Cheltenham Town will welcome back midfield duo Luke Young and Isaac Hutchinson for Saturday’s League Two away match against Colchester United. Hutchinson, the team’s leading scorer, was sidelined during the 1-0 victory over his parent club Bristol Rovers due to ineligibility, while Young missed that fixture serving a suspension after accumulating five yellow cards this season.
Winger Josh Martin, who missed early-week training, returned to action during Thursday’s session, adding to the squad’s availability. Defender Scot Bennett continues to make encouraging progress after knee surgery and is nearing a return to full fitness following two weeks back in training. Similarly, right-back Arkell Jude-Boyd is close to rejoining the team after recovering from a hand injury.
Forward George Miller is advancing ahead of schedule in his recovery from a long-term hamstring injury. However, he will remain unavailable for selection until the transfer window reopens and he is officially re-registered. Manager Steve Cotterill praised Miller’s determination and update on his rehabilitation: “He’s an infectious guy, George, and he’s coming along really well. He saw a specialist on Wednesday, who was very positive, so George is moving on to the next phase of his recovery. He won’t be far away, and it’ll be interesting to see his progress over the next few weeks.”
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Unfortunately, loanees Taine Anderson (hamstring) and Jacob Mazionis (foot) have faced setbacks in their recoveries and are currently back with their parent clubs, Bristol City and Ipswich Town respectively. It is increasingly likely that both loan spells will conclude in January.
Cheltenham traveled to Essex on Friday morning, marking Steve Cotterill’s first encounter with Colchester United as Robins boss. Midfielder Ben Stevenson will face his former club in the match, adding personal motivation. Cotterill also acknowledged the quality of Colchester’s manager, Danny Cowley, a fellow ex-Portsmouth manager, commending his achievements since taking charge at the JobServe Community Stadium.
“I think Colchester are decent,” Cotterill commented. “They have recorded some good away wins recently at Walsall and Notts County. Danny has done a good job with the team, and while they’ve had some notable successes, so have we. We need to approach the game with our best performance and see where it takes us.”
Last season, Cheltenham secured a 2-1 victory at Colchester thanks to the first two EFL goals of Jordan Thomas’ career, a result that the Robins will hope to build upon this weekend.
Off the pitch, Cheltenham are preparing to appoint a new kit man following Alfie Wilkes’ decision to leave football to pursue a family business opportunity, with a replacement expected to be announced soon.