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William Graham Carr (born 25 October 1944) is an English former professional footballer, manager and scout. He is an associate director of Northampton Town.
After leaving Bradford he moved into non-league football with Altrincham and Telford United, with whom he won an FA Trophy winners medal in 1971. He later played for Poole Town and Dartford, with whom he won the Southern League and gained an FA Trophy runners-up medal in 1974.
Carr resigned in 1978 to manage Dartford and later managed Nuneaton Borough until 1985 when he left to become manager of his first club Northampton Town. He led the Cobblers to the Fourth Division title in the 1986–87 season. However, the title winning side's leading scorer Richard Hill was sold to Watford and his strike partner Trevor Morley to Manchester City and Carr's subsequent sides struggled for goals and went from being a free-scoring attacking side to a negative one relying on the offside trap.
Carr was sacked from Northampton in May 1990 after their relegation back to the Fourth Division, taking over at Blackpool, who had been relegated along with Northampton, the following month. He had a torrid time at Blackpool, where he was never popular with the home fans, who took to spitting on the dugout during home games, especially after letting the previous season's player of the year, Colin Methven, sign for Walsall, saying he was neither good enough nor quick enough for Fourth Division football.Roy Calley (1992). 187362607X, Breedon Books Sport. 187362607X He was sacked on 30 November after Blackpool were beaten 4–0 away to Tranmere Rovers in the Football League Trophy three days earlier. He was, until Michael Appleton in 2012, Blackpool's shortest-serving manager, with just sixteen Football League matches in charge.
In February 1991 Carr was appointed as manager of Maidstone United, who had just sacked Keith Peacock following a run of poor results. Carr's time at Maidstone was also unhappy; a series of poor signings and baffling tactical decisions saw the team slump towards the foot of the table, and the Maidstone fans chanting for the board to sack him, which they did in October 1991, less than a year before the Kent side were forced to resign from the Football League.
Carr took over as manager of Kettering Town in September 1992, with the club in administration and under the threat of a winding-up order. Despite these off the field problems, Carr led the club to mid-table safety in the Football Conference. Kettering came out of administration in the summer of 1993 and Carr built on the relative success of the previous season, taking the side to within three points of the Conference title. He left Kettering at the end of the 1994–95 season after losing the fans' support, despite Kettering finishing sixth in the Conference.
Carr was not out of work for long, returning to Weymouth as manager on 12 May 1995, but resigned in September the same year.
Carr joined Dagenham and Redbridge in the autumn of 1995 following the sacking of Dave Cusack but he was sacked three games before the end of the season, having led the side to relegation.
Carr was briefly appointed assistant Manager at Doncaster Rovers.
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