In this modern day of football, it is often difficult to find one single player that you could call a loyal servant. With County we have been lucky, in that over the years there have been many players with blue and white pumping through their veins. For an example of this we should look no further than old fans' favourite, James Gannon.

Big Jimbo, as he was affectionately known to the County supporters, was every bit the professional footballer, that the younger generations should aspire to be. He was as much the gentleman off the pitch as he was on it. He never gave any less than 110% in every game he played, and he left 10 years after he first joined in 1990, having made many good friends, amongst the supporters, players and club officials.

In a career that spanned 2 decades, James held the unique record of having scored in all four English Divisions 4, 3, 2 and 1, the English F.A. Cup, the Football League Cup, the English League Member's Cup, the English League Play Offs, the League of Ireland Premier Division, the FAI Cup, the FAI League Cup, the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Cup, and the UEFA Cup Winners Cup.

IMPRESSED

James Gannon was born in Southwark in Ireland on 7^th August 1968. Aged 20 he made his debut for the club he eventually managed, Dundalk. He started off in midfield and he impressed so much he was granted a transfer to Sheffield United the year after.

This did not quite work out for him at Bramall Lane and he moved to join Danny Bergara's Hatters' revolution in 1989 for a fee of £75,000. He would go on and play 383 league games, and 97 cup games over 10 successful years. He played in all four of County's Wembley appearances and he was also part of the successful 1996-97 team under Dave Jones. He scored 64 goals in total (not bad for a defender).

His spell at Edgeley Park was interrupted, albeit briefly, by a loan spell to Notts County in 1994, where he played just 2 games. Personal problems had interrupted his form and Bergara had decided to let him go for a few games to regain some form.

Gannon was never short of admirers, although a solid player he was often accused of having bad distribution but that was often overlooked by many as he was known, at times to play brilliant football. Opinions often fluctuated of the big Irishman, but he always remained dear to County fans hearts and he was even voted into County's team of the century in 2001.

VERSATILTY

Big Jim was renowned for his versatility, and indeed on one occasion in 1994, when County were low on strikers due to Kevin Francis' imminent departure he played as an emergency striker and he managed to score in three consecutive matches.

For a defender, Jim often pitched in with some vital goals. In fact in 1996, having only recorded 2 points from the first 6 matches, County had a must-win game against Plymouth Argyle at Edgeley Park. Many people had been calling for Dave Jones head, but within 2 minutes Jim scored from a corner. Minutes later he added another and, well, the rest is history.

His versatility led to many admirers within the game and this leads us to a famous story. David Pleat, who then managed Luton phoned Danny Bergara and asked him if Jim had a volatile personality, to which Danny (often known for his poor grasp of the language) replied 'oh yes Jim can play anywhere.'

Gannon moved to Crewe in December 2000, but this only lasted for 8 games before leaving the Gresty Road club for his native Ireland.

Once Jim arrived home, he realised the importance of carrying on with his studies, and he was able to complete his accountancy exams. Perhaps the way in which his contract was ended at County made him realise what a short career football can be.

His yearn for football was too strong, however, and he returned to playing with Shelbourne in the Irish League, shortly after completing his exams.

Whilst at Shelbourne, Jim gained his coaching badges. He was officially announced as the new manager of the club where it all started, Dundalk Football Club in May 2004. He has since had great success and he is looking to broaden his managerial status in the near future, who knows, maybe even with County.