1984–85 Colchester United F.C. season

Colchester United

1984–85 season
Chairman	Maurice Cadman[1]
Manager	Cyril Lea
Fourth Division	7th
FA Cup	2nd round
Milk Cup	1st round
Freight Rover Trophy	2nd round (southern section)
Top goalscorer	League: Tony Adcock (24) All: Tony Adcock (28)
Highest home attendance	2,525 (Hereford United)
Lowest home attendance	1,641 (Aldershot)
Average home league attendance	2,076
Home colours
← 1983–84 1985–86 →

The 1984–85 season was Colchester United's fourth consecutive season in the Football League Fourth Division.

Season review

During the 1983–94 season, Chairman Maurice Cadman announced that win bonuses would be dropped for the 1984–85 season with an insurance-backed promotion bonus on offer and that the club was available for sale at £150,000. During the summer, only three of the eight players out of contract chose to move on despite the new bonus scheme. The biggest loss was Steve Wignall who joined Brentford.

Remarkably, United were paired with Gillingham in both major Cup competitions and the Freight Rover Trophy. The 5-0 FA Cup thrashing at Layer Road on 8 December 1984 became United's biggest ever home defeat.

Forward Tony Adcock continued to score at will and by January had 28 goals to his credit. It was rumoured that Liverpool were only a signature away from his capture, but a cruel knee injury virtually finished his season in which he surely would have smashed Bobby Hunt's 38 goal club record.

United also lost their shirt sponsors but Cadman finally got his buyer when Jonathan Crisp paid £150,000 for overall control of United. He promised Second Division football within five years but in the light of the horrific Bradford fire, the timber-constructed Layer Road stands and terracing meant that it was of utmost importance to accelerate United's move to a new stadium.

As was becoming the norm, United were just not quite good enough for promotion finishing seventh and ten points adrift of fourth place. The club equalled its record away win with a 5-1 return from the 23 March 1985 trip to Exeter but worryingly average crowds totalled just 2,076.^[2]

Squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player –– GK Alec Chamberlain –– DF Keith Day –– DF Tony English –– DF Rudi Hedman –– DF Stewart Houston –– DF Ian Phillips –– MF Simon Burman –– MF Andy Farrell

No. Position Player –– MF Perry Groves –– MF Jeff Hull –– MF Roger Osborne –– MF Noel Parkinson –– FW Tony Adcock –– FW Keith Bowen –– FW Russell Irving

Player info

Pos.	Name	Place of Birth	Date of Birth	Previous Club	Date Joined	Fee
GK	Alec Chamberlain	March	20 June 1964	Ipswich Town	3 January 1983	Free
DF	Keith Day	Grays	29 November 1962	Aveley	25 August 1984	Free
DF	Tony English	Luton	19 October 1966	Coventry City	1 January 1985	Free
DF	Rudi Hedman	Lambeth	16 November 1964	Youth Team	1 August 1983	Free
DF	Stewart Houston	Dunoon	20 August 1949	Sheffield United	27 August 1983	Free
DF	Ian Phillips	Cumnock	23 April 1959	Northampton Town	9 September 1983	Free
MF	Simon Burman	Ipswich	26 November 1965	Youth Team	1 August 1984	Free
MF	Andy Farrell	Colchester	7 October 1965	Youth Team	1 August 1983	Free
MF	Perry Groves	Bow	19 April 1965	Youth Team	1 August 1981	Free
MF	Jeff Hull	Rochford	25 August 1960	Basildon United	17 December 1982	Free
MF	Roger Osborne	Otley	9 March 1950	Ipswich Town	14 February 1981	£25,000
MF	Noel Parkinson	Hull	16 November 1959	Scunthorpe United	28 August 1984	Free
FW	Tony Adcock	Bethnal Green	27 March 1963	Youth Team	1 August 1980	Free
FW	Keith Bowen	Northampton	26 February 1958	Brentford	25 March 1983	Free
FW	Russell Irving	Wallsend	4 January 1964	Ipswich Town	25 August 1984	Free

Transfers

Transfers in

Date	Pos.	Player Name	Previous Club	Transfer Fee	Notes
1 August 1984	MF	Simon Burman	Youth Team	Free
1 August 1984	MF	Stuart Youngman	Youth Team	Free
25 August 1984	DF	Keith Day	Aveley	Free
25 August 1984	DF	Daryl Godbold	Norwich City	Free
25 August 1984	FW	Russell Irving	Ipswich Town	Free
28 August 1984	MF	Noel Parkinson	Scunthorpe United	Free
1 January 1985	DF	Tony English	Coventry City	Free
5 February 1985	FW	Tommy English	Plymouth Argyle	Free

Transfers out

Date	Pos.	Player Name	New Club	Transfer Fee	Notes
5 May 1984	DF	Phil Coleman	Exeter City	Free
11 May 1984	DF	Tony Hadley	Southend United	Free
11 May 1984	DF	Steve Wignall	Brentford	Free
11 May 1984	FW	Les Mutrie	Hartlepool United	Free
21 December 1984	DF	Daryl Godbold	Wroxham	Free
5 February 1985	FW	Tommy English	Canberra City	Free
23 April 1985	MF	Stuart Youngman	Wroxham	Free
23 April 1985	FW	Dave Hubbick	Sudbury Town	Free

Loans in

Date	Pos.	Player Name	Parent Club	Date Returned	Notes
16 April 1985	FW	Paul Shinners	Gillingham	10 May 1985

Results

Fourth Division results summary

Pos	Club	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
6	Tranmere Rovers	46	24	3	19	83	66	+17	75
7	Colchester United	46	20	14	12	87	65	+22	74
7	Swindon Town	46	21	9	16	62	58	+4	72

Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points

Fourth Division results

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
25/08/1984	Southend United	H	3-3	2,378	Adcock (3)
31/08/1984	Scunthorpe United	A	2-2	1,818	Bowen, Adcock
08/09/1984	Blackpool	H	1-1	1,772	Adcock
15/09/1984	Bury	A	3-4	2,145	Adcock, Houston, Hull
19/09/1984	Mansfield Town	A	1-0	2,084	Bowen
22/09/1984	Aldershot	H	2-0	1,641	Adcock (2)
29/09/1984	Northampton Town	A	3-1	1,595	Parkinson, Adcock, Bowen
02/10/1984	Torquay United	H	2-1	1,813	Bowen, Hull
13/10/1984	Darlington	A	0-4	2,021
16/10/1984	Exeter City	H	3-4	1,846	Adcock, Hull, Groves
20/10/1984	Chester City	A	2-1	1,400	Adcock (2)
23/10/1984	Stockport County	H	3-0	2,153	Hull (2), Groves
26/10/1984	Halifax Town	H	1-3	2,295	Adcock
03/11/1984	Chesterfield	A	1-1	3,614	Adcock
06/11/1984	Tranmere Rovers	A	1-3	1,587	Godbold
09/11/1984	Hartlepool United	H	1-0	2,136	Adcock
24/11/1984	Rochdale	A	1-1	1,012	Groves
01/12/1984	Peterborough United	H	3-1	2,070	Irving, Groves, Adcock
15/12/1984	Swindon Town	A	1-2	2,263	Adcock
21/12/1984	Crewe Alexandra	A	4-1	1,529	Adcock, Groves, Bowen (2)
26/12/1984	Hereford United	H	2-2	2,525	Adcock, Bowen
28/12/1984	Port Vale	H	3-2	2,014	Groves, Bowen (pen.) (2)
01/01/1985	Wrexham	A	2-2	1,376	Phillips, Irving
26/01/1985	Bury	H	1-0	2,028	Osborne
29/01/1985	Southend United	A	5-2	2,401	Adcock, Groves (2), Bowen (2)
01/02/1985	Northampton Town	H	4-1	2,314	Hedman, Adcock, Day, Parkinson (pen.)
22/02/1985	Chesterfield	H	3-1	2,303	Adcock (3)
26/02/1985	Mansfield Town	H	2-1	2,267	Day, Groves
01/03/1985	Halifax Town	A	0-0	1,022
04/03/1985	Stockport County	A	0-1	1,561
08/03/1985	Chester City	H	1-1	2,224	Irving
15/03/1985	Darlington	H	1-2	1,739	Irving
23/03/1985	Exeter City	A	5-1	1,828	Bowen (2), Parkinson, Irving (2)
26/03/1985	Blackpool	A	1-1	4,057	Tony English
29/03/1985	Tranmere Rovers	H	2-1	2,044	Day, Tony English
02/04/1985	Scunthorpe United	H	1-1	2,409	Day
06/04/1985	Hereford United	A	1-2	3,485	Bowen (pen.)
08/04/1985	Wrexham	H	4-1	2,204	Bowen, Irving (2), Hubbick
13/04/1985	Hartlepool United	A	1-2	1,512	Parkinson
16/04/1985	Torquay United	A	1-1	1,191	Bowen
19/04/1985	Rochdale	H	1-1	1,853	Parkinson
23/04/1985	Aldershot	A	0-1	1,624
27/04/1985	Peterborough United	A	1-0	1,624	Hedman
04/05/1985	Swindon Town	H	1-1	1,867	Tony English
06/05/1985	Port Vale	A	2-3	2,526	Shinners, Groves
10/05/1985	Crewe Alexandra	H	4-1	1,864	Osborne, Bowen, Parkinson, Irving

Source: 1984-85 Season Colchester United Results - coludata.co.uk

League Cup

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
28/08/1984	R1 (L1)	Gillingham	A	2-3	2,689	Bowen, Houston
02/09/1985	R1 (L2)	Gillingham	H	0-2	2,162

Source: 1984-85 Season Colchester United Results - coludata.co.uk

FA Cup

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
17/11/1984	R1	Southend United	A	2-2	2,935	Irving, Houston
21/11/1984	R1 (R)	Southend United	H	3-2 (AET)	3,907	Adcock, Pennyfather (o.g.), Groves
08/12/1984	R2	Gillingham	H	0-5	4,487

Source: 1984-85 Season Colchester United Results - coludata.co.uk

League Trophy

Southern section

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
23/01/1985	R1 (L1)	Gillingham	A	2-2	––	Groves, Adcock
05/02/1985	R1 (L2)	Gillingham	H	2-0	1,762	Adcock (2)
12/03/1985	R2	Walsall	A	0-1	4,108

Source: 1984-85 Season Colchester United Results - coludata.co.uk

Squad statistics

^[3]

No.	Nat.	Pos.	Name	Total		Division Four		FA Cup		League Cup		League Trophy
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
––	GK		Alec Chamberlain	54	0	46	0	3	0	2	0	3	0
––	DF		Keith Day	52	4	45	4	3	0	2	0	2	0
––	DF		Tony English	25	3	22	3	0	0	0	0	3	0
––	DF		Daryl Godbold	9	1	6	1	1	0	2	0	0	0
––	DF		Rudi Hedman	36	2	30	2	3	0	0	0	3	0
––	DF		Stewart Houston	35	3	29	1	2	1	2	1	2	0
––	DF		Ian Phillips	45	1	37	1	3	0	2	0	3	0
––	MF		Simon Burman	9	0	9	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
––	MF		Andy Farrell	46	0	38	0	3	0	2	0	3	0
––	MF		Perry Groves	52	12	44	10	3	1	2	0	3	1
––	MF		Jeff Hull	24	5	18	5	3	0	2	0	1	0
––	MF		Roger Osborne	47	2	40	2	2	0	2	0	3	0
––	MF		Noel Parkinson	51	6	44	6	3	0	1	0	3	0
––	MF		Stuart Youngman	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
––	FW		Tony Adcock	35	28	28	24	3	1	2	0	2	3
––	FW		Keith Bowen	47	18	42	17	1	0	2	1	2	0
––	FW		Tommy English	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
––	FW		Dave Hubbick	5	1	5	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
––	FW		Russell Irving	48	10	41	9	3	1	1	0	3	0
––	FW		Paul Shinners	6	1	6	1	0	0	0	0	0	0

Scorers

^[4]

All Scorer Goals Tony Adcock 28 Keith Bowen 18 Perry Groves 12 Russell Irving 10 Noel Parkinson 6 Jeff Hull 5 Keith Day 4 Tony English 3 Stewart Houston Rudi Hedman 2 Roger Osborne Daryl Godbold 1 Dave Hubbick Ian Phillips Paul Shinners Own goal 1

League Scorer Goals Tony Adcock 24 Keith Bowen 17 Perry Groves 10 Russell Irving 9 Noel Parkinson 6 Jeff Hull 5 Keith Day 4 Tony English 3 Rudi Hedman 2 Roger Osborne Daryl Godbold 1 Stewart Houston Dave Hubbick Ian Phillips Paul Shinners

FA Cup Scorer Goals Tony Adcock 1 Perry Groves Stewart Houston Russell Irving Own goal 1

League Cup Scorer Goals Keith Bowen 1 Stewart Houston

League Trophy Scorer Goals Tony Adcock 3 Perry Groves 1

Most frequent starting XI

This section shows players in a 4-4-2 formation with the most league starts during the season.

Pos. Name Apps. Goals GK Alec Chamberlain 46 0 DF Keith Day 45 4 DF Ian Phillips 37 1 DF Rudi Hedman 29 2 DF Stewart Houston 28 1 MF Perry Groves 44 10 MF Noel Parkinson 44 6 MF Roger Osborne 39 2 MF Andy Farrell 35 0 FW Keith Bowen 41 17 FW Russell Irving 34 9

Chamberlain Day Phillips Hedman Houston Groves Parkinson Osborne Farrell Bowen Irving

References

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. "The U's History: The 80s". Colchester United F.C. Retrieved 5 April 2011.
3. "1984–85 Season Appearance Data". coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 5 April 2011.
4. "1984–85 Season Goalscorers Data". coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 5 April 2011.