Colchester United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Colchester, Essex, that was founded in 1937.

Colchester United competed in the Southern Football League from 1937 until 1950,[1] when they were elected to the Football League.[2] During this time, Colchester produced one of the most notable FA Cup runs by a non-league side in 1947–48, as they defeated fellow non-leaguers Banbury Spencer in the first round, before beating Football League clubs Wrexham, Huddersfield Town and Bradford Park Avenue. They finally fell to Blackpool in the fifth round.[3]

Colchester played in the Third Division South for eight seasons, until the league was re-organised at the end of the 1957–58 season. They finished in 12th position in the table that year, meaning that from the 1958–59 season, the U's would play in the Third Division.[4] Colchester remained in the Third Division until they were relegated in 1961,[5] but made an immediate return to the third tier when they finished the 1961–62 season in second position, one point behind champions Millwall.[6]

Three years later, the club finished 23rd of 24 clubs in the Third Division, as they were relegated back to the Fourth Division.[7] Another single season in the fourth tier followed as Colchester were promoted in fourth position.[8] Their spell in the Third Division was brief, as they were once again relegated in 1968.[9]

The U's remained in the Fourth Division for a further six seasons, but during this period, they embarked on one of the most notable runs in FA Cup history. Manager Dick Graham took his ageing side to the 1970–71 quarter-finals. They dispatched non-league side Ringmer in the first round, before knocking-out Cambridge United, Barnet and Rochdale following a replay. United faced Don Revie's formidable Leeds United side in the fifth round, who were at the top of the First Division at the time. The U's raced to an unprecedented 3–0 lead in the match, before Leeds pulled two goals back. The match ended 3–2 to Colchester to record a famous giant-killing victory. The U's then faced Everton in the quarter-final but lost 5–0 at Goodison Park.[10] Three seasons later, Colchester sealed promotion again as they ended the 1973–74 season in third place.[11]

Relegation from the Third Division followed in 1976,[12] with promotion again following one season later.[13] Colchester returned to the Fourth Division for the final time in 1981 as they finished 22nd of 24 teams.[14] Colchester struggled financially in the late 1980s and suffered a significant drop in form, resulting in the club finishing bottom of the entire Football League in 1990 and as such were relegated to the Conference.[10][15]

Colchester returned to the Football League at the second attempt, finishing second to Barnet in 1990–91,[16] before beating Wycombe Wanderers to the title in 1991–92. The club completed a league and cup double as they lifted the FA Trophy. Now in the recently renamed Division Three, Colchester earned a play-off spot in the 1995–96 season, but lost in the semi-finals to Plymouth Argyle. The U's reached Wembley for the first time for the 1997 Football League Trophy Final, but were defeated on penalties by Carlisle United.[17][18]

Colchester did achieve Wembley success the following season as they beat Torquay United 1–0 in the 1998 Football League Third Division play-off final.[19] The club consolidated their position in the third tier for a number of seasons, before they achieved another feat in earning promotion to the Championship in 2006 by finishing in second position to Southend United.[20] Colchester then finished in 10th position in the Championship, their highest-ever league finish.[21] However, the following season, they were relegated back to League One.[22]

Following relegation from the Championship, Colchester remained in League One for eight seasons. Initially the club fought for the play-off positions, but began to struggle in the lower reaches of the league by the 2012–13 season, narrowly avoiding relegation that year.[1] Colchester were relegated from League One to the fourth tier of English football for the first time in 18 years at the end of the 2015–16 season.[23]

In League Two, Colchester were competitive, finishing in the top-half of the table regularly.[1] The club reached the 2019–20 play-offs, but were eliminated in the semi-finals by Exeter City.[24] The following season, Colchester struggled amidst the constraints of the COVID-19 pandemic, only securing their League Two status in the penultimate game of the season.[25]

Since their formation in 1937, as of the 2021–22 season, Colchester United have spent two seasons in the second tier of English football, 37 seasons in the third tier, 30 seasons in the fourth tier and two seasons in the Football Conference. Prior to their 1950 election to the Football League, Colchester spent seven seasons in the Southern League.[26] The table below details Colchester United's in all senior first-team competitions from the 1937–38 season to the end of the most recently completed season.

Key

Details of abandoned competitions are shown in italics and appropriately footnoted.

Seasons

Season League[26][27][28] FA
Cup[26] 		League
Cup[26] 		Other[26][29] Top goalscorer[30][a] Average
attendance[31][b]
Division P W D L F A Pts Pos Comp Result Name Goals
1937–38 SFL 34 15 8 11 90 58 38 6/18 DNE – SLC W Scotland Alec Cheyne 33 5,167
1938–39 SFL 44 31 5 8 110 37 67 1/23 R1 – SLC SF Wales Arthur Pritchard 44 8,307
1939–40 SFL 3 1 1 1 4 3 3 N/A N/A – – – England Len Astill
England Joe Birch
Scotland Alec Cheyne
England George Law 		2 4,200
No competitive football was played between 1939 and 1945 due to the Second World War
1945–46 SFL 20 7 3 10 29 47 17 8/11 4QR – – – England Bob Hodgson 5 3,858
1946–47 SFL 31 15 4 12 65 60 35 8/17 R1 – SLC SF England Arthur Turner 24 6,218
1947–48 SFL 34 17 10 7 88 41 44 4/17 R5 – SLC F England Bob Curry 30 9,231
1948–49 SFL 42 21 10 11 94 61 52 4/22 R1 – SLC F England Arthur Turner 24 8,476
1949–50 SFL 46 31 9 6 109 51 71 2/24 4QR – SLC W England Vic Keeble 42 8,639
1950–51 D3S 46 14 12 20 63 76 40 16/24 R1 – – – England Bob Curry 15 10,571
1951–52 D3S 46 17 12 17 56 77 46 10/24 R3 – – – England Vic Keeble 17 9,429
1952–53 D3S 46 12 14 20 59 76 38 22/24 R3 – – – England Kevin McCurley 18 8,002
1953–54 D3S 46 10 10 26 50 78 30 23/24 R1 – – – England Bert Barlow 10 7,797
1954–55 D3S 46 9 13 24 53 91 31 24/24 R1 – – – England Ken Plant 13 7,284
1955–56 D3S 46 18 11 17 76 81 47 12/24 R1 – – – England Kevin McCurley 29 7,668
1956–57 D3S 46 22 14 10 84 56 58 3/24 R1 – – – England Ken Plant 24 9,351
1957–58 D3S 46 17 13 16 77 79 47 12/24 R1 – – – England Ken Plant 19 10,891
1958–59 D3 46 21 10 15 71 67 52 5/24 R4 – – – England Neil Langman 26 8,357
1959–60 D3 46 18 11 17 83 74 47 9/24 R1 – – – England Martyn King 30 7,856
1960–61 D3 46 11 11 24 68 101 33 23/24 R2 R2 – – England Martyn King 25 5,203
1961–62 D4 46 23 9 12 104 71 55 2/24 R1 R1 – – England Bobby Hunt 40 5,532
1962–63 D3 46 18 11 17 73 93 47 12/24 R1 R2 – – England Martyn King 27 5,313
1963–64 D3 46 12 19 15 70 68 43 17/24 R3 R2 – – England Bobby Hunt 24 5,242
1964–65 D3 46 10 10 26 50 89 30 23/24 R2 R1 – – Scotland Billy Stark 14 3,634
1965–66 D4 46 23 10 13 70 47 56 4/24 R1 R2 – – England Reg Stratton 21 5,225
1966–67 D3 46 17 10 19 76 73 44 13/24 R2 R1 – – England Reg Stratton 24 5,714
1967–68 D3 46 9 15 22 50 87 33 23/24 R3 R1 – – England Reg Stratton 11 4,591
1968–69 D4 46 20 12 14 57 53 52 6/24 R2 R2 – – England Danny Light 14 6,048
1969–70 D4 46 17 14 15 64 63 48 10/24 R1 R2 – – England Ken Jones 16 4,664
1970–71 D4 46 21 12 13 70 54 54 6/24 QF R2 – – England Ray Crawford 31 6,362
1971–72 D4 46 19 10 17 70 69 48 11/24 R1 R3 WC W England Brian Lewis 22 5,695
1972–73 D4 46 10 11 25 48 76 31 22/24 R2 R1 – – England Mick Mahon 12 3,440
1973–74 D4 46 24 12 10 73 36 60 3/24 R1 R1 – – England Bobby Svarc 26 5,601
1974–75 D3 46 17 13 16 70 63 47 11/24 R2 QF – – England Bobby Svarc 25 5,460
1975–76 D3 46 12 14 20 41 65 38 22/24 R1 R1 – – England Steve Foley 7 3,385
1976–77 D4 46 25 9 12 77 43 59 3/24 R4 R1 – – England Colin Garwood 24 4,944
1977–78 D3 46 15 18 13 55 44 48 8/24 R2 R3 – – England Bobby Gough 17 4,566
1978–79 D3 46 17 17 12 60 55 51 7/24 R5 R1 – – England Bobby Gough 22 3,921
1979–80 D3 46 20 12 14 64 56 52 5/24 R3 R2 – – England Trevor Lee 18 3,932
1980–81 D3 46 14 11 21 45 65 39 22/24 R3 R1 – – Scotland Kevin Bremner 10 2,956
1981–82 D4 46 20 12 14 82 57 72 6/24 R3 R3 – – England Ian Allinson 26 3,161
1982–83 D4 46 24 9 13 75 55 81 6/24 R1 R2 – – England Ian Allinson 26 2,690
1983–84 D4 46 17 16 13 69 53 67 8/24 R3 R3 AMC R2 (S) England Tony Adcock 33 2,847
1984–85 D4 46 20 14 12 87 65 74 7/24 R2 R1 AMC R2 (S) England Tony Adcock 28 2,225
1985–86 D4 46 19 13 14 88 63 70 6/24 R1 R1 AMC R1 (S) England Tony Adcock 16 2,253
1986–87 D4 46 21 7 18 64 56 70 5/24 R2 R1 AMC R1 (S) England Tony Adcock
England Tommy English 		12 2,753
1987–88 D4 46 19 10 17 47 51 67 9/24 R3 R1 AMC R2 (S) England Dale Tempest 14 1,776
1988–89 D4 46 12 14 20 60 78 50 22/24 R4 R1 AMC QF (S) England Mario Walsh 15 2,871
1989–90 D4 46 11 10 25 48 75 43 24/24 R2 R1 AMC R1 (S) England Trevor Morgan 12 3,139
1990–91 CON 42 25 10 7 68 35 85 2/22 R2 – BLT
FAT 		R2
R4 		England Mario Walsh 18 3,196
1991–92 CON 42 28 10 4 98 40 94 1/22 R1 – BLT
FAT
 R2
 England Roy McDonough 29 3,381
1992–93 D3 42 18 5 19 67 76 59 10/22 R2 R1 FLT R1 (S) England Gary Bennett
England Steve McGavin 		10 3,768
1993–94 D3 42 13 10 19 56 71 49 17/22 R1 R1 FLT R3 (S) England Steve Brown 13 2,833
1994–95 D3 42 16 10 16 56 64 58 10/22 R3 R1 FLT R1 (S) England Steve Whitton 13 3,201
1995–96 D3 46 18 18 10 61 51 72 7/24 R1 R1 FLT R3 (S) England Tony Adcock 17 3,299
1996–97 D3 46 17 17 12 62 51 68 8/24 R1 R2 FLT F England Tony Adcock 14 3,422
1997–98 D3 46 21 11 14 72 60 74 4/24 R2 R1 FLT R1 (S) England David Gregory 10 3,267
1998–99 D2 46 12 16 18 52 70 52 18/24 R1 R1 FLT R1 (S) England David Gregory 14 4,303
1999–2000 D2 46 14 10 22 59 82 52 18/24 R1 R1 FLT R1 (S) England Steve McGavin 16 3,801
2000–01 D2 46 15 12 19 55 59 57 17/24 R1 R2 FLT R1 (S) England Mick Stockwell 11 3,466
2001–02 D2 46 15 12 19 65 77 57 15/24 R1 R2 FLT R2 (S) England Scott McGleish 16 3,705
2002–03 D2 46 14 16 16 52 56 58 12/24 R1 R1 FLT R1 (S) England Joe Keith
England Scott McGleish 		9 3,367
2003–04 D2 46 17 13 16 52 56 64 11/24 R5 R2 FLT F (S) England Scott McGleish 17 3,730
2004–05 L1 46 14 17 15 60 50 59 15/24 R4 R3 FLT R1 (S) England Craig Fagan 14 3,481
2005–06 L1 46 22 13 11 58 40 79 2/24 R5 R1 FLT F (S) Scotland Chris Iwelumo 19 3,843
2006–07 CHA 46 20 9 17 70 56 69 10/24 R3 R1 – – England Jamie Cureton 24 5,466
2007–08 CHA 46 7 17 22 62 86 38 24/24 R3 R1 – – Jamaica Kevin Lisbie 17 5,446
2008–09 L1 46 18 9 19 58 58 63 12/24 R1 R2 FLT SF (S) Republic of Ireland Mark Yeates 13 5,076
2009–10 L1 46 20 12 14 64 52 72 8/24 R3 R1 FLT R1 (S) Jamaica Kevin Lisbie 13 5,437
2010–11 L1 46 16 14 16 57 63 62 10/24 R3 R2 FLT R2 (S) Republic of Ireland Dave Mooney 14 4,071
2011–12 L1 46 13 20 13 61 66 59 10/24 R2 R1 FLT R1 (S) England Anthony Wordsworth 13 3,747
2012–13 L1 46 14 9 23 47 68 51 20/24 R1 R1 FLT R2 (S) England Jabo Ibehre
England Freddie Sears 		8 3,530
2013–14 L1 46 13 14 19 53 61 53 16/24 R1 R1 FLT R1 (S) England Freddie Sears 12 3,631
2014–15 L1 46 14 10 22 58 77 52 19/24 R3 R1 FLT R2 (S) England Freddie Sears 14 3,704
2015–16 L1 46 9 13 24 57 99 40 23/24 R4 R1 FLT R1 (S) England George Moncur 14 4,299
2016–17 L2 46 19 12 15 67 57 69 8/24 R1 R1 EFLT GS (S) England Chris Porter 16 3,974
2017–18 L2 46 16 14 16 53 52 62 13/24 R1 R1 EFLT GS (S) England Sammie Szmodics 13 3,185
2018–19 L2 46 20 10 16 65 53 70 8/24 R1 R1 EFLT GS (S) England Sammie Szmodics 15 3,361
2019–20[c] L2 37 15 13 9 52 37 58 6/24 R1 QF EFLT R2 (S) Jamaica Theo Robinson 12 3,606
2020–21 L2 46 11 18 17 44 61 51 20/24 R1 R1 EFLT GS (S) Jamaica Jevani Brown 11 1,047*[d]
2021–22 L2 46 14 13 19 48 60 55 15/24 R2 R1 EFLT R3 England Freddie Sears 8 2,813[32]
2022–23 L2 46 12 13 21 43 51 49 20/24 R1 R2 EFLT R2 England Noah Chilvers 9 3,586[33]

Footnotes

  1. ^ Includes goals scored in the Southern League, the Football League (including play-offs), Conference, FA Cup, League Cup, Associate Members' Cup/Football League Trophy/EFL Trophy, FA Trophy, Bob Lord Trophy, Southern League Cup and Watney Cup.
  2. ^ Includes home attendances recorded in the Southern League, the Football League (including play-offs), Conference, FA Cup, League Cup, Associate Members' Cup/Football League Trophy/EFL Trophy, FA Trophy, Bob Lord Trophy, Southern League Cup and Watney Cup.
  3. ^ Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, on 15 May 2020, EFL clubs voted to end the season with immediate effect with the final table being determined on a points-per-game basis. The play-offs were played as normal.
  4. ^ Due to the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, fans attended only two games during the course of the season at a reduced capacity.

References

  1. ^ a b c "Tables". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  2. ^ "The 1930s and 1940s". Colchester United FC. 11 August 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  3. ^ "The 1930s and 1940s". Colchester United FC. 11 August 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  4. ^ "Colchester United 1957–1958". Statto. Archived from the original on 4 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  5. ^ "Colchester United 1960–1961". Statto. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  6. ^ "Colchester United 1961–1962". Statto. Archived from the original on 4 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  7. ^ "Colchester United 1964–1965". Statto. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  8. ^ "Colchester United 1965–1966". Statto. Archived from the original on 3 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  9. ^ "Colchester United 1967–1968". Statto. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  10. ^ a b "The 1970s and 1980s". Colchester United FC. 11 July 2012. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  11. ^ "Colchester United 1973–1974". Statto. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  12. ^ "Colchester United 1975–1976". Statto. Archived from the original on 4 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  13. ^ "Colchester United 1976–1977". Statto. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  14. ^ "Colchester United 1980–1981". Statto. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  15. ^ "Colchester United 1989–1990". Statto. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  16. ^ "Colchester United 1990–1991". Statto. Archived from the original on 23 June 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  17. ^ "The 1980s and 1990s". Colchester United FC. 11 August 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  18. ^ Haylett, Trevor (21 April 1997). "Football: Happy ending for Carlisle". Independent. London. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  19. ^ "Colchester promoted". BBC News. 22 May 1998. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  20. ^ "Colchester United 2005–2006". Statto. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  21. ^ "Colchester United 2006–2007". Statto. Archived from the original on 3 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  22. ^ "Colchester United 2007–2008". Statto. Archived from the original on 3 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  23. ^ "Colchester United 2015–2016". Statto. Archived from the original on 1 June 2016. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  24. ^ Pilnick, Brent (22 June 2020). "Exeter City 3–1 Colchester United (agg: 3–2): Ryan Bowman earns League Two semi-final play-off win". BBC Sport. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  25. ^ "Colchester United 1–0 Salford City". BBC Sport. 1 May 2021. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  26. ^ a b c d e "COLCHESTER UNITED". Football Club History Database. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  27. ^ "Colchester United : History 1945 to 1975". Statto. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  28. ^ "Colchester United : History 1975 to date". Statto. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  29. ^ "Southern League Cup Results". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  30. ^ "Leading Goalscorers per Season in ALL competitions". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  31. ^ "Average Attendance Figures Per Season". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  32. ^ "Sky Bet League Two | Average Attendances | Home Matches | 2021-2022 | Football Web Pages".
  33. ^ "Sky Bet League Two | Average Attendances | Home Matches | Football Web Pages".
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