COLCHESTER United winger Callum Harriott has paid tribute to his team-mates after they extended their long unbeaten run to 13 league games.

The U’s beat Macclesfield Town 2-1 at the JobServe Community Stadium and are currently in their best run of unbeaten league form since the 1996-97 season.

Colchester have not lost since mid-October in League Two and after laying the foundation for their win over the Silkmen with a wonder strike, winger Harriott says they deserve recognition for their excellent form.

Harriott said: “It’s a massive unbeaten run and credit to the team and the club.

“It’s a massive positive and we have to take some sort of credit for it.

“I don’t know many teams who can go 13 matches unbeaten.

"It shows what kind of team we have and it’s time to kick on from here now.

“We’re back here again on Tuesday (against Bradford City) and we need to do the same and we’ll go even harder.

“We should be winning by more goals and we’ve really got to take the game to teams, especially at this time of the season.

“There’s only around 20 games left and all of these home games are wins.”

Harriott thumped in a magnificent opener from nearly 30 yards to give Colchester the lead against Macclesfield, before Fiacre Kelleher’s own goal doubled their advantage two minutes later.

Ben Stephens pulled a goal back for the visitors in the second half but the U’s claimed victory, leaving them three points off the automatic promotion places.

“It was a massive win,” said former Reading winger Harriott.

“It was a stepping stone for us after the successive draws that we had against sides that we should be beating.

“We’ve all been working so hard and training very, very hard and I think it showed.

“Everyone gave 110 per cent; we still had chances to kill the game off but these things happen and we held out.”

Harriott’s long-range strike against Macclesfield is a candidate for Colchester’s goal of the season, after he hit the net from long range.

“I scored a goal like that here five years ago,” added Harriott, who has now scored twice since returning to the U’s, in August.

“I think it was a good goal and I’m happy with it.

“Before the game, I sat alone and had some time to myself to think and I really wanted to get a goal, to be honest.

“I shoot all the time in training.

“Sometimes people don’t like it but if it goes in, it goes in and a goal is a goal!”