1947–48 Colchester United F.C. season
# 1947–48 Colchester United F.C. season

The 1947–48 season was Colchester United's sixth season in their history and their sixth in the Southern League. Alongside competing in the Southern League, the club also participated in the FA Cup and Southern League Cup. The season was most notable for Colchester's run in the FA Cup, where they defeated three Football League clubs as they progressed to the fifth round, before being beaten 5–0 by First Division side Blackpool. They finished in 4th position in the Southern League, and while they ended as runners-up in the Southern League Cup, the final wasn't held until April 1949 due to fixture congestion.

## Season overview

Manager Ted Fenton's first-team squad had featured 28 part-time professionals during the 1946–47 season, but this number was reduced to 17 for the 1947–48 campaign, while signings such as Bob Allen and Harry Bearryman, and the emergence of Vic Keeble bolstered the ranks.

The 1947–48 season was most memorable for Colchester's magnificent run in the FA Cup. The competition began with a 3–2 win over league rivals Chelmsford City in the fourth qualifying round in front of a Layer Road crowd of 10,396. It was the second year in succession that the U's would reach the first round proper of the cup, having been defeated 5–0 by Reading at the same stage twelve months earlier. The result on this occasion would go in Colchester's favour, with 8,574 fans watching their 2–1 win against Banbury Spencer.

Third Division North side Wrexham visited Layer Road for the second round match, with the visitors falling to a 1–0 defeat courtesy of a Bob Curry goal in front of a 10,642 crowd. With the U's into the third round, it would be the club that inspired Colchester's own strip, Huddersfield Town of the First Division, that would taste defeat at the hands of the non–Leaguers. With the national press making Colchester's Cup progress headline news, Fenton welcomed the extra publicity. He watched Huddersfield play a number of times prior to the tie, declaring to the media that he had come up with a plan to beat them. The plan became known as "the F–plan". Both teams changed colours for the game, with visiting Huddersfield in red, and Colchester in blue. The First Division side struggled to adapt to the cramped surroundings of Layer Road, and when Bob Allen's free kick was parried away by the goalkeeper, U's captain Bob Curry scored from the rebound. This was the first time that a non–League side had beaten a First Division club, with a record crowd of 16,005 witnessing that game.

With the increased interest in Colchester's cup heroics, the crowd from the previous game could have trebled had Layer Road been able to accommodate the fans. The club welcomed Second Division Bradford Park Avenue to the ground on 24 January 1948, with a crowd of 17,048 in attendance. With their opponents wary of Colchester's reputation, Bradford would take the lead, only for Curry to net a brace before being pegged back to 2–2. Fred Cutting went on to score the winner to send the club into the fifth round.

Stanley Matthews' First Division Blackpool were drawn as hosts to Fenton's side. With the effects of the war still evident, fuel rationing meant that the 52 scheduled coaches for the journey to Bloomfield Road were cancelled just 36 hours ahead of the game, meaning that only 12 coaches could travel, and the remainder of the away fans would have to travel by train to the North West. This meant that they would arrive in Blackpool in the early hours the morning of the match, but this did not deter the supporters, with the West Lancashire Post reporting:

   The peace of Blackpool was shattered at dawn today by thousands of Colchester fans, waving rattles, ringing bells, blowing trumpets and shouting "Up the U's". Not since pre-war Illumination weekends has there been such an invasion as stormed our streets from 4 o'clock this morning.

Despite the good natured support, the home team defeated the U's by 5–0 in front of a sell-out 29,500 Bloomfield Road crowd. However, the FA Cup success had an effect on Colchester's league form, with the club eventually finishing fourth, nine points adrift of champions Merthyr Tydfil. They also reached the final of the Southern League Cup, but ran out of time to play the final during the season owing to fixture congestion.

Following all of the attention garnered from the Cup run, Fenton was much sought after, and was offered the role of assistant manager at his old club West Ham United during the summer of 1948, a role which he could not refuse.

## Players

    As of match played 1 May 1948.

| Name | Position | Place of birth | Date of birth | Apps | Goals | Signed from | Date signed | Fee |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||
| John Le Mare | GK | Ipswich | (1926-04-15)15 April 1926 (aged 21) | 0 | 0 | Woodbridge Town | November 1947 | Free transfer |
| Ernest Setchell | GK | Hammersmith | (1928-03-09)9 March 1928 (aged 19) | 0 | 0 | Dartford | 5 June 1947 | Free transfer |
| Harry Wright | GK | Tottenham | (1909-06-03)3 June 1909 (aged 37) | 23 | 0 | Chelmsford City | 11 July 1946 | Free transfer |
| Defenders ||||||||||
| Bill Bower | FB | Wrexham | (1911-11-17)17 November 1911 (aged 35) | 69 | 1 | Millwall | 28 November 1945 | Free transfer |
| Aubrey Darmody | FB | Swansea | (1921-03-17)17 March 1921 (aged 26) | 0 | 0 | Norwich City | 28 July 1947 | Free transfer |
| Digger Kettle | FB | Colchester | (1922-06-03)3 June 1922 (aged 24) | 16 | 1 | Arclight Sports | September 1946 | Free transfer |
| Albert Page | CB | Walthamstow | (1916-03-18)18 March 1916 (aged 31) | 12 | 0 | Tottenham Hotspur | 26 March 1947 | Free transfer |
| Albert Walker | FB | Little Lever | (1910-02-04)4 February 1910 (aged 37) | 36 | 0 | Doncaster Rovers | 30 May 1946 | Free transfer |
| Midfielders ||||||||||
| Harry Bearryman | WH | Wandsworth | (1924-09-26)26 September 1924 (aged 22) | 0 | 0 | Chelsea | 4 July 1947 | Free transfer |
| Arthur Biggs | WH | Wootton | (1915-05-26)26 May 1915 (aged 32) | 4 | 2 | Bedford Town | 7 May 1947 | Free transfer |
| Ted Fenton | WH | Forest Gate | (1914-11-07)7 November 1914 (aged 32) | 36 | 2 | West Ham United | 15 April 1946 | Free transfer |
| Frank Stamper | WH/IR | Hartlepool | (1926-02-22)22 February 1926 (aged 21) | 2 | 0 | Colchester Garrison Army Fire Fighting Centre | 3 March 1947 | Free transfer |
| Forwards ||||||||||
| Bob Allen | WG | Bromley-by-Bow | (1916-10-11)11 October 1916 (aged 30) | 0 | 0 | Gainsborough Trinity | 13 June 1946 | Free transfer |
| Andy Brown | IF | Coatbridge | (1915-02-20)20 February 1915 (aged 32) | 0 | 0 | Torquay United | 17 June 1947 | Free transfer |
| Len Cater | CF | Colchester | | 39 | 13 | Free agent | 6 June 1946 | Free transfer |
| Bob Curry | IF | Gateshead | (1918-11-02)2 November 1918 (aged 28) | 39 | 19 | Northampton Town | 13 June 1947 | Free transfer |
| Fred Cutting | IF | North Walsham | (1921-12-04)4 December 1921 (aged 25) | 0 | 0 | Norwich City | 6 December 1947 | Free transfer |
| Ian Gillespie | IF | Plymouth | (1913-05-06)6 May 1913 (aged 34) | 5 | 1 | Ipswich Town | 15 May 1947 | Free transfer |
| Dennis Hillman | WG | Southend-on-Sea | (1918-11-27)27 November 1918 (aged 28) | 34 | 7 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 21 September 1946 | Free transfer |
| Vic Keeble | CF | Colchester | (1930-06-25)25 June 1930 (aged 16) | 0 | 0 | King George Youth Club | 23 May 1947 | £10 |
| Bob Neville | OL | | | 7 | 2 | Rowhedge | October 1946 | Free transfer |
| Ray Townrow | IR | West Ham | | 0 | 0 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2 January 1948 | Free transfer |
| Arthur Turner | CF | Poplar | (1921-01-22)22 January 1921 (aged 26) | 32 | 24 | Charlton Athletic | September 1946 | 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 |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| 23 May 1947 | CF | Vic Keeble | King George Youth Club | £10 |
| 5 June 1947 | GK | Ernest Setchell | Dartford | Free transfer |
| 13 June 1947 | WG | Bob Allen | Northampton Town | Free transfer |
| 17 June 1947 | IF | Andy Brown | Torquay United | Free transfer |
| 26 June 1947 | CB | Frank Rist | Charlton Athletic | Free transfer |
| 4 July 1947 | WH | Harry Bearryman | Chelsea | Free transfer |
| 28 July 1947 | FB | Aubrey Darmody | Norwich City | Free transfer |
| 13 September 1947 | WG | Taffy Williams | Northampton Town | Free transfer |
| November 1947 | GK | John Le Mare | Woodbridge Town | Free transfer |
| 6 December 1947 | IF | Fred Cutting | Norwich City | Free transfer |
| 2 January 1948 | IR | Ray Townrow | Wolverhampton Wanderers | Free transfer |

* Total spending: ~ £10
* ↑ 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 | LW | Bob Hutchings | Free agent | Released |
| End of season | IF | Trevor Smith | Watford | Free transfer |
| July 1947 | GK | Peter Chiswick | West Ham United | Free transfer |
| June 1947 | OL | Alan Ross | Brantham Athletic | Player-coach |
| September 1947 | CB | Bob Harding | Free agent | Released |
| 9 October 1947 | CF | Dennis Cant | Clacton Town | Free transfer |
| December 1947 | GK | John Jelly | Colchester Casuals | Free transfer |
| 1 December 1947 | CF | Bob Hodgson | Brightlingsea United | Manager |
| 27 December 1947 | RH | John Leah | Free agent | Retired |
| 17 March 1948 | WG | Taffy Williams | Chingford Town | Free transfer |
| 21 April 1948 | CB | Frank Rist | Tonbridge Angels | Free transfer |

* 1 2 3 Date of departure refers to the date of the player's final game for the club

## Match details

### Southern League

**League table**

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2 | Gillingham | 34 | 21 | 5 | 8 | 81 | 43 | 1.884 | 47 |
| 3 | Worcester City | 34 | 21 | 3 | 10 | 74 | 45 | 1.644 | 45 |
| 4 | Colchester United | 34 | 17 | 10 | 7 | 88 | 41 | 2.146 | 44 |
| 5 | Hereford United | 34 | 16 | 10 | 8 | 77 | 53 | 1.453 | 42 |
| 6 | Lovells Athletic | 34 | 17 | 6 | 11 | 74 | 50 | 1.480 | 40 |

## Squad statistics

### Appearances and goals

| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Southern League | Southern League | Southern League Cup | Southern League Cup | FA Cup | FA Cup |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| | GK | ENG | John Le Mare | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | GK | ENG | Ernest Setchell | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | GK | ENG | Harry Wright | 41 | 0 | 28 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| | DF | WAL | Bill Bower | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | WAL | Aubrey Darmody | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Digger Kettle | 44 | 0 | 31 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Albert Page | 8 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | DF | ENG | Albert Walker | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | Harry Bearryman | 46 | 5 | 32 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | Arthur Biggs | 10 | 2 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | Ted Fenton | 30 | 5 | 20 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | Frank Stamper | 6 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Bob Allen | 44 | 0 | 31 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| | FW | SCO | Andy Brown | 42 | 3 | 28 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 6 | 1 |
| | FW | ENG | Len Cater | 37 | 13 | 26 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Bob Curry | 44 | 30 | 31 | 17 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 |
| | FW | ENG | Fred Cutting | 31 | 15 | 23 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 1 |
| | FW | ENG | Dennis Hillman | 38 | 6 | 27 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Vic Keeble | 15 | 9 | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Ray Townrow | 11 | 5 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Arthur Turner | 43 | 27 | 30 | 25 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 1 |
| Players who appeared for Colchester who left during the season ||||||||||||
| | DF | ENG | Frank Rist | 13 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| | MF | ENG | John Leah | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Ian Gillespie | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| | FW | ENG | Taffy Williams | 6 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |

### Goalscorers

| Place | Position | Name | Southern League | Southern League Cup | FA Cup | Total |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | IF | Bob Curry | 17 | 6 | 7 | 30 |
| 2 | CF | Arthur Turner | 25 | 1 | 1 | 27 |
| 3 | IF | Fred Cutting | 12 | 2 | 1 | 15 |
| 4 | CF | Len Cater | 6 | 7 | 0 | 13 |
| 5 | CF | Vic Keeble | 8 | 1 | 0 | 9 |
| 6 | WG | Dennis Hillman | 5 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| 7 | WH | Harry Bearryman | 2 | 3 | 0 | 5 |
| 7 | WH | Ted Fenton | 4 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| 7 | IR | Ray Townrow | 3 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
| 10 | IF | Andy Brown | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 11 | WH | Arthur Biggs | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 12 | IF | Ian Gillespie | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 12 | CB | Frank Rist | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| | | Own goals | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| | | TOTALS | 88 | 27 | 10 | 125 |

### Captains

Number of games played as team captain.

| Place | Position | Player | Southern League | Southern League Cup | FA Cup | Total |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | IF | Bob Curry | 15 | 3 | 3 | 21 |
| | | Not recorded | 19 | 3 | 5 | 27 |
| | | TOTALS | 34 | 6 | 8 | 48 |

### Clean sheets

Number of games goalkeepers kept a clean sheet.

| Place | Player | Southern League | Southern League Cup | FA Cup | Total |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Harry Wright | 7 | 2 | 2 | 11 |
| 2 | John Le Mare | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 3 | Ernest Setchell | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| | TOTALS | 9 | 3 | 2 | 14 |

### Player debuts

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

| Position | Player | Date | Opponent | Ground |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| WH | Harry Bearryman | 30 August 1947 | Bedford Town | The Eyrie |
| CB | Frank Rist | 30 August 1947 | Bedford Town | The Eyrie |
| WG | Bob Allen | 30 August 1947 | Bedford Town | The Eyrie |
| IF | Andy Brown | 30 August 1947 | Bedford Town | The Eyrie |
| CF | Vic Keeble | 30 August 1947 | Bedford Town | The Eyrie |
| WG | Taffy Williams | 27 September 1947 | Yeovil Town | Huish Athletic Ground |
| IF | Fred Cutting | 29 November 1947 | Banbury Spencer | Layer Road |
| GK | John Le Mare | 6 December 1947 | Barry Town | Jenner Park Stadium |
| IR | Ray Townrow | 17 January 1948 | Bedford Town | Layer Road |
| FB | Aubrey Darmody | 29 March 1948 | Guildford City | St Joseph's Road |
| GK | Ernest Setchell | 24 April 1948 | Yeovil Town | Layer Road |
