Crawford was one of the City players to come from the Corby Juniors set-up, staying four years with Leicester after serving National Service. He made his debut on Boxing Day 1950 at home against Grimsby Town but he was used mainly as a back-up squad player during his four years at the club.

He made just ten league starts, scoring two goals along the way, and one FA Cup start before he moved on to Plymouth Argyle in search of more regular first-team action. That didn't come about, however, and his career struggled to really take off as he never cemented a first-team role for a long spell at any one club.

Ironically, he did feature for Argyle at Filbert Street in 1956 against the Foxes, as Leicester ran-out emphatic 5-1 winners with Plymouth heading for relegation. He later went on to play for Peterborough United and finished his career with Corby Town.