1985–86 Colchester United F.C. season

Colchester United
1985–86 season
Chairman	Jonathan Crisp
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
Lowest home attendance	1,356; v Crewe Alexandra, 25 March 1986
Average home league attendance	2,253
Biggest win	5–0; v Peterborough United, 22 April 1986
Biggest defeat	0–4; v Chester City, 6 November 1985
	Home colours
	Home colours
	← 1984–85 1986–87 →

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	Place of birth	Date of birth	Apps	Goals	Signed from	Date signed	Fee
Goalkeepers
Alec Chamberlain	GK	March	(1964-06-20)20 June 1964 (aged 20)	114	0	Ipswich Town	Summer 1982	Undisclosed
Defenders
Terry Baker	CB	Rochford	(1965-11-13)13 November 1965 (aged 19)	0	0	Billericay Town	November 1985	Free transfer
Keith Day	CB	Grays	(1962-11-29)29 November 1962 (aged 22)	52	4	Aveley	Summer 1984	Undisclosed
Tony English	DF/MF	Luton	(1966-10-19)19 October 1966 (aged 18)	25	3	Coventry City	24 December 1984	Free transfer
Kirk Game	CB	Rochford	(1966-10-22)22 October 1966 (aged 18)	0	0	Southend United	August 1985	Free transfer
Rudi Hedman	CB	Lambeth	(1964-11-16)16 November 1964 (aged 20)	40	2	Apprentice	February 1984	Free transfer
Ian Phillips	FB	Cumnock	(1959-04-23)23 April 1959 (aged 26)	93	6	Northampton Town	September 1983	£5,000
Midfielders
Andy Farrell	MF/FB	Colchester	(1965-10-07)7 October 1965 (aged 19)	67	0	Apprentice	Summer 1982	Free transfer
John Reeves	MF	Hackney	(1963-07-08)8 July 1963 (aged 21)	0	0	Fulham	August 1985	Undisclosed
Forwards
Tony Adcock	FW	Bethnal Green	(1963-03-27)27 March 1963 (aged 22)	171	84	Apprentice	31 March 1981	Free transfer
Simon Burman	WG/MF	Ipswich	(1965-11-26)26 November 1965 (aged 19)	9	0	Apprentice	15 February 1985	Free transfer
Tommy English	FW	Cirencester	(1961-10-18)18 October 1961 (aged 23)	1	0	Canberra City	8 November 1985^[a]	Undisclosed
Mick Ferguson	FW	Newcastle upon Tyne	(1954-10-03)3 October 1954 (aged 30)	0	0	Brighton & Hove Albion	31 March 1986	Undisclosed
Perry Groves	WG	Bow	(1965-04-19)19 April 1965 (aged 20)	133	17	Cornard Dynamos	Summer 1981	Free transfer

^ Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game in his second spell for the club

Transfers

In

Date	Position	Name	From	Fee	Ref.
August 1985	CB	Kirk Game	Southend United	Free transfer	^[7]
August 1985	MF	John Reeves	Fulham	Undisclosed	^[8]
November 1985	CB	Terry Baker	Billericay Town	Free transfer	^[9]
8 November 1985	FW	Tommy English	Canberra City	Undisclosed	^[10]^[a]
23 November 1985	FW	Trevor Whymark	Diss Town	Free transfers	^[11]^[b]
20 December 1985	FW	Robin Turner	Swansea City	Undisclosed	^[12]^[a]
31 March 1986	FW	Mick Ferguson	Brighton & Hove Albion	Undisclosed	^[13]

Total spending: ~ £0

^ ^a ^b Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game in his second spell for the club
^ Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game for the club

Out

Date	Position	Name	To	Fee	Ref.
End of season	FW	Liburd Henry	Rainham Town	Free transfer	^[14]
26 October 1985	FW	Keith Bowen	Free agent	Retired	^[15]^[a]
6 November 1985	MF	Jeff Hull	Free agent	Retired	^[16]^[a]
14 December 1985	FW	Trevor Whymark	Free agent	Released	^[11]
31 January 1986	MF	Russell Irving	Stowmarket Town	Undisclosed	^[17]^[a]
31 March 1986	MF	Noel Parkinson	Free agent	Retired	^[18]^[a]
8 April 1986	CB	Stewart Houston	Free agent	Retired	^[19]^[a]^[b]
6 May 1986	MF	Roger Osborne	Sudbury Town	Undisclosed	^[20]^[a]
6 May 1986	FW	Robin Turner	Bury Town	Released	^[12]^[a]

Total incoming: ~ £0

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Date of departure refers to the date of the player's final game for the club
^ Joined Plymouth Argyle as coach

Loans in

Date	Position	Nationality	Name	From	End date	Ref.
November 1985	FW		Robin Turner	Swansea City	14 December 1985	^[12]^[a]

^ Loan end date refers to the date of the player's final game for the club

Match details

Fourth Division

Results round by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45	46
Ground	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	A	H	A	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	H	A	A	H	H	A	A	H	H
Result	W	L	W	L	W	W	W	W	W	W	D	L	D	W	L	L	L	L	L	L	W	D	L	W	D	D	L	D	W	D	D	D	L	L	D	W	L	W	D	D	W	W	W	W	W	D
Position	5	11	6	8	4	4	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	1	2	5	7	7	9	12	10	11	13	11	11	10	10	12	9	9	12	12	15	16	14	13	14	12	12	12	12	8	8	6	6	6

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

League table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Promotion or relegation
4	Port Vale	46	21	16	9	67	37	+30	79	Promoted
5	Orient	46	20	12	14	79	64	+15	72
6	Colchester United	46	19	13	14	88	63	+25	70
7	Hartlepool United	46	20	10	16	68	67	+1	70
8	Northampton Town	46	18	10	18	79	58	+21	64

Source: ^{[citation needed]}

Matches

17 August 1985 (1985-08-17) 1	Colchester United	3–1	Stockport County	Colchester
11:30 BST	Osborne 36' Day 71' Adcock 74'	Report	Smith 78'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 1,719 Referee: E Scales

24 August 1985 (1985-08-24) 2	Wrexham	2–1	Colchester United	Wrexham
	Bowen 59' (o.g.) Steel 63'	Report	Reeves 30'	Stadium: Racecourse Ground Attendance: 2,296 Referee: M Reed

27 August 1985 (1985-08-27) 3	Colchester United	4–0	Aldershot	Colchester
19:30 BST	Tony English 36' Adcock 73' Groves 78' Hedman 82'	Report		Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 1,928 Referee: K Baker

31 August 1985 (1985-08-31) 4	Torquay United	2–1	Colchester United	Torquay
	Lambert 3' Crowe 54'	Report	Adcock 27'	Stadium: Plainmoor Attendance: 1,023 Referee: A Robinson

6 September 1985 (1985-09-06) 5	Colchester United	3–1	Halifax Town	Colchester
19:30 BST	Adcock 1', 20' Bowen 56'	Report	Gallagher 60'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 2,023 Referee: M Cotton

14 September 1985 (1985-09-14) 6	Tranmere Rovers	3–4	Colchester United	Birkenhead
	Sinclair 30' Muir 41' Worthington 58' (pen.)	Report	Tony English 34' Groves 38' Parkinson 40' Day 46'	Stadium: Prenton Park Attendance: 1,362 Referee: D Shaw

17 September 1985 (1985-09-17) 7	Colchester United	4–1	Cambridge United	Colchester
	Adcock 2', 30', 57' Groves 85'	Report	Crown 75'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 2,574 Referee: N Butler

21 September 1985 (1985-09-21) 8	Orient	1–2	Colchester United	Leyton
	Shinners 33'	Report	Parkinson 56' Bowen 88'	Stadium: Brisbane Road Attendance: 2,577 Referee: G Napthine

27 September 1985 (1985-09-27) 9	Colchester United	1–0	Port Vale	Colchester
19:30 BST	Bowen 32'	Report		Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 3,110 Referee: Alan Gunn

1 October 1985 (1985-10-01) 10	Burnley	0–2	Colchester United	Burnley
		Report	Adcock 46' Bowen 60'	Stadium: Turf Moor Attendance: 3,375 Referee: A Saunders

4 October 1985 (1985-10-04) 11	Colchester United	1–1	Exeter City	Colchester
19:30 BST	Day 29'	Report	Gale 47'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 3,927 Referee: D Reeves

12 October 1985 (1985-10-12) 12	Mansfield Town	2–1	Colchester United	Mansfield
	Luke 56' Chamberlain 62'	Report	Tony English 51'	Stadium: Field Mill Attendance: 3,364 Referee: K Brean

18 October 1985 (1985-10-18) 13	Colchester United	1–1	Scunthorpe United	Colchester
19:30 BST	Reeves 78'	Report	Broddle 67'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 3,462 Referee: Brian Hill

22 October 1985 (1985-10-22) 14	Southend United	2–4	Colchester United	Southend-on-Sea
19:45 BST	Gymer 74' McDonough 77'	Report	Bowen 16' Groves 49', 63', 85'	Stadium: Roots Hall Attendance: 8,120 Referee: D Vickers

26 October 1985 (1985-10-26) 15	Colchester United	0–2	Northampton Town	Colchester
11:00 BST		Report	Chard 2' Mann 23'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 2,872 Referee: M James

2 November 1985 (1985-11-02) 16	Hereford United	2–0	Colchester United	Hereford
	Phillips 7', 37'	Report		Stadium: Edgar Street Attendance: 3,081 Referee: R Groves

6 November 1985 (1985-11-06) 17	Chester City	4–0	Colchester United	Chester
	Greenough 16' Rimmer 59', 70' Abel 75'	Report		Stadium: Sealand Road Attendance: 2,809 Referee: David Allison

8 November 1985 (1985-11-08) 18	Colchester United	0–1	Rochdale	Colchester
19:30 GMT		Report	McMahon 70'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 2,624 Referee: I Hemley

23 November 1985 (1985-11-23) 19	Preston North End	3–2	Colchester United	Preston
14:00 GMT	Thomas 16' Gray Stevens 47'	Report	Parkinson 68' (pen.) Adcock 80'	Stadium: Deepdale Attendance: 2,793 Referee: F Roberts

14 December 1985 (1985-12-14) 20	Hartlepool United	4–1	Colchester United	Hartlepool
	Shoulder 2', 43' (pen.) Dixon 74' Robinson 78'	Report	Hedman 36'	Stadium: Victoria Park Attendance: 2,507 Referee: A Banks

20 December 1985 (1985-12-20) 21	Colchester United	5–2	Wrexham	Colchester
19:30 GMT	Comstive 9' (o.g.) Adcock 17', 84' Groves 77' Hedman 79'	Report	Cunnington 55' Gregory 77'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 1,683 Referee: A Robinson

28 December 1985 (1985-12-28) 22	Aldershot	1–1	Colchester United	Aldershot
	Coleman 35'	Report	Day 4'	Stadium: Recreation Ground Attendance: 1,757 Referee: Keith Cooper

1 January 1986 (1986-01-01) 23	Swindon Town	2–1	Colchester United	Swindon
	Cole 4' Wade 45'	Report	Parkinson 55'	Stadium: County Ground Attendance: 8,802 Referee: Rob Lewis

3 January 1986 (1986-01-03) 24	Colchester United	4–1	Hereford United	Colchester
19:30 GMT	Parkinson 43', 83' Tommy English 77' Phillips 80'	Report	Delve 84'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 2,214 Referee: Tony Ward

11 January 1986 (1986-01-11) 25	Colchester United	0–0	Torquay United	Colchester
11:30 GMT		Report		Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 2,063 Referee: D Hedges

17 January 1986 (1986-01-17) 26	Stockport County	1–1	Colchester United	Stockport
	Hodkinson 9'	Report	Groves 30'	Stadium: Edgeley Park Attendance: 2,336 Referee: T Mills

24 January 1986 (1986-01-24) 27	Colchester United	1–2	Tranmere Rovers	Colchester
19:30 GMT	Parkinson 78'	Report	Hilditch 30' Mungall 41'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 2,013 Referee: Colin Downey

31 January 1986 (1986-01-31) 28	Halifax Town	2–2	Colchester United	Halifax
	Sanderson 70' Kellock 73'	Report	Baker 36' Adcock 60'	Stadium: The Shay Attendance: 989 Referee: G Aplin

4 February 1986 (1986-02-04) 29	Colchester United	2–0	Southend United	Colchester
	Adcock 4' Clark 22' (o.g.)	Report		Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 1,915 Referee: E Scales

1 March 1986 (1986-03-01) 30	Port Vale	1–1	Colchester United	Burslem
	Jones 77'	Report	Groves 68'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 2,726 Referee: Peter Willis

8 March 1986 (1986-03-08) 31	Exeter City	2–2	Colchester United	Exeter
	Ward 67' Crawford 67'	Report	Adcock 42' Burman 85'	Stadium: St James Park Attendance: 1,520 Referee: Keith Cooper

14 March 1986 (1986-03-14) 32	Colchester United	0–0	Mansfield Town	Colchester
19:30 GMT		Report		Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 1,956 Referee: L Shapter

22 March 1986 (1986-03-22) 33	Northampton Town	1–0	Colchester United	Northampton
	Donald 13'	Report		Stadium: County Ground Attendance: 2,035 Referee: P Tyldesley

25 March 1986 (1986-03-25) 34	Colchester United	1–2	Crewe Alexandra	Colchester
	Tony English 62'	Report	Cutler 20' Phillips 31' (o.g.)	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 1,356 Referee: I Hemley

28 March 1986 (1986-03-28) 35	Colchester United	1–1	Swindon Town	Colchester
19:30 GMT	Tony English 54'	Report	Bamber 62'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 2,997 Referee: Alan Gunn

31 March 1986 (1986-03-31) 36	Peterborough United	1–2	Colchester United	Peterborough
	Fuccillo 29'	Report	Tony English 6' Baker 84'	Stadium: London Road Stadium Attendance: 2,316 Referee: M Reed

4 April 1986 (1986-04-04) 37	Colchester United	2–3	Chester City	Colchester
19:30 BST	Tommy English 57', 62' (pen.)	Report	Johnson 3' Glenn 30' Greenough 62'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 2,281 Referee: D Reeves

8 April 1986 (1986-04-08) 38	Colchester United	4–0	Orient	Colchester
	Ferguson 17' Day 33' Phillips 66' Tony English 78'	Report		Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 1,771 Referee: J Holbrook

12 April 1986 (1986-04-12) 39	Rochdale	3–3	Colchester United	Rochdale
	Baker 32' (o.g.) Taylor 50', 74' (pen.)	Report	Ferguson 20' Farrell 76' Tommy English 83' (pen.)	Stadium: Spotland Stadium Attendance: 1,182 Referee: P Vanes

15 April 1986 (1986-04-15) 40	Scunthorpe United	1–1	Colchester United	Scunthorpe
	Dixon 21'	Report	Ferguson 7'	Stadium: Old Showground Attendance: 1,238 Referee: G Tyson

18 April 1986 (1986-04-18) 41	Colchester United	4–0	Preston North End	Colchester
19:30 BST	Tommy English 30' (pen.), 75', 83' (pen.) Ferguson 78'	Report	Gibson 27' Atkins 85'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 2,046 Referee: Tony Ward

22 April 1986 (1986-04-22) 42	Colchester United	5–0	Peterborough United	Colchester
19:30 BST	Reeves 26' Tommy English 64' Tony English 66', 80', 89'	Report		Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 1,863 Referee: Martin Bodenham

26 April 1986 (1986-04-26) 43	Crewe Alexandra	0–2	Colchester United	Crewe
	Blissett 66'	Report	Groves 25', 39' Tommy English 66' Tony English 66'	Stadium: Gresty Road Attendance: 1,555 Referee: N Glover

29 April 1986 (1986-04-29) 44	Cambridge United	1–3	Colchester United	Cambridge
	Crown 69' (pen.)	Report	Reeves 7' Ferguson 14', 35'	Stadium: Abbey Stadium Attendance: 3,115 Referee: G Napthine

2 May 1986 (1986-05-02) 45	Colchester United	3–1	Hartlepool United	Colchester
19:30 BST	Ferguson 25' Tommy English 89' Tony English 90' Groves 79'	Report	Hogan 7' (pen.)	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 2,410 Referee: H Taylor

6 May 1986 (1986-05-06) 46	Colchester United	2–2	Burnley	Colchester
19:30 BST	Groves 41' Tommy English 80'	Report	Lawrence 62' Devine 84'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 2,726 Referee: M Cotton

League Cup

21 August 1985 (1985-08-21) 1st round 1st leg	Colchester United	2–3	Millwall	Colchester
18:30 BST	Bowen 12', 89'	Report	Lovell 7' (pen.), 10' (pen.) Fashanu 14'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 1,430

2 September 1985 (1985-09-02) 1st round 2nd leg	Millwall	4–1	Colchester United	New Cross
	Lovell 9' Lowndes 35' Fashanu 72' Leslie 80'	Report	Bowen 78' (pen.)	Stadium: The Den Attendance: 3,330 Referee: J Bray
Note: Millwall won 7–3 on aggregate.

FA Cup

16 November 1985 (1985-11-16) 1st round	Wycombe Wanderers	2–0	Colchester United	High Wycombe
	West 3' Read 40'	Report		Stadium: Loakes Park Attendance: 3,089 Referee: E Scales

Associate Members' Cup

Group 2
Team v t e	Pld	W	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Northampton Town	2	2	0	5	2	+3	6
Colchester United	2	1	1	5	3	+2	3
Southend United	2	0	2	2	7	−5	0

Source: ^{[citation needed]}

14 January 1986 (1986-01-14) Preliminary round (southern section)	Colchester United	4–1	Southend United	Colchester
	Groves 12', 38', 39' Adcock 29'	Report	Clark 47'	Stadium: Layer Road Attendance: 1,364 Referee: J Moules

21 January 1986 (1986-01-21) Preliminary round (southern section)	Northampton Town	2–1	Colchester United	Northampton
	Schiavi 4' Benjamin 82'	Report	Baker 36'	Stadium: County Ground Attendance: 1,958 Referee: Gerald Ashby

Squad statistics

Appearances and goals

^[6]^[21]

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		Fourth Division		FA Cup		League Cup		Football League Trophy
No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
	GK	ENG	Alec Chamberlain	51	0	46	0	1	0	2	0	2	0
	DF	ENG	Terry Baker	23	3	21	2	0	0	0	0	2	1
	DF	ENG	Keith Day	32	5	30	5	0	0	2	0	0	0
	DF	ENG	Tony English	50	11	45	11	1	0	2	0	2	0
	DF	ENG	Kirk Game	6	0	3+1	0	1	0	0	0	0+1	0
	DF	ENG	Rudi Hedman	44	3	38+1	3	1	0	2	0	2	0
	DF	SCO	Ian Phillips	41	2	37	2	0	0	2	0	2	0
	MF	ENG	Andy Farrell	25	1	24	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
	MF	ENG	John Reeves	27	4	24	4	1	0	2	0	0	0
	FW	ENG	Tony Adcock	38	16	33	15	1	0	2	0	2	1
	FW	ENG	Simon Burman	11	1	10+1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
	FW	ENG	Tommy English	24	10	16+7	10	0	0	0	0	0+1	0
	FW	ENG	Mick Ferguson	10	7	9+1	7	0	0	0	0	0	0
	FW	ENG	Perry Groves	47	15	42+1	12	1	0	1	0	2	3
Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season
	DF	SCO	Stewart Houston	41	0	36	0	1	0	2	0	2	0
	MF	ENG	Jeff Hull	5	0	4+1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	MF	ENG	Roger Osborne	38	1	28+6	1	0	0	1+1	0	2	0
	MF	ENG	Noel Parkinson	40	7	35	7	1	0	1+1	0	2	0
	FW	WAL	Keith Bowen	17	8	15	5	0	0	2	3	0	0
	FW	ENG	Russell Irving	10	0	2+7	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
	FW	ENG	Robin Turner	14	0	6+5	0	1	0	0	0	2	0
	FW	ENG	Trevor Whymark	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Goalscorers

^[21]

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

Disciplinary record

^[22]

Nationality	Position	Name	Fourth Division		FA Cup		League Cup		Football League Trophy		Total
Nationality	Position	Name
	WG	Perry Groves	6	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	6	1
	DF/MF	Tony English	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	1
	FW	Tommy English	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1
	MF	John Reeves	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
	CB	Keith Day	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
	WG/MF	Simon Burman	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
	MF/FB	Andy Farrell	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
	MF	Noel Parkinson	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
	FW	Tony Adcock	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	FW	Keith Bowen	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	FW	Mick Ferguson	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	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		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	Player	Date	Opponent	Ground	Notes
MF	John Reeves	17 August 1985	Stockport County	Layer Road
CB	Kirk Game	8 November 1985	Rochdale	Layer Road
FW	Tommy English	9 November 1985	Rochdale	Layer Road	^[25]^[a]
FW	Robin Turner	8 November 1985	Rochdale	Layer Road
FW	Trevor Whymark	23 November 1985	Preston North End	Deepdale
FW	Robin Turner	20 December 1985	Wrexham	Layer Road	^[26]^[a]
CB	Terry Baker	11 January 1986	Torquay United	Layer Road
FW	Mick Ferguson	31 March 1986	Peterborough United	London Road Stadium

^ ^a ^b Second debut for the club

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

^ 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.
^ "Colchester Utd 1–1 Exeter City". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
^ "Colchester Utd 1–2 Crewe Alexandra". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
^ "Average Attendance Figures Per Season". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 June 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
^ Hudson, Matt (11 July 2012). "The 1970s and 1980s". Colchester United FC. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
^ ^a ^b "Appearances". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
^ "Kirk Game". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ "John Reeves". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ "Terry Baker". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ "Tommy English". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ ^a ^b "Trevor Whymark". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Robin Turner". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ "Mick Ferguson". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ Triggs, Roger (2001). The Men Who Made Gillingham Football Club. Tempus Publishing Ltd. pp. 153–154. ISBN 0-7524-2243-X.
^ "Keith Bowen". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ "Jeff Hull". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ "Russell Irving". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ "Noel Parkinson". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ "Stewart Houston". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ "Roger Osborne". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^ ^a ^b "Goals". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
^ "Discipline". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
^ "Clean sheets (1st team)". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
^ "Alltime- List of Debuts". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 June 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
^ "Colchester Utd 0–1 Rochdale". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
^ "Colchester Utd 5–2 Wrexham". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.

[SDG-7] Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game in his second spell for the club

[SDG-12] Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game in his second spell for the club

[DG-14] Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game for the club

[FG-19] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Date of departure refers to the date of the player's final game for the club

[24] Joined Plymouth Argyle as coach

[Loanend-26] Loan end date refers to the date of the player's final game for the club

[2deb-32] Second debut for the club

[WWCU-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. Archived from the original on 26 June 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2018.

[5] Hudson, Matt (11 July 2012). "The 1970s and 1980s". Colchester United FC. Retrieved 8 July 2018.

[apps-6] "Appearances". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2018.

[8] "Kirk Game". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[9] "John Reeves". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[10] "Terry Baker". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[11] "Tommy English". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[Whymark-13] "Trevor Whymark". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[Turner-15] "Robin Turner". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[16] "Mick Ferguson". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[17] Triggs, Roger (2001). The Men Who Made Gillingham Football Club. Tempus Publishing Ltd. pp. 153–154. ISBN 0-7524-2243-X.

[18] "Keith Bowen". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[20] "Jeff Hull". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[21] "Russell Irving". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[22] "Noel Parkinson". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[23] "Stewart Houston". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[25] "Roger Osborne". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

[goals-27] "Goals". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.

[28] "Discipline". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.

[29] "Clean sheets (1st team)". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.

[30] "Alltime- List of Debuts". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 June 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2018.

[31] "Colchester Utd 0–1 Rochdale". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.

[33] "Colchester Utd 5–2 Wrexham". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2018.

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