1983/84 SEASON
League:
Level
Canon League Division 3
Position:
Champions
FA Cup:
Fifth Round
League Cup:
Fifth Round
Chairman:
Robert Maxwell
Manager:
Jim Smith
Top Scorer:
Steve Biggins (24)
Notable Players:
Steve Biggins, Kevin Brock, Steve Hardwick, Trevor Hebberd, Paul Hinshelwood, Mark Jones, George Lawrence, Malcolm Shotton, Mick Vinter, Neil Whatmore.
This was to prove to be a wonderfully successful campaign for Oxford United. Not only did the U’s secure promotion as Division 3 Champions, but they also enjoyed a giant-killing cup run, including three epic cup ties against Manchester United, culminating in a memorable 2-1 victory.
Kit Manufacturer
Sponsors
Once again, the shirt sponsors varied throughout the season, all were part of chairman Robert Maxwell's empire.
Home Kit
Long
sleeves
At first glance, the kits appeared unchanged from 1982; however, the shirts were manufactured differently.
The 1982 shirts had a flat finish with a pencil-thin pinstripe printed onto the fabric. In contrast, the 1983 shirts were made from shiny polyester, featuring a thicker, paler pinstripe woven into the material.
Additionally, a small Spall motif was embroidered onto the sleeves.
The Pergamon-sponsored shirts were again used exclusively at the Manor Ground for the majority of the league matches.
Variations
Long
sleeves
Shirts with the stylised BPCC sponsor logo were used during the first half of the season, for away matches plus one home fixture.
Away Kit
Long
sleeves
The all-red change kit remained unchanged from the 1982/83 season, and was worn just once at Wimbledon.
Third Kit
With both the yellow and red shirts causing a color clash at Bradford and Newport, Oxford United introduced an all-white third kit.
These shirts were not printed with a sponsor, and the template would later become the away colours for the following season.
Goalkeeper Jerseys
TV Shirts
Long
sleeves
The TV companies finally relaxed their ban on football shirt sponsorship, but they insisted that all sponsor logos must be half the 32in2 size allowed by the FA. As a result, shirts featuring a smaller version of the stylised BPCC logo were worn mainly for the televised cup matches.
However, the logo was difficult to read from a distance and was virtually indistinguishable on the low-resolution TV screens of that era.
Regular Shirt
TV shirt
TV Shirts (Version 2)
Long
sleeves
The lack of clarity of the smaller BPCC logo did not go unnoticed, especially as the club enjoyed prominent TV coverage during three epic cup ties against Manchester United. In response, a new set of TV shirts was produced, featuring plain black lettering.
The letters were cleverly spaced apart to allow for a different calculation of the sponsor size. Each letter was treated individually rather than as a single logo, meaning each of the four letters could be no larger than 4in2 to comply with the 16in2 rule.
These shirts made their debut in the second replay against Manchester United and would continue to be used regularly throughout the remainder of this season and the following one.
Match By Match
Lincoln
Home
Bristol City
Home
Wigan
Away
Scunthorpe
Away
Burnley
Home
Bristol City
Away
Gillingham
Away
Millwall
Home
Walsall
Home
Preston
Away
Newcastle
Away
Brentford
Home
Plymouth
Away
Bradford
Home
Bournemouth
Away
Newcastle
Home
Hull City
Home
Wimbledon
Away
Sheffield U
Home
Leeds
Away
Port Vale
Away
Peterboro'
Home
Leeds
Home
Newport
Home
Man Utd
Home
Southend
Away
Man Utd
Away
Reading
Away
Reading
Home
Rotherham
Away
Man Utd
Home
Bristol Rov
Home
Bolton
Away
L Orient
Home
Exeter
Away
Burnley
Away
Burnley
Home
Lincoln
Away
Everton
Home
Everton
Away
Blackpool
Home
Preston
Home
Millwall
Away
Wimbledon
Home
Sheffield W
Home
Swindon
Home
Bournemouth
Home
Hull City
Away
Bradford
Away
Sheffield U
Away
Port Vale
Home
Gillingham
Home
Brentford
Away
Plymouth
Home
Burnley
Away
Scunthorpe
Home
Walsall
Away
Southend
Home
Bolton
Home
Bristol Rov
Away
Newport
Away
Wigan
Home
Exeter
Home
L Orient
Away
Rotherham
Home
*Colours taken from match-day programme.
PRE-SEASON KITS
At Milton United the team wore the old 1979 away kit.
Whilst at Yeovil, an unsponsored version of the away kit was worn, these differed to the first-team away shirts. The spacing of the pinstripes was far wider, plus they had slightly thicker collar. Perhaps these had previously been allocated to the reserves?