1985–86 Colchester United F.C. season

Colchester United
1985–86 season
Chairman Jonathan Crisp[1]
Manager Cyril Lea
(until 10 April)
Mike Walker
(from 10 April)
Stadium Layer Road
Fourth Division 6th
FA Cup 1st round
(eliminated by
Wycombe Wanderers)
League Cup 1st round
(eliminated by
Millwall)
Associate Members' Cup Preliminary round (southern section)
Top goalscorer League:
Tony Adcock (15)
All:
Tony Adcock (16)
Highest home attendance 3,927
v Exeter City, 4 October 1985[2]
Lowest home attendance 1,356
v Crewe Alexandra, 25 March 1986[3]
Average home league attendance 2,253[4]
Biggest win 5–0
v Peterborough United, 22 April 1986
Biggest defeat 0–4
v Chester City, 6 November 1985
Home colours

The 1985–86 season was Colchester United's 44th season in their history and fifth consecutive season in fourth tier of English football, the Fourth Division. Alongside competing in the Fourth Division, the club also participated in the FA Cup, the League Cup and the Associate Members' Cup.

Colchester finished sixth in the league table come the end of the season, but were nine points distant of promoted Port Vale in fourth place. The U's were knocked out of the FA Cup by non-League opposition in Wycombe Wanderers in the first round, and exited the League Cup in the first round to Millwall. Despite a win against Southend United in the Associate Members' Cup, Colchester were defeated by Northampton Town who progressed from the group stages to the knockout phase of the competition.

Three weeks prior to the end of the season, manager Cyril Lea was sacked and replaced by former U's goalkeeper Mike Walker.

Season overview

Following regulation changes in the wake of the Heysel Stadium disaster and the Bradford City stadium fire, Layer Road was facing £500,000 of safety improvements to bring the ground up to standards. With the club ailing financially, sections of the ground were closed, reducing capacity to 4,900.

Manager Cyril Lea continued a trend of recruiting former Ipswich Town by bringing in forwards Robin Turner and Trevor Whymark during the season.

In October, the club were top of the table, but after suffering six successive league defeats, four without scoring, the club slid down the table and crashed out of the FA Cup to non-League Wycombe Wanderers. They had already made an early exit to Millwall in the League Cup and would soon follow suit in the Associate Members' Cup.

Lea struggled to find a strike partner for Tony Adcock following a car crash that ended Keith Bowen's playing career. The side were otherwise free scoring, and despite a good record, Lea was sacked three weeks ahead of the end of the campaign and replaced by Reserve team coach Mike Walker. Walker, initially in a caretaker capacity, took the U's on an unbeaten run for their final eight games of the season, winning five. This left the club in sixth position in the table, nine points shy of promotion.

The season was notable for hat-tricks, with Perry Groves twice achieving the feat against Southend United and brothers Tommy and Tony English scoring hat-tricks within five days of one another. The brothers were also both sent off at Crewe Alexandra in April, a game which Colchester won 2–0.[5]

Players

As of match played 6 May 1986.[6]
Name Position Nationality Place of birth Date of birth Apps Goals Signed from Date signed Fee
Goalkeepers
Alec ChamberlainGKEnglandMarch20 June 1964 (aged 20)1140England Ipswich TownSummer 1982Undisclosed
Defenders
Terry BakerCBEnglandRochford13 November 1965 (aged 19)00England Billericay TownNovember 1985Free transfer
Keith DayCBEnglandGrays29 November 1962 (aged 22)524England AveleySummer 1984Undisclosed
Tony EnglishDF/MFEnglandLuton19 October 1966 (aged 18)253England Coventry City24 December 1984Free transfer
Kirk GameCBEnglandRochford22 October 1966 (aged 18)00England Southend UnitedAugust 1985Free transfer
Rudi HedmanCBEnglandLambeth16 November 1964 (aged 20)402ApprenticeFebruary 1984Free transfer
Ian PhillipsFBScotlandCumnock23 April 1959 (aged 26)936England Northampton TownSeptember 1983£5,000
Midfielders
Andy FarrellMF/FBEnglandColchester7 October 1965 (aged 19)670ApprenticeSummer 1982Free transfer
John ReevesMFEnglandHackney8 July 1963 (aged 21)00England FulhamAugust 1985Undisclosed
Forwards
Tony AdcockFWEnglandBethnal Green27 March 1963 (aged 22)17184Apprentice31 March 1981Free transfer
Simon BurmanWG/MFEnglandIpswich26 November 1965 (aged 19)90Apprentice15 February 1985Free transfer
Tommy EnglishFWEnglandCirencester18 October 1961 (aged 23)10Australia Canberra City8 November 1985[lower-alpha 1]Undisclosed
Mick FergusonFWEnglandNewcastle upon Tyne3 October 1954 (aged 30)00England Brighton & Hove Albion31 March 1986Undisclosed
Perry GrovesWGEnglandBow19 April 1965 (aged 20)13317England Cornard DynamosSummer 1981Free transfer
  1. ↑ Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game in his second spell for the club

Transfers

In

Date Position Nationality Name From Fee Ref.
August 1985 CB England Kirk Game England Southend United Free transfer [7]
August 1985 MF England John Reeves England Fulham Undisclosed [8]
November 1985 CB England Terry Baker England Billericay Town Free transfer [9]
8 November 1985 FW England Tommy English Australia Canberra City Undisclosed [10][lower-alpha 1]
23 November 1985 FW England Trevor Whymark England Diss Town Free transfers [11][lower-alpha 2]
20 December 1985 FW England Robin Turner Wales Swansea City Undisclosed [12][lower-alpha 1]
31 March 1986 FW England Mick Ferguson England Brighton & Hove Albion Undisclosed [13]
  • Total spending: Decrease ~ £0
  1. 1 2 Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game in his second spell for the club
  2. ↑ Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game for the club

Out

Date Position Nationality Name To Fee Ref.
End of season FW Dominica Liburd Henry England Rainham Town Free transfer [14]
26 October 1985 FW Wales Keith Bowen Free agent Retired [15][lower-alpha 1]
6 November 1985 MF England Jeff Hull Free agent Retired [16][lower-alpha 1]
14 December 1985 FW England Trevor Whymark Free agent Released [11]
31 January 1986 MF England Russell Irving England Stowmarket Town Undisclosed [17][lower-alpha 1]
31 March 1986 MF England Noel Parkinson Free agent Retired [18][lower-alpha 1]
8 April 1986 CB Scotland Stewart Houston Free agent Retired [19][lower-alpha 1][lower-alpha 2]
6 May 1986 MF England Roger Osborne England Sudbury Town Undisclosed [20][lower-alpha 1]
6 May 1986 FW England Robin Turner England Bury Town Released [12][lower-alpha 1]
  • Total incoming: Increase ~ £0
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Date of departure refers to the date of the player's final game for the club
  2. ↑ Joined Plymouth Argyle as coach

Loans in

Date Position Nationality Name From End date Ref.
November 1985 FW England Robin Turner Wales Swansea City 14 December 1985 [12][lower-alpha 1]
  1. ↑ Loan end date refers to the date of the player's final game for the club

Match details

Fourth Division

Fourth Division results round by round

Round12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031323334353637383940414243444546
GroundHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAAHAAHHAHAHAAHAHHAHHAAHHAAHH
ResultWLWLWWWWWWDLDWLLLLLLWDLWDDLDWDDDLLDWLWDDWWWWWD
Position5116844221111112577912101113111110101299121215161413141212121288666

Source: 11v11.com
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

League table

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPts1Promotion, qualification or relegation
4Port Vale (P)46211696737+3079Promoted to Third Division
5Orient462012147964+1572
6Colchester United461913148863+2570
7Hartlepool United462010166867+170
8Northampton Town461810187958+2164

Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored

(C) Champion; (P) Promoted; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated; (R) Relegated.

Notes:

1 The points system: 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 points for losing.

Matches

League Cup

FA Cup

Associate Members' Cup

Team Pts Pld W D L F A GD
Northampton Town (Q) 6220052+3
Colchester United 3210153+2
Southend United 0200227-5

(Q) Qualified for next round

Squad statistics

Appearances and goals

[6][21]

No. Pos Nat Player TotalFourth DivisionFA CupLeague CupFootball League Trophy
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
GK England Alec Chamberlain 510460102020
DF England Terry Baker 233212000021
DF England Keith Day 325305002000
DF England Tony English 50114511102020
DF England Kirk Game 603+1010000+10
DF England Rudi Hedman 44338+13102020
DF Scotland Ian Phillips 412372002020
MF England Andy Farrell 251241100000
MF England John Reeves 274244102000
FW England Tony Adcock 38163315102021
FW England Simon Burman 11110+11000000
FW England Tommy English 241016+71000000+10
FW England Mick Ferguson 1079+17000000
FW England Perry Groves 471542+112101023
Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season
DF Scotland Stewart Houston 410360102020
MF England Jeff Hull 504+10000000
MF England Roger Osborne 38128+61001+1020
MF England Noel Parkinson 407357101+1020
FW Wales Keith Bowen 178155002300
FW England Russell Irving 1002+70001000
FW England Robin Turner 1406+50100020
FW England Trevor Whymark 2020000000

Goalscorers

[21]

Place Nationality Position Name Fourth Division FA Cup League Cup Football League Trophy Total
1 England FW Tony Adcock 15 0 0 1 16
2 England WG Perry Groves 12 0 0 3 15
3 England DF/MF Tony English 11 0 0 0 11
4 England FW Tommy English 10 0 0 0 10
5 Wales FW Keith Bowen 5 0 3 0 8
6 England FW Mick Ferguson 7 0 0 0 7
England MF Noel Parkinson 7 0 0 0 7
8 England CB Keith Day 5 0 0 0 5
9 England MF John Reeves 4 0 0 0 4
10 England CB Terry Baker 2 0 0 1 3
England CB Rudi Hedman 3 0 0 0 3
12 Scotland FB Ian Phillips 2 0 0 0 2
13 England WG/MF Simon Burman 1 0 0 0 1
England MF/FB Andy Farrell 1 0 0 0 1
England MF Roger Osborne 1 0 0 0 1
Own goals 2 0 0 0 2
TOTALS 88 0 3 5 96

Disciplinary record

[22]

Nationality Position Name Fourth Division FA Cup League Cup Football League Trophy Total
Yellow card Red card Yellow card Red card Yellow card Red card Yellow card Red card Yellow card Red card
England WG Perry Groves 6 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 1
England DF/MF Tony English 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1
England FW Tommy English 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1
England MF John Reeves 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0
England CB Keith Day 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0
England WG/MF Simon Burman 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
England MF/FB Andy Farrell 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
England MF Noel Parkinson 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
England FW Tony Adcock 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Wales FW Keith Bowen 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
England FW Mick Ferguson 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
England CB Rudi Hedman 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
TOTALS 26 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 26 3

Clean sheets

Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet.[23]

Place Nationality Player Fourth Division FA Cup League Cup Football League Trophy Total
1 England Alec Chamberlain 10 0 0 0 10
TOTALS 10 0 0 0 10

Player debuts

Players making their first-team Colchester United debut in a fully competitive match.[24]

Position Nationality Player Date Opponent Ground Notes
MF England John Reeves 17 August 1985 Stockport County Layer Road
CB England Kirk Game 8 November 1985 Rochdale Layer Road
FW England Tommy English 9 November 1985 Rochdale Layer Road [25][lower-alpha 1]
FW England Robin Turner 8 November 1985 Rochdale Layer Road
FW England Trevor Whymark 23 November 1985 Preston North End Deepdale
FW England Robin Turner 20 December 1985 Wrexham Layer Road [26][lower-alpha 1]
CB England Terry Baker 11 January 1986 Torquay United Layer Road
FW England Mick Ferguson 31 March 1986 Peterborough United London Road Stadium
  1. 1 2 Second debut for the club

See also

References

General

Books

  • Whitehead, Jeff; Drury, Kevin (2008). The Who's Who of Colchester United: The Layer Road Years. Derby: Breedon Books. ISBN 978-1-85983-629-3.

Websites

  • "Colchester United football club match record: 1986". 11v11.com. Retrieved 10 July 2018.

Specific

  1. ↑ Whitehead, Jeff; Drury, Kevin (2008). The Who's Who of Colchester United: The Layer Road Years. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 279. ISBN 978-1-85983-629-3.
  2. ↑ "Colchester Utd 1–1 Exeter City". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  3. ↑ "Colchester Utd 1–2 Crewe Alexandra". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  4. ↑ "Average Attendance Figures Per Season". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  5. ↑ Hudson, Matt (11 July 2012). "The 1970s and 1980s". Colchester United FC. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  6. 1 2 "Appearances". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
  7. ↑ "Kirk Game". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  8. ↑ "John Reeves". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  9. ↑ "Terry Baker". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  10. ↑ "Tommy English". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  11. 1 2 "Trevor Whymark". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  12. 1 2 3 "Robin Turner". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  13. ↑ "Mick Ferguson". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  14. ↑ Triggs, Roger (2001). The Men Who Made Gillingham Football Club. Tempus Publishing Ltd. pp. 153–154. ISBN 0-7524-2243-X.
  15. ↑ "Keith Bowen". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  16. ↑ "Jeff Hull". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  17. ↑ "Russell Irving". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  18. ↑ "Noel Parkinson". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  19. ↑ "Stewart Houston". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  20. ↑ "Roger Osborne". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  21. 1 2 "Goals". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
  22. ↑ "Discipline". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
  23. ↑ "Clean sheets (1st team)". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
  24. ↑ "Alltime- List of Debuts". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
  25. ↑ "Colchester Utd 0–1 Rochdale". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
  26. ↑ "Colchester Utd 5–2 Wrexham". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
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