in the first league derby between the two neighbouring sides for 49 years. Colchester stalwart Karl Duguid's goal was enough to hand the U's victory. Parkinson returned to Layer Road with his struggling Hull side in November as Chris Iwelumo equalled a club record and scored four for himself as the U's beat the Tigers 5–1. Parkinson was sacked by Hull five days later after Colchester's eighth successive home victory on their way to eleven consecutive home victories in the league. By Christmas, the U's found themselves in the play-off positions. Talk at this point turned to the potential for the U's to ground-share Portman Road with Ipswich Town if they achieved the ultimate dream of promotion to the Premier League as the first turf was cut on the new stadium development at Cuckoo Farm. In January, the U's received a club record £2.5m from Reading for their England under-20s international Greg Halford. With two games to spare, Colchester were just one point off the play-off places. Defeat at main rivals Stoke City ended their hopes but the 10th-placed finish was the best in the club's history, making them 30th of all clubs in the English football pyramid. Gates at Layer Road had risen to an average of 5,466, the highest since the 1970–71 season with most games sold out. Players Transfers In Total spending: ~ £0 Out Total incoming: ~ £3,000,000 Loans in Loans out Match details Championship League table Results round by round Matches Football League Cup FA Cup Squad statistics Appearances and goals |- !colspan="16"|Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season |} Goalscorers Disciplinary record Clean sheets Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet. Player debuts Players making their first-team Colchester United debut in a fully competitive match. See also List of Colchester United F.C. seasons References General Books Websites Specific 2006-07 2006–07 Football League Championship by team