Joe Frail
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Martin Joseph Frail[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 1869[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Burslem, England[1] | ||
| Date of death | 4 September 1939 (age 69-70)[1] | ||
| Place of death | Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, England[1] | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1891–1894 | Port Vale | 30 | (0) |
| Gorton Villa | |||
| Glossop North End | |||
| Derby County | |||
| Chatham | |||
| Middlesbrough | |||
| Middlesbrough | |||
| Luton Town | |||
| Brentford | |||
| Stockport County | |||
| Glossop North End | |||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Martin Joseph "Joe" Frail (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.
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 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 didn't 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]