25/04 - 20:00
An 88th minute equaliser for Colchester United last night, at home to Bristol Rovers, was the latest important moment of note in Noah Chilvers’ young career, as the 20 year-old Essex-born midfielder makes a name for himself in the EFL.
Becoming a key man
In 12 League Two matches so far this season for Colchester United, Noah Chilvers has started in five, been substituted onto the pitch in six games. It was the second time this season that his goal has given United some much-needed points.
His early strike against Oldham in August allowed Colchester to pick up three points whilst last night’s aforementioned equaliser would, in very basic terms, mean that Chilvers’ attacking output has contributed to four of Colchester’s 14 points so far this season.
Chilvers has yet to establish himself as a regular starter in the team but he won’t be far off that tag. The creative midfielder has a versatility to his game that should allow him to be more than just an impact player. That goal last night, his first in front of a home crowd at Colchester, could encourage Hayden Mullins to stick with him on a regular basis, as well.
He won the Young Player of the Year Award at Colchester last season and has expressed a strong relationship with current boss Mullins, insisting the U’s manager, in his first full-time role, has helped him a lot:
“I’ve learnt a lot from Hayden. He’s a great coach and has a very calming presence. I think he really helped us,” said Chilvers in June 2021.
Already experienced
Despite that strong working relationship with Mullins and his first home goal only coming last night, Chilvers has played a lot of football in his very short career.
Chilvers made his league debut at the age of just 17 in the 2018-19 season when he played twice towards the end of the campaign for the U’s. A loan spell at Bath City in 2019-20, cut-short by the COVID-19 pandemic, has also given him further experience of playing first-team football at a senior level.
All in all, he has already played 58 times in the EFL at the age of just 20 years-old for a team that had been challenging for the play-offs a few years back, but have more recently been battling a long-term slide down the table in the last couple of seasons.
It has never been a steady time for Chilvers to be brought in and yet he has still managed to gain enough trust to rack up quite a few appearances which is a very impressive trait and a sign moving forward that he can develop further.
A creative spark
A player that has ripped up League One and League Two in recent seasons, as well as dabbling in the Championship, is Sammie Szmodics. The also Essex-born and now well-known creative midfielder, currently at Peterborough United, also came through the Colchester academy, before going on to move to Bristol City in 2019 after scoring 35 goals in 142 games for the U’s.
The precedent for Chilvers has been set and, in 2019, he was linked with moves to West Ham and Leicester as that similarities between the two continued to develop. It is probably unquestionable that Szmodics was a more promising prospect than Chilvers but, given the fact that the latter has only played a third of the games of his former team-mate, there is time for Chilvers to grow.
For now, his focus will be on continuing to establish himself as a key man at the Colchester Community Stadium. Playing a key role in steering his side away from League Two relegation trouble will help continue a very strong start to his very young career.
