On This Day (26th June 1992): Short-term contracts wreak bedlam at Sunderland

06/26/2024 01:00 AM

There was no hiding place for Bob Murray as his decision to give Malcolm Crosby the manager's job — as well as offering shorter term contracts to a number of current players — backfired.

While England's failure to qualify from the group stages of Euro 1992 had given national team fans cause to moan, the sports pages of the regional press were not comfortable reading for Sunderland fans in mid to late June 1992.

On this day, the latest bad news was that young wonderkid David Rush, who had just played such a fine season and helped get the club to Wembley in the FA Cup final against Liverpool, would only consider a one-year contract and was not even sure he was going to sign this!

This came hot on the heels of the bombshell of Paul Bracewell's transfer to Newcastle. Brace was joining the Keegan revolution and would play a pivotal role in their procession to the Premier League that coming season. Keegan had stepped in with a lucrative three-year contract offer, and Bracewell did not need too much persuasion to sign up. He had not been too enamoured at the one-year contract offered by Sunderland, so ran his contract down and left on a free transfer. It was a huge blow to supporters and teammates at Sunderland.

Apart from Rush, Dickie Ord was reportedly taking his time to think over a two-year contract offer, and Paul Hardyman was reported to be almost certainly following Bracewell out of the door.

It was a very difficult period to be a Sunderland fan, with the Toon buzzing with Keegan-mania and meanwhile such uncertainty at Roker Park. Bob Murray had reluctantly given Malcolm Crosby the post of permanent manager on a year's contract just prior to the FA Cup final. Murray would later share his frustration at the situation he faced.

"I already knew in my heart Malcolm wasn't good enough to be our manager. He did not have the presence, strength, or ruthlessness of a successful manager. He was a nice, friendly, popular guy. But he had got us to Wembley and that was all that seemed to matter for many people that followed Sunderland." Murray would remark on this period, "It felt like Crosby was responsible for getting us to Wembley and I was responsible for getting us relegated," (which almost happened).

Murray had not wanted Sunderland to have a temporary/caretaker manager for the final and had bowed to extreme pressure in the regional and national media and the fanbase to give Crosby the job. He gave him a one-year contract fully expecting that he would not be in the post by the end of the 1992/93 season.

With Wembley done and the relegation battle only just survived, the close season ushered in a whole raft of issues set upon the foundation of uncertainty that prevailed at the club. Malcolm Crosby, on a short-term contract, was being asked to manage/ negotiate with players from an unenviable, precarious position. It was little wonder that there were difficulties getting current players to commit!

The cup run had netted the club £900,000. Crosby spent this on Shaun Cunnington from Grimsby (£650,000) and John Colquhoun from Millwall (£220,000). Although they were not the only ones, they to a degree bore the brunt of fan ire as a terrible season ensued in 1992/93.

I was particularly disappointed in how it turned out for "Red Johnny" Colquhoun. I had seen him play a lot in the Scottish Premiership for Hearts and he was a classy player with an eye for goal and a panache for assists. I really thought he would be a good fit at Roker. Mick Harford from Chelsea (£250,000) and Terry Butcher from Sheffield Wednesday also arrived on a free transfer.

With the sports pages absolutely convinced that Germany were going to annihilate Denmark in the Euro final and that Rush, Hardyman, and probably Ord were jumping ship, it proved a bad day for the "hacks" who only got one out of four correct.

Paul Hardyman, who had been "devastated" to lose his place for the Wembley cup final, joined Bristol Rovers for £160,000 later in the close season. Dickie Ord signed his contract and went on to become something of a cult hero amongst the Roker faithful. The chant "Who needs Cantona when you have Dickie Ord" would often resound around Roker Park and actually led to a single being produced that graced the charts. Ord played for Sunderland till being transferred to QPR for £675,000 in 1998. Sadly, he sustained a serious knee injury in the first five minutes of his very first game and never really recovered, announcing his retirement in 2000. He was awarded a testimonial against Steaua Bucharest after 256 appearances and an eleven-year career with the Lads.

David Rush also signed his contract, but his star, which had shone so brightly from 1990 to 1992, failed to flourish at Roker Park and he was transferred in 1994 to Oxford for £100,000 after loan spells at Peterborough and Cambridge United.

Sunderland fanatic and all-around nice guy Malcolm Crosby lasted till January 1993, when he became the first manager to be sacked after a pool panel result – Tranmere were the victorious team!

In the period between Crosby's appointment and his sacking, Neil Warnock had been tapped up by Murray and had been very interested in coming to Sunderland. Crosby was an ex-teammate, though, and Warnock did not want his arrival to be at Crosby's demise! So Terry Butcher took over, initially in a player-manager role, and Warnock disappeared off to manage Huddersfield, one of eventually twenty clubs that he would manage.

As for Germany vs. Denmark, well, we all know what happened there, which is probably a timely reminder not to believe everything you read in the press. Thank goodness we do not have such problems these days!