Fred Martin (footballer)

Fred Martin

Personal information
Full name	Fred Martin
Date of birth	13 May 1929
Place of birth	Carnoustie, Scotland
Date of death	20 August 2013 (aged 84)
Place of death	Methven, Perth
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Playing position	Goalkeeper
Youth career
	Carnoustie Panmure
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1946–1960	Aberdeen	296	(0)
National team
1952–1954	Scottish League XI	3	(0)
1954–1955	Scotland	6	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

Fred Martin (13 May 1929 – 20 August 2013) was a Scottish professional international footballer who played as a goalkeeper. His only senior club was Aberdeen, with whom he played for 14 years. He also represented Scotland during their first FIFA World Cup finals appearance in 1954.

Club career

Originally signed from Carnoustie Panmure as an inside forward, Martin was converted into a goalkeeper during his period of National Service. He made his Aberdeen debut in his new position in a 3–1 defeat by East Fife in 1949–50, scoring an own goal when he fumbled a last minute cross into his net.^[1] He recovered from this start and became a regular over the next seven seasons, helping the Dons to their first League title in 1954–55 and the 1955–56 League Cup. Martin also featured in three Scottish Cup finals for the Reds (1952–53, 1953–54 and 1958–59), although he was on the losing side on each occasion. The latter years of his time at Pittodrie saw Martin fall victim to a succession of injuries and after making only four appearances during the season, he retired at the end of the 1959–60 campaign.

Scotland career

Martin was chosen to represent the Scottish Football League in 1952 and two years later earned his first full Scotland cap in a 1–0 win against Norway, making his debut alongside Dons team-mates Paddy Buckley and George Hamilton. He was selected in the Scotland squad for the 1954 World Cup and played in both Scotland's matches, a 1–0 defeat by Austria and a 7–0 defeat by Uruguay. Martin was considered partially responsible for scale of the Uruguayan defeat and dropped, with his inconsistency being highlighted in the media. In the opinion of Scottish football journalist and historian Bob Crampsey "when the mood was upon him, he could be very good, but at other times, played exactly as you would expect an inside-right to play if shoved between the posts."

Martin was recalled for games against Hungary and England in late 1954 and early 1955 but on each occasion Scotland lost heavily (4–2 and 7–2 respectively) and his international career was effectively over. He conceded a total of 20 goals in his six games for Scotland.

Post football

After retiring from football, Martin went into the whisky trade and worked for Dewar's Whisky until he retired in 1994. In 2007 he was one of the inaugural inductees into the Aberdeen Football Club Hall of Fame in recognition of his achievements and legendary status at the club. He died in August 2013 at the age of 84.^[2]

References

1. Leatherdale, Clive (1986). The Aberdeen Football Companion. John Donald. p. 33. ISBN 0-85976-182-7.
2. "Former keeper Fred Martin passes away". Aberdeen Football Club. 20 August 2013. Retrieved 21 August 2013.

External links

• Hall of Fame Profile at official Aberdeen F.C. website
• Scotland appearances at londonhearts.com Scotland section