# 1969–70 Colchester United F.C. season

The 1969–70 season was Colchester United's 28th season in their history and their second 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 ended an injury blighted season in tenth position in the Fourth Division, while they were knocked out in the first round of the FA Cup by Newport County, and in the second round of the League Cup by neighbours and rivals Ipswich Town in their heaviest defeat of the campaign.

## Season overview

For the new season, manager Dick Graham employed a new policy of recruiting older, more experienced players. He said:
   I believe in signing players who have done something big and giving them a new lease of life
He brought in Bobby Cram, formerly of West Bromwich Albion and hitherto playing in Canada, to become his captain for the season, while also paying £5,000 for Ken Jones from Millwall.
An eleven-game unbeaten home run gave Colchester a chance for a promotion push, but an expanding injury list held back the U's progress. Trainer Dennis Mochan made a final appearance for the club during the campaign having taking up a coaching position at the end of the previous season. The club finished in tenth place, while exiting both Cups in the early rounds; a defeat to Newport County in the first round of the FA Cup, and a second round defeat to Ipswich Town in the League Cup.

## Players

    As of match played 28 April 1970.
| Name | Position | Place of birth | Date of birth | Apps | Goals | Signed from | Date signed | Fee |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||
| Graham Smith | GK | Liverpool | (1947-11-02)2 November 1947 (aged 21) | 0 | 0 | Notts County | Summer 1969 | Free transfer |
| Ron Willis | GK | Romford | (1947-12-27)27 December 1947 (aged 21) | 3 | 0 | Charlton Athletic | October 1968 | £1,500 |
| Defenders ||||||||||
| Dave Bickles | CB | West Ham | (1944-04-06)6 April 1944 (aged 25) | 35 | 3 | Crystal Palace | 28 September 1968 | Free transfer |
| Micky Cook | FB | Enfield | (1951-04-09)9 April 1951 (aged 18) | 0 | 0 | Orient | 1 March 1969 | Free transfer |
| Bobby Cram | FB | Hetton-le-Hole | (1939-11-19)19 November 1939 (aged 29) | 0 | 0 | Vancouver Royals | 17 January 1970 | Free transfer |
| Alan Dennis | CB | Colchester | (1951-02-22)22 February 1951 (aged 18) | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | April 1967 | Free transfer |
| Brian Hall | LB | Burbage | (1939-03-09)9 March 1939 (aged 30) | 204 | 22 | Mansfield Town | March 1965 | Free transfer |
| Bert Howe | FB | Charlton | (1938-11-16)16 November 1938 (aged 30) | 0 | 0 | Orient | Summer 1969 | Free transfer |
| Bobby Howlett | CB | West Ham | (1948-12-12)12 December 1948 (aged 20) | 0 | 0 | Southend United | Summer 1968 | Free transfer |
| Adrian Webster | DF | Colchester | (1951-11-06)6 November 1951 (aged 17) | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | July 1968 | Free transfer |
| Brian Wood | CB | Hamworthy | (1940-12-08)8 December 1940 (aged 28) | 30 | 1 | Orient | 14 September 1968 | £4,000 |
| Midfielders ||||||||||
| Steve Foley | MF | Clacton-on-Sea | (1953-06-21)21 June 1953 (aged 15) | 0 | 0 | Apprentice | July 1969 | Free transfer |
| Ken Jones | MF | Keighley | (1941-02-09)9 February 1941 (aged 28) | 0 | 0 | Millwall | November 1969 | £5,000 |
| Roger Joslyn | MF | Colchester | (1950-05-07)7 May 1950 (aged 19) | 53 | 3 | Apprentice | 23 December 1967 | Free transfer |
| Forwards ||||||||||
| Micky Brown | WG | Farnham Common | (1944-04-11)11 April 1944 (aged 25) | 22 | 3 | Luton Town | 26 October 1968 | £3,000 |
| Terry Dyson | WG | Malton | (1934-11-29)29 November 1934 (aged 34) | 43 | 3 | Fulham | 24 August 1968 | Free transfer |
| Brian Gibbs | FW | Gillingham | (1936-10-06)6 October 1936 (aged 32) | 38 | 11 | Gillingham | September 1968 | £8,000 |
| Danny Light | FW | Chiswick | (1948-07-10)10 July 1948 (aged 20) | 45 | 14 | Crystal Palace | August 1968 | £4,000 |
| Roy Massey | FW | Mexborough | (1943-09-10)10 September 1943 (aged 25) | 0 | 0 | Orient | July 1969 | £5,000 |
| Jim Oliver | FW | Falkirk | (1941-12-03)3 December 1941 (aged 27) | 58 | 10 | Brighton & Hove Albion | January 1968 | £2,000 |
| Ray Whittaker | WG | Bow | (1945-01-15)15 January 1945 (aged 24) | 0 | 0 | Luton Town | 9 August 1969 | Free transfer |
* 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 |
| Summer 1969 | GK | Graham Smith | Notts County | Free transfer |
| Summer 1969 | FB | Bert Howe | Orient | Free transfer |
| Summer 1969 | WG | Steve Pitt | Tottenham Hotspur | Free transfer |
| July 1969 | MF | Steve Foley | Apprentice | Free transfer |
| July 1969 | FW | Roy Massey | Orient | £5,000 |
| 9 August 1969 | WG | Ray Whittaker | Luton Town | Free transfer |
| November 1969 | MF | Ken Jones | Millwall | £5,000 |
| 17 January 1970 | FB | Bobby Cram | Vancouver Royals | Free transfer |
* Total spending: ~ £10,000
* 1 2 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 | CB | Brian Honeywood | Chelmsford City | Free transfer |
| Summer 1969 | WG | Johnny Martin | Workington | Released |
| 31 May 1969 | WG | Terry Price | Chelmsford City | Free transfer |
| 1 July 1969 | GK | Ernie Adams | Crewe Alexandra | Free transfer |
| August 1969 | GK | Tony Macedo | Durban City | £6,000 |
| 5 August 1969 | FB | Owen Simpson | Southend United | £4,000 |
| October 1969 | WG | Steve Pitt | Stevenage Borough | Released |
| 25 October 1969 | FB | Dennis Mochan | Colchester United | Coaching staff |
* Total incoming: ~ £10,000
* ↑ Date of departure refers to the date of the player's final game for the club

### Loans in

| Date | Position | Nationality | Name | From | End date | Ref. |
| 11 October 1969 | FB | | Eddie Presland | Crystal Palace | 8 November 1969 | |
| 1 November 1969 | WG | | Malcolm Slater | Orient | 25 November 1969 | |
* 1 2 Loan start and end dates refer to the date of the player's first and final games for the club

## Match details
### Fourth 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 | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | A |
| Result | D | W | D | W | D | L | W | W | D | D | L | L | L | W | L | L | D | L | W | D | W | W | W | D | L | W | D | D | W | L | W | W | L | D | D | L | W | W | L | D | L | W | L | W | D | L |
| Position | 7 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 10 |

#### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
| 8 | Lincoln City | 46 | 17 | 16 | 13 | 66 | 52 | 1.269 | 50 | |
| 9 | Peterborough United | 46 | 17 | 14 | 15 | 77 | 69 | 1.116 | 48 | Qualified for 1970 Watney Cup |
| 10 | Colchester United | 46 | 17 | 14 | 15 | 64 | 63 | 1.016 | 48 | |
| 11 | Chester | 46 | 21 | 6 | 19 | 58 | 66 | 0.879 | 48 | |
| 12 | Scunthorpe United | 46 | 18 | 10 | 18 | 67 | 65 | 1.031 | 46 | |
* ↑ The two teams who scored the most goals in each division, and did not qualify for Europe and were not promoted, qualified for the Watney Cup.

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

| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Fourth Division | Fourth Division | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| | GK | ENG | Graham Smith | 46 | 0 | 43 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | GK | ENG | Ron Willis | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Dave Bickles | 36 | 0 | 33 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Micky Cook | 21 | 0 | 19+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Bobby Cram | 21 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Alan Dennis | 3 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Brian Hall | 49 | 4 | 45 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Bert Howe | 30 | 1 | 29 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Bobby Howlett | 18 | 0 | 10+6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Brian Wood | 47 | 1 | 43 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | Ken Jones | 28 | 16 | 28 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | Roger Joslyn | 45 | 1 | 38+4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Micky Brown | 36 | 9 | 30+2 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Terry Dyson | 15 | 1 | 13+2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Brian Gibbs | 45 | 14 | 41 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Danny Light | 28 | 2 | 23+1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Roy Massey | 23 | 11 | 18+1 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| | FW | SCO | Jim Oliver | 22 | 1 | 17+2 | 1 | 0+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Ray Whittaker | 41 | 7 | 36+1 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season ||||||||||||
| | DF | SCO | Dennis Mochan | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Eddie Presland | 6 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Steve Pitt | 7 | 0 | 4+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | FW | SCO | Malcolm Slater | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

### Goalscorers

| Place | Position | Name | Fourth Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Total |
| 1 | MF | Ken Jones | 16 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| 2 | FW | Brian Gibbs | 14 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| 3 | FW | Roy Massey | 7 | 0 | 4 | 11 |
| 4 | WG | Micky Brown | 9 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| 5 | WG | Ray Whittaker | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| 6 | LB | Brian Hall | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 7 | FW | Danny Light | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 8 | WG | Terry Dyson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 8 | FB | Bert Howe | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 8 | MF | Roger Joslyn | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 8 | FW | Jim Oliver | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 8 | CB | Brian Wood | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| | | Own goals | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| | | TOTALS | 64 | 1 | 4 | 69 |

### Disciplinary record

| Position | Name | Fourth Division | Fourth Division | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Total | Total |
| WG | Terry Dyson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| FW | Brian Gibbs | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| LB | Brian Hall | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| FB | Bert Howe | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| CB | Bobby Howlett | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| FW | Jim Oliver | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| WG | Malcolm Slater | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | TOTALS | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |

### Clean sheets

Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet.
| Place | Nationality | Player | Fourth Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Total |
| 1 | | Graham Smith | 9 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| | | TOTALS | 9 | 0 | 1 | 10 |

### Player debuts

Players making their first-team Colchester United debut in a fully competitive match.
| Position | Player | Date | Opponent | Ground |
| GK | Graham Smith | 9 August 1969 | Lincoln City | Sincil Bank |
| FB | Bert Howe | 9 August 1969 | Lincoln City | Sincil Bank |
| CB | Bobby Howlett | 9 August 1969 | Lincoln City | Sincil Bank |
| FW | Roy Massey | 9 August 1969 | Lincoln City | Sincil Bank |
| WG | Steve Pitt | 9 August 1969 | Lincoln City | Sincil Bank |
| WG | Ray Whittaker | 9 August 1969 | Lincoln City | Sincil Bank |
| FB | Micky Cook | 6 October 1969 | Wrexham | Racecourse Ground |
| FB | Eddie Presland | 11 October 1969 | Bradford Park Avenue | Layer Road |
| WG | Malcolm Slater | 1 November 1969 | Aldershot | Recreation Ground |
| MF | Ken Jones | 22 November 1969 | Grimsby Town | Layer Road |
| FB | Bobby Cram | 17 January 1970 | Swansea City | Vetch Field |
| CB | Alan Dennis | 22 April 1970 | Lincoln City | Layer Road |