| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Anthony Norman Collins[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1926-03-19)19 March 1926 | ||
| Place of birth | Kensington, London, England | ||
| Date of death | 8 February 2021(2021-02-08) (aged 94) | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[2] | ||
| Position | Left winger | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Acton United | |||
| 1947–1949 | Sheffield Wednesday | 0 | (0) |
| 1949–1950 | York City | 10 | (1) |
| 1950–1953 | Watford | 90 | (8) |
| 1953–1955 | Norwich City | 29 | (2) |
| 1955–1957 | Torquay United | 89 | (17) |
| 1957 | Watford | 17 | (1) |
| 1957–1959 | Crystal Palace | 55 | (14) |
| 1959–1961 | Rochdale | 47 | (5) |
| Total | 333 | (47) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1960–1967 | Rochdale | ||
| 1980 | Bristol City (caretaker) | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Anthony Norman Collins (19 March 1926 – 8 February 2021) was an Englishfootball player,manager andscout, who played as aleft winger. He managedRochdale between 1960 and 1967, becoming thefirst black manager in theFootball League and leading them to the1962 Football League Cup Final, their only major final appearance.
Collins played professionally forSheffield Wednesday,York City,Watford (in two spells),Norwich City,Torquay United andCrystal Palace (where he was the club's first mixed-race player), before ending his playing career at Rochdale. Apart from a spell as assistant manager (and brieflycaretaker manager) atBristol City, he latterly worked mainly in scouting for a number of clubs, includingLeeds United andManchester United, as well as for theEngland national team.
Tony Collins was born inKensington, London, on 19 March 1926 to a 17-year-old unmarried white mother. His father, who was black, was not named on the birth certificate. Collins was adopted by his maternal grandparents and grew up in thePortobello Road area.[2] A promising schoolboy footballer, he played for local club Acton United and was due to sign forBrentford until he was called up for military service during the Second World War.[3]
During his three years of wartime service stationed inPadua, Italy, Collins was spotted in Army football matches and recommended toSheffield Wednesday.[3] After being demobbed and returning to England, he signed for Wednesday in November 1947, but did not make any first team appearances. He made hisFootball League debut forYork City in theThird Division North after joining them in July 1949, and was then transferred toWatford in August 1950. While at Watford, Collins was linked with a representative call-up after being watched by a selector fromThe Football Association, and the club chairman was quoted as saying in response to transfer speculation, "£12,000 won't buy him."[4]
After Watford, Collins joinedNorwich City in 1953 and thenTorquay United in 1955. He briefly returned to Watford in 1957 before signing forCrystal Palace later that year; he was the first black player to appear for Palace.[2][5] He joined his final club as a player,Rochdale, in June 1959. In total, Collins made 333 Football League appearances, scoring 47 goals, before retiring in 1961.[1]
Collins has the distinction of having been the first Black footballer at several of the clubs he played for in the Football League: Watford (debut, 21 October 1950); Norwich City (debut, 19 August 1953); and Crystal Palace (debut, 23 November 1957).[6] He is also likely to have been the first Black player to represent Torquay United for whom he played in 1955–1957.
At the end of Collins' first season at Rochdale, managerJack Marshall left the club to joinBlackburn Rovers. After being encouraged by his teammates to apply for the post, Collins was appointedplayer-manager of theFourth Division club in June 1960.[3][4] He was the first non-white manager of a Football League club.[7][8] He retired from playing to become a full-time manager in September 1961.[2]
In his second season, Rochdale reached theLeague Cup Final, only to lose 4–0 on aggregate toSecond Division Norwich City.[9] As of 2019[update], it remains the club's only appearance in a major final, and one of only twoEFL Cup final appearances by a fourth-tier side. Despite this achievement, Collins failed to attract interest in his services from larger clubs. Gradually tiring of the demands the job placed on his time and family life, he resigned in September 1967.[3]
After leaving Rochdale, Collins worked as assistant manager andscout forBristol City, and then chief scout atLeeds United.[2] When Leeds managerDon Revie became manager of theEngland national team, Collins worked with him compiling dossiers on opponents; the press dubbed Collins "Football's Superspy" when one was leaked to the press before a match againstScotland.[3] He had second spells at both Bristol Rovers and Leeds United.[2] He servedManchester United in a similar capacity from 1982 to 1988, helping the club to find future stars includingPaul McGrath andLee Sharpe.[3] Before retiring, Collins also scouted forQueens Park Rangers,Newcastle United,Millwall andDerby County.[10] He retired at the age of 80.[2]
Keith Alexander, who becameLincoln City manager in 1993, was often described as the first black manager in the Football League, until Tony Collins' achievements became more widely recognised.[3][7] Although non-white players were a rarity in English football during his era, contemporary reports made few references to his colour, and Collins himself said he was not affected by prejudice.[4] His appointment at Rochdale also attracted little attention at the time, save for one report which described the new manager as "a coloured boy" and quoted the club chairman as saying that Collins' colour was not an issue in choosing him.[4]
The historical significance of Collins' appointment became more widely reported in 2016 as a result of the publication ofTony Collins: Football Master Spy, a biography co-authored by his daughter.[11] This led to Collins, by then 90 years old and living in a care home inMoston, Manchester, to be interviewed byBBC North West Tonight andITV News about his life and career.[12][13] He received the Service to Football Award at the 2017League Managers Association Awards.[14]
Collins died on 8 February 2021, aged 94.Howard Wilkinson, chairman of theLeague Managers Association, described him as "a true pioneer of the sport".[15]
Collins was married with three children.[2]
| Club | From | To | P | W | D | L | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rochdale[16] | 1 June 1960 | 30 September 1967 | 365 | 132 | 84 | 149 | 36.16 |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
