John Joseph Collins (born 30 January 1945) is an English former

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

. Collins signed for

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...

in 1963, but mainly turned out for the club's junior team. In 1964, he signed for

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club are a professional association football, football club in Stockport, England, who compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, they wer ...

, where he struck up a good partnership with fellow defender Frank Beaumont, making eighty-four league appearances over two seasons. In 1966, he signed for

Macclesfield Town Macclesfield Town Football Club was an English professional association football, football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, that was liquidation, wound-up after a High Court of Justice, High Court ruling on 16 September 2020. Initially kno ...

, and it was here where he made his name. Initially used as a right-back, Collins would later switch position to centre-back. Collins enjoyed a successful period at Macclesfield, as the club won the Northern Premier League in 1969 and 1970, the North West Floodlit League in 1970, the FA Trophy in 1970, and the Cheshire Senior Cup in 1969, 1971 and 1973. Individually, he was voted as the club's Player of the Year in 1971. Collins' first foray into management came as caretaker of Macclesfield, taking charge of the club during September 1974, following Eddie Brown's departure. In January 1975, Collins again took charge on a caretaker basis, and was later appointed manager, becoming the club's fourth permanent appointment in twelve months. He steered the club to seventeenth place in the league, and in the following season they would progress through the FA Cup qualifying rounds to earn a first round tie against

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...

(then in the Third Division), where they lost 3–1 at Hillsborough. In 1976, Collins resigned as manager, having been at the club for the last ten seasons. He comfortably holds the record number of appearances in the Northern Premier League.

References

1945 births Living people English men's footballers Men's association football defenders Northern Football League players Stockport County F.C. players Macclesfield Town F.C. players Macclesfield Town F.C. managers Footballers from Manchester English football managers {{England-footy-defender-1940s-stub