Colchester United F.C.

Chart of table positions for Colchester United in the Football League.

Until 1937, Colchester Town were Colchester's main club and were the original tenants of Layer Road. Colchester Town joined the Eastern Counties League in 1935, but their poor performances in the league convinced supporters that the club should turn professional, much like nearby Ipswich Town. With club officials against the idea of turning professional, a new professional club was formed in March 1937, Colchester United, which would also play at Layer Road. United joined the Southern Football League as crowds for Town matches dwindled. In December 1937, Colchester United formed a reserve team, signing many of Town's players. As a result of this and Town struggling with £300 debts, Colchester Town folded the same month.[3]

The club were Southern League champions in 1939 prior to the Second World War.[4] Following the war, in 1947–48, the U's produced one of the most notable FA Cup runs by a non-league side, defeating fellow non-leaguers Banbury Spencer in the first round, before beating Football League clubs Wrexham, Huddersfield Town and Bradford Park Avenue. They finally fell to Blackpool in the fifth round. This set them in good stead for potential election to the Football League.[5]

Colchester United were elected to the Football League in 1950 on the back of their second Southern League Cup win[6] and ending the 1949–50 season second to Merthyr Tydfil on goal average alone.[4][7] They spent eleven years in the Third Division South and Third Division following the league's reorganisation, with a best finish of third place in 1957, just one point behind rivals Ipswich Town and Torquay United.[8][9]

The club suffered their first relegation in 1961 as they finished 23rd in the Third Division,[10] but didn't have to wait long until their first Football League promotion, spending just one season in the Fourth Division as they ended the season second to Millwall by just one point.[11] This trend continued over the next two decades as they were relegated to the Fourth Division in 1965[12] and promoted to the Third Division in 1966,[13] then relegated in 1968[14] and promoted in 1974,[15] relegated in 1976[16] and promoted in 1977[17] before a final relegation to the Fourth Division in 1981.[18]

During this time, the club embarked on one of the most notable runs in FA Cup history, as manager Dick Graham took his ageing side to the 1970–71 quarter-finals, dispatching non-league Ringmer, Cambridge United, Barnet and Rochdale following a replay. With the draw having been made prior to the replay against Rochdale, the U's knew they would face a home tie with First Division Leeds United, and duly trounced Dale 5–0. In the match with Leeds, the U's raced to an unprecedented 3–0 lead in front of a 16,000 Layer Road crowd, with two goals from Ray Crawford and one from Dave Simmons. Leeds did grab two goals back but Colchester held on for a famous 3–2 victory.[19] The club faced Everton in the quarter-finals but succumbed to a 5–0 defeat in front of 53,028 at Goodison Park.[20]

Financial difficulties and a number of changes at board level in the mid-1980s caused a slide towards the lower end of the Fourth Division table and crowd numbers to dwindle.[20] Despite a brief turn around in form under former Rangers manager Jock Wallace,[21] United were relegated from the Football League for the first time since their election.[20]

Former Colchester United manager Roy McDonough, who guided the club to the Conference title in 1992.

Despite their relegation, the U's remained a full-time club while playing in the Football Conference, as they sold their Layer Road ground to the Colchester Borough Council to clear the club's debts.[22] The club finished the season as runners-up to Barnet during their first season outside of the Football League,[23] but, under the stewardship of player-manager Roy McDonough, the U's won the league the following season on goal difference over bitter rivals Wycombe Wanderers.[24] In addition to earning a swift return to League football, the club also won the FA Trophy in 1992.[22]

The club had a successful 1995–96 season as they reached the 1995–96 Football League play-offs, but were defeated by Plymouth Argyle at the semi-final stage.[22] The club narrowly missed the play-offs in 1996–97[25] but did however reach the Football League Trophy Final held at Wembley. The U's drew 0–0 with Carlisle United but were defeated 4–3 on penalties.[26] The following season however, Colchester were promoted via the Third Division play-off final with a 1–0 Wembley win against Torquay United.[27]

Former Colchester United manager Phil Parkinson, who guided the club to the Championship for the first time in their history.

Colchester consolidated their position in the third tier of English football for a number of seasons, before achieving their then-highest league finish of second place only to Essex rivals Southend United in the 2005–06 season. Under Phil Parkinson's stewardship, the U's were promoted to the second tier for the first time in their history. However, when Parkinson left to take the reins at Hull City, his assistant Geraint Williams was handed the daunting task of guiding Colchester into their first season in the Championship. He led the side to a 10th position finish, above East Anglian rivals Ipswich Town, Norwich City and Essex rivals Southend United, while gaining the Pride of Anglia title in the process for the first time in their history.[22][28] The momentum however did not continue into their second season in the Championship, as they finished bottom of the league and were relegated back to League One.[22]

During the club's second season in the Championship, Layer Road hosted its final game on 26 April 2008 as the U's fell to a 1–0 defeat to Stoke City. The club then moved to their new ground, the Colchester Community Stadium, in the summer of 2008 in preparation for life back in the third tier. Despite hoping to make an immediate return to the Championship, the club made a dreadful start to the 2008–09 campaign, which saw manager Geraint Williams lose his job, leaving the club second from bottom.[29] He was replaced by former Wycombe Wanderers manager Paul Lambert as he guided the club to a mid-table finish.[22][30]

Colchester United started the 2009–10 season by thrashing recently relegated Norwich City 7–1 on the opening day of the season at Carrow Road.[31] Manager Lambert then defected to Norwich when their manager Bryan Gunn was sacked following a poor start to the season. This ensured a fiery return fixture, held at the Community Stadium in January 2010.[22] The game saw a record crowd of 10,064 watch as the U's fell to a 5–0 defeat, with Ian Henderson being sent off on his United debut against his former club.[32] The season ended with Colchester finishing in 8th position.[33] The club finished in 10th position for both the 2010–11[34] and 2011–12 seasons,[35] before narrowly avoiding relegation to League Two in the 2012–13 season, defeating Carlisle United 2–0 on the final day of the season to ensure their safety.[36] The club then finished the 2013–14 season in 16th position.[37]

Colchester secured League One safety on the final day of the 2014–15 season when they beat promotion hopefuls Preston North End 1–0 on 3 May 2015.[38] However, Colchester could not stave off relegation to League Two in the 2015–16 season as they finished the campaign in 23rd position, confining them to the fourth tier of English football for the first time in 18 years.[39]

In the 2019–20 EFL Cup, Colchester defeated Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur on penalties.[40] Colchester were eventually eliminated by Manchester United in the quarter-finals, losing 3–0 at Old Trafford.[41]

When the club was formed, Colchester United continued in the tradition of their predecessors Colchester Town and played in blue and white striped shirts combined with white shorts. For the majority of the club's history, the kit has remained true to the traditional design, with slight variations occurring in 1967 and 1968, when candy stripes were preferred, with white on blue used for 1967–68 and blue on white for 1968–69. The stripes were removed altogether between 1969 and 1973, with blue shirts and blue shorts adopted between 1969 and 1972 as modelled by Chelsea, and white shirts for 1972–73 during a failed relaunch. The original stripes were reinstated for the following campaign, and remained largely unchanged since this period. The club briefly used blue kits with white pinstripes between 1982 and 1986, and a crosshatch design between 1988 and 1990.[42]

The club adopted the coat of arms of Colchester for their club crest upon their formation in June 1937. The coat of arms, which features the living cross of St Helena and the crowns of the Three Kings, was used until 1972, when a dispute between the club and Colchester Borough Council pushed United to design a new crest.[43] Tied to the rebranding of the club and the new all-white kit, the U's earned a new nickname (The Eagles) with a new badge featuring a Roman eagle standard. Following a disastrous season where the club were obliged to seek re-election, the kits were reverted and the club played with no crest on the shirts until 1979. Adidas replaced Umbro as kit manufacturer and the shirts were adorned with a simple CUFC cypher.[42] The club emblem was modified to a circular badge in 1983 based on the 1972 design and was once again adjusted in 1986, updating the image of the eagle. In 1994, the crest was modified from a circular shape to a shield shape, with the golden eagle set against a blue and white striped background, a nod to the club's traditional shirt colours.[43] A slightly updated version was introduced in 2004 which rounded the shield, a design which has since remained unchanged.[42]

A number of different manufacturers have provided the kits for Colchester United since the mid-1970s, with kits supplied by Umbro (1975–1979), Adidas (1979–1982), Le Coq Sportif (1982–1986), Olympic (1987–1988), Spall (1988–1990, 1993–1995), Ribero (1991–1993), Vandanel (1995–1997), Patrick (1997–2000), Strike Force (2000–2004), Admiral (2004–2006), Diadora (2006–2008), Puma (2008–2016) and Macron (2016–present).[42]

Since the 1980–81, the club has offered sponsorship for its shirts, and offered away strip sponsorship from the 1999–2000 season. Primary shirt sponsorships have included Royal London Group (1980–1986),[44] 0800 Linkline (1986–1987),[42] Norcross Estates (1987–1990), Holimarine (1990–1991), Colchester Hippodrome (1991–1992), The Sun (1992, 1992–1993), Strovers (1993–1994), SGR Colchester (1994–1996), Goldstar Fabrications (1996–1997), Guardian Direct (1997–1999), East Anglian Daily Times (1999–2000), JobServe (2000–2002, 2018–2019), Tiptree Jams (2002–2004), ICS Triplex (2004–2005), Easy-Skip (2005–2006), MutualPoints.com (2006–2007), Haart (2007–2008), Weston Homes (2008–2010, 2013–2018), ROL Cruise (2010–2012), TEXO Scaffolding (2019–2022), and Workhorse Group (2022-present). Away shirt sponsorship has been provided by Ashby's (1999–2000), Ridley's (2000–2002), 188Trades.com (2005–2006), Smart Energy (2006–2009), JobServe (2009–2010, 2012–2020), Strikerz Inc. (2020–2021), and Workhorse Group (2021-present).[44]

For the 2012–13 season, the U's marked their 75th anniversary with a special kit. The shirt was coloured in the traditional blue and white stripes, however, the kit did not carry a main sponsorship logo, as the club looked to promote local businesses on a game-by-game basis and to reflect on the club's early days without sponsorship.[45]

Colchester United has an official supporters association known as the CUSA.[63] They were formed in 1995 and is run entirely by fans on a volunteer basis.[64] The club produces its own match day programme, titled "We Are United", which replaced the former untitled official programmes from the beginning of the 2012–13 season.[65] The club have also had a number of fanzine publications produced over the years, including "The U'sual", "Floodlight", "Out of The Blue" and "The Blue Eagle".[66] The club mascot is an eagle named Eddie the Eagle.[67]

The 2003 Football Fans Census revealed that Colchester United fans considered Wycombe Wanderers to be their primary rival, with both Wycombe and Southend United considering the U's to be their primary rival. Colchester fans considered Ipswich Town to be their secondary rivals, with Southend only third. Cambridge United additionally considered Colchester to be their tertiary rivals.[68] However, in the 2012–13 census, Colchester fans changed their chief rivals from Wycombe to Southend, with Wycombe falling to second and Ipswich to third. Ipswich Town fans also named Colchester United as their third rivals after Norwich City and West Ham United. The U's remained primary choice for both Southend and Wycombe fans. United were also ranked as the 12th least offensive club to the supporters of all other Football League clubs.[69]

Colchester's main recent rivalry is with fellow Essex side Southend United, with whom they contest the Essex derby. The competitive head-to-head record is 34 wins to Southend, 30 wins for Colchester and 17 draws.[70] The most recent result was a 2–0 win for the U's on 20 April 2021.[71]

The club also contest the Pride of Anglia award, which they have won once when they finished in 10th position in the Championship ahead of East Anglian rivals Ipswich Town and Norwich City.[22][28]

Greg Halford, who was sold to Reading for £2.5 million in 2007.

Micky Cook is the current Colchester United record holder for most appearances, holding the record for appearances made in both the league at 613, and in all competitions with 700 between 1969 and 1984.[72] Mike Walker ranks in second with 524 appearances in all competitions,[73] and Tony English third with 515.[74][75] Tony Adcock holds the record for most goals in all competitions with 149,[76][77] but Martyn King is the club's record league goalscorer with 132 goals.[78][79]

Colchester United's widest margin victory in the league was a 9–1 win over Bradford City on 30 December 1961 at Layer Road. Their highest losing margin came on 15 December 1988 when they were thrashed 8–0 at Leyton Orient.[80]

The club's record home attendance was for an FA Cup first round tie at Layer Road with Reading on 27 November 1948, when 19,072 fans turned up for a game that was abandoned after 35 minutes due to thick fog.[5][47] The record Colchester Community Stadium attendance was 10,064 when Norwich City won 5–0 in a fiery match on 16 January 2010.[32]

The highest transfer fee received for a Colchester United player is £2,500,000 for Greg Halford by Reading in January 2007.[81] The highest fee paid by Colchester United for a player was £400,000 for Cheltenham Town striker Steven Gillespie in the summer of 2008.[82]

As of 2 August 2023[2]

Colchester United's honours include the following:[4]

League

• League One (level 3)
  • Runners-up: 2005–06
• Fourth Division / Third Division (level 4)
  • Runners-up: 1961–62
  • Promoted: 1965–66, 1973–74, 1976–77
  • Play-off winners: 1998
• Conference (level 5)
  • Champions: 1991–92
  • Runners-up: 1990–91
• Southern League
  • Champions: 1938–39
  • Runners-up: 1949–50

Cup

• Football League Trophy
  • Runners-up: 1996–97
• FA Trophy
  • Winners: 1991–92
• Southern League Cup
  • Winners: 1937–38, 1949–50
• Watney Cup
  • Winners: 1971
• Essex Senior Cup
  • Winners: 2009–10

Initially founded in 1992 under the name of Colchester Royals, later affiliated in 1998 to Colchester United FC and eventually folding in 2013, Colchester United Womens F.C. was established in July 2023 in time for the upcoming season.

A. ^ : As part of the club's 75th anniversary, for the 2012–13 season, shirt sponsorship was provided by local businesses on a game-by-game basis.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Colchester United F.C..

• Colchester United official website
• Colchester United archive database
• Colchester United F.C. on BBC Sport: Club news – Recent results and fixtures