John Crossan: The Bit O’Red manager who never was
Alan Finn looks at the quite remarkable story of John Crossan, a Derry native who once received a life ban from playing professional football and who was set to become player-manager of Sligo Rovers in the 1970s
SLIGO Rovers have a surprisingly peculiar history of managers who left after remarkably few games in charge or never managed competitively.
In the 1951-52 season, for example, Dick Groves was in charge for one cup competition and one shield competition before unexpectedly resigning ahead of the league campaign, citing family reasons.
A couple of years later, John Black lasted just four games before being removed from his position due to what was described as a “disciplinary” breach. Ian McKechnie was in charge for just one friendly against Dumbarton in the 1970s before parting ways. In late 2006 and early 2007, Rob McDonald managed one league game and several pre-season friendlies before resigning just days ahead of the start of the season.
McDonald’s ill-fated tenure was something the club could have done without, but it did pave the
way for the arrival of Paul Cook. Another ill-fated tenure which perhaps beats the aforementioned managerial experiences all ends up, could be considered something of a butterfly effect which led to Rovers winning their second League of Ireland title. John Crossan, known throughout his career as ‘Jobby’, is the subject of a recently released book by author and broadcaster Richie Kelly, who also happened to play with Crossan.
The book, titled ‘The Man They Couldn’t Ban’, takes us through the remarkable career of the Derry native, whose exploits as a forward earned him the attention of top English clubs in the 1950s.
It was a proposed move to one of those sides, Sunderland, which started his legacy after which the book is titled. His native club, Derry City, offered an improved deal to stay which he declined and returned with his own terms for remaining.
Talks with Sunderland broke down and Crossan eventually moved to Coleraine – a move which angered his club to the extent that they reported themselves to the football league for breach
ing rules surrounding the payment of amateur players, which Crossan was, to ensure that he faced disciplinary action.
In 1959, a commission of inquiry punished Derry and Coleraine with small fines, while Crossan was issued with a life ban from all forms of football.
A partial lifting months later meant he could resume his career outside of Britain and Ireland – signing with Sparta Rotterdam in Holland and later Standard Liege in Belgium where he went on to play in a European Cup semi-final against the all-conquering Real Madrid.
In 1963, he returned to British football following the full removal of his ban, going on to enjoy successful spells with Sunderland, Man City (a club he captained) and Middlesbrough. By 1970, he was winding down his career back in Belgium with KSK Tongeren.
He also played 24 times for Northern Ireland and among his 10 goals was a hat-trick in a World Cup qualifier. In 1974, an opportunity to become a player-coach arose in Ireland with Rovers.
Crossan had agreed to join and arrived in Sligo, believed to have taken a couple of training sessions and lined up a number of players to join ahead of the 1974-75 season.
As it would turn out, the veteran forward’s Bit O’Red career would end before it even had a chance to begin as his contract with KSK Tongeren was still active and the club had never signed off on allowing him to leave. The issue was never resolved, meaning Crossan returned to Belgium for another year and Rovers were still without a manager.
Much like Rob McDonald’s departure opening up a significant door, Crossan’s successor would go on to enjoy a legendary status in Sligo much like Paul Cook.
The club reached out to a former Chelsea player based in Australia via telegram to find out if the managerial position appealed to him. He happened to be keen on a return to this side of the world and gladly began negotiations with the Bit O’Red.
A deal was agreed, a contract was signed, Billy Sinclair was introduced as the new head coach of Sligo Rovers and the rest, as they say, is history. This opens up curious questions, answers to which will remain a mystery – what kind of manager would John Crossan have been? Would Billy Sinclair still have wound up at Rovers at a later date?
Who would Crossan’s version of the likes of Chris Rutherford and Mick Leonard have been? Would Rovers ever have gone on to win that second league title?
If you are interested in learning more about the fascinating career of John ‘Jobby’ Crossan, you can find the book The Man They Couldn’t Ban on colmcillepress.com and it can also be purchased from eBay.
ANTHONY Elding, the former Sligo Rovers striker who memorably helped the club win the FAI Cup in 2013, has been appointed manager of Longford Town’s Boys U-17 team.
Elding, 38, pictured, was in charge of Longford Town’s Boys U-15 team last year. The holder of a UEFA ‘A’ coaching licence, Elding also had a term coaching the Sligo Rovers Boys U-13 team in 2019 and also worked with underage teams in the Mayo Schoolboys/Girls Youth League.
When with Rovers in 2013, the forward netted 19 goals – the 19th goal being the winning strike in a dramatic FAI Cup final against Drogheda United at the Aviva Stadium, Dublin. The English man returned for a second spell with the Bit O’Red in 2015, scoring twice.
He is looking forward to his latest role with Longford Town, telling the club’s website, www.ltfc.ie, that he was a “forward thinking, self-motivated manager with strong leadership qualities”.