Paul Crarey

Paul Crarey (born 4 January 1966) also known by the nickname of "Cresta", is a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s, and coached in the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s. He played at club level for Dalton ARLFC , Barrow (1987-1995, 172 appearances, 20+ tries), and Carlisle, as a hooker and coached at representative level for Cumbria and British Amateur Rugby League Association (BARLA) Great Britain Lions, and at club level for Barrow (2005–07, 2014–present), and Whitehaven (?-2008).

Paul Crarey

Personal information
Born	(1966-01-04) 4 January 1966 (age 59)[1] Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England
Playing information
Position	Hooker
Club Years Team Pld T G FG P 1987–92 Barrow 167 16 0 0 64 1992–93 Whitehaven RLFC 10 2 0 0 8 1993 Carlisle 15 5 0 0 20 1994 Barrow 15 2 0 0 8 Total 207 25 0 0 100 Representative Years Team Pld T G FG P 1992 Cumbria 1 0 0 0 0
Coaching information
Club Years Team Gms W D L W% 2005–07 Barrow 0 0 0 0 2007–08 Whitehaven 0 0 0 0 2014– Barrow Raiders 169 73 6 90 43 Total 169 73 6 90 43 Representative Years Team Gms W D L W% 2010– Cumbria 1 1 0 0 100
Source: [2][3][4] As of 14 September 2025

He won a Shooting Star award in 1988.^[5]

Coaching career

After retiring as a player, Crarey moved into coaching. He had coaching spells at amateur clubs Dalton and Walney Central before being appointed as head coach at Barrow Raiders in October 2005.^[6]

Crarey departed Barrow at the end of the 2007 season and became head coach at Whitehaven, but was forced to step down in March 2008 for health reasons.^[7]

He subsequently returned to coaching at amateur level for a few years before re-joining Barrow for a second spell in 2014.^[8][9]