[3] He made his debut in April at home to Coventry City becoming the first black player to play for Stoke since Roy Brown in the 1940s.

Crooks is frequently credited as the first black player to score in an FA Cup final for his equalising goal in a 3–2 win over Manchester City in 1981,[6] though this was pre-dated by Bill Perry in 1953 and Mike Trebilcock in 1966.

[citation needed] He later went on loan to Manchester United and had spells at West Bromwich Albion and Charlton Athletic before a knee injury forced his retirement in 1990.

[7] In the 1999 Birthday Honours, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) "for services to the Institute of Professional Sport.

In August 2024, he ended his Premier League team of the week column, which was hosted on the BBC News website, due to creative differences.