Early days
Right-back Robert McCracken was signed from Belfast Distillery in the summer before Palace won their first championship in 1920/21, and was first choice until suffering a broken leg that December. However, he returned for the start of Palace's first Second Division campaign and went on to play more games for the club in that tier than anyone else, until their demotion in 1925.
He won four international caps for Northern Ireland, the first of which came against England at Roker Park a few months after joining the Glaziers, becoming the first player from England's third tier to play for the the province.
Harking from Limerick, Johnny Gavin began his footballing career in the aftermath of the Second World War, playing for his local club and working as a painter on the railways before attracting the attention of Norwich City.
Barring a brief interlude playing for Tottenham Hotspur, he spent nine years at Carrow Road scoring 132 goals – remaining the club’s record scorer to this day.
After a spell at Watford he moved to South London to play for Palace, appearing 66 times in the league and scoring 15 goals. He retired in the late 1960s with seven international caps for the Republic of Ireland to his name.
