| Club: | Colchester United |
| Season: | 1987–88 |
| Chairman: | Jonathan Crisp[1] |
| Manager: | Mike Walker (until 1 November) Steve Foley (caretaker) (1 November until 6 November) Roger Brown (from 6 November) |
| Stadium: | Layer Road |
| League: | Fourth Division |
| League Result: | 9th |
| Cup1: | FA Cup |
| Cup1 Result: | 3rd round (eliminated by Plymouth Argyle) |
| Cup2: | League Cup |
| Cup2 Result: | 1st round (eliminated by Fulham) |
| Cup3: | Associate Members' Cup |
| Cup3 Result: | Quarter-finals (southern section) (eliminated by Notts County) |
| League Topscorer: | Dale Tempest (11) |
| Season Topscorer: | Dale Tempest (14) |
| Highest Attendance: | 3,215 v Tamworth, 14 November 1987[2] |
| Lowest Attendance: | 912 v Peterborough United, 13 October 1987[3] |
| Average Attendance: | 1,776[4] |
| Largest Win: | 4–1 v Peterborough United, 12 September 1987 v Rochdale, 3 November 1987 3–0 v Bolton Wanderers, 11 December 1987 |
| Largest Loss: | 0–4 v Carlisle United, 23 April 1988 v Bolton Wanderers, 2 May 1988 |
| Pattern Name1: | Home |
| Pattern La1: | _white_stripes |
| Pattern B1: | _stripesandshouldersonwhite |
| Pattern Ra1: | _white_stripes |
| Leftarm1: | 87CEEB |
| Body1: | 87CEEB |
| Rightarm1: | 87CEEB |
| Shorts1: | 87CEEB |
| Socks1: | 87CEEB |
| Prevseason: | 1986–87 |
| Nextseason: | 1988–89 |
The 1987–88 season was Colchester United's 46th season in their history and seventh 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.
After a promising start to the season under Mike Walker, a disagreement between him and chairman Jonathan Crisp saw Walker leave Layer Road and in his place Roger Brown was recruited. From joint top of the table, Brown's side won just five games in the second half of the season to finish the season ninth.
Colchester reached the third round of the FA Cup, beating Tamworth and Hereford United before elimination by Plymouth Argyle. In the Associate Members' Cup, Colchester reached the southern section quarter-final, where they were defeated 3–2 by Notts County. The club were less successful in the League Cup as they fell to a 5–1 aggregate defeat to Fulham.
Keen to improve on last years play-off disappointment, manager Mike Walker recruited former U's boss Allan Hunter as his coach.
Club regulars Tony Adcock and Alec Chamberlain both left the club during the summer of 1987 in big money moves. Adcock signed for Second Division Manchester City for £75,000, while Chamberlain joined First Division Everton for £80,000 as understudy to Neville Southall. Walker then broke the club transfer record to bring in striker Dale Tempest for £40,000.
Chairman Jonathan Crisp announced that, in light of worsening football hooliganism across the nation, a 100% members-only scheme would be in place for the new season, banning away fans from attending matches at Layer Road. To deflect any negative attention, he also leaked details regarding a new stadium at Turner Rise while introducing developers Norcross Estates as shirt sponsors.
Owing to the new scheme, only 1,300 members attended the first fixture of the season, a drop of 1,400 on last seasons average attendance. A new record low crowd was set on 29 September when just 1,140 watched the 2–1 win over Swansea City.
Having rebuilt his side and winning seven out of eight games, Walker was abruptly sacked by Crisp while the U's were joint-top of the Fourth Division table. Crisp had claimed that Walker had resigned, but alleged personal differences were said to have been the cause. Bizarrely, Walker won the Manager of the Month award after he had been sacked.
Incoming as new manage was Roger Brown, formerly manager of Poole Town while working as a factory manager. He had been recommended to Crisp by his advisors, but he took the U's from top spot on New Year's Day to ninth at the end of the season after earning just five wins from January until May.
Crisp had to concede his membership scheme in November after hundreds of Wolverhampton Wanderers fans registered as members to boost the Layer Road attendance to an unusually high figure of 2,413 for that season. Crisp claimed the scheme had only been an experiment, and this was reflected in the season average of just 1,776.
Following on from his Turner Rise leaked plans, Crisp considered selling Layer Road and ground sharing Portman Road with Ipswich Town while the new stadium was built. His decision however was swayed by a group of former club directors. By selling up, Crisp would have recouped his outlay, but when the stadium plans were delayed over land ownership, Colchester United would have been left completely homeless with no assets except for the players.[5]
| Name | Position | Nationality | Place of birth | Date of birth | Apps | Goals | Signed from | Date signed | Fee | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | |||||||||||
| Mark Walton | GK | Merthyr Tydfil | June 1, 1987 | 8 | 0 | Luton Town | 26 December 1987 | £17,500 | |||
| Defenders | |||||||||||
| Scott Daniels | CB | South Benfleet | June 1, 1987 | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | 23 April 1988 | Free transfer | |||
| Tony English | DF/MF | Luton | June 1, 1987 | 115 | 21 | Coventry City | 24 December 1984 | Free transfer | |||
| Stephen Grenfell | FB | Enfield Town | June 1, 1987 | 30 | 2 | Tottenham Hotspur | 28 November 1986 | £15,000 | |||
| Rudi Hedman | CB | Lambeth | June 1, 1987 | 138 | 10 | Apprentice | February 1984 | Free transfer | |||
| Steve Hetzke | CB | Marlborough | June 1, 1987 | 0 | 0 | Chester City | March 1988 | £10,000 | |||
| Stuart Hicks | CB | Peterborough | June 1, 1987 | 0 | 0 | Wisbech Town | March 1988 | Free transfer | |||
| Colin Hill | CB | Uxbridge | June 1, 1987 | 0 | 0 | Marítimo | 30 October 1987 | Undisclosed | |||
| John Ray | CB | Newmarket | June 1, 1987 | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | Summer 1987 | Free transfer | |||
| Midfielders | |||||||||||
| Nick Chatterton | MF | West Norwood | June 1, 1987 | 22 | 1 | Millwall | September 1986 | Undisclosed | |||
| Mark Radford | MF | Leicester | June 1, 1987 | 1 | 0 | Apprentice | 26 January 1987 | Free transfer | |||
| Gary Smith | MF | Harlow | June 1, 1987 | 0 | 0 | Fulham | September 1987 | Non-contract | |||
| Richard Wilkins | MF/DF | Lambeth | June 1, 1987 | 30 | 4 | Haverhill Rovers | 18 November 1986 | Undisclosed | |||
| Keith Williams | MF | Burntwood | June 1, 1987 | 0 | 0 | Bath City | December 1987 | Free transfer | |||
| Forwards | |||||||||||
| Lee Hunter | WG | Oldham | June 1, 1987 | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | 6 May 1988 | Free transfer | |||
| Tommy Keane | WG |  | Galway | June 1, 1987 | 0 | 0 | AFC Bournemouth | December 1987 | £10,000 | ||
| Dale Tempest | FW |  | Leeds | June 1, 1987 | 0 | 0 |  Lokeren | 28 August 1987 | £40,000 | ||
| Mario Walsh | FW | Paddington | June 1, 1987 | 0 | 0 | Torquay United | Summer 1987 | £15,000 | |||
| Winston White | WG | Leicester | June 1, 1987 | 16 | 1 | Bury | February 1987 | Free transfer | |||
| Date | Position | Nationality | Name | From | Fee | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summer 1987 | CB | John Ray | Apprentice | Free transfer | [7] | |
| Summer 1987 | FW | Mario Walsh | Torquay United | £15,000 | [8] | |
| 18 August 1987 | GK | Trevor Lake | West Ham United | Undisclosed | [9] | |
| 28 August 1987 | FW | | Dale Tempest | Lokeren | £40,000 | [10] |
| September 1987 | MF | Gary Smith | Fulham | Non-contract | [11] | |
| 30 October 1987 | CB | Colin Hill | Marítimo | Undisclosed | [12] | |
| December 1987 | WG | | Tommy Keane | AFC Bournemouth | £10,000 | [13] |
| December 1987 | MF | Keith Williams | Bath City | Free transfer | [14] | |
| 26 December 1987 | GK | Mark Walton | Luton Town | £17,500 | [15] | |
| March 1988 | CB | Steve Hetzke | Chester City | £10,000 | [16] | |
| March 1988 | CB | Stuart Hicks | Wisbech Town | Free transfer | [17] | |
| 23 April 1988 | CB | Scott Daniels | Apprentice | Free transfer | [18] | |
| 6 May 1988 | WG | Lee Hunter | Apprentice | Free transfer | [19] | |
| Date | Position | Nationality | Name | To | Fee | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| End of season | FB | Ian Phillips | Aldershot | Undisclosed | [20] | |
| End of season | WG/MF | Simon Burman | Weymouth | Undisclosed | [21] | |
| Summer 1987 | GK | Alec Chamberlain | Everton | £80,000 | [22] | |
| Summer 1987 | MF/FB | Andy Farrell | Burnley | £5,000 | [23] | |
| Summer 1987 | CB | Kirk Game | Dartford | Released | [24] | |
| June 1987 | FW | Tony Adcock | Manchester City | £75,000 | [25] | |
| July 1987 | CB | Keith Day | Leyton Orient | Undisclosed | [26] | |
| 18 August 1987 | GK | Trevor Lake | Free agent | Retired | ||
| 13 October 1987 | MF | Sean Norman | Wycombe Wanderers | Undisclosed | [27] | |
| 5 December 1987 | FW | Simon Lowe | Scarborough | Undisclosed | [28] | |
| Early 1988 | FB | Scott Young | Wycombe Wanderers | £5,000 | [29] | |
| 2 January 1988 | FB | Terry Baker | Billericay Town | Released | [30] | |
| 15 April 1988 | FB | Paul Hinshelwood | Dartford | Undisclosed | [31] | |
| 2 May 1988 | MF | John Reeves | Enfield | Released | [32] | |
| Date | Position | Nationality | Name | From | End date | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summer 1987 | GK | Graham Benstead | Norwich City | 24 November 1987 | [33] | |
| August 1987 | GK | Mark Walton | Luton Town | 13 October 1987 | ||
| 14 November 1987 | GK | Mark Walton | Luton Town | 18 December 1987 | ||
| December 1987 | CB | Darren Angell | Portsmouth | 18 December 1987 | [34] | |
| February 1988 | GK | Craig Forrest | Ipswich Town | 29 April 1988 | [35] | |
| February 1988 | CB | Glenn Keeley | Oldham Athletic | 26 February 1988 | [36] | |
| 19 February 1988 | FB | David Coleman | AFC Bournemouth | 19 March 1988 | ||
| 25 March 1988 | FW | Sean Farrell | Luton Town | 6 May 1988 | [37] | |
| Date | Position | Nationality | Name | To | End date | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CB | John Ray | Wycombe Wanderers | ||||
| FB | Scott Young | Wycombe Wanderers | ||||
See main article: 1987–88 Football League.
See main article: 1987–88 Football League Cup.
See main article: 1987–88 Associate Members' Cup.
See main article: 1987–88 FA Cup.
[6] [38] |-!colspan="14"|Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season|}
| Place | Nationality | Position | Name | Fourth Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FW | Dale Tempest | 11 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 14 | ||
| 2 | WG | Winston White | 7 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 11 | ||
| MF/DF | Richard Wilkins | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11 | |||
| 4 | MF | Nick Chatterton | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 | ||
| 5 | FB | Paul Hinshelwood | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 6 | DF/MF | Tony English | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| FW | Mario Walsh | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 8 | FB | David Coleman | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| FW | Sean Farrell | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||
| CB | Colin Hill | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||
| FW | Simon Lowe | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||
| MF | Sean Norman | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |||
| MF | John Reeves | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||
| Own goals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| TOTALS | 47 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 60 | ||||
| Nationality | Position | Name | Fourth Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | 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" | width=60 style="background: #FFEE99" | width=60 style="background: #FF8888" | ||||||||||
| WG | Winston White | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||
| CB | Terry Baker | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||||||||
| MF | John Reeves | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||||||||
| MF | Gary Smith | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||||||||
| DF/MF | Tony English | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||
| FB | Stephen Grenfell | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||
| CB | Stuart Hicks | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||
| FB | Paul Hinshelwood | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||
| CB | Glenn Keeley | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||
| CB | Rudi Hedman | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||||
| MF | Sean Norman | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||||
| FW | Dale Tempest | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||||
| MF | Keith Williams | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||||
| TOTALS | 20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 21 | 2 | |||||||||
Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet.[40]
| Place | Nationality | Player | Fourth Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Graham Benstead | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | ||
| Mark Walton | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | |||
| 3 | Craig Forrest | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| TOTALS | 18 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 20 | |||
Players making their first-team Colchester United debut in a fully competitive match.[41]
| Position | Nationality | Player | Date | Opponent | Ground | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Graham Benstead | 15 August 1987 | Burnley | Turf Moor | ||
| FW | Mario Walsh | 15 August 1987 | Burnley | Turf Moor | ||
| GK | Trevor Lake | 18 August 1987 | Fulham | Craven Cottage | ||
| GK | Mark Walton | 25 August 1987 | Fulham | Layer Road | ||
| FW | | Dale Tempest | 29 August 1987 | Scunthorpe United | Old Showground | |
| CB | Colin Hill | 30 October 1987 | Darlington | Layer Road | ||
| MF | Gary Smith | 6 November 1987 | Halifax Town | The Shay | ||
| GK | Mark Walton | 14 November 1987 | Tamworth | Layer Road | [42] | |
| MF | Keith Williams | 11 December 1987 | Bolton Wanderers | Layer Road | ||
| CB | Darren Angell | 18 December 1987 | Tranmere Rovers | Prenton Park | ||
| GK | Mark Walton | 26 December 1987 | Exeter City | St James Park | [43] | |
| WG | | Tommy Keane | 1 January 1988 | Scunthorpe United | Layer Road | |
| CB | John Ray | 30 January 1988 | Scarborough | Athletic Ground | ||
| CB | Glenn Keeley | 5 February 1988 | Crewe Alexandra | Layer Road | ||
| FB | David Coleman | 19 February 1988 | Burnley | Layer Road | ||
| CB | Steve Hetzke | 1 March 1988 | Swansea City | Vetch Field | ||
| GK |  | Craig Forrest | 4 March 1988 | Wrexham | Layer Road | |
| FW | Sean Farrell | 25 March 1988 | Cambridge United | Layer Road | ||
| CB | Stuart Hicks | 8 April 1988 | Rochdale | Layer Road | ||
| CB | Scott Daniels | 23 April 1988 | Carlisle United | Brunton Park | ||
| WG | Lee Hunter | 6 May 1988 | Tranmere Rovers | Layer Road | ||
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