Malcolm Crosby, a highly-experienced former professional footballer and manager, worked as Exeter City’s chief scout during Gary Caldwell’s time at the club. He was Sunderland's manager at the time of the 1992 FA Cup final.

South Shields-born Malcolm, a midfielder, made around 400 league appearances for Aldershot and York City between 1971 and 1985. Becoming assistant manager to Denis Smith at York, he followed Smith to Sunderland as assistant manager in 1988 and took over the helm himself in 1991. Guiding the Wearside club to the FA Cup final in 1992, he was to be sacked the following year before working as an assistant at Oxford United, West Bromwich Albion, Derby County, Middlesbrough and Northampton Town. Later appointed as chief scout at Birmingham City, he was briefly the club’s ‘caretaker’ manager as he had been at Oxford and Northampton as well as at Sunderland before his permanent appointment. 

Entering his ‘sixties, Malcolm became head of recruitment at Blackpool before - after briefly managing Gateshead - taking on the position of chief scout  at Wigan Athletic under Gary Caldwell. Departing the Lancashire club at the same time as Caldwell, Malcolm scouted for Derby County before arriving at St James’ Park as chief scout following the arrival of Caldwell during the autumn of 2022. Then aged sixty-eight, Malcolm’s appointment (alongside the arrival of his contemporary Graham Barrow in another role) was relatively low-key and he retained a modest profile during his time at the club which was slightly at odds with his fifty-year career at every level of professional football.