David Fitzpatrick (footballer, born 1990)

Born in Manchester,[4] Fitzpatrick started his career at Stockport County before joining Northern Premier League Premier Division side Northwich Victoria in November 2010.[5] Having made over 30 appearances for the club over the course of the 2010–11 season, scoring five goals, he signed a new contract at the end of the season.[5] He scored both of Northwich's goals in their 2–0 victory over Altrincham in the Cheshire Senior Cup final.[6]

As a result of a lack of first-team action, Fitzpatrick was released by Victoria in October 2011 in order to join Northern Premier League Division One South side New Mills.[7] Fitzpatrick made ten appearances for New Mills, scoring four goals, before rejoining Northwich Victoria on 23 December 2011.[8] Northwich finished the 2011–12 season in second place but were actually relegated due to financial issues. In the summer of 2012, Fitzpatrick rejoined New Mills on a permanent basis.[3] The "Millers" finished third in the 2012–13 campaign, but lost out to Trafford in the play-off semi-finals.[9] Whilst playing in the Northern Premier League he also turned out for Altrincham Sunday League pub side Brookland's Tap and worked a full-time job in Human Resources for a claims company.[10]

After an impressive season at New Mills, he joined Alan Wright's Southport on 28 July 2013.[11] In Fitzpatrick's first season in the Conference Premier, he made 46 appearances and scored his only goal on the last day of the 2013–14 season, "a stunning 30-yard strike" in a 2–1 win over FC Halifax Town at Haig Avenue, won him the club's Goal of the Season award.[12][13] His second season at the club saw him make 37 league appearances under three different managers: Martin Foyle, Gary Brabin and Paul Carden.[4]

Following trial periods at Crawley Town and Stevenage, Fitzpatrick joined Macclesfield Town in September 2015 on a four-month contract.[14][15] In January 2016, his contract with the club was extended until the end of the season.[16][17] After making 37 appearances for Macclesfield during the 2015–16 season,[4] with Fitzpatrick praised for his performances, he signed a one-year contract extension at the end of the season.[18] The 2016–17 campaign saw Fitzpatrick make 37 league appearances, whilst he also played in the 2017 FA Trophy final at Wembley Stadium, where Macclesfield lost 3–2 to York City.[4] He signed another one-year contract extension in the summer.[19][20] The 2017–18 season was another successful season for Fitzpatrick as he appeared in every one of Macclesfield's 46 league matches as the club finished top of the National League, and were promoted to League Two, with Fitzpatrick signing a new two-year contract with Macclesfield Town as a result.[21] He was also named in the Non-League Paper's National League Team of the Season, alongside teammate Danny Whitaker and manager John Askey.[22]

On 4 August 2018, he made his first appearance in the English Football League (EFL) in a 3–2 defeat to Swindon Town,[23] before going on to make 40 appearances, scoring thrice in a season where Macclesfield would marginally survive relegation, finishing 22nd.[4] The 2019–20 season saw Fitzpatrick make 21 appearances without scoring as Macclesfield would survive relation despite a points deduction as a result of Bury's expulsion from the Football League, with the "Silkmen" eventually finishing 23rd.[4][24] Fitzpatrick accused the EFL of unfairly treating the club as they were deducted a total of 13 points, whilst the League Two campaign was ended early due to the COVID-19 pandemic in England.[25] However on 11 August, the EFL won an appeal to an independent arbitration panel to deduct a further four points from Macclesfield, relegating the club into the National League and handing a reprieve to Stevenage.[26] He was released at the end of the 2019–20 season.[27]

On 25 August 2020, Fitzpatrick signed a one-year contract with Port Vale after impressing on trial.[28][29] He said the decision to sign up was "a no-brainer really" as he previously worked well with former Macclesfield manager John Askey and players such as Danny Whitehead.[30]