal in their victory, which helped them leapfrog their opponents in the League One table.

And the experienced striker said the performance was the product of some honest discussion in the dressing room.

Ibehre said: “After last week’s game we had a little chat where we talked about what we want from each other.

“We felt that we weren’t playing as well as we can and not playing to our potential and we backed up the words that were spoken.

“The Notts County game was a real wake-up call and we really bounced back as a unit.

“It shouldn’t take a defeat like that to galvanize everyone but it did.

“We harried them in the first half and that’s what we need in every game.

“That’s the sort of mentality of a team that’s pushing for the play-offs, there’s no doubt about it.

“We need to be more consistent but we showed against Oldham that we can do it and that’s the level that we need to operate at.

“I’ve always said that our dressing room is magnificent, especially after last season and hopefully this can be the start of something.”

For more on this story and all of the latest Colchester United news, see Monday's Daily Gazette.