1993–94 Colchester United F.C. season

Colchester United
1993–94 season
Chairman Gordon Parker[1]
Manager Roy McDonough
Stadium Layer Road
Third Division 17th
FA Cup 1st round
(eliminated by
Sutton United)
League Cup 1st round
(eliminated by
Fulham)
Football League Trophy Quarter-final (southern section)
(eliminated by
Wycombe Wanderers)
Top goalscorer League:
Steve Brown (11)
All:
Steve Brown (13)
Highest home attendance 3,478
v Mansfield Town, 27 December 1993[2]
Lowest home attendance 1,489
v Cambridge United, 19 October 1993[3]
Average home league attendance 2,833[4]
Biggest win 5–2
v Wycombe Wanderers, 18 September 1993
4–1
v Bury, 25 September 1993
Biggest defeat 0–5
v Hereford United, 16 October 1993
Home colours

The 1993–94 season was Colchester United's 52nd season in their history and their second consecutive season in the fourth tier of English football, the Third Division. Alongside competing in the Third Division, the club also participated in the FA Cup, the League Cup and the Football League Trophy.

Following a 10th-placed finish the previous campaign, Colchester's defensive frailties were clear as they shipped 71 goals, the second-highest in the league and ended the season in 17th. They crashed out of the FA Cup to non-League opposition in Sutton United, while Fulham saw off the U's in the first round of the League Cup. In the Football League Trophy, Colchester progressed to the southern section quarter-final but were eliminated by old Conference rivals Wycombe Wanderers.

Season overview

Following a campaign of goalkeeping uncertainty where the U's employed six different 'keepers over the course of the season, finding a regular starter between the sticks was key for manager Roy McDonough. With youth team product Nathan Munson on the books, McDonough brought in John Keeley from Oldham Athletic in the summer. However, his performances did not convince and he played his final game for the club in November 1993. This meant a string of mid-season transfers and loans of goalkeepers into the club, and the U's ended the season having once again used six different goalkeepers. McDonough even found himself in goal in October 1993 when facing Hereford United after Keeley and substitute Munson were both sent off for professional fouls. The U's went on to lose that game 5–0. Colchester were the first Football League club to have two goalkeepers sent off in the same fixture. Hereford striker Chris Pike scored a hat-trick in the game, with each of his goals coming against three different goalkeepers.[5]

The fans frustration at the defensive performances came to a head in the FA Cup first round. The U's found themselves 2–0 down at home to non-League side Sutton United, before goals from Steve McGavin and Steve Brown levelled the score at 2–2 early in the second half. Sutton struck again in the 84th minute, before Tony English equalised two minutes later. Despite their best efforts, two-minutes from time, Ollie Morah scored the winner for Sutton to send them into the second round.

The financial situation was bleak. There were no funds to bring in a permanent goalkeeper, and striker Steve McGavin was sold to Birmingham City for £150,000 in January. Again, no funds were made available for a replacement. It took a consortium of local businessmen to raise £10,000 to buy Steve Whitton from Ipswich Town on deadline day to fill the gap. As such, the U's ended the season in a disappointing 17th-position in Division Three.

There was an early exit from the League Cup as Fulham beat Colchester over two legs in the first round, while in the Football League Trophy, the U's progressed from the first round group stage, then beat Wrexham in the second round, before falling to defeat in the southern section quarter-final at home to Wycombe Wanderers, who won 1–0.

Roy McDonough was handed a silver salver by chairman Gordon Parker on the last day of the season in recognition of McDonough's 500th career appearance. Three days later it was Parker, McDonough's father-in-law, that sacked him.[6]

Players

As of match played 7 May 1994.[7]
Name Position Nationality Place of birth Date of birth Apps Goals Signed from Date signed Fee
Goalkeepers
John CheesewrightGKEnglandRomford12 January 1973 (aged 20)00England Braintree Town11 January 1994[lower-alpha 1]£10,000
David SchultzGK00ApprenticeSummer 1993Free transfer
Defenders
Tim AllpressDFEnglandHitchin27 January 1971 (aged 22)00Germany Bayer Uerdingen16 August 1993Undisclosed
Simon BettsFBEnglandMiddlesbrough3 March 1973 (aged 20)250England Scarborough11 December 1992Free transfer
Peter CawleyCBEnglandWalton-on-Thames15 September 1965 (aged 27)273England Barnet30 October 1992[lower-alpha 2]Free transfer
Tony EnglishDF/MFEnglandLuton19 October 1966 (aged 26)39950England Coventry City24 December 1984Free transfer
Andy PartnerCBEnglandColchester21 October 1974 (aged 18)40Apprentice16 December 1991[lower-alpha 1]Free transfer
Midfielders
Steve BallMFEnglandColchester2 September 1969 (aged 23)339England Cambridge United14 September 1992Free transfer
Tony CookMFEnglandHemel Hempstead17 September 1976 (aged 16)00England Queens Park Rangers11 January 1994[lower-alpha 1]Free transfer
Alan DickensMFEnglandPlaistow3 September 1964 (aged 28)00England BrentfordSeptember 1993Free transfer
Chris FryMF/WGWalesCardiff23 October 1969 (aged 23)00England Hereford United24 October 1993Nominal
Mark KinsellaMFRepublic of IrelandDublin12 August 1972 (aged 20)12113Republic of Ireland Home Farm18 August 1989Free transfer
Forwards
Paul AbrahamsFW/WGEnglandColchester31 October 1973 (aged 19)326Apprentice26 August 1991[lower-alpha 1]Free transfer
Steve BrownFWEnglandSouthend-on-Sea6 December 1973 (aged 19)00England Scunthorpe United28 August 1993[lower-alpha 1]Undisclosed
Sean CampbellWGEnglandBristol31 December 1974 (aged 18)00ApprenticeSummer 1993Free transfer
Roy McDonoughFWEnglandSolihull16 October 1958 (aged 34)22273England Southend United13 October 1990[lower-alpha 2]Part exchange
Steve WhittonFWEnglandEast Ham4 December 1960 (aged 32)00England Ipswich Town24 March 1994£10,000
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game for the club
  2. 1 2 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.
Summer 1993 WG England Sean Campbell Apprentice Free transfer [8]
Summer 1993 GK England David Schultz Apprentice Free transfer [9]
July 1993 GK England John Keeley England Oldham Athletic Free transfer [10]
August 1993 FW Scotland Grant Morrow England Doncaster Rovers Undisclosed [11]
16 August 1993 DF England Tim Allpress Germany Bayer Uerdingen Undisclosed [12][13]
28 August 1993 FW England Steve Brown England Scunthorpe United Undisclosed [14][lower-alpha 1]
September 1993 MF England Alan Dickens England Brentford Free transfer [15]
September 1993 FW England John Richardson England Chesham United Non-contract [16]
24 October 1993 MF/WG Wales Chris Fry England Hereford United Nominal [17][18]
11 January 1994 FW England Justin Booty Apprentice Free transfer [19][lower-alpha 1]
11 January 1994 GK England John Cheesewright England Braintree Town £10,000 [20][lower-alpha 1]
11 January 1994 MF England Tony Cook England Queens Park Rangers Free transfer [21][lower-alpha 1]
February 1994 FB England Christian Hyslop England Southend United Free transfer [22]
24 March 1994 GK United States Taylor Barada England Notts County Free transfer [23]
24 March 1994 FW England Steve Whitton England Ipswich Town £10,000 [24]
30 April 1994 FW England Justin Gentle England Luton Town Free transfer [25][lower-alpha 1]
  • Total spending: Decrease ~ £20,000
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 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 WG England Robert Hopkins England Solihull Borough Released [26][lower-alpha 1]
14 August 1993 MF England Jason Cook England Dagenham & Redbridge Released [27][lower-alpha 2]
28 August 1993 FW Scotland Grant Morrow England Boston United Undisclosed [11][lower-alpha 2]
31 August 1993 FW England Julian Hazel England Chelmsford City Released [28]
11 September 1993 WG England Gary Bennett England Woking Free transfer [29][lower-alpha 2]
21 October 1993 FB England Martin Grainger England Brentford £60,000 [30][31]
20 November 1993 GK England John Keeley England Chelmsford City Released [10][lower-alpha 2]
11 December 1993 GK England Nathan Munson England Wivenhoe Town Released [32][lower-alpha 2]
11 December 1993 FW England John Richardson England Chesham United Released [16][lower-alpha 2]
3 January 1994 DF England Paul Roberts England Chesham United Released [33][lower-alpha 2]
7 January 1994 FW England Steve McGavin England Birmingham City £150,000 [34][35]
15 January 1994 FW England Justin Booty England Braintree Town Released [19][lower-alpha 2]
29 March 1994 FB England Christian Hyslop England Hendon Released [22][lower-alpha 2]
30 April 1994 GK United States Taylor Barada United States Richmond Kickers Undisclosed [23][lower-alpha 2]
7 May 1994 FW England Justin Gentle England Chesham United Released [25][lower-alpha 2]
7 May 1994 LM England Nicky Smith England Wycombe Wanderers Released [36][lower-alpha 2]
  • Total incoming: Increase ~ £0
  1. ↑ Joined as player-coach
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Date of departure refers to the date of the player's final game for the club

Loans in

Date Position Nationality Name From End date Ref.
8 October 1993 MF/FB England Adam Locke England Southend United 2 November 1993 [37][38][lower-alpha 1]
30 October 1993 GK England Mike Desborough England Chelmsford City 30 October 1993 [39][lower-alpha 2]
18 November 1993 CB England Mike Basham England West Ham United 20 November 1993 [40][41][lower-alpha 1]
23 December 1993 GK England Jon Sheffield England Cambridge United 27 January 1994 [42][43]
January 1994 FW England Grant Watts England Crystal Palace 4 April 1994 [44][lower-alpha 1]
22 March 1994 WG England Ian Brown England Bristol City 6 April 1994 [45][46][lower-alpha 3]
  1. 1 2 3 Loan end date refers to the date of the player's final game for the club
  2. ↑ Loan start and end dates refer to the date of the player's first and final games for the club
  3. ↑ Second spell with the club

Match details

Third Division

Third Division results round by round

Round123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142
GroundHAHHAHAHAHAHAAHAHHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAAHAHAHA
ResultWLWDDLWWLWLWLLLLWLDWDLWDLWLDLDLLWDDDLLLWWL
Position5118981285668591114151315171312141111151314151518181815171516181818181617

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

League table

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPts1Promotion, qualification or relegation
15Doncaster Rovers421410184457-1352
16Gillingham421215154451-751
17Colchester United421310195671-1549
18Lincoln City421211195263-1147
19Wigan Athletic421112195170-1945

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

Football League Trophy

Team Pts Pld W D L F A GD
Cambridge United (Q) 4211042+2
Colchester United (Q) 22020220
Gillingham 1201102-2

(Q) Qualified for next round

FA Cup

Squad statistics

Appearances and goals

[7][47]

No. Pos Nat Player TotalThird DivisionFA CupLeague CupFootball League Trophy
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
GK England John Cheesewright 180170000010
DF England Tim Allpress 27021+20001+1020
DF England Simon Betts 38131+21101030
DF England Peter Cawley 411361100040
DF England Tony English 495424112040
MF England Steve Ball 38227+5200203+10
MF England Alan Dickens 36328+43100030
MF Wales Chris Fry 17012+50000000
MF Republic of Ireland Mark Kinsella 4810428102131
FW England Paul Abrahams 601+30000+2000
FW England Steve Brown 381330+411110031
FW England Sean Campbell 501+30000010
FW England Tony Cook 301+1000000+10
FW England Roy McDonough 45936+2710213+11
FW England Steve Whitton 8282000000
Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season
GK United States Taylor Barada 1010000000
GK England Mike Desborough 1010000000
GK England John Keeley 200150102020
GK England Nathan Munson 402+10000010
GK England Jon Sheffield 6060000000
DF England Mike Basham 1010000000
DF England Martin Grainger 1125+32002010
DF England Christian Hyslop 8080000000
DF England Paul Roberts 260210102020
MF England Jason Cook 100+10000000
MF England Adam Locke 5040000010
MF England Nicky Smith 44029+100102020
FW England Gary Bennett 603+10002000
FW England Justin Booty 200+10000010
FW England Ian Brown 4141000000
FW England Justin Gentle 200+20000000
FW England Steve McGavin 27920+18112030
FW Scotland Grant Morrow 100+10000000
FW England John Richardson 1001+7000001+10
FW England Grant Watts 1328+4200000+10

Goalscorers

[47]

Place Nationality Position Name Third Division FA Cup EFL Cup Football League Trophy Total
1 England FW Steve Brown 11 1 0 1 13
2 Republic of Ireland MF Mark Kinsella 8 0 1 1 10
3 England FW Roy McDonough 7 0 1 1 9
England FW Steve McGavin 8 1 0 0 9
5 England DF/MF Tony English 4 1 0 0 5
6 England MF Alan Dickens 3 0 0 0 3
7 England MF Steve Ball 2 0 0 0 2
England FB Martin Grainger 2 0 0 0 2
England FW Grant Watts 2 0 0 0 2
England FW Steve Whitton 2 0 0 0 2
11 England FB Simon Betts 1 0 0 0 1
England WG Ian Brown 1 0 0 0 1
England CB Peter Cawley 1 0 0 0 1
Own goals 4 0 0 0 4
TOTALS 56 3 2 3 64

Disciplinary record

[48]

Nationality Position Name Third 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 FB Christian Hyslop 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
England GK John Keeley 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
England GK Nathan Munson 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
TOTALS 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3

Clean sheets

Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet.[49]

Place Nationality Player Third Division FA Cup League Cup Football League Trophy Total
1 England Jon Sheffield 4 0 0 0 4
2 England John Cheesewright 3 0 0 0 3
3 England John Keeley 1 0 0 1 2
4 England Nathan Munson 0 0 0 1 1
TOTALS 8 0 0 2 10

Player debuts

Players making their first-team Colchester United debut in a fully competitive match.[50]

Position Nationality Player Date Opponent Ground Notes
GK England John Keeley 14 August 1993 Lincoln City Layer Road
DF England Tim Allpress 17 August 1993 Fulham Craven Cottage
WG England Sean Campbell 21 August 1993 Crewe Alexandra Gresty Road
FW England Steve Brown 28 August 1993 Northampton Town Layer Road
FW Scotland Grant Morrow 28 August 1993 Northampton Town Layer Road
MF England Alan Dickens 4 September 1993 Torquay United Plainmoor
FW England John Richardson 25 September 1993 Bury Layer Road
MF/FB England Adam Locke 9 October 1993 Scunthorpe United Layer Road
GK England Mike Desborough 30 October 1993 Gillingham Priestfield Stadium
CB England Mike Basham 20 November 1993 Doncaster Rovers Belle Vue
MF/WG Wales Chris Fry 27 December 1993 Mansfield Town Layer Road
GK England Jon Sheffield 27 December 1993 Mansfield Town Layer Road
FW England Justin Booty 11 January 1994 Wycombe Wanderers Layer Road
GK England John Cheesewright 11 January 1994 Wycombe Wanderers Layer Road
MF England Tony Cook 11 January 1994 Wycombe Wanderers Layer Road
FW England Grant Watts 11 January 1994 Wycombe Wanderers Layer Road
FB England Christian Hyslop 19 February 1994 Northampton Town County Ground
WG England Ian Brown 26 March 1994 Preston North End Layer Road
FW England Steve Whitton 29 March 1994 Chesterfield Saltergate
GK United States Taylor Barada 30 April 1994 Doncaster Rovers Layer Road
FW United States Justin Gentle 30 April 1994 Doncaster Rovers Layer Road

    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: 1994". 11v11.com. Retrieved 22 August 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 0–0 Mansfield Town". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
    3. ↑ "Colchester Utd 2–2 Cambridge United". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
    4. ↑ "Average Attendance Figures Per Season". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
    5. ↑ "Hereford United 5–0 Colchester United". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    6. ↑ Hudson, Matt (11 August 2013). "The 1990s and 2000s". Colchester United FC. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    7. 1 2 "Appearances". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    8. ↑ "Sean Campbell". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    9. ↑ Whitehead, Jeff; Drury, Kevin (2008). The Who's Who of Colchester United: The Layer Road Years. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 262. ISBN 978-1-85983-629-3.
    10. 1 2 "John Keeley (Goalkeeper)". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    11. 1 2 "Grant Morrow". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    12. ↑ "Tim Allpress". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    13. ↑ Tim Allpress at Soccerbase
    14. ↑ "Steve Brown". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    15. ↑ "Alan Dickens". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    16. 1 2 "John Richardson". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    17. ↑ "Chris Fry". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    18. ↑ Chris Fry at Soccerbase
    19. 1 2 "Justin Booty". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    20. ↑ "John Cheesewright (Goalkeeper)". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    21. ↑ "Tony Cook". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    22. 1 2 "Christian Hyslop". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    23. 1 2 "Taylor Barada (Goalkeeper)". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    24. ↑ "Steve Whitton (Midfielder / Forward)". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    25. 1 2 "Justin Gentle". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    26. ↑ "Robert Hopkins". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    27. ↑ "Jason Cook". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    28. ↑ "Julian Hazel". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    29. ↑ "Gary Bennett". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    30. ↑ "Martin Grainger". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    31. ↑ Martin Grainger at Soccerbase
    32. ↑ "Nathan Munson (Goalkeeper)". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    33. ↑ "Paul Roberts". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    34. ↑ "Steve McGavin". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    35. ↑ Steve McGavin at Soccerbase
    36. ↑ "Nicky Smith". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    37. ↑ "Adam Locke". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    38. ↑ Adam Locke at Soccerbase
    39. ↑ "Mike Desborough (Goalkeeper)". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    40. ↑ "Mike Basham". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    41. ↑ Mike Basham at Soccerbase
    42. ↑ "Jon Sheffield (Goalkeeper)". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    43. ↑ Jon Sheffield at Soccerbase
    44. ↑ "Grant Watts". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    45. ↑ "Ian Brown". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
    46. ↑ Ian Brown at Soccerbase
    47. 1 2 "Goals". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
    48. ↑ "Discipline". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
    49. ↑ "Clean sheets (1st team)". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
    50. ↑ "Alltime- List of Debuts". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
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