DONNING a medallion that trailed in front of his full-length sheepskin, and shielded behind period piece dark glasses, Eddie McCreadie was very much a mid-70s man in his short time as Chelsea’s manager. He was confident and wise-cracking, he believed in his young players and promised the fans that promotion from the second division would be “no sweat”. There was a little bit of Tommy Docherty and Dave Sexton in him, but McCreadie was certainly his own man. If he hadn’t been, he might have stayed at Chelsea longer than he did, but he stood his ground over a point of principle and just weeks after leading the club to a much-needed promotion back to the first division, he resigned over his personal terms.
McCreadie’s passing at the age of 85 will be mourned by those that recall him as a tough, no-nonsense player and a manager of some potential. He won the FA Cup and Football League Cup with Chelsea as their full back, but the emotional promotion campaign of 1976-77, after a summer in which the club almost went to the wall, will arguably be remembered as his finest achievement by the club’s legacy supporters.
Born in Glasgow in April 1940, McCreadie started out with East Stirlingshire and was signed by Chelsea in 1962 for a fee of £ 5,000. For many years, he was the club’s most capped player, appearing 23 times for Scotland. It is often forgotten that he was a member of the Scotland team that lowered England’s colours for the first time after winning the World Cup, the famous 3-2 win at Wembley of 1967.
Speedy and tenacious, McCreadie was considered to be the best left back in Britain in the mid-1960s. He was a pivotal figure in Tommy Docherty’s youthful team of that period and then became an important member of Dave Sexton’s cup-fighting side. He had designs on a career in coaching as his playing days drew to a close and his Chelsea career ended in October 1973 after 410 appearances and five goals. His most important goal was undoubtedly the winner in the 1965 Football League Cup final first leg at Stamford Bridge when he filled the role of emergency centre forward.
The FA Cup victory in 1970 was the pinnacle of his playing days but injury prevented him from being involved when the club won its first European prize in 1971. That team broke up and in 1974-75, Chelsea were heading for relegation. Sexton was sacked and McCreadie was appointed as team coach in November 1974, working alongside Ron Suart. In mid-April 1975, with the writing on the wall, he was appointed manager. He couldn’t prevent the club falling into the second divison, but he demonstrated his boldness by appointing 18-year-old Ray Wilkins as his captain.
Chelsea had no choice but to rely on a more than half-decent youth squad to build their promotion challenge, but despite McCreadie’s chutzpah, the 1975-76 campaign was largely forgettable. In the summer of 1976, the club revealed it was on the brink of collapse owing to the cost of their ground-breaking new stand, the construction of which had dragged on against a difficult macroeconomic backdrop. McCreadie’s popularity never wavered among the fans as he galvanised the team to give everything to effectively save Chelsea from extinction. The notable aspect of a thoroughly enjoyable season was the style of football that McCreadie insisted Chelsea should adopt, the youngsters played marvellous football for most the campaign despite a late stutter.
The close season celebrations were soon brought to a close when it was announced, almost out of the blue, that McCreadie had resigned. The full story took many years to come out, but it was supposedly about the manager wanting a company car, not an unreasonable request at most clubs, but at that time it was seen as an unaffordable luxury by Chelsea. It was also reported that he hankered for a formal contract. Chelsea fans were stunned and although his replacement was another clubman in Ken Shellito, the hangover lasted for weeks. Whenever the team struggled in 1977-78, the Chelsea “Shed” would chant for McCreadie’s return.
He spent many years in the US and was never seen at Stamford Bridge, despite the legend living on. Thankfully, bridges were built and he eventually emerged, but there are many Chelsea folk who believe that the young Chelsea team of 1977 would have gone on to better things with their mentor in place. McCreadie will never be forgotten.
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