Manager Neil Harris felt Gillingham were the better side for an hour against Colchester United before watching them crumble.

The Gills conceded the first against previously winless Colchester just after the hour mark and let the visitors in to strike again on 77 and 82 minutes to clinch a 3-0 win.

Report: Gillingham 0-3 Colchester

Harris said: “Losing any game hurts, what I am disappointed with is that after conceding the first we didn’t hang in there, to throw the kitchen sink at them in the last five or 10 minutes.

“What was disappointing was the manner of the goals and the fact we crumbled in the last half hour.

“We were the better team first half, I thought we were the better team for an hour, to be honest, up until their first goal and the goal knocked the stuffing out of us a bit, then we had to chase it.

“Colchester came with a game plan, to sit in and protect space and stop us getting behind them and into good areas. We had loads of the ball, did we do enough with the ball? Probably not.

“The first goal was going to be key, like it has been in the first four games where we’ve got and seen them out. Colchester got the goal and were able to then hit us on the counter-attack.

“I said for 60 minutes I didn’t see any issues, one save that Jake (Turner) has had to make, one opportunity on the counter-attack they have had and we just self-imploded.

“They were really poor goals to have conceded, which hasn’t been us in the first four weeks of the season.

“I am not going to bemoan the lads too much, they have done brilliant as a group, but today we weren’t good enough in being creative in the opponent’s final third and we conceded really poor goals, which for a team that has had four clean sheets is quite staggering.

“It just shows that I have been right in talking about how random League 2 is, anybody can beat anybody in League 2 and this has shown that.

“It is a reminder of what League 2 is, that is so League 2.

“I caught a glimpse of a couple of scores (after the match) and one of them was Swindon 6 Crawley 0, where has that come from!? It goes to show and all managers are saying, it’s so random.

“It is why I talk about looking at the table after 12 games. You need to let it settle down and for people to find their way.

“We were going to lose a game somewhere and I am disappointed with the scoreline, yes. If you are going to lose, lose 1-0 or 2-1, and at the end throw hammer and tongue at it to try and nick a goal.

“When you go two or three down you give yourself no chance, especially when you are down to 10 men as well.”