Fred Donaldson

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.

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]
Playing 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)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Playing 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]

Statistics

Source:[4]

Club	Season	Division	League		FA Cup		Other		Total
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Port Vale	1954–55	Second Division	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	1955–56	Second Division	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	1956–57	Second Division	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	1957–58	Third Division South	27	0	0	0	0	0	27	0
	1958–59	Fourth Division	11	0	0	0	0	0	11	0
	1959–60	Third Division	8	4	0	0	0	0	8	4
	Total		47	4	0	0	0	0	47	4
Exeter City	1960–61	Fourth Division	36	6	2	0	2	0	40	6
Chester	1961–62	Fourth Division	21	0	2	0	2	0	25	0
Macclesfield Town	1961–62[5]	Cheshire County League	11	4	0	0	0	0	11	4
	1962–63[6]	Cheshire County League	40	7	2	0	5	3	47	10
	1963–64[7]	Cheshire County League	39	6	5	1	11	2	55	9
	1964–65[8]	Cheshire County League	42	10	5	2	5	2	52	14
	1965–66[9]	Cheshire County League	40	7	3	1	6	0	49	8
	Total		172	34	15	4	27	7	214	45
Career total[lower-alpha 1]			276	44	19	4	31	7	326	55

1. Statistics for Stafford Rangers not known.

Honours

Port Vale

• Football League Fourth Division champion: 1958–59[10]

References

1. Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 87. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
2. Baggaley, Michael (1 August 2018). "Tributes paid to former Port Vale player Fred Donaldson". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 1 August 2018.
3. "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.