Fred Donaldson
Personal information
Full name Frederick Lewis Donaldson[1]
Date of birth (1937-04-07)7 April 1937[1]
Place of birth Stoke-on-Trent, England[1]
Date of death 24 July 2018(2018-07-24) (aged 81)[2]
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.82 m)[2]
Position(s) Right-back; inside-forward; right-half
Youth career
Port Vale
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1954–1960 Port Vale 47 (4)
1960–1961 Exeter City 36 (6)
1961–1962 Chester 21 (0)
1962–1966 Macclesfield Town 172 (34)
1966–19?? Stafford Rangers
Total 276 (44)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Frederick Lewis Donaldson (7 April 1937 – 24 July 2018) was an English footballer who played as a full-back for Port Vale, Exeter City, Chester, Macclesfield Town and Stafford Rangers. He won the Fourth Division title with Port Vale in 1958–59.

Career

Port Vale

Donaldson was born in Stoke-on-Trent graduated through the junior squad at local club Port Vale to sign first-team forms in July 1954.[1] He made his senior debut on 4 May 1955, in a 1–0 win over Lincoln City at Sincil Bank on the last day of the 1954–55 season.[1] However, he had to wait until the start of the 1957–58 campaign before he played another game; by this time the "Valiants" had been relegated from the Second Division to the Third Division South, and Norman Low had replaced Freddie Steele as manager.[1] Donaldson played 27 league games at right-back throughout the campaign, but featured only 11 times in the 1958–59 season as Vale won the Fourth Division title.[1] He featured just eight times in the Third Division in the 1959–60 season, but claimed four goals against Colchester United, Accrington Stanley (2), and Newport County.[1] He left Vale Park in August 1960, when he was sold to Exeter City for a £2,000 fee.[1]

Later career

Donaldson made his debut for the "Grecians" in a 0–0 draw with Carlisle United at St James Park on the opening day of the 1960–61 season.[3] He went on to score six goals in 36 Fourth Division games as Glen Wilson's finished 21st in the Fourth Division, before departing at the end of the campaign after remaining on the transfer-list for four months.[3] He then played 20 Fourth Division games for Chester in the 1961–62 campaign, as the "Seals" finished bottom of the English Football League. He then left the Deva Stadium, and later played for Cheshire County League sides Macclesfield Town and Stafford Rangers.

Later life

Donaldson became a sales rep after retiring as a player, selling carpets and floorings.[2] He married Iris and had two children in Linda and David.[2] He remained a keen crown green bowler from his teenage years up until his death following a short illness on 24 July 2018.[2]

Style of play

Port Vale teammate Colin Askey described Donaldson as "a nice footballer, someone who liked to get the ball down and play", able to play in various positions from his preferred spot at right-back as well as inside-forward and right-half.[2]

Career statistics

Source:[4]

Club Season Division League FA Cup Other Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Port Vale 1954–55 Second Division 10000010
1955–56 Second Division 00000000
1956–57 Second Division 00000000
1957–58 Third Division South 2700000270
1958–59 Fourth Division 1100000110
1959–60 Third Division 84000084
Total 4740000474
Exeter City 1960–61 Fourth Division 3662020406
Chester 1961–62 Fourth Division 2102020250
Macclesfield Town 1961–62[5] Cheshire County League 1140000114
1962–63[6] Cheshire County League 40720534710
1963–64[7] Cheshire County League 39651112559
1964–65[8] Cheshire County League 421052525214
1965–66[9] Cheshire County League 4073160498
Total 1723415427721445
Career total[lower-alpha 1] 2764419431732655
  1. ↑ Statistics for Stafford Rangers not known.

Honours

Port Vale

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 87. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Baggaley, Michael (1 August 2018). "Tributes paid to former Port Vale player Fred Donaldson". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 1 August 2018.
  3. 1 2 "The Grecian Archive - Donaldson, Frederick". grecianarchive.exeter.ac.uk. Retrieved 1 August 2018.
  4. ↑ Fred Donaldson at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
  5. ↑ "Stats". silkmenarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  6. ↑ "Stats". silkmenarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  7. ↑ "Stats". silkmenarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  8. ↑ "Stats". silkmenarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  9. ↑ "Stats". silkmenarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  10. ↑ Kent, Jeff (1990). "Fame and Fortune (1950–1959)". The Valiants' Years: The Story Of Port Vale. Witan Books. pp. 171–196. ISBN 0-9508981-4-7.
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