1951–52 Colchester United F.C. season

Colchester United
1951–52 season
Chairman Bill Allen[1]
Manager Jimmy Allen
Stadium Layer Road
Third Division South 10th
FA Cup 3rd round
(eliminated by
Barnsley)
Top goalscorer League:
Vic Keeble (16)
All:
Vic Keeble (17)
Highest home attendance 15,175
v Ipswich Town, 1 March 1952[2]
Lowest home attendance 6,128
v Watford, 3 May 1952[3]
Average home league attendance 9,429[4]
Biggest win 4–1
v Bristol City, 20 October 1951;
4–1
v Reading, 3 April 1952
Biggest defeat 0–7
v Leyton Orient, 5 January 1952
Football kit (white jersey with blue, vertical stripes; white shorts;; and blue socks with white, horizontal hoops).
Home colours
← 1950–51 1952–53 →

The 1951–52 season was Colchester United's tenth season in their history and their second season in the Third Division South, the third tier of English football. Alongside competing in the Third Division South, the club also participated in the FA Cup. Colchester reached the third round of the FA Cup before being knocked out by Second Division side Barnsley. In the league, they bettered the previous season's 16th-placed finish by finishing 10th.

Season overview

Colchester's 1951–52 season began poorly, with six defeats in the opening seven games due to an injury-ravaged squad. Rooted to the foot of the table, a mid-season revival including a double over local rivals Ipswich Town eventually saw the U's finish the season 10th in the final standings.

Vic Keeble became Colchester's first export that commanded a high transfer fee when he moved to First Division Newcastle United for a £15,000 fee in January 1952. Despite his mid-season sale, Keeble remained the top scorer for the U's with 17 goals. Manager Jimmy Allen signed Kevin McCurley from Liverpool for £750 as a replacement for Keeble in March 1952. He scored six times in eleven games during the final two months of the campaign.[5]

Players

As of match played 3 May 1952.[6]
Name Position Nationality Place of birth Date of birth Apps Goals Signed from Date signed Fee
Goalkeepers
Frank CoombsGKEnglandEast Ham24 April 1925 (aged 26)00England Southend United8 March 1952[lower-alpha 1]£450
George WrightGKEnglandPlymouth10 October 1919 (aged 31)950England Plymouth ArgyleMay 1949£1,000
Defenders
George FrenchFBEnglandColchester10 November 1926 (aged 24)00England West Ham UnitedFebruary 1949Free transfer
John HarrisonFBEnglandLeicester27 September 1927 (aged 23)330England Aston Villa30 September 1950[lower-alpha 1]Nominal
Digger KettleFBEnglandColchester3 June 1922 (aged 28)1651England Arclight SportsSeptember 1946Free transfer
Phil RookesFBEnglandDulverton23 April 1919 (aged 32)00England PortsmouthJuly 1951£1,000
Trevor RowlandsFBWalesWattstown2 February 1922 (aged 29)151England Norwich City20 July 1950£1,000
Reg StewartCBEnglandSheffield30 October 1925 (aged 25)990England Sheffield Wednesday20 August 1949[lower-alpha 1]£1,000
Midfielders
Harry BearrymanWHEnglandWandsworth26 September 1924 (aged 26)1949England Chelsea4 July 1947Free transfer
Jimmy ElderWHScotlandScone5 March 1928 (aged 23)464England Portsmouth19 August 1950[lower-alpha 1]£1,000
Trevor HarrisWHEnglandColchester6 February 1936 (aged 15)00AmateurJuly 1951Free transfer
Ron HuntWHEnglandColchester26 September 1933 (aged 17)00AmateurOctober 1951Free transfer
Len JonesWHEnglandBarnsley9 June 1913 (aged 37)433England Southend United19 August 1950[lower-alpha 1]Undisclosed
John MooreWHEnglandChiswick25 September 1923 (aged 27)130England Brentford8 September 1949[lower-alpha 1]£1,000
Harry WilkinsonWHEnglandSunderland20 March 1926 (aged 25)00England Exeter City1951Free transfer
Forwards
Peter AitchisonWGEnglandHarlow19 September 1931 (aged 19)00AmateurAugust 1950Free transfer
John ChurchWGEnglandLowestoft17 September 1919 (aged 31)4210England Norwich City19 August 1950[lower-alpha 1]£1,000
Dick CullumFWEnglandColchester28 January 1931 (aged 20)00England Colchester Colts28 March 1951[lower-alpha 1]Free transfer
Adam DavidsonWGScotlandInvergowrie18 November 1929 (aged 21)00England Sheffield WednesdayAugust 1951Free transfer
Jack McClellandFWEnglandColchester11 August 1930 (aged 20)00AmateurSummer 1951Free transfer
Kevin McCurleyCFEnglandConsett2 April 1926 (aged 25)00England LiverpoolJune 1951£750
Johnny McKimIFScotlandGreenock22 January 1926 (aged 25)248England Chelsea19 August 1950[lower-alpha 1]£1,000
Augie ScottIFEnglandSunderland19 February 1921 (aged 30)00England Southampton18 August 1951[lower-alpha 1]£2,000
Arthur TurnerCFEnglandPoplar22 January 1921 (aged 30)15598England Charlton AthleticSeptember 1946Free transfer
Peter WrightWGEnglandColchester26 January 1934 (aged 17)00Amateur November 1951Free transfer
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game for the club

Transfers

In

Date Position Nationality Name From Fee Ref.
1951 WH England Harry Wilkinson England Exeter City Free transfer [7]
Summer 1951 FW England Jack McClelland Amateur Free transfer [8][9]
June 1951 CF England Kevin McCurley England Liverpool £750 [10]
July 1951 WH England Trevor Harris Amateur Free transfer [11]
July 1951 FB England Phil Rookes England Portsmouth £1,000 [12]
August 1951 WG Scotland Adam Davidson England Sheffield Wednesday Free transfer [13]
18 August 1951 IF England Augie Scott England Southampton £2,000 [14][lower-alpha 1]
October 1951 WH England Ron Hunt Amateur Free transfer [15]
November 1951 WG England Peter Wright Amateur Free transfer [16]
8 March 1952 GK England Frank Coombs England Southend United £450 [17][lower-alpha 1]
  1. 1 2 Date of signing refers to the date of the player's first game for the club

Out

Date Position Nationality Name To Fee Ref.
End of season IF England Bob Curry England Clacton Town Player-manager [18]
August 1951 WG England Bob Allen England Bedford Town Free transfer [19]
2 November 1951 WG England Dennis Hillman England Gillingham Free transfer [20]
29 January 1952 CF England Vic Keeble England Newcastle United £15,000 [21]
23 February 1952 IF England Fred Cutting England Great Yarmouth Town Free transfer [22][lower-alpha 1]
  1. ↑ Date of departure refers to the date of the player's final game for the club

Match details

Third Division South

Third Division South results round by round

Round12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031323334353637383940414243444546
GroundAHHAAAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAAAHHAAHAHHAAHAHAHAHHAAAHHH
Result L D L L L L L W W D D D W W D L L W D D D W W W L W W L W L L D W L D L W W W W L L L D D W
Position 20 20 23 24 24 24 24 24 24 23 22 22 20 18 16 19 20 17 19 16 17 14 13 13 14 14 11 13 11 12 13 13 11 12 12 13 11 10 10 9 9 10 11 10 11 10

Last updated: 28 February 2016.
Source:
Ground: A = Away; H = Home. Result: D = Draw; L = Loss; W = Win; P = Postponed.

  Win   Draw   Loss

League table

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGAv1Pts2Promotion, qualification or relegation
8Northampton Town462251993741.25749
9Southend United4619101775661.13648
10Colchester United4617121756770.72746
11Torquay United4617101986980.87844
12Aldershot461882078890.87644

Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal average; 3) Number of goals scored

(C) Champion; (P) Promoted; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated; (R) Relegated.

Notes:

1 The system of using goal average to separate two teams tied on points was used up until the 1976–77 season.

2 The points system: 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 points for losing.

Matches

FA Cup

Squad statistics

Appearances and goals

[6][23]

No. Pos Nat Player TotalThird Division
South 		FA Cup
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
GK England Frank Coombs 13 0 13 0 0 0
GK England George Wright 36 0 33 0 3 0
DF England John Harrison 44 0 41 0 3 0
DF England Digger Kettle 3 0 3 0 0 0
DF England Phil Rookes 28 0 25 0 3 0
DF Wales Trevor Rowlands 26 1 26 1 0 0
DF England Reg Stewart 47 0 44 0 3 0
MF England Harry Bearryman 49 0 46 0 3 0
MF Scotland Jimmy Elder 47 3 44 2 3 1
MF England Ron Hunt 3 0 3 0 0 0
MF England Len Jones 18 1 17 1 1 0
MF England John Moore 2 0 2 0 0 0
FW England Peter Aitchison 9 2 9 2 0 0
FW England John Church 41 3 38 3 3 0
FW Scotland Adam Davidson 21 1 19 0 2 1
FW England Kevin McCurley 11 6 11 6 0 0
FW Scotland Johnny McKim 27 10 26 10 1 0
FW England Augie Scott 48 6 45 4 3 2
FW England Arthur Turner 9 2 9 2 0 0
FW England Peter Wright 9 0 9 0 0 0
Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season
FW England Fred Cutting 20 9 18 9 2 0
FW England Vic Keeble 28 17 25 16 3 1

Goalscorers

[23]

Place Nationality Position Name Third Division South FA Cup Total
1 England CF Vic Keeble 16 1 17
2 Scotland IF Johnny McKim 10 0 10
3 England IF Fred Cutting 9 0 9
4 England CF Kevin McCurley 6 0 6
England IF Augie Scott 4 2 6
6 England WG John Church 3 0 3
Scotland WH Jimmy Elder 2 1 3
8 England WG Peter Aitchison 2 0 2
England CF Arthur Turner 2 0 2
10 Scotland WG Adam Davidson 0 1 1
England WH Len Jones 1 0 1
Wales FB Trevor Rowlands 1 0 1
Own goals 0 0 0
TOTALS 56 5 61

Disciplinary record

[24]

Nationality Position Name Third Division South FA Cup Total
YC Red card YC Red card YC Red card
England CB Reg Stewart 0 1 0 0 0 1
TOTALS 0 1 0 0 0 1

Clean sheets

Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet.[25]

Place Nationality Player Third Division South FA Cup Total
1 England George Wright 9 0 9
2 England Frank Coombs 5 0 5
TOTALS 14 0 14

Player debuts

Players making their first-team Colchester United debut in a fully competitive match.[26]

Position Nationality Player Date Opponent Ground Notes
FB England Phil Rookes 18 August 1951 Brighton & Hove Albion Goldstone Ground
IF England Augie Scott 18 August 1951 Brighton & Hove Albion Goldstone Ground
WG Scotland Adam Davidson 13 September 1951 Plymouth Argyle Layer Road
WG England Peter Aitchison 25 December 1951 Gillingham Priestfield Stadium
GK England Frank Coombs 8 March 1952 Bristol City Ashton Gate Stadium
WH England Ron Hunt 15 March 1952 Port Vale Layer Road
CF England Kevin McCurley 22 March 1952 Northampton Town County Ground
WG England Peter Wright 22 March 1952 Northampton Town County Ground

    See also

    References

    General

    Books

    Websites

    Specific

    1. ↑ Whitehead, Jeff; Drury, Kevin (2008). The Who's Who of Colchester United: The Layer Road Years. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 278. ISBN 978-1-85983-629-3.
    2. ↑ "Colchester Utd 1–0 Ipswich Town". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
    3. ↑ "Colchester Utd 1–0 Watford". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
    4. ↑ "Average Attendance Figures Per Season". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
    5. ↑ Hudson, Matt (11 July 2012). "The 1950s and 1960s". Colchester United FC. Retrieved 24 May 2011.
    6. 1 2 "Appearances". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
    7. ↑ "Harry Wilkinson". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    8. ↑ "JOHNNY McCLELLAND". Post War English & Scottish Football League A – Z Player's Database. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    9. ↑ Matthews, Tont (1994). The Encyclopaedia of Stoke City Football Club 1868 to 1994. Lion Press. ISBN 0-9524151-0-0.
    10. ↑ "Kevin McCurley". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    11. ↑ "Trevor Harris". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
    12. ↑ "Phil Rookes". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    13. ↑ "Adam Davidson". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    14. ↑ "Augie Scott". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    15. ↑ "Ron Hunt". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    16. ↑ "Peter Wright". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    17. ↑ "Frank Coombs". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    18. ↑ "Bob Curry". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    19. ↑ "Bob Allen". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
    20. ↑ "Dennis Hillman". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    21. ↑ "Vic Keeble". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    22. ↑ "Fred Cutting". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    23. 1 2 "Goals". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
    24. ↑ "Discipline". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
    25. ↑ "Clean sheets (1st team)". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
    26. ↑ "Alltime- List of Debuts". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 June 2015. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
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