1947–48 Colchester United F.C. season

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.[5]

As of match played 1 May 1948.[6]

Name	Position	Nationality	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[lower-alpha 1]	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

• List of Colchester United F.C. seasons