CARR AND COBBLERS

I hadn't thought that Alan Carr would be the subject of one of my blogs, but it's Christmas (nearly) and we have just had the Royal Variety Performance, so why not. He was entertaining, camp, we know, and he made fun of the Royals, with some quips that may have caused an intake of breath, but he hasn't been carted off to the "Tower" yet. Alan went to school in Northampton and graduated from Middlesex University with a 2:1 BA (Hons) degree in Drama and Theatre Studies. In January 2018, Carr married his partner of ten years, Paul Drayton, in Los Angeles. Carr and Drayton currently live in Aldington, Kent.

Alan was born in Weymouth, but spent the majority of his childhood in Northampton. His father, whose family comes from the North-east England is former Northampton Town manager and Newcastle United chief scout, Graham Carr. 

"Dad" Carr,  joined his first professional club, Northampton Town, in August 1962 and captained their reserve side before breaking into their first team. He played 27 times in Northampton's only season in the old First Division. He moved to York City in June 1968 and then to Bradford Park Avenue in July 1969 where he was a regular in the club's final season in the Football League.

After leaving Bradford he moved into non-league football with Altrincham and Telford United, with whom he won an FA Trophy winners medal in 1971. He later played for Poole Town and Dartford, with whom he won the Southern League and gained an FA Trophy runners-up medal in 1974.

He briefly left management to play for Tonbridge and Weymouth, before being appointed player-manager of Weymouth in January 1977.

He resigned in 1978 to manage Dartford and later managed Nuneaton Borough until 1985, when he left to become manager of his first club, Northampton Town. He led the Cobblers to the Fourth Division title in the 1986–87 season. Through to 1996, he had coaching roles with Blackpool, Maidstone, Kettering, Weymouth and Dagenham and Redbridge.

In more recent times, he built a good reputation as a scout for Spurs, working under David Pleat, and also at Manchester City and Notts County, both places working under Sven-Gorran Eriksson. In February 2010 he left his second stint at Spurs to join Newcastle United as their chief scout following the reign of Dennis Wise. Newcastle were promoted back to the Premier League, in April 2010 and Carr was central to helping managers, Hughton and Pardew (who replaced the sacked Hughton in December 2010) sign players from the French, Dutch and German leagues such as Ben Arfa, Cabaye, Marveaux, Cisse and Tiote, which helped turn the club's fortunes around. 

As a result, they finished fifth in the Premier League in the 2011–12 season, which led to qualification for the 2012-3 Europa League. In June 2012, Carr was rewarded for this work with a new eight-year contract with his hometown club, a deal which would have kept him at the club until he was aged 75 years. However, in June 2017 his contract was terminated by mutual consent.

In August 2017, Carr returned to his former club Northampton Town, to take up a role as an associate director. Here he is in his "playing" days.

Northampton Town Club is nicknamed the Cobblers, a reference to the town's historical shoe-making industry.  Northampton was promoted three times in the five years 1960 to 1965. Starting the 1960-1 season in the Fourth Division, the club reached the First Division in 1965-6 its only season ever in the top division of English football.