Joe Frail
Martin Joseph Frail (29 March 1869 – 4 September 1939) was an English footballer who lived a traditional Romani lifestyle.[2] A goalkeeper, he played for Port Vale, Glossop North End, Derby County, Chatham, Middlesbrough, Luton Town, Brentford, and Stockport County.[3]
 Frail while with Brentford in 1903 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Martin Joseph Frail[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 29 March 1869 | ||
| Place of birth | Burslem, England[1] | ||
| Date of death | 4 September 1939 (aged 70)[1] | ||
| Place of death | Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, England[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1891–1894 | Port Vale | 29 | (0) |
| 1894 | Gorton Villa | ||
| 1894–1896 | Glossop North End | ||
| 1896–1898 | Derby County | 10 | (0) |
| 1898–1900 | Chatham | ||
| 1900–1902 | Middlesbrough | 62 | (0) |
| 1902–1903 | Luton Town | ||
| 1903 | Brentford | 10 | (0) |
| 1904 | Stalybridge Rovers | ||
| 1904–1905 | Middlesbrough | 1 | (0) |
| 1905 | Stockport County | 7 | (0) |
| 1905–1906 | Glossop | 16 | (0) |
| Total | 125+ | (0) | |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only | |||
Playing career
Frail probably joined Port Vale in the autumn of 1891.[1] His debut came in a friendly against Lincoln City on 14 November 1891, which Vale lost 2–0.[1] Favoured ahead of Levi Higginson, he was the keeper of choice from September 1892, and kept goal in 19 of the club's 20 Second Division games in the 1892–93 season – Vale's first season in the English Football League.[1] However, after 11 games into the 1893–94 season, he missed the train to a match at Rotherham Town on 28 October 1893 and was duly suspended as he failed to explain the reason why.[1] He did not play another game at the Athletic Ground and was instead transferred to Gorton Villa in October 1894.[1] Later he played for Glossop North End, Derby County, Chatham, Middlesbrough (in two spells), Luton Town, Brentford and Stockport County before returning to Glossop.[1][4]
Statistics
Source:[5]
| Club | Season | Division | League | FA Cup | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Burslem Port Vale | 1892–93 | Second Division | 19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 20 | 0 |
| 1893–94 | Second Division | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 0 | |
| Total | 29 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 31 | 0 | ||
| Derby County | 1897–98 | First Division | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| Middlesbrough | 1900–01 | Second Division | 30 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 39 | 0 |
| 1901–02 | Second Division | 32 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 34 | 0 | |
| Total | 62 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 73 | 0 | ||
| Brentford | 1903–04 | Southern League First Division | 10 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 15 | 0 |
| Middlesbrough | 1904–05 | First Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Stockport County | 1905–06 | Second Division | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| Glossop | 1905–06 | Second Division | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| 1906–07 | Second Division | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | |
| Total | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | ||
References
- Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 106. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
- Sherwin, Phil (2010). The Port Vale Miscellany. Brimscombe Port: The History Press. p. 26. ISBN 978-0-7524-5777-2.
- Joyce, Michael (2012). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: Tony Brown. p. 103. ISBN 190589161X.
- White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. p. 357. ISBN 0951526200.
- Joe Frail at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)