.jpg) Caldow (right) as Rangers captain prior to a European fixture againstSparta Rotterdam, 1960 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Eric Caldow[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1934-05-14)14 May 1934 | ||
| Place of birth | Cumnock, Scotland | ||
| Date of death | 4 March 2019(2019-03-04) (aged 84) | ||
| Place of death | Scotland | ||
| Position(s) | Defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Glenpark Amateurs | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Muirkirk | |||
| 1952–1966 | Rangers | 265 | (17) |
| 1966–1967 | Stirling Albion | 25 | (1) |
| 1968–1969 | Corby Town | ||
| International career | |||
| 1955–1957[2] | Scotland U23 | 2 | (0) |
| 1957–1963 | Scotland | 40 | (4) |
| 1957–1965 | Scottish League XI | 14 | (1) |
| 1958–1961[3][4][5] | SFA trial v SFL | 4 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1967–???? | Corby Town | ||
| 1970–1973 | Hurlford United | ||
| 1973–1975 | Stranraer | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Eric Caldow (14 May 1934 – 4 March 2019) was a Scottish professionalfootballer, who played forRangers,Stirling Albion andScotland. Caldow played as afull back and captained both Rangers and Scotland.
Caldow attendedCumnock Academy and after leaving school became an apprentice painter with Cumnock Burgh Council.[6] He started his football career with the local Glenpark Amateurs club, thenMuirkirk of theWestern Junior League.[6]
Caldow was signed byRangers managerBill Struth in 1952 and made his first team debut on 12 September 1953 in a 4–2 win overAyr United atIbrox.[6] He made a total of 13 appearances in his first professional season with Rangers and continued to make progress the following season, playing in 12 of Rangers' 41 matches. He became a regular in the Rangers team following the suspension ofWillie Woodburn andGeorge Young changing position to compensate.[6]
In1955–56 Caldow made 35 appearances, mostly at right back, as Rangers won the League title for the first time in two seasons. Rangers retained the League title the following season,1956–57, and Caldow was once again an important member of the team, making 40 appearances, this time mostly at left-back.
Caldow continued to be an integral member of the Rangers team, featuring 49 times in1957–58, including fourEuropean Cup matches againstAS Saint-Étienne andAC Milan. Caldow also played in all of Scotland's threeWorld Cup matches againstYugoslavia,Paraguay andFrance.[6][7] After finishing third that season, Rangers regained the League title in1958–59, with Caldow missing just one match.
Caldow won his firstScottish Cup medal in1959–60, and despite failing to retain their League title, Rangers reached the semi-final of theEuropean Cup, defeatingAnderlecht,Cervena Hviezda Bratislava andSparta Rotterdam before eventually losing to German clubEintracht Frankfurt.[7]
European success continued for Rangers the following season as Caldow captained Rangers to the inauguralEuropean Cup Winners' Cup, defeatingFerencváros,Borussia Mönchengladbach andWolverhampton Wanderers before losing 4–1 toFiorentina in thetwo-legged final.[7] Caldow missed just one game that season as Rangers also regained the League title and won theLeague Cup.
Rangers again failed to retain the League title the following season,1961–62, as surprise packageDundee edged out Rangers by three points. However, the League Cup was retained and the Scottish Cup was also won as Caldow played in 52 of Rangers' 58 matches. Rangers reached the quarter final stage of the1961–62 European Cup, where they lost to Belgian clubStandard Liège. Caldow succeededJohnny Hubbard as the regularpenalty taker for Rangers. His fifth and final League championship medal came in1962–63 where he also won another Scottish Cup medal.
Following a long rehabilitation program from a broken leg on international duty, Caldow made only four appearances in1963–64, as Rangers won a domestic treble.[8] He re-established himself in the team at left-back during the 1964–65 season, playing 34 matches. He helped Rangers to a 2–1 League Cup final success against Celtic and to reach the quarter-final of the1964–65 European Cup, where they lost 3–2 on aggregate toInter Milan (3–1 defeat away, then a 1–0 win at home).[9] It was a disappointing league season for Rangers, however, as they finished in fifth place in the League withKilmarnock winning the championship.[8]
1965–66 proved to be Caldow's last season at Rangers and he made only three appearances, the last being a 3–2 defeat toFalkirk on 9 March 1966. During his 13 years with the club, he made a total of 407 appearances.[10]
Caldow won 40 caps forScotland, 15 of which were as captain,[6] and he also appeared 14 times for theScottish League XI.[11]
He won his first Scotlandcap againstEngland on 6 April 1957 in a 2–1 defeat atWembley.[6] Caldow played that match at right-back, which disappointed him as he had hoped to play at left-back and in direct opposition toStanley Matthews.[6] His next cap came in a 1958 World Cup qualifier againstSpain, where he facedReal Madrid greatFrancisco Gento.[6]
He captained Scotland for the first time in 1961, in aBritish Home Championship match withWales.[6] He scored four penalties for Scotland;[6] one of these clinched the1961–62 British Home Championship, as he scored the second in a 2–0 win against England.[6] His international career came to an end in 1963, after he suffered a broken leg in three places in a 2–1 win against England at Wembley, following a tackle from England'sBobby Smith.[6][7]
After leaving Rangers, Caldow played for one season withStirling Albion before moving south in 1967 to becomeplayer-manager ofCorby Town.[12] He returned to his nativeAyrshire in 1970, to become manager ofJunior sideHurlford United. In 1973, he was appointed manager ofScottish League sideStranraer, until 1975.[12]
Caldow was inducted to theScottish Football Hall of Fame in 2007.[10] He died in March 2019, aged 84.[7]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | 1957 | 8 | 0 |
| 1958 | 7 | 0 | |
| 1959 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1960 | 6 | 2 | |
| 1961 | 8 | 0 | |
| 1962 | 4 | 2 | |
| 1963 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 40 | 4 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 June 1960 | Ankara 19 Mayıs Stadium, Ankara, Turkey | 25 |  Turkey | 1–1 | 2–4 | Friendly match |
| 2 | 9 November 1960 | Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland | 27 |  Northern Ireland | 2–0 | 5–2 | 1960–61 British Home Championship |
| 3 | 14 April 1962 | Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland | 36 |  England | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1961–62 British Home Championship |
| 4 | 20 October 1962 | Ninian Park, Cardiff, Wales | 38 |  Wales | 1–0 | 3–2 | 1962–63 British Home Championship |
 | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
