United boss Simon Grayson said his side were "back to our usual selves" after winning a first league game of 2010 on Saturday.

Two Jermaine Beckford goals proved enough to account for high-riding Colchester United at Elland Road as Grayson's men returned to the pre-Christmas form that had formed the basis of the title challenge.

"We were back to our usual selves of being hard to beat," said the boss. "We were on the front foot, we were closing people down and created good chances.

"They are very direct and they scrap, but when we got a chance to play we played. We scored twice, but could have had a few more and kept a clean sheet.

"They are a hard side to play against, but we managed to show our battling qualities. We were dogged, resilient, and when we got the chance to play we did.

"We knew they would get it and hook things on and we had to compete, which we did.

"There's different ways to win games, and we had to fight and scrap and allow our quality to come through.

"The penalty just before half-time gave us a boost, but we had half-chances before then and in the second half we put the pressure on.

"We were back to what we wanted to be. The players have looked at DVDs of the past few weeks and I expected this. We were upset after Swindon, but credit to the players."

The United manager gave debuts to his two new recruits and was impressed by both Gary McSheffrey and Shane Lowry.

"When players become available of their quality, they are the players you want," he said. "I wanted to freshen the team up.

"It sends out a signal of what we're all about because no one can rest on their laurels.

"Gary showed his quality and what he is all about and Shane is a young lad who was very steady.

"He could have gone to a top Championship club but wanted to come here."

See more reaction, including exclusive interviews with Gary McSheffrey and Shane Lowry, plus extended highlights...