I was heartbroken when my dad died after cardiac arrest in club car park… Tottenham game is for him, says Tamworth star
ALL eyes will be on Tamworth as they try to pull off one of the greatest shocks in FA Cup history against Tottenham.
And striker Dan Creaney knows his late father will be looking down on him with great pride.
The Lambs legend, 30, suffered the tragic loss in September 2022 when his football-mad dad Jimmy had a cardiac arrest in the club car park.
It happened shortly after watching Creaney open the scoring in a 2-1 win over Basford Town.
Despite the frantic efforts of Tamworth’s physio and three passing fans, he later died in hospital with his boy by his side.
Creaney vowed to finish as Tamworth’s top scorer that season and kept his word.
Incredibly, he matched Erling Haaland’s 40 goals in his debut season for Manchester City — and dedicated them to the memory of his dad.
He donated his £1,000 goal bonus to the four people who rushed to Jimmy’s aid.
Now, as he prepares for the biggest game of his career, Creaney said: “Dad will be watching down on me playing Tottenham, absolutely.
“We’ve been on a journey since I was five. We got even closer when dad started coaching my teams when I was eight right through to 16, for Stockingford AA.
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“Back then, I was winning local cup finals at The Lamb when it was a grass pitch.
“When I progressed into senior football, dad would drive everywhere to watch, to Ipswich, up to Hartlepool, on his own.
“He wouldn’t miss Sunday, for sure, and he’ll be up there looking over me.”
Creaney’s thoughts will be with his beloved dad as the team coach pulls up at The Lamb ahead of Tottenham’s visit — and he bravely recalled that fateful September night.
Creaney revealed: “We were playing Basford and won 2-1. I scored early on, they equalised and then Ty Deacon scored a 95th-minute winner.
“Dad will be watching down on me playing Tottenham, absolutely.
Dan Creaney
“Some of the lads asked me if I thought it was the nature of the game that caused [dad’s death] but I don’t think it was. I’d watched him struggle for a year or two with his health.
“He was only in his 50s but had a previous episode and the doctor told him how long he had to live — six years — and that turned out to be bang on.
“I actually had a drink with him after the game. We said goodbye and he then walked round to where his car was parked in the car park.
“Then he rang me to say, ‘I need your help in the car park’.
“I couldn’t really hear him because he was slurring his words and I thought his car battery must be flat or something.
Pie's now the limit for Levy
EXCLUSIVE By Will Pugh
DANIEL LEVY has been invited for a pie and chips in Tamworth’s Portakabin boardroom.
Spurs’ millionaire chairman will watch Sunday’s David v Goliath FA Cup tie from one of the National League minnows’ 518 cramped plastic stadium seats.
It is a far cry from Levy’s luxurious, cushioned heated seat at Tottenham’s £1billion state-of-the-art ground.
And Lambs owner Bob Andrews insisted Levy will be brought “back down to earth” by the experience.
Andrews said: “Tottenham’s facilities are out of this world, especially compared to us.
“We are a local club, this tie will bring them back down to earth. But we have brought in caterers, so pie and chips are on the menu.
“We’ve had other big games but nothing of this nature before. Tottenham are simply a massive club.”
Premier League outfit Spurs have requested an extra 14 seats adjacent to the cramped away dugout to accommodate manager Ange Postecoglou’s army of coaching staff.
But Tamworth can only fit in 12 — commandeered from their SOCIAL CLUB.
And Andrews, 78, added: “Tottenham’s players and their bench will get some stick.
“Their dugout is next to our shed, where our passionate supporters are, so there will be some verbals going on.”
Bookies make fifth-tier Tamworth 16-1 underdogs to cause one of the biggest FA Cup shocks in history.
But ex-Lamb Mark Phillips, now head of their academy goalkeeping department, said: “Everybody expects us to lose, but there might be an upset — 1-0 to us.
“It’s going to be tough for them, that is where we might have an edge on them.
“If we press them high they will probably get around us. We will have to sit back, soak up some pressure and get them on the break.
“Our set-pieces will cause them some trouble, especially with their goalkeeping problems.”
DAD TRIBUTE
“So I walked round the side of the ground to see my dad was getting CPR.
“With the help of some kind people we managed to get him to hospital, still alive, but it was no good.
“To be honest, it had been expected for a long time. So although it was shocking, I had pictured in my head what might happen.
“In some ways I was prepared for it. I was just relieved my sisters weren’t there and it was just me.
“It was the perfect way in some senses. Dad wanted to get out quick, he just didn’t want to struggle growing old and stuff.
“He was watching me play football that night, which was the thing that he just loved doing.
“There is never a nice way, is there? But it’s the way that he would have wanted.”
Jimmy would be proud of what his son has achieved — from humble beginnings as a midfielder with Bedworth United before blossoming into a feared National League striker.
I made a vow to dedicate all the goals I scored that season to him
Dan Creaney
Coalville signed the Nuneaton-born late-developer before Tamworth then swooped for him in July 2019.
Creaney, who is a bricklayer during the week, has bagged 93 goals in 177 appearances for the Staffordshire minnows — including that amazing 40-goal haul in his dad’s honour.
And he explained: “I made a vow to dedicate all the goals I scored that season to him.
“I just wanted to keep playing, even though it was difficult.
“Scoring made me feel like I was giving something back to all the people who tried to help.
“And I was proud to give my £1,000 goal bonus that season to those four special people who raced to dad’s side, just to say thanks.
“Haaland got 40 that season, too, but Macaulay Langstaff pipped us both with 42 goals for Notts County!”
Now Creaney is looking forward to testing himself against mighty Tottenham — a mere 96 PLACES above Tamworth in the football ladder.
He will be roared on by his mum Linda, football-playing sister Zoe, who turns out for Oxford United Women, and his other sister Kirsty.
Creaney added: “Look, it’s Tottenham Hotspur and we could easily lose 7-0 — like we did at Barnet this season.
“But I genuinely believe that if we can get to half-an-hour without conceding a goal, we will keep the scoreline down.
“These games don’t come along very often, so we have to have a go.”