George Cox’s last-gasp penalty saw Swindon Town purge their Colchester United demons with a thrilling 3-2 home win on New Year’s Day.

Ollie Clarke returned to the line-up with a header from a free kick but Jack Payne struck late in the first half from the spot to level it up before dispatching another in the second half.

Aaron Drinan came on and smashed home an equaliser before Cox got his

Swindon have won their first game of a calendar year since 2022 and move up to 19th and four points clear of the drop.

Ian Holloway brought back in the players who had been rested against Bromley on Sunday as he picked a more familiar-looking side. Clarke came back in to captain the side in midfield along with Joel Cotterill, George Cox, Harry Smith, and Kabongo Tshimanga all returning from the start.

The Town boss had made no secret of his desire for revenge for what happened at the start of December in the build-up to the game and his policy of rest and rotation through the busy period meant he was able to go all out in this one.

However, the team did not start with the fury that you might have expected from a side searching for redemption. Colchester were retaining a lot of possession and Swindon were looking to see what they could make from long balls.

The most nervy moment in the early exchanges came when Dan Barden had the ball at his feet and allowed Payne to close home down. His rushed clearance flicked off the attacker’s ankles but fortunately bounced to safety.

But then Tshimanga won a free kick down the side of the box and Will Wright trotted across to take it. His whipped ball went through the six-yard box and Clarke got enough on it to send the ball in at the far post.

Clarke had been a revelation since returning to the team before Christmas and was continuing to lead Swindon on their mission. Tshimanga flicked the ball into him 25 yards from goal and he took a touch and rifled a half volley towards the top corner which Matt Macey had to be at his very best to push over the top.

The reinvention of Swindon as a counter-attacking team since that night in Essex was plain to see with their hard work without the ball creating good openings against an open defence. Billy Kirkman snatched possession on the halfway line and set up an attack which saw Macey have to tip Smith’s effort around the post.

From the resulting corner, Colchester got it away, but Swindon trapped them in, and Wright curled a pass into Cotterill, whose dipping effort from 30 yards out narrowly went over the bar.

From a slow start, Swindon seemed to be flying into the break with the visitors firmly on the back foot until on a break down the right side of the box, Cotterill’s outstretched leg tripped up Harry Anderson. Payne stepped up and dispatched the spot kick into the bottom corner.

Many ghosts seemed to have been busted in the last month as Swindon learned from their low moment at The JobServe Community Stadium but all of a sudden, the momentum switched in stoppage time, and they were hanging on until the break.

The malaise carried over into the second half as Swindon, along with the crowd, seemed subdued. They did not possess the energy that they had dominated much of the opening period with.

Then a high bouncing ball on the hour was flicked back towards Barden by Tunmise Sobowale. The ball came up a little bit short and he clashed with Tom Hopper before the spare ball came to Anderson, who tripped over the leg of the goalkeeper. Payne stepped up again and it was the same result.

The first penalty knocked Swindon cold but the second woke them up and they were a whisker away from being level when Aaron Drinan struck the top of the bar from the edge of the area.

With things starting to look bleak in the final ten minutes, suddenly Town were able to push Colchester back. Butterworth floated a pass to the far side of the box where Drinan chested his down and smashed the ball under Macey and into the net.

In stoppage time a scramble from a deep free kick in the Colchester area fell to Cox on the edge but he could only sidefoot an effort onto the top of the bar.

Ellis Iandolo then got his second yellow and from that free kick a handball in the area brought Swindon face-to-face with their biggest demon. A penalty. George Cox stepped up and with unbelievable poise for the 98th minute, clipped it up the middle.

Swindon had done it. They had got the win but so much more psychologically as the ground descended into bedlam on the final whistle.

STFC starting XI: Barden, Sobowale, Delaney, Wright, Ofoborh, Cotterill, Clarke, Smith, Tshimanga, Cox, Kirkman.

STFC substitutes: Bycroft, Glatzel, Longelo, Cain, Kilkenny, Butterworth, Drinan.

CUFC starting XI: Macey, Iandolo, Flanagan, Anderson, Bishop, Payne, Gordon, Hopper, McDonnell, Egbo, Donnelly.

CUFC substitutes: Smith, Kelleher, Goodliffe, Edwards, Thorn, Taylor, Joliffe.

Attendance: 7,680 (421 away).