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Colchester are hopeful forward Kwesi Appiah will be back in action before the end of the season after it was decided he does not need surgery.

Appiah, who is on loan from Crawley, had to go off after hyperextending a knee against Northampton last month.

He suffered three injuries, including a tibial plateau fracture and partially torn gastrocnemius muscle.

Club physio Hayden Clifton said the signs suggested the 32-year-old could play in "maybe four to six weeks".

Appiah has scored three goals in 14 appearances this season for Colchester, who are six points clear of the League Two relegation places with 10 games to play.

Meanwhile, U's midfielder Alan Judge has had an operation after rupturing knee ligaments against Sutton United in December.

At the time, Colchester said they did not expect him to be fit again for a year.

"Now it's just a case of resting up at home to let the swelling go down before starting the long rehab process," the former Republic of Ireland international