John Fitzpatrick (footballer, born 1946)
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | John Herbert Norton Fitzpatrick[1] | ||
Date of birth | [2] | 18 August 1946||
Place of birth | Aberdeen, Scotland | ||
Date of death | 21 December 2020[3] | (aged 74)||
Height | 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)[1] | ||
Position(s) |
Wing half Full-back | ||
Youth career | |||
?–1961 | Thistle Lads' Club (Aberdeen) | ||
1961–1963 | Manchester United | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1963–1973 | Manchester United | 117 | (8) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
John Herbert Norton Fitzpatrick (18 August 1946 – 21 December 2020) was a Scottish
. He joined the Manchester United ground staff as a 15-year-old and made his way up through the club's ranks before complications from a knee injury forced him to retire from playing at the age of 26. Following retirement from professional football at an early age, and having moved back to his home City of Aberdeen, John carried on his involvement in professional football in the Scottish Highland Football League where he took up Club management rolls with Buckie Thistle FC, and subsequently with Huntly FC.Career
Born in Aberdeen, Fitzpatrick started his football career with a local youth club, Thistle Lads' Club, before being spotted by Manchester United scouts in September 1961. He was invited to Old Trafford for trials, but before the move to Manchester, he asked to play one last match for his old club; during the match he broke his leg, which delayed him signing apprentice forms with Manchester United until July 1962.[4] In the meantime, he worked as a member of the club's ground staff.[1] He turned professional in September 1963.[1]
After being part of the team that won the
Fitzpatrick retained his place in the side at the start of the 1969–70 season, but an injury gained against Tottenham on 22 November 1969 ruled him out for the next four months. He recovered to play in the last seven matches of the season, and after the departure of Brennan to become player–manager at
Statistics
Club | Season | League | Cup | League Cup | Europe | Other[nb 1] | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Manchester United[10] | 1964–65 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | ||
1965–66 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |||
1966–67 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | |||
1967–68 | 17 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | ||
1968–69 | 30 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 4 | |||
1969–70 | 20 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 3 | |||
1970–71 | 35 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 43 | 3 | |||||
1971–72 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||
1972–73 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | |
Total | 117 | 8 | 11 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 147 | 10 |
- ^ Includes the FA Community Shield, Intercontinental Cup and Anglo-Italian Cup
Later life
After retiring, he returned to his home town of Aberdeen, where he went into business as a wine importer.[5]
He died in December 2020 at the age of 74.[3][11]
References
Footnotes
- ^ a b c d e f g Dykes (1994), p. 132.
- ^ Davidson, Jack (28 January 2021). "Obituary: John Fitzpatrick, footballer". The Scotsman. National World Publishing. Retrieved 16 August 2022.
- ^ a b "John Fitzpatrick, Aberdeen-born former Manchester United defender, dies aged 74". The Scotsman. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
- ^ a b c McCartney (2002), p. 101.
- ^ a b c Dykes (1994), p. 133.
- ^ "Milan 2–0 Man. United". UEFA. Archived from the original on 16 July 2015. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
- ^ "Milan 2–0 Man. United". UEFA. Retrieved 25 December 2020.
- ^ McCartney (2013), p. 157.
- ^ Barnes et al. (2001), p. 83.
- ^ "John Fitzpatrick". StretfordEnd.co.uk. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
- ^ "United sad to hear of Fitzpatrick loss". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. Retrieved 25 December 2020.
Bibliography
- Barnes, Justyn; Bostock, Adam; Butler, Cliff; Ferguson, Jim; Meek, David; Mitten, Andy; Pilger, Sam; Taylor, Frank OBE; Tyrrell, Tom (2001). The Official Manchester United Illustrated Encyclopedia. London: Manchester United Books. ISBN 0-233-99964-7.
- Dykes, Garth (1994). The United Alphabet: A Complete Who's Who of Manchester United F.C. Leicester: ACL & Polar Publishing (UK). ISBN 0-9514862-6-8.
- McCartney, Iain (2002). Tartan Reds. Cradley Heath: Britespot Publishing Solutions. ISBN 1-904103-05-7.
- McCartney, Iain (2013). The Official Manchester United Players' A–Z. London: Simon & Schuster UK. ISBN 978-1-47112-846-2.
External links
- Profile at StretfordEnd.co.uk
- John Fitzpatrick at Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Transfer Database