| Club: | Colchester United |
| Season: | 1973–74 |
| Chairman: | Robert Jackson[1] |
| Manager: | Jim Smith |
| Stadium: | Layer Road |
| League: | Fourth Division |
| League Result: | 3rd (promoted) |
| Cup1: | FA Cup |
| Cup1 Result: | 1st round (eliminated by Peterborough United) |
| Cup2: | League Cup |
| Cup2 Result: | 1st round (eliminated by Gillingham) |
| League Topscorer: | Bobby Svarc (25) |
| Season Topscorer: | Bobby Svarc (26) |
| Highest Attendance: | 10,007 v Gillingham, 20 April 1974[2] |
| Lowest Attendance: | 3,460 v Bradford City, 1 December 1973[3] |
| Average Attendance: | 5,601[4] |
| Largest Win: | 4–0 v Torquay United, 19 September 1973 v Chester, 14 November 1973 v Bradford City, 1 December 1973 |
| Largest Loss: | 1–4 v Gillingham, 8 December 1973 |
| Pattern Name1: | Home |
| Pattern La1: | _white_stripes |
| Pattern B1: | _3whitestripes |
| Pattern Ra1: | _white_stripes |
| Leftarm1: | 4961E1 |
| Body1: | 4961E1 |
| Rightarm1: | 4961E1 |
| Shorts1: | 4961E1 |
| Alt1: | Football kit (white jersey with royal blue, vertical stripes; royal blue shorts; and white socks). |
| Prevseason: | 1972–73 |
| Nextseason: | 1974–75 |
The 1973–74 season was Colchester United's 32nd season in their history and their sixth 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.
Jim Smith led his side to promotion to the Third Division in his first full season in charge, finishing in third position, five points behind winners Peterborough United. Colchester experienced first round cup exits in both competitions, coincidentally losing to both teams which finished above them in the league; a defeat to Peterborough in the FA Cup and a defeat at Gillingham in the League Cup.
Manager Jim Smith brought in Watford pair Mike Walker and Mick Packer during the summer break and also spent £8,000 on forward Paul Aimson from Bournemouth. While Aimson suffered a career-ending injury early in the season, Bobby Svarc found form and registered 25 league goals, including a record-equalling four goals at Chester in November.
At Christmas, Colchester led the Fourth Division table. Bobby Svarc's goalscoring waned, and Smith brought in Gary Moore on loan from Southend United. He scored seven goals in the U's eleven remaining games as Colchester sealed a promotion place. They finished in third position, five points behind Peterborough United and two adrift of Gillingham. The final home game of the season drew a crowd of 10,007, a game in which Gillingham won 2–0 and crept above Colchester in the league table. This would be the last time that Layer Road hosted a five-figure attendance in league competition.
In the cup competitions, Colchester were knocked out in the first round of both the FA Cup and League Cup, coincidentally against their two biggest league title rivals, Peterborough and Gillingham. Gillingham beat United 4–2 at Priestfield in the League Cup in August, while Peterborough triumphed 3–2 at Layer Road in the FA Cup first round.[5]
| Name | Position | Nationality | Place of birth | Date of birth | Apps | Goals | Signed from | Date signed | Fee | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | |||||||||||
| Mike Walker | GK | Colwyn Bay | June 1, 1973 | 0 | 0 | Watford | July 1973 | £4,000 | |||
| Defenders | |||||||||||
| Micky Cook | FB | Enfield | June 1, 1973 | 146 | 1 | Orient | 1 March 1969 | Free transfer | |||
| Barry Dominey | CB | Edmonton | June 1, 1973 | 0 | 0 | Enfield WMC | September 1973 | Free transfer | |||
| Ray Harford | CB | Halifax | June 1, 1973 | 21 | 1 | Port Vale | 3 February 1973 | £1,750 | |||
| Stuart Morgan | CB | Swansea | June 1, 1973 | 36 | 2 | Reading | August 1972 | Free transfer | |||
| Mick Packer | FB | Willesden | June 1, 1973 | 0 | 0 | Watford | July 1973 | Free transfer | |||
| Alex Smith | FB | Thornhill | June 1, 1973 | 0 | 0 | Southend United | 27 January 1974 | £5,000 | |||
| Lindsay Smith | CB | Enfield | June 1, 1973 | 54 | 4 | Apprentice | 20 April 1971 | Free transfer | |||
| Midfielders | |||||||||||
| Ray Bunkell | MF | Edmonton | June 1, 1973 | 0 | 0 | Swindon Town | December 1973 | Part exchange | |||
| Steve Foley | MF | Clacton-on-Sea | June 1, 1973 | 57 | 13 | Apprentice | July 1969 | Free transfer | |||
| Steve Leslie | MF | Hornsey | June 1, 1973 | 80 | 16 | Apprentice | 20 April 1971 | Free transfer | |||
| Bobby Mills | MF | Edmonton | June 1, 1973 | 8 | 0 | Apprentice | 4 March 1972 | Free transfer | |||
| Bobby Roberts | MF | Edinburgh | June 1, 1973 | 2 | 0 | Coventry City | 1 March 1973 | Free transfer | |||
| Phil Thomas | MF | Sherborne | June 1, 1973 | 35 | 2 | Bournemouth | Summer 1972 | Free transfer | |||
| Tony Wingate | MF | Islington | June 1, 1973 | 1 | 0 | Apprentice | 18 March 1972 | Free transfer | |||
| Forwards | |||||||||||
| Barry Dyson | FW | Oldham | June 1, 1973 | 0 | 0 | Orient | 25 August 1973 | Free transfer | |||
| Colwyn Rowe | WG | Ipswich | June 1, 1973 | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | October 1973 | Free transfer | |||
| Bobby Svarc | FW | Leicester | June 1, 1973 | 20 | 8 | Boston United | December 1972 | £6,000 | |||
| Date | Position | Nationality | Name | From | Fee | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summer 1973 | RB | Will Dixon | Reading | Free transfer | [7] [8] | ||
| July 1973 | GK | Mike Walker | Watford | £4,000 | [9] | ||
| July 1973 | FB | Mick Packer | Watford | Free transfer | [10] | ||
| 1 August 1973 | FW | Paul Aimson | Bournemouth | £8,000 | [11] | ||
| 25 August 1973 | FW | Barry Dyson | Bournemouth | Free transfer | [12] | ||
| September 1973 | CB | Barry Dominey | Enfield WMC | Free transfer | [13] | ||
| September 1973 | CB | Barry Dominey | Enfield WMC | Free transfer | |||
| October 1973 | WG | Colwyn Rowe | Apprentice | Free transfer | [14] | ||
| December 1973 | MF | Ray Bunkell | Southend United | Part-exchange (£5,000) | [15] | ||
| 27 January 1974 | FB | Alex Smith | Southend United | £5,000 | [16] |
| Date | Position | Nationality | Name | To | Fee | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 April 1973 | GK | John McInally | Braintree & Crittall Athletic | Player-manager | [17] | ||
| 30 April 1973 | CB | Richard Bourne | Ramsgate | Released | [18] | ||
| 30 April 1973 | MF | Stan Brown | Wimbledon | Released | [19] | ||
| August 1973 | MF | Phil Bloss | Wimbledon | Released | [20] | ||
| September 1973 | RB | Will Dixon | Swindon Town | Free transfer | |||
| December 1973 | FB | John McLaughlin | Swindon Town | Part-exchange (£25,000) | [21] | ||
| December 1973 | WG | Mick Mahon | Wimbledon | £3,000 | [22] | ||
| 22 February 1974 | FW | Paul Aimson | Free agent | Retired |
| Date | Position | Nationality | Name | From | End date | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 1973 | FW | Peter Silvester | Norwich City | 2 November 1983 | [23] | ||
| November 1973 | FB | Alex Smith | Southend United | 5 January 1974 | |||
| 1 February 1974 | WG | Terry Anderson | Norwich City | 2 March 1974 | [24] | ||
| March 1974 | MF | Paul Taylor | York City | 12 May 1974 | [25] | ||
| March 1974 | FW | Gary Moore | Southend United | 4 May 1974 | [26] |
See main article: 1973–74 Football League.
See main article: 1973–74 Football League Cup.
See main article: 1973–74 FA Cup.
[6] [27] |-!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 | Bobby Svarc | 25 | 0 | 1 | 26 | ||
| 2 | MF | Steve Foley | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 | ||
| CB | Stuart Morgan | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |||
| 4 | FW | Gary Moore | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 5 | FW | Barry Dyson | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 6 | FB | Micky Cook | 4 | 0 | 1 | 5 | ||
| MF | Steve Leslie | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | |||
| 8 | MF | Phil Thomas | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 9 | FW | Paul Aimson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| CB | Ray Harford | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 11 | WG | Mick Mahon | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||
| FB | Alex Smith | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||
| CB | Lindsay Smith | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||
| Own goals | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||||
| TOTALS | 73 | 2 | 2 | 77 | ||||
| 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 | Stuart Morgan | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||||||
| FB | Micky Cook | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||
| CB | Ray Harford | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||
| FB | Micky Cook | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||
| MF | Bobby Mills | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||
| FB | Mick Packer | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||
| FB | Alex Smith | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||
| CB | Lindsay Smith | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||
| TOTALS | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 | |||||||
Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet.[29]
| Place | Nationality | Player | Fourth Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mike Walker | 21 | 0 | 0 | 21 | ||
| TOTALS | 21 | 0 | 0 | 21 | |||
Players making their first-team Colchester United debut in a fully competitive match.[30]
| Position | Nationality | Player | Date | Opponent | Ground | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Mike Walker | 25 August 1973 | Barnsley | Oakwell | ||
| FB | Mick Packer | 25 August 1973 | Barnsley | Oakwell | ||
| FW | Paul Aimson | 25 August 1973 | Barnsley | Oakwell | ||
| FW | Barry Dyson | 25 August 1973 | Barnsley | Oakwell | ||
| FW | Peter Silvester | 6 October 1973 | Hartlepool | Victoria Park | ||
| FB | Alex Smith | 10 November 1973 | Mansfield Town | Field Mill | ||
| MF | Ray Bunkell | 8 December 1973 | Gillingham | Priestfield Stadium | ||
| FB | Alex Smith | 27 January 1974 | Doncaster Rovers | Belle Vue | [31] | |
| WG | Colwyn Rowe | 3 February 1974 | Bury | Gigg Lane | ||
| WG | Terry Anderson | 8 February 1974 | Swansea City | Layer Road | ||
| CB | Barry Dominey | 16 March 1974 | Scunthorpe United | Old Showground | ||
| MF | Paul Taylor | 16 March 1974 | Scunthorpe United | Old Showground | ||
| FW | Gary Moore | 16 March 1974 | Scunthorpe United | Old Showground | ||
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