BRENDAN Wiredu admits Colchester United’s players must quickly start playing as a team again if they are to end their long wait for a win.

The U’s have now gone 14 games without a victory in League Two, following their 3-0 defeat at Forest Green Rovers on Saturday.

Colchester are now seven points above the relegation zone, heading into tomorrow night’s home clash with Carlisle United and midfielder Wiredu says it is time they all pulled together to fight for the cause.

Wiredu said: “We need to get together and start working as a team.

“They (Forest Green) were calling everything; one block and they were cheering together.

“We were pretty silent out there with a lack of communication so we all need to get together and see what the problem was.

“It could be down to confidence and having not won for a while but I don’t want to make excuses.

“It wasn’t good enough out there - there are things we should be doing and most of us have been in the game for a long time.

“I was here last year and it was nothing like this, so we need to get back to the standards where we’re all playing as a team.

“We know what we need to do – we’ve had a talk in the changing room after the game.

"But actions speak louder than words and we have to go out there and fight for each other the way that we know that we can play.

“In training, it’s superb and everything is fine.

“It’s just when we cross that white line and I don’t know what happens but I’m sure on Tuesday, we’ll put up a fight again.

“Now we just need to be honest with ourselves and go in on Monday and seriously look at ourselves and see where we’re going to go from here.”

Colchester have not been ahead in a match since their last victory, the 1-0 triumph at Scunthorpe United on December 8.

“We just need to not concede early on,” said Wiredu, who has joined Colchester last month from Charlton Athletic.

“We keep conceding the first goal and when you do that, it’s always going to be tough especially against a team who are up there.

“I’ve never been in a situation like this before but I guess that’s what you’re in it for.

“It builds character and now we’re going to see which characters we have in the team.

“It seems as though when one thing goes wrong, everything goes wrong but we all know that we’re good players out there and you can see there’s signs.”

Colchester will be looking to secure a much-needed win tomorrow night when they host Carlisle and Wiredu says it is a good thing there is a game so soon after the Forest Green reverse.

The 21-year-old said: “It’s always a good thing that there’s another game so soon after a defeat and we’ll try and make it right.

“Games are coming thick and fast and we can’t dwell on the defeat.

“We have to go into the next game and try and get the win.”

Meanwhile, Wiredu says he was sorry to see Steve Ball leave his position as Colchester’s head coach.

Ball parted company with the U’s last week after less than seven months in charge, following a poor run of results.

Wiredu added: “I was very disappointed to see him go and it was a shame that he went.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity that he’s given me, in bringing me back and I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him.

“But the gaffer (Wayne Brown) now, his visions are set and we know what we need to do.

“He’s come in with a clear plan and I’m happy to be working with him.”