Barrow 3, Colchester 1

ON-FIRE Billy Waters bagged the first hat-trick of his career as Barrow hammered Colchester United 3-1 at Holker Street.

With top scorer Josh Gordon suspended, his strike partner picked up the scoring slack as he fired the Bluebirds to three league wins in a row for the first time since August.

Freddie Sears hit a late consolation, his first league goal since the opening day, in stoppage time to ruin an otherwise perfect evening.

In-form striker Waters scored for a third game in a row in the Football League for the first time since December 2016.

And victory meant Pete Wild’s on-song charges went four league games unbeaten for the first time since October 2021.

Another fine performance from the Bluebirds propelled them to fourth — just a point off the coveted top three.

Boss Wild made three changes from the side which hammered Crewe Alexandra on Saturday.

Two were enforced as Patrick Brough and Gordon were missing through injury and picking up five yellow cards respectively.

Harrison Neal dropped to the bench whilst Myles Kenlock, Sam Foley and David Moyo were the trio to return to the starting line-up.

The Bluebirds started brightly and threatened in the final third.

Moyo saw shouts for an early penalty waved away when he went down inside the box.

But it didn’t take the hosts long to make their dominance pay.

Twenty-eight-year-old marksman Waters fired the hosts in front in the 22nd minute with a predatory finish.

The former Halifax hitman was in the first place at the right time to poke home the opener after George Ray flicked Ben Whitfield’s corner into his path.

It was two within the blink of an eye as Waters doubled his, and Barrow’s, tally three minutes later.

And what a goal it was as Waters produced a fine acrobatic volley from six yards out to beat hapless Colchester stopper Sam Hornby.

He could have had an eight-minute hat-trick on the half-hour mark amid goalmouth chaos in the U’s box.

First determined Moyo forced Hornby to parry his effort back into danger before Waters squandered a great chance from close range and finally Whitfield saw his shot cleared off the line by Tom Eastman as the visitors scrambled clear.

Bluebirds’ keeper Paul Farman produced a super stop to keep midfield maestro Alan Judge’s strike out from the edge of the box.

The star striker completed his treble quickly after the restart as he stabbed home captain Niall Canavan’s knock on.

With the game safely in the bag Wild rung the chances after a fourth game in just 10 days and with an eye on Saturday’s FA Cup clash with Mansfield Town.

Robbie Gotts came off the bench for his first appearance in almost a month after being sidelined with injury.

One slight worry will be Jordan Stevens limping off with 15 minutes to go.

Sears pulled one back to deny Barrow a third straight clean sheet in added time.