John Joseph Carey (23 February 1919– 22 August 1995), was one of the outstanding defenders of his generation.  Carey captained Manchester United to the F.A. Cup in 1948 and the League Championship in 1952, and played for both the Republic and Northern Ireland in a distinguished international career. Carey was elected footballer of the year in 1949  and1949 and in 1950 sportsman of the year.   He captained the Republic of Ireland to a 2–0 victory over England at Goodison Park in 1949,  which was the first ever defeat of an England team in a full international fixture played on home soil. As a result of his military service, and the ongoing disputes between the two football associations in Ireland over player selection, Carey also qualified to play for Northern Ireland after 1945. He took the opportunity, and in the space of three days in 1948 he played for both Irish teams, each time against England. Carey is remembered for his composure under pressure, killing high balls dropping into United’s box on the instep of his boot, turning to beat the challenging forward, then sliding a perfect pass to one of his teammates. His standing within international football was demonstrated in 1947 when he was chosen as the captain of a Rest of Europe team against England. In 1953 Carey finally retired as a player. He went on to manage second-division Blackburn Rovers, gaining them promotion to the first division in 1958 .  He was then appointed manager of Everton where he rebuilt a poor team and directed them to fifth place in the league by the close of the 1961 season. He was famously sacked by Everton chairman, John Moores, in the back of a London taxi  en route for the Football League annual meeting.  Carey subsequently moved to manage Leyton Orient, leading the London team to the first division for the first time in their history during his first season. He later managed Nottingham Forest before a second, less successful, spell at Blackburn Rovers.