- Fred Kiernan
Infobox Football biography
playername = Fred Kiernan
fullname = Frederick William Kiernan
dateofbirth = birth date|1919|7|7
cityofbirth =Dublin
countryofbirth =Republic of Ireland
dateofdeath = December 1981 (Age 62)
cityofdeath =Southampton
countryofdeath =England
height = height|ft=5|in=8
position = Goalkeeper
currentclub =
clubnumber =
youthyears =
youthclubs = Drumcondra
years = 19??–1945
1945–1948
1948–1949
1949–1951
1951–1956
1956–1958
clubs = Shelbourne
Dundalk
Sligo Rovers
Shamrock Rovers
Southampton
Yeovil Town
caps(goals) =
132 0(0)
nationalyears = 1951–1952
1951
nationalteam = IrelandLeague of Ireland
nationalcaps(goals) = 005 0(0)
001 0(0)
manageryears =
managerclubs =Frederick William Kiernan (7 July 1919 – December 1981) was an Irish professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper in the 1940s and 1950s.
Playing career
He was born in
Dublin and his first senior club was Shelbourne, though he initially played a as a youth with Drumcondra.With Shelbourne, he came close to a clean sweep of honours in the 1943-44 season, winning the League and Shield and losing out to Shamrock Rovers in the
FAI Cup final.In the summer of 1945, he transferred to play for Dundalk. After three seasons with Dundalk, he moved to Sligo Rovers where he played just one season (1948-49).
He was then signed by Shamrock Rovers coach
Paddy Coad .At 5ft 8in he was unusually small for a goalkeeper but, according to Holley & Chalk's "In That Number", "he had tremendous agility, which went a long way in compensating". [cite book | author=Duncan Holley & Gary Chalk | title=In That Number - A post-war chronicle of Southampton FC | publisher=Hagiology | year=2003|pages=p.537| id=ISBN 0-9534474-3-X] Ireland recognised his talents, and in May 1951 he made his international debut against Argentina) and before May was out he had added a second cap (v. Norway).
Later that year at the age of 32, he joined Southampton for a then record League of Ireland fee for a goalkeeper of £4,500.
By October 1951 he had made his Southampton debut in the
Football League Division Two against Hull City. Over the next 5 seasons he made 136 League and Cup appearances with the Saints and added another three Irish caps to his collection. During his time at The Dell, he contested John Christie for the goalkeeper's jersey.In January 1954 he unsuccessfully applied for the manager's post at Peterborough United. He was almost 37 years of age when he played his last game for the Saints against Norwich City in April 1956 and the following July he moved to Yeovil Town.
He retired from active playing in 1958, before returning to
Southampton , where he spent a brief period coaching with A.C. Delco.Honours
*League of Ireland: 1
**Shelbourne F.C. - 1943/44
*League of Ireland Shield : 2
**Shelbourne F.C. 1944
**Shamrock Rovers F.C. 1949/50Links
* [http://www.soccerscene.ie/sssenior/player.php?id=116 International career details from soccerscene.ie]
References
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
