# 2003–04 Colchester United F.C. season

The 2003–04 season was Colchester United's 62nd season in their history and their sixth successive season in the third tier of English football, the Second Division. Alongside competing in the Second Division, the club also participated in the FA Cup, the League Cup and the Football League Trophy.
Colchester embarked on cup runs in the FA Cup, reaching the fifth round where they were eliminated by Sheffield United, while they also were one fixture away from a trip to the Millennium Stadium in the Football League Trophy after falling to a 4–3 aggregate defeat to Southend United. The U's cup exploits eventually led to a late season drop in form, as they slipped from 5th position to 14th with fixture congestion. They recovered to finished 11th, nine points away from the play-offs.

## Season overview

Phil Parkinson embarked on his first full season in charge by applying what he had learnt from the final few months of the previous campaign, while gaining his UEFA A Licence and UEFA B Licence as well as a degree he studied for in his spare time. He introduced sports science to the club, revolutionising the way players trained, ate and rested.
The U's participated in a record 15 cup ties during the season, making significant progress in the FA Cup and Football League Trophy. Helped by the astute signings of Wayne Andrews and Premier League youngsters Craig Fagan and Rowan Vine, Colchester reached the FA Cup fifth round, defeating Oxford United, Aldershot Town, Accrington Stanley, and Coventry City, courtesy of a Vine hat-trick, before succumbing to Sheffield United 1–0 at Bramall Lane. Two days after the FA Cup clash, the U's were faced with the task of overcoming a Football League Trophy southern section final first-leg 3–2 deficit against Southend United. The match ended 1–1, with former U's manager Steve Wignall's Southend progressing. Fixture congestion was a contributing factor in Colchester's slip down the table from 5th position to 14th, while losing Karl Duguid to a serious knee injury.
At the end of the season, Colchester completed the campaign in eleventh position, nine points adrift of the play-off places.

## Players

    As of match played 8 May 2004.
| No. | Name | Position | Place of birth | Date of birth | Apps | Goals | Signed from | Date signed | Fee |
| Goalkeepers |||||||||||
| 1 | Simon Brown | GK | Chelmsford | (1976-12-03)3 December 1976 (aged 26) | 114 | 0 | Tottenham Hotspur | 20 July 1999 | Free transfer |
| 13 | Dean Gerken | GK | Southend-on-Sea | (1985-05-22)22 May 1985 (aged 18) | 0 | 0 | Youth team | 1 August 2002 | Free transfer |
| 31 | Richard McKinney | GK | Ballymoney | (1979-05-18)18 May 1979 (aged 24) | 23 | 0 | Swindon Town | 10 August 2002 | Free transfer |
| Defenders |||||||||||
| 2 | Andy Myers | CB/FB | Hounslow | (1973-11-03)3 November 1973 (aged 29) | 0 | 0 | Bradford City | 11 July 2003 | Free transfer |
| 3 | Joe Keith | FB | Plaistow | (1978-10-01)1 October 1978 (aged 24) | 165 | 19 | West Ham United | 24 May 1999 | Free transfer |
| 5 | Scott Fitzgerald | CB | Westminster | (1969-08-13)13 August 1969 (aged 33) | 100 | 0 | Millwall | 19 October 2000 | Free transfer |
| 19 | Alan White | CB | Darlington | (1975-03-22)22 March 1975 (aged 28) | 120 | 3 | Luton Town | 16 July 2000 | Free transfer |
| 20 | Ross Crouch | CB | Colchester | (1985-03-26)26 March 1985 (aged 18) | 0 | 0 | Youth team | 14 April 2004 | Free transfer |
| 21 | John White | FB | Colchester | (1986-07-26)26 July 1986 (aged 16) | 0 | 0 | Youth team | 1 July 2003 | Free transfer |
| 22 | Greg Halford | FB/MF | Chelmsford | (1984-12-08)8 December 1984 (aged 18) | 1 | 0 | Youth team | 1 August 2002 | Free transfer |
| 24 | Pat Baldwin | CB | City of London | (1982-11-12)12 November 1982 (aged 20) | 22 | 0 | Chelsea | 16 August 2002 | Free transfer |
| 25 | Sam Stockley | FB | Tiverton | (1977-09-05)5 September 1977 (aged 25) | 35 | 1 | Oxford United | 31 October 2002 | Free transfer |
| Midfielders |||||||||||
| 4 | Gavin Johnson | MF | Eye | (1970-10-10)10 October 1970 (aged 32) | 102 | 3 | Dunfermline Athletic | 14 November 1999 | Free transfer |
| 6 | Thomas Pinault | MF | Grasse | (1981-12-04)4 December 1981 (aged 21) | 93 | 5 | AS Cannes | 1 July 1999 | Free transfer |
| 7 | Karl Duguid | MF | Letchworth | (1978-03-21)21 March 1978 (aged 25) | 266 | 37 | Youth team | 9 December 1995 | Free transfer |
| 10 | Kemal Izzet | MF | Whitechapel | (1980-09-29)29 September 1980 (aged 22) | 99 | 14 | Charlton Athletic | 13 April 2001 | Free transfer |
| 15 | Craig Johnston | MF | | (1985-12-04)4 December 1985 (aged 17) | 0 | 0 | Youth team | 1 July 2002 | Free transfer |
| 17 | Bobby Bowry | MF | Hampstead | (1971-05-19)19 May 1971 (aged 32) | 79 | 2 | Millwall | 25 July 2001 | Free transfer |
| | Liam Coleman | MF/FW | Colchester | (1986-01-11)11 January 1986 (aged 17) | 0 | 0 | Youth team | 1 July 2003 | Free transfer |
| Forwards |||||||||||
| 8 | Wayne Andrews | FW | Paddington | (1977-11-25)25 November 1977 (aged 25) | 0 | 0 | Oldham Athletic | 2 July 2003 | Free transfer |
| 9 | Scott McGleish | FW | Chipping Barnet | (1974-02-10)10 February 1974 (aged 29) | 136 | 36 | Barnet | 12 January 2001 | £15,000 |
| 11 | Jamie Cade | FW | Durham | (1985-01-15)15 January 1985 (aged 18) | 0 | 0 | Middlesbrough | 25 November 2003 | Free transfer |
| 12 | Craig Fagan | FW | Birmingham | (1982-12-11)11 December 1982 (aged 20) | 42 | 6 | Birmingham City | 25 March 2004 | Free transfer |
| 23 | Tristan Toney | FW | | (1984-02-04)4 February 1984 (aged 19) | 0 | 0 | Youth team | 1 July 2002 | Free transfer |
* ↑ Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game for the club

## Transfers
### In

| Date | Position | Name | From | Fee |
| 1 July 2003 | MF/FW | Liam Coleman | Youth team | Free transfer |
| 1 July 2003 | WG | Phil Hadland | Leek Town | Free transfer |
| 1 July 2003 | FB | John White | Youth team | Free transfer |
| 2 July 2003 | FW | Wayne Andrews | Oldham Athletic | Free transfer |
| 11 July 2003 | CB/FB | Andy Myers | Bradford City | Free transfer |
| 15 October 2003 | FW | Jermaine Brown | Arsenal | Free transfer |
| 27 October 2003 | MF | Richard Johnson | Watford | Free transfer |
| 25 November 2003 | FW | Jamie Cade | Middlesbrough | Free transfer |
| 25 March 2004 | FW | Craig Fagan | Birmingham City | Free transfer |
| 14 April 2004 | CB | Ross Crouch | Youth team | Free transfer |
* Total spending: ~ £0

### Out

| Date | Position | Name | To | Fee |
| End of season | MF | Marc Canham | Team Bath | Released |
| 1 June 2003 | CB | Mark Warren | Southend United | Free transfer |
| 30 June 2003 | FW | Ben Cranfield | Braintree Town | Released |
| 30 June 2003 | MF | Matt Hearn | Free agent | Released |
| 1 July 2003 | FW | Mvondo Atangana | Grays Athletic | Released |
| 1 July 2003 | FB | Joe Dunne | Free agent | Retired |
| 1 July 2003 | MF | Chris Keeble | Heybridge Swifts | Released |
| 1 July 2003 | MF | Mick Stockwell | Heybridge Swifts | Released |
| 14 July 2003 | FW | Kevin Rapley | Chester City | Released |
| 7 August 2003 | CB | Mike Edwards | Grimsby Town | Released |
| 30 September 2003 | WG | Phil Hadland | Leek Town | Free transfer |
| 30 October 2003 | FW | Adrian Coote | Wivenhoe Town | Released |
| 4 November 2003 | MF | Richard Johnson | Stoke City | Released |
| 27 November 2003 | FW | Dean Morgan | Reading | Free transfer |
| 12 January 2004 | FW | Jermaine Brown | Boston United | Released |
* Total incoming: ~ £0

### Loans in

| Date | Position | Name | From | End date |
| 5 August 2003 | FW | Craig Fagan | Birmingham City | 24 March 2004 |
| 7 August 2003 | FW | Rowan Vine | Portsmouth | 9 May 2004 |
| 26 August 2003 | CB | Liam Chilvers | Arsenal | 9 May 2004 |
| 29 January 2004 | FB | Paul Tierney | Manchester United | 29 February 2004 |
| 12 February 2004 | CB | Wayne Brown | Watford | 9 May 2004 |
| 22 March 2004 | FW | Gareth Williams | Crystal Palace | 9 May 2004 |

### Loans out

| Date | Position | Nationality | Name | To | End date | Ref. |
| 5 December 2003 | CB | | Pat Baldwin | St Albans City | 5 January 2004 | |
| 15 March 2004 | CB | | Scott Fitzgerald | Brentford | 9 May 2004 | |

## Match details
### Second Division
#### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 9 | Bournemouth | 46 | 17 | 15 | 14 | 56 | 51 | +5 | 66 |
| 10 | Luton Town | 46 | 17 | 15 | 14 | 69 | 66 | +3 | 66 |
| 11 | Colchester United | 46 | 17 | 13 | 16 | 52 | 56 | −4 | 64 |
| 12 | Barnsley | 46 | 15 | 17 | 14 | 54 | 58 | −4 | 62 |
| 13 | Wrexham | 46 | 17 | 9 | 20 | 50 | 60 | −10 | 60 |

#### 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 | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A |
| Result | L | L | L | W | D | D | W | W | W | W | D | L | D | L | W | W | W | W | L | L | W | D | D | L | D | L | L | D | L | W | L | W | L | D | D | L | W | D | D | D | W | L | W | W | W | L |
| Position | 18 | 21 | 21 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 10 | 13 | 13 | 10 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 11 |

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

| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Second Division | Second Division | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | Football League Trophy |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| 1 | GK | ENG | Simon Brown | 53 | 0 | 40 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 2 | DF | ENG | Andy Myers | 26 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 3 | DF | ENG | Joe Keith | 41 | 5 | 16+12 | 2 | 4+1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5+1 | 1 |
| 4 | MF | ENG | Gavin Johnson | 21 | 1 | 14+4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | IRL | Scott Fitzgerald | 28 | 0 | 22+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 6 | MF | FRA | Thomas Pinault | 54 | 2 | 31+9 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 1+1 | 1 | 5 | 1 |
| 7 | MF | ENG | Karl Duguid | 42 | 2 | 30 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 8 | FW | ENG | Wayne Andrews | 50 | 14 | 32+9 | 12 | 4+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3+1 | 2 |
| 9 | FW | ENG | Scott McGleish | 48 | 17 | 25+9 | 10 | 6+1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4+2 | 6 |
| 10 | MF | ENG | Kemal Izzet | 56 | 4 | 43+1 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| 11 | FW | ENG | Jamie Cade | 15 | 0 | 6+9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | FW | ENG | Craig Fagan | 48 | 10 | 30+7 | 9 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 13 | GK | ENG | Dean Gerken | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | SKN | Bobby Bowry | 30 | 0 | 18+6 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 |
| 19 | DF | ENG | Alan White | 46 | 1 | 30+3 | 1 | 5+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 22 | DF | ENG | Greg Halford | 24 | 4 | 15+3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 24 | DF | ENG | Pat Baldwin | 7 | 0 | 1+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 |
| 25 | DF | ENG | Sam Stockley | 58 | 0 | 44 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5+1 | 0 |
| 31 | GK | NIR | Richard McKinney | 7 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season ||||||||||||||
| 11 | MF | AUS | Richard Johnson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 15 | FW | NIR | Adrian Coote | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | FW | ENG | Rowan Vine | 49 | 12 | 30+5 | 6 | 5+2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 4+2 | 2 |
| 18 | DF | ENG | Liam Chilvers | 45 | 0 | 29+3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 20 | FW | ENG | Jermaine Brown | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 1 |
| 20 | FW | ENG | Phil Hadland | 2 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 26 | DF | IRL | Paul Tierney | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 26 | FW | WAL | Gareth Williams | 7 | 2 | 5+2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | DF | ENG | Wayne Brown | 17 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |

### Goalscorers

| Place | Number | Position | Name | Second Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | Total |
| 1 | 9 | FW | Scott McGleish | 10 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 17 |
| 2 | 8 | FW | Wayne Andrews | 12 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 14 |
| 3 | 16 | FW | Rowan Vine | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 12 |
| 4 | 12 | FW | Craig Fagan | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 |
| 5 | 3 | FB | Joe Keith | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| 6 | 10 | MF | Kemal Izzet | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| 6 | 22 | FB/MF | Greg Halford | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 8 | 6 | MF | Thomas Pinault | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 8 | 7 | MF | Karl Duguid | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 8 | 26 | FW | Gareth Williams | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 11 | 4 | MF | Gavin Johnson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | 19 | CB | Alan White | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | 20 | FW | Jermaine Brown | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| | | | Own goals | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| | | | TOTALS | 52 | 8 | 2 | 14 | 76 |

### Disciplinary record

| Number | Position | Name | Second Division | Second Division | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | Football League Trophy | Total | Total |
| 12 | FW | Craig Fagan | 9 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 2 |
| 7 | MF | Karl Duguid | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 |
| 19 | CB | Alan White | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 1 |
| 10 | MF | Kemal Izzet | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 16 | FW | Rowan Vine | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 8 | FW | Wayne Andrews | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| 18 | CB | Liam Chilvers | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| 25 | FB | Sam Stockley | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 27 | CB | Wayne Brown | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 2 | CB/FB | Andy Myers | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 6 | MF | Thomas Pinault | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | Bobby Bowry | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 1 | GK | Simon Brown | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 3 | FB | Joe Keith | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | Scott McGleish | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 4 | MF | Gavin Johnson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 5 | CB | Scott Fitzgerald | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 22 | FB/MF | Greg Halford | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 24 | CB | Pat Baldwin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 26 | FB | Paul Tierney | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | | TOTALS | 64 | 8 | 9 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 85 | 9 |

### Clean sheets

Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet.
| Place | Number | Player | Second Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | Total |
| 1 | 1 | Simon Brown | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| 2 | 31 | Richard McKinney | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| | | TOTALS | 11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 14 |

### Player debuts

Players making their first-team Colchester United debut in a fully competitive match.
| Number | Position | Player | Date | Opponent | Ground |
| 2 | CB/FB | Andy Myers | 9 August 2003 | Barnsley | Oakwell |
| 12 | FW | Craig Fagan | 9 August 2003 | Barnsley | Oakwell |
| 16 | FW | Rowan Vine | 9 August 2003 | Barnsley | Oakwell |
| 20 | WG | Phil Hadland | 15 August 2003 | Swindon Town | Layer Road |
| 8 | FW | Wayne Andrews | 23 August 2003 | Port Vale | Vale Park |
| 18 | CB | Liam Chilvers | 30 August 2003 | Tranmere Rovers | Prenton Park |
| 11 | MF | Richard Johnson | 4 November 2003 | Yeovil Town | Huish Park |
| 20 | FW | Jermaine Brown | 9 December 2003 | Wycombe Wanderers | Adams Park |
| 11 | FW | Jamie Cade | 13 December 2003 | Oldham Athletic | Layer Road |
| 26 | FB | Paul Tierney | 31 January 2004 | Tranmere Rovers | Layer Road |
| 27 | CB | Wayne Brown | 17 February 2004 | Southend United | Roots Hall |
| 12 | FW | Craig Fagan | 27 March 2004 | Peterborough United | Layer Road |
| 26 | FW | Gareth Williams | 27 March 2004 | Peterborough United | Layer Road |
| 13 | GK | Dean Gerken | 12 April 2004 | Brentford | Griffin Park |
* 1 2 3 4 Second debut for the club