Crewe Alexandra FC

Soccer team based in Crewe? in England and nicknamed The Railwaymen due to that town's links with the industry. Formed in 1877 and named after Princess Alexandra, the team were founder members of Division 2, but became a non-league side after only 5 seasons. They rejoined the football league in the 1920s and earned their first honours by winning the Welsh Cup in 1936 and 1937, before being barred from entering (not least since they were not in Wales). A fixture at the bottom of Division 3 North and later Division 4, The Alexandra had a reputation as the worst league team in England, enhanced by a famous 13-2 defeat by [Tottenham Hotspur]?.

This began to change, however, in 1982 with the appointment of [Dario Gradi]? as manager. A shrewd tactician with a reputation for getting the most from his young players Gradi led his charges to the unprecedented height of Division One and kept his team there, despite a club income on which many more lowly clubs could not survive. At the time of writing (2001), Gradi is the longest serving manager in English league football, celebrating his 1,000th game in charge of Crewe on November 20, 2001.