Frederick Mearns (31 March 1879 – 22 January 1931) was an English

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played for

Hartlepool United Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. They were founded in 190 ...

and

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It is the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. The town's population was 71,422 in 2021, while the wider boroug ...

as a

goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...

. During his time with

, he was an FA Cup finalist in

1910 Events January * January 6 – Abé people in the French West Africa colony of Côte d'Ivoire rise against the colonial administration; the rebellion is brutally suppressed by the military. * January 8 – By the Treaty of Punakha, t ...

. Mearns later worked as a trainer for Durham City.

Club career

Tottenham signed Mearns from

Kettering Town Kettering Town Football Club is a football club based in Burton Latimer, Northamptonshire, England. They are currently members of the and play at Latimer Park. Kettering were the first club to wear sponsorship on their shirts in 1976, and have ...

in March 1903 to be understudy to Charlie Williams. He made his debut on 5 October 1903 for Spurs in a Western League game to

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional association football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English f ...

where he kept a clean sheet in a 3–0 win. By the end of the season Mearns helped Tottenham to win the Western League. He played a total of five Southern League games, four Western League games and four London League games and then moved onto

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The club competes in , the third tier of English football, and is managed by Graham Alexander. The club was founded in 1903 and ...

. He played for Bradford City between June 1904 and May 1906. He made 21 league and 2 FA Cup appearances for the club. Mearns joined Hartlepool United in 1908 for their inaugural season in the

North Eastern League The North Eastern League was an association football league for teams in the North East of England. The league was founded in 1906 and was initially successful, with teams defecting from the rival Northern Football Alliance to play. Although ...

where they came fourth. In the summer of 1909 he joined Barnsley. He played in the Barnsley side who reached the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

Honours

Tottenham Hotspur *

Western Football League The Western Football League is a association football, football league in South West England, covering Bristol, Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, western Dorset, parts of Gloucestershire and Wiltshire. The league's current main sponsor is Jewson, so it ...

: 1903–04 Barnsley *

runner-up: 1910

References

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mearns, Frederick 1879 births 1931 deaths Footballers from Sunderland Men's association football goalkeepers English men's footballers Barnsley F.C. players Hartlepool United F.C. players Grays Athletic F.C. players Sunderland A.F.C. players Kettering Town F.C. players Tottenham Hotspur F.C. players Bradford City A.F.C. players Southern United F.C. (England) players Barrow A.F.C. players Bury F.C. players Stockton F.C. players Leicester City F.C. players Newcastle United F.C. players English Football League players Sunderland West End F.C. players