MY GLORY DAYS AT THE TOP GAVE ME SOMETHING TO CROW ABOUT

AT 18, Danny Crow was living the dream, playing in the Premier League for his beloved Norwich City against the likes of Steven Gerrard and Gareth Southgate.

- By CHRIS DUNLAVY

Sadly for the powerful striker, it wasn’t to last. Released after four topflight appearances, he joined Peterborough and set off on a footballing odyssey that took him to Cambridge, Luton and Newport, where he won a long-awaited promotion to the EFL before seeing out his career at Lowestoft Town and AFC Sudbury.

Now 39 and working as an assistant manager at Isthmian North outfit Wroxham, Crow reveals which Premier League legend was his toughest-ever opponent, explains why nothing will ever beat pulling on the yellow shirt of Norwich and argues that one old pal from London Road deserves to be ranked alongside Jamie Vardy in the rags-to-riches pantheon.

FIRST CLUB

Norwich. I was there from the age of seven to 19 and I was lucky enough to play four times for the team I'd supported growing up.

I wish it was more. I wish I'd done things a little bit differently. But those four substitute appearances still mean a lot to me now.

The first one was away at Middlesbrough in the Premier League. We had a lot of injuries; Dean Ashton, Ian Henderson, Leon McKenzie. I'd been doing well in the youth cups and training with the first team and Nigel Worthington chucked me on for 15 minutes.

My first touch in professional football, I jumped for a cross, challenged Gareth Southgate and my header just dropped wide.

BEST MANAGER

Justin Edinburgh is the one who stands out. I'd come up against his teams a few times before I joined Newport and I always admired the way he conducted himself on the sidelines. You could see that everybody played for him. He was probably the biggest factor in me going to Newport and he was everything I hoped he would be.