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28 July 2022
 
 
 

Frank Swift

Manchester City FC

19 appearances, 18 goals against
one penalty conceded

P 19 W 14 D 3 L 2 F 65: A 18
82% successful

1946-49

captain: two
minutes played:
1710

Timeline

  Frank Victor Swift
Birth 26 December 1913 at 33 Ibbison Street, Blackpool, Lancashire [registered in Fylde, March 1914], the fourth of six children to Frederick and Jane Cornall... not 24th (confirmed by his biography and 1939 register). His parents married in Preston on 5 December 1914. Frederick died on 21 August 1921, before Frank's younger siblings, twins, were born.
Attended Revoe Primary School in Blackpool.
 

According to the 1939 register, professional footballer Frank V. is married to Doris, and they live at 104 Lloyd Street South in Manchester.

Marriage to Doris Potter [registered in Fylde, June 1935].
Death Thursday, 6 February 1958, died on his way to the Klinikum rechts der Isar in München following the airplane crash at Flughafen München Riem, Kirchtrudering, West Germany, aged 44 years 42 days [registered as Francis in the GRO Air Deaths, 1947-65].
One of 23 fatalities of the Munich Air Disaster.

Source

Douglas Lammings' An English Football Internationalist Who's Who [1990] &

Biographies Football in the Goalmouth - Frank Swift and Roy Peskett (1948).
Frank Swift: Manchester City and England Legend - Mark Metcalfe
(DB Publishing, March 2013)
 

x. - A Football Compendium, Peter J. Seddon (1999).

Club Career

Club(s) Swift announced his retirement from football on 19 April 1949.
Club honours x
Individual honours Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year third place 1947-48;
Distinctions x
Height/Weight 6' 2", 14st. 0lbs [1949].

Source

Douglas Lammings' An English Football Internationalist Who's Who [1990].

England Career

Player number One of nine who became the 655th player (655) to appear for England.
Position(s) Goalkeeper; 69th goalkeeper to appear
First match No. 227, 28 September 1946, Ireland 2 England 7, a British Championship match at Windsor Park, Donegall Avenue, Belfast, aged 32 years 276 days.
Last match No. 247, 18 May 1949, Norway 1 England 4, an end-of-season tour match at Ullevål Stadion, Ullevål, Oslo, aged 35 years 143 days.
Major tournaments British Championship 1946-47, 1947-48, 1948-49;
Team honours British Championship winners 1946-47, 1947-48;
Individual honours England B (two appearances, 1947-48);
Distinctions Died the same day as Roger Byrne, David Pegg and Tommy Taylor and three days after Joe Cottle.

Beyond England

At the time of his retirement from football, Swift was associated with a Manchester catering firm, first as a trainee, then as an assistant manager, from which he was drawing a four-figure salary per year.  - An English Football Internationalists' Who's Who. Douglas Lamming (1990). Hatton Press, p.x.

On 6th February 1958 the airliner carrying players and backroom staff of Manchester United, plus a number of journalists and supporters, crashed in a blizzard on its third attempt to take off from Munich airport. United were returning from Belgrade where they had just beaten Red Star Belgrade in the European Cup and had stopped off at Munich for re-fuelling. Twenty-three of the forty-four passengers on board the aircraft lost their lives. - Munich Remembered and Never Forgotten - Munich58.co.uk



The Numbers
parties Apps Comp
Apps
minutes GA GA Av.
min
Comp GA Clean
Sheets
Cln
Sht Av
Cln
Sht best
captain
18 19 9 1710 18 95 min 10 9 47% 341 min two
minutes are an approximation, due to the fact that many matches rarely stick to exactly ninety minutes long, allowing time for injuries and errors.
P W D L F A GD FTS CS FAv AAv Pts% W/L
19 14 3 2 65 18 +47 2 9 3.421 0.947 81.6 +12

Venue Record

Venue P W D L F A GD FTS CS FAv AAv Pts% W/L
Home 8 5 2 1 23 10 +13 0 3 2.875 1.25 75.0 +4
Away 11 9 1 1 42 8 +34 2 6 3.818 0.727 86.4 +8

Competition Record

Competition P W D L F A GD FTS CS FAv AAv Pts% W/L
British Championship 9 6 2 1 26 10 +16 0 4 2.889 1.111 77.8 +5
Friendly 10 8 1 1 39 8 +31 2 5 3.90 0.80 85.0 +7

Tournament Record

British Championship Competition
Type P W D L F A GD FTS CS FAv AAv Pts% W/L
BC 1946-47 3 2 1 0 11 3 +8 0 1 3.667 1.00 83.3 +2
BC 1947-48 3 2 1 0 7 2 +5 0 2 2.333 0.667 83.3 +2
BC 1948-49 3 2 0 1 8 5 +3 0 1 2.667 1.667 66.7 +1
BC All 9 6 2 1 26 10 +16 0 4 2.889 1.111 77.8 +5

All Competition
Type P W D L F A GD FTS CS FAv AAv Pts% W/L
BC 9 6 2 1 26 10 +16 0 4 2.889 1.111 77.8 +5
9 6 2 1 26 10 +16 0 4 2.889 1.111 77.8 +5

The England Match History of Frank Swift
 
 Club: Manchester City F.C. - 19 full appearances (1710 min) 18ᵍᵃ

manager: Walter Winterbottom - 19 full appearances (1710 min) 18ᵍᵃx


apps match pic match details comp res. rundown shirt

Age 32
1 227 28 September 1946 - Ireland 2 England 7
Windsor Park, Belfast
BC AW cs: 70 min 1
ᵍᵃbeaten & flashed

one of nine who became the 655th player (655) to appear for England.
the fifteenth player from Manchester City to represent England
the 69th goalkeeper to represent England

2 228 30 September 1946 - Éire 0 England 1
Dalymount Park, Dublin
Fr AW   1
3 229 13 November 1946 - England 3 Wales 0
Maine Road, Manchester
BC HW   1
4 230 27 November 1946 - England 8 Netherlands 2
Leeds Road, Huddersfield
Fr HW cs: 219 min 1
ᵍᵃheader & nk

Age 33
5 231 12 April 1947 - England 1 Scotland 1
Empire Stadium, Wembley
BC HD  inj 70th min., cracked ribs 1
ᵍᵃ12yd
6 232 3 May 1947 - England 3 France 0
Arsenal Stadium, Highbury
Fr HW   1
7 233 18 May 1947 - Switzerland 1 England 0
Hardturm Stadion, Zürich
tour AL   1
ᵍᵃacute
B  
one appearance - Switzerland 21 May 1947
8 234 25 May 1947 - Portugal 0 England 10
Estadio Nacional, Lisboa
  AW   1
9 235 21 September 1947 - Belgium 2 England 5
Stade du Heysel, Bruxelles
Fr AW   1
ᵍᵃdeflected & header
10 236 18 October 1947 - Wales 0 England 3
Ninian Park, Cardiff
BC AW   1
11 237 5 November 1947 - England 2 Ireland 2
Goodison Park, Liverpool
BC HD   1
ᵍᵃnk & header
12 238 19 November 1947 - England 4 Sweden 2
Arsenal Stadium, Highbury
Fr HW 1
ᵍᵃdrive &

the eighth penalty kick against England scored (eighteenth penalty kick taken overall)

Age 34
13 239 10 April 1948 - Scotland 0 England 2
Hampden Park, Glasgow
BC AW   1
14 240 16 May 1948 - Italy 0 England 4
Stadio Comunale di Torino, Torino
tour AW   1ᶜ

 
the 65th player to captain England.

 
B  
one appearance - Switzerlandᶜ 19 May 1948; unofficial - FC Schaffhausenᶜ 22 May 1948;

15 241 26 September 1948 - Denmark 0 England 0
Idrætsparken, København
Fr AD   1ᶜ
16 242 9 October 1948 - Ireland 2 England 6
Windsor Park, Belfast
BC AW cs: 341 min 1
ᵍᵃheader & walked-in
17 243 10 November 1948 - England 1 Wales 0
Villa Park, Birmingham
BC HW   1
  

Age 35
18 245 9 April 1949 - England 1 Scotland 3
Empire Stadium, Wembley
BC HL   1
ᵍᵃ7yds, open & head
246 13 May 1949 - Sweden 3 England 1, Råsunda Fotbollstadion, Solna
tour
AL party member
B  
unused sub - Finland A 15 May 1949
 
19 247 18 May 1949 - Norway 1 England 4
Ullevål Stadion, Oslo
  AW   1
  ᵍᵃrebound
B  
party member - Netherlands A 18 May 1949
248 22 May 1949 - France 1 England 3, Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir, Paris   AW withdrawn
party member
  




   



 
 
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