# 1966–67 Colchester United F.C. season

The 1966–67 season was Colchester United's 25th season in their history and their first back in the third tier of English football, the Third Division, following promotion from the Fourth Division the previous season. Alongside competing in the Third Division, the club also participated in the FA Cup and the League Cup.
Colchester finished comfortably mid-table by finishing 13th. Queens Park Rangers defeated the U's 5–0 in the League Cup, while Peterborough United knocked them out in the second round of the FA Cup.

## Season overview

Neil Franklin spent £4,000 to sign Ken Hodgson from Bournemouth in the summer, and alongside Peter Bullock, the pair amassed 31 goals between them. Meanwhile, Reg Stratton scored 24 league goals as Colchester ended their first season back in the Third Division with a mid-table 13th position finish.

## Players

    As of match played 13 May 1967.
| Name | Position | Place of birth | Date of birth | Apps | Goals | Signed from | Date signed | Fee |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||
| Alan Buck | GK | Colchester | (1946-08-25)25 August 1946 (aged 19) | 11 | 0 | Amateur | July 1963 | Free transfer |
| Sandy Kennon | GK | Johannesburg | (1933-11-28)28 November 1933 (aged 32) | 60 | 0 | Norwich City | March 1965 | Free transfer |
| Defenders ||||||||||
| Alan Dennis | CB | Colchester | (1951-02-22)22 February 1951 (aged 15) | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | April 1967 | Free transfer |
| Duncan Forbes | CB | Edinburgh | (1941-06-19)19 June 1941 (aged 24) | 187 | 1 | Musselburgh Athletic | 4 September 1961 | Nominal |
| Brian Hall | LB | Burbage | (1939-03-09)9 March 1939 (aged 27) | 60 | 12 | Mansfield Town | March 1965 | Free transfer |
| Mick Loughton | CB | Colchester | (1942-12-08)8 December 1942 (aged 23) | 77 | 2 | Amateur | August 1961 | Free transfer |
| Dennis Mochan | FB | Falkirk | (1935-12-12)12 December 1935 (aged 30) | 0 | 0 | Nottingham Forest | 24 September 1966 | Free transfer |
| Ray Price | FB | Hetton-le-Hole | (1944-05-18)18 May 1944 (aged 22) | 16 | 0 | Norwich City | Summer 1964 | Free transfer |
| David Raine | FB | Darlington | (1937-03-28)28 March 1937 (aged 29) | 25 | 0 | Doncaster Rovers | 1 June 1965 | Nominal |
| Midfielders ||||||||||
| Bobby Blackwood | MF | Edinburgh | (1934-08-20)20 August 1934 (aged 31) | 45 | 5 | Ipswich Town | 1 June 1965 | Free transfer |
| David Buck | WH | Colchester | (1946-08-25)25 August 1946 (aged 18) | 1 | 0 | Apprentice | 16 October 1965 | Free transfer |
| Dave Lamont | MF | Glasgow | (1949-04-02)2 April 1949 (aged 17) | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | July 1965 | Free transfer |
| John Mansfield | MF | Colchester | (1946-09-13)13 September 1946 (aged 19) | 8 | 1 | Apprentice | August 1964 | Free transfer |
| Derek Trevis | MF | Birmingham | (1942-09-09)9 September 1942 (aged 23) | 107 | 11 | Aston Villa | 7 March 1964 | Free transfer |
| Forwards ||||||||||
| Peter Barlow | FW | Portsmouth | (1950-01-09)9 January 1950 (aged 16) | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | September 1965 | Free transfer |
| Peter Bullock | FW | Stoke-on-Trent | (1941-11-17)17 November 1941 (aged 24) | 36 | 11 | Southend United | 30 October 1965 | Nominal |
| Ken Hodgson | FW | Newcastle upon Tyne | (1942-01-19)19 January 1942 (aged 24) | 0 | 0 | Bournemouth | 20 August 1966 | £4,000 |
| Johnny Martin | WG | Ashington | (1946-12-04)4 December 1946 (aged 19) | 0 | 0 | Aston Villa | 20 August 1966 | Free transfer |
| Alan Shires | WG | Leigh-on-Sea | (1948-06-29)29 June 1948 (aged 17) | 0 | 0 | Southend United | 27 August 1966 | Free transfer |
| Reg Stratton | FW | Kingsley | (1939-07-10)10 July 1939 (aged 26) | 39 | 21 | Fulham | 28 May 1965 | Free transfer |
| Brian Westlake | CF | Newcastle-under-Lyme | (1943-09-19)19 September 1943 (aged 22) | 0 | 0 | Tranmere Rovers | February 1967 | Nominal |
* 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game for the club

## Transfers
### In

| Date | Position | Name | From | Fee |
| 20 August 1966 | FW | Ken Hodgson | Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic | £4,000 |
| 20 August 1966 | WG | Johnny Martin | Aston Villa | Free transfer |
| 27 August 1966 | WG | Alan Shires | Southend United | Free transfer |
| 24 September 1966 | FB | Dennis Mochan | Nottingham Forest | Free transfer |
| February 1967 | CF | Brian Westlake | Tranmere Rovers | Nominal |
| April 1967 | CB | Alan Dennis | Apprentice | Free transfer |
* Total spending: ~ £4,000
* 1 2 3 4 Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game for the club

### Out

| Date | Position | Name | To | Fee |
| End of season | FB | David Laitt | Crittall Athletic | Released |
| End of season | WG | John Hornsby | South Shields | Released |
| End of season | IF | Ted Phillips | Floriana | Player-manager |
| 28 May 1966 | FB | John Fowler | Heybridge Swifts | Player-manager |
| 28 May 1966 | WG | Barrie Aitchison | Cambridge City | Released |
| 31 May 1966 | IF | Dennis Barrett | Free agent | Released |
| August 1966 | WG | Mike Grice | Lowestoft Town | Released |
| 11 February 1967 | WG | Arthur Kaye | Free agent | Retired |
* 1 2 3 Date of departure refers to the date of the player's final game for the club

## Match details
### Third Division
#### Results round by round

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 |
| Ground | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | H | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H |
| Result | L | L | W | D | W | D | W | W | L | W | W | D | L | W | L | L | D | L | W | L | L | D | W | W | L | L | L | L | L | L | W | W | D | W | W | D | L | W | L | D | W | D | L | L | D | W |
| Position | 18 | 22 | 19 | 16 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 5 | 6 | 12 | 10 | 14 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 17 | 14 | 17 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 14 | 12 |

#### League table

| Pos | Team v t e | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts |
| 11 | Gillingham | 46 | 15 | 16 | 15 | 58 | 62 | 0.935 | 46 |
| 12 | Walsall | 46 | 18 | 10 | 18 | 65 | 72 | 0.903 | 46 |
| 13 | Colchester United | 46 | 17 | 10 | 19 | 76 | 73 | 1.041 | 44 |
| 14 | Orient | 46 | 13 | 18 | 15 | 58 | 68 | 0.853 | 44 |
| 15 | Peterborough United | 46 | 14 | 15 | 17 | 66 | 71 | 0.930 | 43 |

#### Matches
### FA Cup
## Squad statistics
### Appearances and goals

| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Third Division | Third Division | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| | GK | ENG | Alan Buck | 26 | 0 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | GK | RSA | Sandy Kennon | 23 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | SCO | Duncan Forbes | 49 | 1 | 46 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Brian Hall | 48 | 2 | 45 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Mick Loughton | 25 | 0 | 23 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | DF | SCO | Dennis Mochan | 35 | 0 | 31+3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Ray Price | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | David Raine | 27 | 0 | 25+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | MF | SCO | Bobby Blackwood | 22 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | John Mansfield | 8 | 2 | 7+1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | Derek Trevis | 48 | 0 | 45 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Peter Barlow | 4 | 0 | 3+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Peter Bullock | 43 | 15 | 40+1 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Ken Hodgson | 47 | 16 | 44 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Johnny Martin | 49 | 8 | 46 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Alan Shires | 17 | 2 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Reg Stratton | 49 | 24 | 46 | 24 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Brian Westlake | 15 | 5 | 14+1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season ||||||||||||
| | FW | ENG | Arthur Kaye | 14 | 0 | 10+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |

### Goalscorers

| Place | Position | Name | Third Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Total |
| 1 | FW | Reg Stratton | 24 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| 2 | FW | Ken Hodgson | 16 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| 3 | FW | Peter Bullock | 15 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| 4 | WG | Johnny Martin | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 5 | CF | Brian Westlake | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 6 | LB | Brian Hall | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 6 | MF | John Mansfield | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 6 | WG | Alan Shires | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 9 | CB | Duncan Forbes | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| | | Own goals | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| | | TOTALS | 76 | 1 | 0 | 77 |

### Clean sheets

Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet.
| Place | Player | Third Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Total |
| 1 | Sandy Kennon | 7 | 1 | 0 | 8 |
| 2 | Alan Buck | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| | TOTALS | 10 | 1 | 0 | 11 |

### Player debuts

Players making their first-team Colchester United debut in a fully competitive match.
| Position | Player | Date | Opponent | Ground |
| FW | Ken Hodgson | 20 August 1966 | Middlesbrough | Layer Road |
| WG | Johnny Martin | 20 August 1966 | Middlesbrough | Layer Road |
| WG | Alan Shires | 23 August 1966 | Queens Park Rangers | Loftus Road |
| FB | Dennis Mochan | 24 September 1966 | Oldham Athletic | Layer Road |
| FW | Peter Barlow | 27 December 1966 | Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic | Layer Road |
| CF | Brian Westlake | 18 February 1967 | Gillingham | Priestfield Stadium |