John Frain
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John William Frain (born 8 October 1968) is an English former professional
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
Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. The team compete in the ...
and
Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the c ...
. He played in all four divisions of
the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...
, making nearly 500 league appearances for his two clubs.


Life and career

Frain was born in
Yardley, Birmingham Yardley is an area in east Birmingham, in the county of the West Midlands, England. It is also a council constituency, managed by its own district committee. Historically it lay within Worcestershire. Birmingham Yardley is a constituency and ...
. He joined
Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. The team compete in the ...
from school, made his debut in the
First Division 1st Division or First Division may refer to: Military Airborne divisions *1st Parachute Division (Germany) *1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom) * 1st Airmobile Division (Ukraine) * 1st Guards Airborne Division Armoured divisions *1st Armoure ...
in April 1986 aged 17, and signed full professional forms in October of that year. He was originally a
left back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...
, but good passing ability and a lack of pace saw him moved into
midfield In many sports, midfield is the part of a sports field that is near the line that is equally far from the end lines. That is, in American football it is the part of the field near the 50-yard line; in association football (soccer) and field hoc ...
, towards the end of his Birmingham career returning to left-back. He was the club's free kick and penalty specialist. He was part of the team that won the
Associate Members' Cup The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and U-21 teams from the Premier League ...
in 1990-91 and gained promotion from the Third Division in 1991–92.Matthews, ''Complete Record'', p. 226. He was the club's Player of the Year for 1994. He also appeared in the club's 1994–95 Third Division championship-winning season and in the early rounds of that year's Football League Trophy. In 1996, he was awarded a
testimonial match A testimonial match or testimonial game, often referred to simply as a testimonial, is a practice in some sports, particularly in association football in the United Kingdom and South America, where a club has a match to honour a player for servic ...
against
Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...
in recognition of ten years' service. He made 336 appearances for the club in all competitions, scoring 28 goals. In January 1997 Frain joined
Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the c ...
on loan, writing himself into the club's history by scoring a stoppage-time winner from a free kick in that season's Third Division play-off final. His free-transfer move to the club was made permanent at the end of that season. He later played his part in the club winning automatic promotion back to the
Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
in 1999–2000. He made 248 appearances for the club in all competitions, scoring 8 goals. In July 2003 Frain was appointed player/assistant manager of
Moor Green Moor Green is a historic home located near Brentsville, Prince William County, Virginia. It dates to the early-19th century, and is a two-story, five-bay, Federal style brick residence, with a one-room, two-story ell. It has a standing seam m ...
. In his first season, he helped the club reach the final of the Southern League Cup and win the
Birmingham Senior Cup The Birmingham Senior Cup is a regional Association football, football competition for Birmingham County FA club teams, organised by the Birmingham County Football Association. It began in 1876 and is the oldest County Football Association, count ...
, beating
Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...
in the final. Frain retired as a player at the end of the 2004–05 season due to a persistent knee injury, but retained his assistant manager's post following the merger of Moor Green and Solihull Borough to form
Solihull Moors Solihull Moors Football Club is a professional association football club based in Solihull, England. The club currently competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system, after achieving promotion from the Na ...
, until he resigned in August 2008. Frain combined his football duties with working as a mortgage underwriter. His brother
Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...
played as a
forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...
for
West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...
and
Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third level of the English football league system. The club was formed in 1897 as Mans ...
. Whenever Birmingham City play against Northampton Town, the game is dubbed 'The John Frain Derby'


Honours

Birmingham City *
Associate Members' Cup The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and U-21 teams from the Premier League ...
: 1990–91 * Third Division promotion: 1991–92 Northampton Town * Third Division play-offs:
1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...
* Third Division promotion: 1999–2000 Moor Green * Southern League Cup: 2004 *
Birmingham Senior Cup The Birmingham Senior Cup is a regional Association football, football competition for Birmingham County FA club teams, organised by the Birmingham County Football Association. It began in 1876 and is the oldest County Football Association, count ...
: 2004


References

General * Specific


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Frain, John 1968 births Living people Footballers from Birmingham, West Midlands English men's footballers Men's association football defenders Men's association football midfielders Birmingham City F.C. players Northampton Town F.C. players Moor Green F.C. players English Football League players Southern Football League players