QA: Paddy Crerand

What was it like playing for Manchester United with George Best, Denis Law and Bobby Charlton?

What do you think? I hated every minute of it. No, look, I played for the two biggest clubs in Britain — Celtic and United — and at United I was in the same side as three of the greatest players the world has ever seen.

You work for MUTV and are famous for defending United at every opportunity, have you ever met anyone who loves the club as much as you do?

Millions of people. United get the rough end of the stick from the media so it’s only natural that I stand up for them. When Eric Cantona kicked that idiot at Crystal Palace, I was interviewed on the radio and a woman from Belfast comes on and says that was the worst thing she had ever seen. I said, “you live in Belfast and you’re telling me that you haven’t seen anything worse?”

What was it like playing for Manchester United with George Best, Denis Law and Bobby Charlton?

What do you think? I hated every minute of it. No, look, I played for the two biggest clubs in Britain — Celtic and United — and at United I was in the same side as three of the greatest players the world has ever seen.

You work for MUTV and are famous for defending United at every opportunity, have you ever met anyone who loves the club as much as you do?

Millions of people. United get the rough end of the stick from the media so it’s only natural that I stand up for them. When Eric Cantona kicked that idiot at Crystal Palace, I was interviewed on the radio and a woman from Belfast comes on and says that was the worst thing she had ever seen. I said, “you live in Belfast and you’re telling me that you haven’t seen anything worse?”

Your autobiography, Never Turn the Other Cheek, is a bit different from other sports books — especially the account of your attempt to broker a peace deal with the IRA.

I met ten of them in the middle of the night in Derry. They were working-class lads and I told them that they needed to renounce violence. I said the only way of solving problems is by dialogue, not by shooting each other, but all they wanted to talk about was United and Celtic.

One of the passions in your life is politics and the Labour Party. Were there any Tories in the United dressing-room in the Sixties.

Are you joking? In my day all the players were socialists because it was a working-class game. There was a rumour that someone in the Gorbals voted for the Tories in the 1970s but I don’t believe it.

You played for Sir Matt Busby, you knew Jock Stein and Bill Shankly and you’re close to Sir Alex Ferguson. Who’s the best manager?

Fergie is going to love me if he reads this but I’ve got to say he’s No 1.

Finally, Paddy, have you ever turned the other cheek?

Never. I was brought up in Glasgow and if somebody hits you, you hit them back.

Interview by Kaveh Solhekol

Comments

[One Liner]

For the record Paddy the two biggest clubs in Britain are not Man Utd and celtic, fact. A little research would have told you that but lets not take the main focus of your article. I come from Glasgow and also served in the forces serving in defence of odious little men like you and to hear about your talks with 10 so called IRA men makes my skin crawl, who do you think you are? You were a footballer crerand and not a good one at that and yet you speil this kind of tripe. I wouldn't wish the loss of anyone let alone a friend or family member during the troubles in NI, if you had lost someone then perhaps yopu would have understood what a stupid thing you done and the contempt you held for the forces that served there and the families that lost loved ones. To think that you are from Glasgow makes my blood boil. Your a sad little man that deserves any ill will that befalls you.