A SATURDAY 7th DECEMBER 1968.

ALAN BANKS SNAPS WINNER IN EXETER TRIUMPH.

FA CUP Second Round.

COLCHESTER UNITED 0
Macedo; Mochan, Hall; Simpson, Bickles, Wood; Rowan, Oliver, Light, Gibbs, Dyson,

EXETER CITY 1,
Shearing; Smyth, Blain; Kirkham, Harvey, Newman; Corr, Banks, Balson, Mitten(Curtis), Pleat,

Scorer; Exeter; Banks,

Attendance: 6,180,

Exeter City's sterling cup fighting qualities earned them another heartening victory against Colchester United, Every City player shared the laurels in this latest success story, for they had fight tigerishly to hang onto their one goal lead Colchester pumped centre after centre into Peter Shearing's goalmouth in the first half, bit the lakethan Banks to show them how simple it is to find the Shea After 10 minutes Jimmy Blain ran half the length of the field, passed to Banks and away he dashed finding the net with a precision shot, at was about all we saw of the City attack, apart from couple of snap efforts as Exeter were thrown on the defnsive for long spells. Colchester forced a stream of corners but with John Newman and Keith Harvey standing firm, all were to no avail, Shearing made one brilliant save from Dyson and then saw a shot beat him but hit the post, City seemed quite content conceding corners and they carried on the same way after the interval, But Colchester were not half as menacing as beforeThey grew more desparate with every kick and really never looked likely to rescue their chancesThere was an anxious moment for City when with 6 minutes to go, the floodlights failed. The referee consulted the Colchester manager and the lineman before deciding to finish the match in the gathering gloom,

Match Summary 

A glorious goal by Alan Banks after 10 minutes was enough to see us through this Cup tie thanks to sterling work by our rearguard and thanks also to the style of attacking Colchester adopted, a style which played right into our hands and suited us very well. Although Colchester put on a lot of pressure and there were a couple of narrow squeezes, the home side seldom looked like being able to pull this game out of the fire after we had taken that early lead. After the game the Colchester manager declared that we were lucky but plain truth is that we did a thoroughly effi cient job no more or no less than what was required on the day.

SUNDAY 8th DECEMBER 1968.
CITY SUPERIOR IN POTENTIAL?

Take Devon football. Where is the most potential a basis on which to build ? Plymouth Argyle you may say ? or even Torquay Unied? But stop and think, Exeter probably have the most potential, for there is only one way such a struggling club in the Fourth Division can go - up! Argyle's debts are said to be about £100,000. Torquay, the best organised of the trio of Devon's League clubs have cut theirs to £25,000, Nobody outside the boardroom knows what Exeter City owe, But there is one priceless asset, City own their own ground. St James' Park is said to be worth £35,000, although it is true to say that the value of the ground is nearer £100,000, City sit on a goldmine.

MONDAY 9th DECEMBER 1968.

F. A. CUP BONANZA - EXETER CITY VERSUS MANCHESTER UNITED ! THE BIGGEST DAY IN THE CLUB'S HISTORY IN PROSPECT

Exeter City made it to the cash and glory Third Round stage of the F.A, Cup and reap their reward
- a home tie on 4th January against the mighty Manchester United, Bobby Charlton, Dennis Law, George Best, Nobby Stiles, Alex Stepney and all! City manager Frank Broome said Christmas had come early for the club and it's supporters, One immediate decision by the Exeter City offcials was make the tie an all ticket matchUnited have already been offered commando type pre match training by the Royal Marines at ExtonThe full facilities of the camp will be available to them. Clearly Exeter will be celebrating their biggest day in the club's history. The good news is already helping to recapture public interest in the club. From the moment the draw was announced the telephones at St James' Park have not stopped ringing, No applications for tickets can be considered at present. Full details will be made known in the next few days. The attendance is expected to be limited to 18,500 and Exeter are assured of a sell out and boost for their financial difficulties,

CITY'S NUMBER ONE FAN IN FIRE SCARE,

Twelve people escaped from a blaze that gutted a lodging house in Church Road, St Thomas, Exeter today. Among the 12 was a man well known to thousands in the city as Exeter City's number one fan, 56 year old Hedley Boyce. He  was detained in the R.D.& E, Hospital suffering from shock and the effects of smoke, He soon recovered however, thanks to another shock, for he heard that Exeter City have been drawn at home to Manchester United in the FA Cup after receiving a visit from City manager Frank Broome. 

TUESDAY 10th DECEMBER 1968.

ADMISSION CHARGES TO BE INCREASED.

Admission charges at St James Park for Exeter City's glamour F.A. Cup Third Round tie against Manchester United on the 4th January will be increased. Stand tickets will be 12s 6d instead of 8s and ground 6s instead of 5s. Boys will pay 3s. Chairman Les Kerslake said that based on the club's normal charges, Exeter's share of the gate would be roughly £1,200. The board felt that the regular 4,000 supporters would not begrudge the club the opportunity of obtaining the increased admission charges from the wandering thousands 12,000 vouchers will be available for issue at Saturday's Fourth Division game at home to Southend United, the gates at St James' Park will be opened at 1,30pm, Each supporter attending this match will be issued with one voucher each at the turnstile. This will guarantee the holder to a ticket on a date to be announced. It does not entitle the holder to a ticket in any specific part of the ground, Finally Mr Kerslake denied rumours that the cup tie might be switched to Old Trafford for financial reasons. The City could come away with between £7,000 and £8,000 from Manchester but the board have not even considered the possibility.