Raven Park is preparing to host what is expected to be its biggest crowd of the season as nearest Nat 2 East league rivals Bury St Edmunds come to town on Saturday (kick-off 3pm).

With 300 guests booked in for the pre-match lunch, and plenty of supporters expected to make the short trip across the Suffolk border to cheer on their team, it promises to be quite an occasion.

On the pitch, Colchester will be looking to get back to winning ways against a Bury side who have not won away from home for more than three months.

Bury are mid-table having won seven and lost nine matches this season, their latest outing saw them lose a 13-try thriller to Dorking by 42 points to 43 at home. In the reverse fixture in October, Bury beat Colchester 36-22.

Colchester’s line-up will inevitably see a few changes as the team goes through something of an injury nightmare. The casualty list was already lengthy before last weekend’s 38-12 defeat at Old Albanians, only for three players to suffer concussion injuries.

But as ever, head coach Mike Haywood remains upbeat ahead of a local derby against a team which has plenty of links with Colchester, on and off the pitch.

“We went there and put in a good stint, unfortunately coming away with a loss. Now we’ve got the opportunity at home to rectify that.

“The boys are just relishing the challenge at the moment. Nat 2 rugby is not an easy league. You’ve got guys coming from the Championship, Nat 1, dropping down into Nat 2 to play good rugby.

“We’re just relishing every single week, and the guys are putting their bodies on the line so we’re just looking forward to the challenge this week.”

There’s also a huge challenge for the 2s, as The Ravens head to Counties 1 league leaders Norwich (kick-off 3pm) in a match postponed from a couple of weeks ago due to the big freeze.

The Ravens will travel with confidence after securing two bonus points in a narrow defeat at in-form Southwold last weekend, but they will need to be at their very best as Norwich have a 100 per cent record this season – 15 try-bonus point victories from 15 outings.

It’s a rest weekend for the 3s, but the 4s are away to Woodbridge 2s (2pm) and the Ruins play a friendly at home against Witham Stags on Friday night (7.30). The Kings are also in action on Saturday as they host London Stags (2pm).

Whether you are coming to Raven Park or travelling, enjoy your rugby and shout out loud for the lads!