After years of waiting for his
Football League debut, Paco Craig was finally getting his chance aged 27. Then a pandemic arrived
By Gavin Willacy for Playing in the Shadows
The story of Jim Morris was so good
Disney made a film about. In The Rookie,
baseball pitcher Morris – played by Dennis Quaid – emerges from coaching a high school team to play in the major leagues for the first time at the age of 35. Paco Craig did not move into teaching after he left West Ham’s academy, but he has spent nine years outside
British professional football. Just as he was on course to finally make his Football League debut with Wycombe Wanderers at the age of 27,
Coronavirus swept across the world and brought his dream to a shuddering halt.
Unless he becomes a
Premier League regular, Paco is unlikely to become as famous as his dad, Mikey Craig, who played bass in Culture Club. “I’m no musician but I get my athleticism from dad,” says Craig. “He was a good sprinter. My endurance is from mum: even after she’d had us she did a good time in the marathon! I’m blessed with that combination.”