# 1995–96 Colchester United F.C. season

The 1995–96 season was Colchester United's 54th season in their history and their fourth consecutive season in the fourth tier of English football, the Third Division. Alongside competing in the Third Division, the club also participated in the FA Cup, the League Cup and the Football League Trophy.
Steve Wignall took his side to the play-offs in his first full season in charge, finishing the campaign in seventh place. They couldn't progress further than the semi-final, after being knocked out over two legs by Neil Warnock's eventual play-off winners Plymouth Argyle.
In the cup competitions, Colchester were eliminated by non-League opposition in the FA Cup at the first round stage with Gravesend & Northfleet vanquishing, while Bristol City also beat Colchester over two legs in the League Cup first round. The U's progressed from their group in the Football League Trophy but were beaten by Peterborough United in the southern section quarter-final.

## Season overview

Manager Steve Wignall settled into his first full season in charge by bringing in former fan favourite Tony Adcock during the summer. He also allowed Mark Kinsella to remain with the club on a rolling contract while he harboured ambitions of playing at a higher level.
Colchester slipped up in the FA Cup once again to non-League opposition when Gravesend & Northfleet won 2–0 in the first round. This came after Colchester had already exited the League Cup to Bristol City, also in the first round. The U's reached the area quarter-final of the Football League Trophy but were knocked out by Peterborough United
Boosted by the loan signing of striker Scott McGleish from Peterborough and they rallied for the play-off positions late season. With Joe Dunne scoring an injury time winner at Mansfield Town, Colchester needed a win on the final day of the regular season against Doncaster Rovers to secure a play-off spot. Paul Gibbs' mishit cross looped in to seal a narrow 1–0 victory and a play-off semi-final with Neil Warnock's Plymouth Argyle.
Ahead of the play-offs, Warnock taunted:
   Little teams like Colchester shouldn't even be on the same pitch as big clubs like Plymouth
Mark Kinsella's long range effort gave Colchester a 1–0 win in the first leg in front of a 6,511 Layer Road crowd to make Warnock eat his words. In the away leg at Home Park, Warnock's squad, assembled for over £1m, took an early lead, before taking an aggregate lead prior to half-time through Chris Leadbitter. Kinsella scored just after the hour mark to level the aggregate score at 2–2 but with the vital away goal, but five minutes from time, Plymouth added a third and denied the U's a second trip to Wembley.

## Players

    As of match played 15 May 1996.
| Name | Position | Place of birth | Date of birth | Apps | Goals | Signed from | Date signed | Fee |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||
| Garrett Caldwell | GK | Princeton | (1973-11-06)6 November 1973 (aged 21) | 0 | 0 | Princeton Tigers | 25 September 1995 | Free transfer |
| Carl Emberson | GK | Epsom | (1973-07-13)13 July 1973 (aged 21) | 35 | 0 | Millwall | 6 July 1994 | £25,000 |
| Defenders ||||||||||
| Simon Betts | FB | Middlesbrough | (1973-03-03)3 March 1973 (aged 22) | 104 | 3 | Scarborough | 11 December 1992 | Free transfer |
| Gus Caesar | CB | Tottenham | (1966-03-05)5 March 1966 (aged 29) | 47 | 1 | Airdrieonians | 11 August 1994 | Free transfer |
| Peter Cawley | CB | Walton-on-Thames | (1965-09-15)15 September 1965 (aged 29) | 97 | 6 | Barnet | 30 October 1992 | Free transfer |
| Jean Dalli | FB | Enfield Town | (1976-08-13)13 August 1976 (aged 18) | 1 | 0 | Apprentice | 13 August 1994 | Free transfer |
| Joe Dunne | FB | Dublin | (1973-05-25)25 May 1973 (aged 22) | 0 | 0 | Gillingham | 27 March 1996 | Free transfer |
| Tony English | DF/MF | Luton | (1966-10-19)19 October 1966 (aged 28) | 489 | 58 | Coventry City | 24 December 1984 | Free transfer |
| Paul Gibbs | FB | Gorleston | (1972-10-26)26 October 1972 (aged 22) | 9 | 0 | Diss Town | 6 March 1995 | Undisclosed |
| Nicky Haydon | DF/MF | Barking | (1978-08-10)10 August 1978 (aged 16) | 0 | 0 | Youth team | 1 August 1995 | Free transfer |
| Ben Lewis | CB | Chelmsford | (1977-06-22)22 June 1977 (aged 17) | 0 | 0 | Heybridge Swifts | 1 August 1994 | Free transfer |
| Tony McCarthy | CB | Dublin | (1969-11-09)9 November 1969 (aged 25) | 10 | 1 | Millwall | 17 March 1995 | Free transfer |
| Andy Partner | CB | Colchester | (1974-10-21)21 October 1974 (aged 20) | 5 | 0 | Apprentice | 16 December 1991 | Free transfer |
| Midfielders ||||||||||
| Steve Ball | MF | Colchester | (1969-09-02)2 September 1969 (aged 25) | 71 | 11 | Cambridge United | 14 September 1992 | Free transfer |
| Tony Cook | MF | Hemel Hempstead | (1976-09-17)17 September 1976 (aged 18) | 3 | 0 | Queens Park Rangers | 11 January 1994 | Free transfer |
| Tony Dennis | MF | Eton | (1963-12-01)1 December 1963 (aged 31) | 41 | 2 | Chesterfield | 10 August 1994 | Free transfer |
| Karl Duguid | MF | Letchworth | (1978-03-21)21 March 1978 (aged 17) | 0 | 0 | Youth team | 9 December 1995 | Free transfer |
| Chris Fry | MF/WG | Cardiff | (1969-10-23)23 October 1969 (aged 25) | 54 | 8 | Hereford United | 24 October 1993 | Nominal |
| David Gregory | MF | Sudbury | (1970-01-23)23 January 1970 (aged 25) | 0 | 0 | Peterborough United | 8 December 1995 | Free transfer |
| Mark Kinsella | MF | Dublin | (1972-08-12)12 August 1972 (aged 22) | 209 | 32 | Home Farm | 18 August 1989 | Free transfer |
| Adam Locke | MF/FB | Croydon | (1970-08-20)20 August 1970 (aged 24) | 33 | 1 | Southend United | 23 September 1994 | Free transfer |
| Forwards ||||||||||
| Tony Adcock | FW | Bethnal Green | (1963-03-27)27 March 1963 (aged 32) | 219 | 112 | Luton Town | 3 August 1995 | Free transfer |
| Tony Lock | FW | Harlow | (1976-09-03)3 September 1976 (aged 18) | 3 | 1 | Apprentice | 28 January 1995 | Free transfer |
| Robbie Reinelt | FW | Loughton | (1974-03-11)11 March 1974 (aged 21) | 5 | 0 | Gillingham | 22 March 1995 | Part exchange |
| Steve Whitton | FW | East Ham | (1960-12-04)4 December 1960 (aged 34) | 52 | 15 | Ipswich Town | 24 March 1994 | £10,000 |
* ↑ Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game in his second spell for the club
* 1 2 3 4 5 Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game for the club

## Transfers
### In

| Date | Position | Name | From | Fee |
| August 1995 | WG/FW | Steve Mardenborough | Stafford Rangers | Free transfer |
| 1 August 1995 | DF/MF | Nicky Haydon | Youth team | Free transfer |
| 3 August 1995 | FW | Tony Adcock | Luton Town | Free transfer |
| 29 September 1995 | GK | Garrett Caldwell | Princeton Tigers | Free transfer |
| 17 October 1995 | MF | Robert Boyce | Enfield | Trial |
| 8 December 1995 | MF | David Gregory | Peterborough United | Free transfer |
| 9 December 1995 | MF | Karl Duguid | Youth team | Free transfer |
| 27 March 1996 | FB | Joe Dunne | Gillingham | Free transfer |
* Total spending: ~ £0
* ↑ Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game for the club

### Out

| Date | Position | Name | To | Fee |
| 31 May 1995 | DF | Tim Allpress | Hitchin Town | Released |
| 31 May 1995 | FW | Leighton Allen | Ringmer | Released |
| 31 May 1995 | GK | John Cheesewright | Wimbledon | Released |
| 31 May 1995 | MF | Trevor Putney | Free agent | Retired |
| 31 May 1995 | FW | Niall Thompson | Seattle Sounders | Free transfer |
| 18 November 1995 | MF | Robert Boyce | Chelmsford City | End of trial |
| 6 December 1995 | WF/FW | Steve Mardenborough | Swansea City | Free transfer |
| 27 February 1996 | MF | Michael Cheetham | Sudbury Town | Released |
* Total incoming: ~ £0

### Loans in

| Date | Position | Name | From | End date |
| 23 November 1995 | CB | David Greene | Luton Town | 1 March 1996 |
| 29 December 1995 | FW/WG | Paul Abrahams | Brentford | 20 February 1996 |
| 23 February 1996 | FW | Scott McGleish | Peterborough United | 31 May 1996 |
| 8 March 1996 | GK | Andy Petterson | Charlton Athletic | 31 March 1996 |

## 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 | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | H | A | H | H | A | A | H |
| Result | W | D | W | L | W | L | D | D | W | L | W | D | W | W | D | D | L | L | D | W | D | D | W | W | D | L | D | D | L | L | D | D | W | W | D | W | W | L | W | W | L | D | D | D | W | W |
| Position | 6 | 9 | 6 | 8 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 7 |

#### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion |
| 5 | Darlington | 46 | 20 | 18 | 8 | 60 | 42 | +18 | 78 | Qualification for the Third Division play-offs |
| 6 | Hereford United | 46 | 20 | 14 | 12 | 65 | 47 | +18 | 74 | Qualification for the Third Division play-offs |
| 7 | Colchester United | 46 | 18 | 18 | 10 | 61 | 51 | +10 | 72 | Qualification for the Third Division play-offs |
| 8 | Barnet | 46 | 18 | 16 | 12 | 65 | 45 | +20 | 70 | |
| 9 | Chester City | 46 | 18 | 16 | 12 | 72 | 53 | +19 | 70 | |

#### Football League play-offs
### League Cup
### Football League Trophy

Group 8 :
| Team v t e | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| Swindon Town | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 4 | Qualified for next round |
| Colchester United | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 3 | Qualified for next round |
| Torquay United | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | −3 | 1 | |

### 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 | Football League Trophy | Football League Trophy | Football League play-offs | Football League play-offs |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| | GK | CAN | Garrett Caldwell | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | GK | ENG | Carl Emberson | 49 | 0 | 41 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Simon Betts | 54 | 7 | 45 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Gus Caesar | 29 | 2 | 23 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Peter Cawley | 50 | 2 | 42 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| | DF | IRL | Joe Dunne | 5 | 1 | 2+3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Tony English | 28 | 0 | 20+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Paul Gibbs | 28 | 3 | 13+11 | 3 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Ben Lewis | 3 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | IRL | Tony McCarthy | 53 | 0 | 44 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | Steve Ball | 10 | 1 | 6+2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | Tony Dennis | 36 | 3 | 24+8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | Karl Duguid | 17 | 1 | 7+9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | MF | WAL | Chris Fry | 46 | 2 | 35+3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | David Gregory | 10 | 0 | 7+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | MF | IRL | Mark Kinsella | 54 | 9 | 45 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| | MF | ENG | Adam Locke | 31 | 3 | 22+3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Tony Adcock | 48 | 17 | 41 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0+1 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Robbie Reinelt | 26 | 8 | 12+10 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Steve Whitton | 16 | 2 | 10+2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 |
| Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season ||||||||||||||||
| | GK | AUS | Andy Petterson | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | IRL | David Greene | 16 | 1 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | Robert Boyce | 2 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | Michael Cheetham | 34 | 3 | 25+3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Paul Abrahams | 9 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Steve Mardenborough | 14 | 2 | 4+8 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Scott McGleish | 17 | 6 | 10+5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |

### Goalscorers

| Place | Position | Name | Third Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | Football League play-offs | Total |
| 1 | FW | Tony Adcock | 12 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 17 |
| 2 | MF | Mark Kinsella | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 9 |
| 3 | FW | Robbie Reinelt | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 |
| 4 | FB | Simon Betts | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 |
| 5 | FW | Scott McGleish | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 6 | MF | Michael Cheetham | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 6 | MF | Tony Dennis | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 6 | FB | Paul Gibbs | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 6 | MF/FB | Adam Locke | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 10 | FW/WG | Paul Abrahams | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | CB | Gus Caesar | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | CB | Peter Cawley | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | MF/WG | Chris Fry | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | WG/FW | Steve Mardenborough | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | FW | Steve Whitton | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 16 | MF | Steve Ball | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 16 | MF | Karl Duguid | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 16 | FB | Joe Dunne | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 16 | CB | David Greene | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| | | Own goals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | | TOTALS | 61 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 2 | 75 |

### Disciplinary record

| Position | Name | Third Division | Third Division | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | Football League Trophy | Football League play-offs | Football League play-offs | Total | Total |
| CB | Peter Cawley | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| MF | Tony Dennis | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| DF/MF | Tony English | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| FW | Tony Adcock | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| MF/WG | Chris Fry | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| MF/FB | Adam Locke | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| MF | Mark Kinsella | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | TOTALS | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 6 |

### Clean sheets

Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet.
| Place | Player | Third Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | Football League play-offs | Total |
| 1 | Carl Emberson | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 |
| 2 | Andy Petterson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| | TOTALS | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 14 |

### Player debuts

Players making their first-team Colchester United debut in a fully competitive match.
| Position | Player | Date | Opponent | Ground |
| FW | Tony Adcock | 12 August 1995 | Plymouth Argyle | Layer Road |
| WG/FW | Steve Mardenborough | 26 August 1995 | Lincoln City | Layer Road |
| CB | Ben Lewis | 30 September 1995 | Scunthorpe United | Glanford Park |
| MF | Robert Boyce | 28 October 1995 | Cardiff City | Ninian Park |
| GK | Garrett Caldwell | 8 November 1995 | Swindon Town | County Ground |
| CB | David Greene | 25 November 1995 | Mansfield Town | Layer Road |
| MF | Karl Duguid | 9 December 1995 | Hereford United | Edgar Street |
| FW/WG | Paul Abrahams | 1 January 1996 | Torquay United | Plainmoor |
| MF | David Gregory | 13 January 1996 | Barnet | Layer Road |
| FW | Scott McGleish | 24 February 1996 | Darlington | Layer Road |
| GK | Andy Petterson | 9 March 1996 | Bury | Layer Road |
| FB | Joe Dunne | 30 March 1996 | Hartlepool United | Victoria Park |
* 1 2 Second debut for the club