| Club: | Colchester United |
| Season: | 1970–71 |
| Chairman: | Bill Graver (until March) Roy Chapman (from March)[1] |
| Manager: | Dick Graham |
| Stadium: | Layer Road |
| League: | Fourth Division |
| League Result: | 6th |
| Cup1: | FA Cup |
| Cup1 Result: | 6th round (eliminated by Everton) |
| Cup2: | League Cup |
| Cup2 Result: | 2nd round (eliminated by Birmingham City) |
| League Topscorer: | Ray Crawford (24) |
| Season Topscorer: | Ray Crawford (31) |
| Highest Attendance: | 16,000 v Leeds United, 13 February 1971[2] |
| Lowest Attendance: | 3,502 v Barrow, 26 April 1971[3] |
| Average Attendance: | 6,362[4] |
| Largest Win: | 5–0 v Cambridge United, 19 August 1970 v Rochdale, 25 January 1971 |
| Largest Loss: | 0–5 v Everton, 6 March 1971 |
| Pattern Name1: | Home |
| Pattern B1: | _with_white_collar |
| Pattern Sh1: | _white border |
| Leftarm1: | 0000FF |
| Body1: | 0000FF |
| Rightarm1: | 0000FF |
| Shorts1: | 0000FF |
| Socks1: | FFFFFF |
| Alt1: | Football kit (blue jersey; blue shorts with white sides; and white socks). |
| Prevseason: | 1969–70 |
| Nextseason: | 1971–72 |
The 1970–71 season was Colchester United's 29th season in their history and their third successive season in the fourth tier of English football, the Fourth Division. Alongside competing in the Fourth Division, the club also participated in the FA Cup and the League Cup.
Colchester reached the FA Cup quarter-final, famously beating First Division Leeds United 3–2 at Layer Road in the fifth round. They had already defeated Ringmer, Cambridge United, Barnet and Rochdale along the way, before being defeated 5–0 by Everton at Goodison Park. Owing to their cup run, Colchester's league form stuttered, ending the campaign in sixth place, while they suffered a second round exit in the League Cup after being beaten by Birmingham City following a replay.
During the summer of 1970, manager Dick Graham increased the average age of his Colchester squad by signing a number of ageing players, including ex-England international Ray Crawford, Brian Garvey, John Kurila, Mick Mahon and Brian Owen. During the season, both Owen and Roy Massey suffered serious or career ending injuries, forcing Graham into signing Brian Lewis and Dave Simmons.
The 1970–71 season is most notable for Colchester's famous FA Cup run. In the first round, the U's disposed of non-League Ringmer courtesy of a Ray Crawford hat-trick. They then completed a cup double over Cambridge United, beating them 5–0 in the first round of the League Cup and then 3–0 in the second round of the FA Cup. Colchester defeated further non-League opposition in the third round, winning against Barnet at Underhill Stadium. The U's trailed 3–1 with five minutes remaining of their fourth round tie with Rochdale before staging a late comeback to earn a 3–3 draw and a Layer Road replay, where they thrashed Rochdale 5–0. This earned them a home tie against First Division side Leeds United, a side top of the League and who boasted ten internationals in their side.[5]
Leeds United were at the time one of the best teams in the country. However, Dick Graham's side set out to frustrate Leeds by suppressing their usual wing play and playing direct football instead. Chairs and other obstacles were placed by the sidelines to produce an illusion of a narrow playing surface. Colchester found themselves 3–0 ahead after two goals from Ray Crawford and one from Dave Simmons. However, Leeds began to fight back, pulling back two goals with 17-minutes remaining, before Colchester goalkeeper Graham Smith produced a phenomenal save to deny Mick Jones with the score at 3–2. Colchester held on to record a famous victory and one of the most notable FA Cup giant-killings.[6]
With the U's in the quarter-finals, they were drawn against Everton at Goodison Park. Dick Graham's Grandad's Army finally succumbed to defeated by a 5–0 scoreline in front of a crowd of 53,028.
Colchester's cup run had a negative impact on their league form. With fixtures backing up, a run of 17 league games following their cup exit until the end of the season proved too much as they finished the campaign in sixth position, two points shy of promotion.[5]
| Name | Position | Nationality | Place of birth | Date of birth | Apps | Goals | Signed from | Date signed | Fee | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | |||||||||||
| Brian Sherratt | GK | Stoke-on-Trent | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Gainsborough Trinity | August 1970 | Free transfer | |||
| Graham Smith | GK | Liverpool | June 1, 1970 | 46 | 0 | Notts County | Summer 1969 | Free transfer | |||
| Defenders | |||||||||||
| Eric Burgess | FB | Edgware | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Plymouth Argyle | December 1970 | Free transfer | |||
| Micky Cook | FB | Enfield | June 1, 1970 | 21 | 0 | Orient | 1 March 1969 | Free transfer | |||
| Bobby Cram | FB | Hetton-le-Hole | June 1, 1970 | 21 | 0 |  Vancouver Royals | 17 January 1970 | Free transfer | |||
| Alan Dennis | CB | Colchester | June 1, 1970 | 3 | 0 | Apprentice | April 1967 | Free transfer | |||
| Brian Garvey | CB | Kingston upon Hull | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Watford | June 1970 | Free transfer | |||
| John Gilchrist | FB | Wishaw | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Fulham | 15 August 1970 | Free transfer | |||
| Brian Hall | LB | Burbage | June 1, 1970 | 253 | 26 | Mansfield Town | March 1965 | Free transfer | |||
| Bobby Howlett | CB | West Ham | June 1, 1970 | 18 | 0 | Southend United | Summer 1968 | Free transfer | |||
| John Kurila | CB | Glasgow | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Southend United | Summer 1970 | Free transfer | |||
| Trevor Painter | CB | Norwich | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Norwich City | 30 April 1970 | Free transfer | |||
| Lindsay Smith | CB | Enfield | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | 20 April 1971 | Free transfer | |||
| Adrian Webster | DF | Colchester | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | July 1968 | Free transfer | |||
| Midfielders | |||||||||||
| Phil Bloss | MF | Colchester | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | January 1971 | Free transfer | |||
| Steve Foley | MF | Clacton-on-Sea | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | July 1969 | Free transfer | |||
| Ken Jones | MF | Keighley | June 1, 1970 | 28 | 16 | Millwall | November 1969 | £5,000 | |||
| Steve Leslie | MF | Hornsey | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | 20 April 1971 | Free transfer | |||
| Brian Lewis | MF | Woking | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Oxford United | 26 December 1970 | £5,000 | |||
| Forwards | |||||||||||
| Micky Brown | WG | Farnham Common | June 1, 1970 | 58 | 12 | Luton Town | 26 October 1968 | £3,000 | |||
| Ray Crawford | FW | Portsmouth | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Kettering Town | 15 August 1970 | £3,000 | |||
| Brian Gibbs | FW | Gillingham | June 1, 1970 | 83 | 25 | Gillingham | September 1968 | £8,000 | |||
| Mick Mahon | WG | Manchester | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | York City | May 1970 | Free transfer | |||
| Brian Owen | WG | Harefield | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Watford | May 1970 | Free transfer | |||
| Dave Simmons | FW | Ryde | June 1, 1970 | 0 | 0 | Aston Villa | 26 December 1970 | £6,000 | |||
| Ray Whittaker | WG | Bow | June 1, 1970 | 41 | 7 | Luton Town | 9 August 1969 | Free transfer | |||
| Date | Position | Nationality | Name | From | Fee | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summer 1970 | CB | John Kurila | Southend United | Free transfer | [8] | ||
| 30 April 1970 | CB | Trevor Painter | Norwich City | Free transfer | [9] | ||
| May 1970 | WG | Brian Owen | Watford | Free transfer | [10] | ||
| May 1970 | WG | Mick Mahon | York City | Free transfer | [11] | ||
| June 1970 | CB | Brian Garvey | Watford | Free transfer | [12] | ||
| August 1970 | GK | Brian Sherratt | Gainsborough Trinity | Free transfer | [13] | ||
| 15 August 1970 | FB | John Gilchrist | Fulham | Free transfer | [14] | ||
| 15 August 1970 | FW | Ray Crawford | Kettering Town | £3,000 | [15] | ||
| December 1970 | FB | Eric Burgess | Plymouth Argyle | Free transfer | [16] | ||
| 26 December 1970 | FW | Dave Simmons | Aston Villa | £6,000 | [17] | ||
| 26 December 1970 | MF | Brian Lewis | Oxford United | £5,000 | [18] | ||
| January 1971 | MF | Phil Bloss | Apprentice | Free transfer | [19] | ||
| 20 April 1971 | CB | Lindsay Smith | Apprentice | Free transfer | [20] | ||
| 20 April 1971 | MF | Steve Leslie | Apprentice | Free transfer | [21] |
| Date | Position | Nationality | Name | To | Fee | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| End of season | FB | Bert Howe | Romford | Free transfer | [22] | ||
| End of season | CB | Brian Wood | Workington | Released | [23] | ||
| Summer 1970 | GK | Ron Willis | Arcadia Shepherds | Free transfer | [24] | ||
| 28 April 1970 | WG | Terry Dyson | Guildford City | Free transfer | [25] | ||
| 28 April 1970 | FW | Danny Light | Guildford City | Released | [26] | ||
| May 1970 | CB | Dave Bickles | Romford | Free transfer | [27] | ||
| September 1970 | FW | Jim Oliver | King's Lynn | Free transfer | [28] | ||
| October 1970 | MF | Roger Joslyn | Aldershot | £8,000 | [29] | ||
| March 1971 | FW | Roy Massey | Free agent | Retired | [30] |
See main article: 1970–71 Football League.
See main article: 1970–71 Football League Cup.
See main article: 1970–71 FA Cup.
[7] [32] |-!colspan="14"|Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season|}
| Place | Nationality | Position | Name | Fourth Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FW | Ray Crawford | 24 | 7 | 0 | 31 | ||
| 2 | FW | Brian Gibbs | 11 | 0 | 0 | 11 | ||
| 3 | MF | Ken Jones | 4 | 1 | 4 | 9 | ||
| 4 | WG | Mick Mahon | 5 | 2 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 5 | FW | Dave Simmons | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 6 | LB | Brian Hall | 4 | 0 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 7 | FB | Bobby Cram | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| MF | Brian Lewis | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | |||
| FW | Roy Massey | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |||
| WG | Brian Owen | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | |||
| 11 | FB | John Gilchrist | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | ||
| CB | John Kurila | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 13 | MF | Phil Bloss | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| FB | Eric Burgess | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||
| CB | Brian Garvey | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |||
| Own goals | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | ||||
| TOTALS | 70 | 18 | 7 | 95 | ||||
| Nationality | Position | Name | Fourth Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Total | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width=60 style="background: #FFEE99" | width=60 style="background: #FF8888" | width=60 style="background: #FFEE99" | width=60 style="background: #FF8888" | width=60 style="background: #FFEE99" | width=60 style="background: #FF8888" | width=60 style="background: #FFEE99" | width=60 style="background: #FF8888" | ||||||||
| CB | John Kurila | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||||
| GK | Graham Smith | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||||
| WG | Brian Owen | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||
| TOTALS | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |||||||
Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet.[34]
| Place | Nationality | Player | Fourth Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Graham Smith | 11 | 4 | 1 | 16 | ||
| 2 | Brian Sherratt | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| TOTALS | 14 | 4 | 1 | 19 | |||
Players making their first-team Colchester United debut in a fully competitive match.[35]
| Position | Nationality | Player | Date | Opponent | Ground | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CB | Brian Garvey | 15 August 1970 | Hartlepool | Layer Road | ||
| FB | John Gilchrist | 15 August 1970 | Hartlepool | Layer Road | ||
| FW | Ray Crawford | 15 August 1970 | Hartlepool | Layer Road | ||
| WG | Mick Mahon | 15 August 1970 | Hartlepool | Layer Road | ||
| CB | John Kurila | 19 August 1970 | Cambridge United | Layer Road | ||
| WG | Brian Owen | 19 August 1970 | Cambridge United | Layer Road | ||
| GK | Brian Sherratt | 21 September 1970 | Darlington | Feethams | ||
| CB | Trevor Painter | 18 December 1970 | Chester | Layer Road | ||
| FW | Dave Simmons | 26 December 1970 | Lincoln City | Sincil Bank | ||
| MF | Brian Lewis | 26 December 1970 | Lincoln City | Sincil Bank | ||
| FB | Eric Burgess | 20 February 1971 | Newport County | Layer Road | ||
| CB | Lindsay Smith | 20 April 1971 | Grimsby Town | Blundell Park | ||
| MF | Steve Leslie | 20 April 1971 | Grimsby Town | Blundell Park | ||
| MF | Phil Bloss | 26 April 1971 | Barrow | Layer Road | ||
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