Heroes & Villains – Crewe Alexandra
Hero – Dario Gradi
Dario Gradi is the only man who can be considered Crewe Alexandra’s hero. He was First-Team Manager for 24 years before retiring in 2007. He couldn’t stay away from the dugout for long, returning a year and a half later. He stayed on for another two years.
Gradi joined Crewe back in 1983, following spells in charge at Sutton United, Wimbledon and Crystal Palace. Quite soon into his tenure, Gradi realised that the best way to make money was to bring young players through the youth team and sell them on to bigger clubs. It was at this point that the famous Crewe Alexandra Academy was born.
Several players started at Crewe and had successful careers in the game. David Platt was probably the most notable, winning 62 caps and scoring 27 international goals. He also playing in the top flight of English and Italian football for the majority of his career.
Other players of note include Rob Jones, Neil Lennon, Danny Murphy, Robbie Savage, Set Johnson and Ashley Ward.
In the 1988/89 season, Gradi guided Crewe out of the Fourth Division for the first time in 25 years. They were releated two years later but were promoted again at the end of the 1993/94 season.
Promotion to the second tier followed after a Play-Off Final victory in the 1996/97 season. It was the first time in Crewe’s history that they had got so far up the Football League.
Dario Gradi oversaw the transformation of Crewe’s Gresty Road ground during his time at the club. It is unrecognisable to the ground that Gradi arrived at back in 1983.
Gradi stepped down in 2007 after 24 years in charge of the First Team, became the club’s Technical Director.
He twice returned to the home dugout at Gresty Road, becoming Caretaker Manager for a month between November and December 2008.
The second and final time was for two years between 2009 and 2011 before returning to his role as Director of Football. He finally left the club in October last year at the age of 78.
Villains – Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham became villains for Crewe Alexandra on 3rd February 1960. The two sides had played out a 2-2 draw at Crewe’s Gresty Road the month before and the replay was much more one-sided.
64,000 fans watched on at White Hart Lane as Spurs raced into a 6-1 lead after half an hour. The First Division side were 10-1 up at half-time!
Spurs won the game 13-2 with Les Allen scoring five times, Bobby Smith scored four, Cliff Jones a hat-trick and Tommy Harmer another.
Tottenham’s reward for their victory was a Fifth Round tie against Blackburn Rovers. The Lancashire club knocked Tottenham out and went on to reach the Final, losing 3-0 to Wolves.
The following season, Tottenham became the first side in the 20th Century to win the League and Cup Double.
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