The 1954–55 season was Colchester United's 13th season in their history and their fifth 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. Following a replay, Colchester were knocked out of the FA Cup in the first round by Reading. Meanwhile, in the league, Colchester's poor run of form had Jack Butler allowed indefinite leave following a bout of ill health. After resigning in January 1955, Colchester appointed Benny Fenton as his replacement, and despite an upturn in form, a run of defeats at the end of the season meant Colchester needed to apply for re-election for the second successive season. Once more, all clubs applying for re-election were successful, with Colchester receiving 44 votes, behind Third Division North clubs Grimsby Town (49 votes) and Chester City (47 votes), but eleven votes ahead of division rivals Walsall.
Season overview Eight successive league defeats from October to December saw Colchester bottom of the league for Christmas Day, and the plight of the club had begun to have an effect on the health of manager Jack Butler. After falling ill in November, Butler was handed indefinite leave until by the club until the end of his contract in 1956. Suffering from a mental breakdown, Butler eventually resigned on 14 January 1955, while club secretary Claude Orrin was charged with finding a new manager.
During this transitional period, Orrin and Alf Miller took charge of the first-team, before appointing Benny Fenton as manager after attracting 48 applications for the vacancy. Despite a brief boost in on-field fortunes in March and early April, performances tailed off as Colchester picked up just one point in the final eight games of the campaign. The club finished bottom of the Football League and were again required to seek re-election, in which they were successful.
Players
Name Position Nationality Place of birth Date of birth Apps Goals Signed from Date signed Fee GoalkeepersGeorge WrightGKPlymouth2050 Plymouth ArgyleMay 1949£1,000John WrightGKAldershot00 Colchester Casuals23 May 1952Free transfer DefendersRoy BicknellCBDoncaster290 Gravesend & NorthfleetJune 1952£1,000George FrenchFBColchester30 West Ham UnitedFebruary 1949Free transferJohn HarrisonFBLeicester1700 Aston Villa30 September 1950NominalBilly HuntCBColchester00AmateurAugust 1953Free transferDigger KettleFBColchester1721 Arclight SportsSeptember 1946Free transferFred LewisFBBroughton Gifford480 ChelseaSummer 1953Free transferReg StewartCBSheffield2180 Sheffield Wednesday20 August 1949£1,000 MidfieldersBob DaleWHIrlam214 Bury24 December 1953£1,500Austin DunneWHLimerick00 LimerickOctober 1953Free transferJimmy ElderWHScone18214 Portsmouth19 August 1950£1,000Benny FentonWHWest Ham00 Charlton Athletic5 March 1955£500Trevor HarrisWHColchester00AmateurJuly 1951Free transferBert HillWHWest Ham171 ChelseaSeptember 1952£300Ron HuntWHColchester50AmateurOctober 1951Free transfer ForwardsCliff BirchWGNewport00 Newport CountyJune 1954£1,000Mike GriceWGWoking313 Lowestoft TownSummer 1952£25Paddy LeonardIFDublin00 Bristol RoversJuly 1954Free transferKevin McCurleyCFConsett9234 LiverpoolJune 1951£750Johnny McKimIFGreenock10339 Chelsea19 August 1950£1,000Ken PlantCFNuneaton176 BuryJanuary 1954UndisclosedPeter WrightWGColchester444AmateurNovember 1951Free transfer
Transfers
In Date Position Nationality Name From Fee Ref.Summer 1954GKJimmy Kirk BuryFree transferSummer 1954FBRon George Crystal PalaceFree transferJune 1954WHFrank McCourt Manchester CityNominalJune 1954WGCliff Birch Newport County£1,000July 1954IFPaddy Leonard Bristol RoversFree transfer5 March 1955WHBenny Fenton Charlton Athletic£500 Total spending: ~ £1,500
Out Date Position Nationality Name To Fee Ref.Summer 1954GKFrank Coombs Gravesend & NorthfleetReleasedSummer 1954WHDoug Keene DartfordReleasedSummer 1954WGJohn Church Crittall AthleticReleased31 May 1954WHHarry Bearryman Metropolitan PoliceFree transfer6 November 1954WGPeter Aitchison SittingbourneFree transfer5 February 1955FBRon George Sudbury TownFree transfer19 February 1955WHFrank McCourt Poole TownReleased28 April 1955GKJimmy Kirk Torquay UnitedFree transfer
Match details
Third Division South
Results round by round
League table
Matches
FA Cup
Squad statistics
Appearances and goals
!colspan="14"|Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season
Goalscorers
Place Nationality Position Name Third Division South FA Cup Total1CFKen Plant130132WGPeter Wright9093IFJohnny McKim7184WGMike Grice6175IFPaddy Leonard5056WGCliff Birch314WHBob Dale4048WHJimmy Elder2139WHBenny Fenton20210CFKevin McCurley101CBReg Stewart101Own goals000TOTALS53457
Clean sheets Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet. Place Nationality Player Third Division South FA Cup Total1Jimmy Kirk7072George Wright404TOTALS11011
Player debuts Players making their first-team Colchester United debut in a fully competitive match. Position Nationality Player Date Opponent Ground NotesGKJimmy Kirk21 August 1954Swindon TownLayer RoadWHFrank McCourt21 August 1954Swindon TownLayer RoadWGCliff Birch21 August 1954Swindon TownLayer RoadIFPaddy Leonard21 August 1954Swindon TownLayer RoadFBRon George16 October 1954BrentfordGriffin ParkWHBenny Fenton5 March 1955BrentfordLayer RoadWHAustin Dunne9 April 1955GillinghamPriestfieldWHTrevor Harris18 April 1955Northampton TownCounty GroundGKJohn Wright30 April 1955SouthamptonLayer Road
See also List of Colchester United F.C. seasons
References
General Books
Websites
Specific