Francis Haffey (born 28 November 1938) is a Scottish former footballer who played as a goalkeeper for Celtic and the Scotland national team.
Career
Remembered as one of Celtic's great and more eccentric keepers, Haffey made 201 appearances for the club in major competitions.[3] He had 61 clean-sheets and was first-choice goalkeeper for five seasons but did not win any trophies apart from one minor Glasgow Cup in 1961–62, finishing on the losing side in the Scottish Cup finals of 1961 and 1963, both of which went to a replay.
After breaking an ankle in the Glasgow Cup against Partick Thistle in November 1963, effectively ending his Celtic career, he left the following October to play for Swindon Town. Soon thereafter, Haffey moved to Australia, where after a five-year spell as a footballer there he found his way into the entertainment business as a cabaret singer, and later operated a goalkeeping centre on the Gold Coast, Queensland.[4]
International
On his full international debut Haffey saved a Bobby Charlton penalty in a 1–1 home draw versus England in 1960.[4] In 1961, his second and final cap was also versus England. At Wembley, an inexperienced Scotland side featuring 4 debutants and averaging less than 6 full caps per player pre-kick off kept a high-scoring English attack[5][6] at bay through large periods, and the game was poised at 5–3 with 12 minutes to go. However, two goals from Johnny Haynes, another from Bobby Smith and a third for Jimmy Greaves in the closing stages cemented Haffey's place in history. Scotland lost 9–3. Neither Haffey nor Motherwell's Bert McCann played for Scotland again.[7]
References
- ^ "Frank Haffey". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
- ^ Ronnie McDevitt (2016). Scotland in the 60s: The Definitive Account of the Scottish National Football Side During the 1960s. Pitch Publishing. ISBN 9781785312458.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Celtic player Haffey, Frank, FitbaStats
- ^ a b Haffey's upside-down world, The Sunday Times, 12 January 2003
- ^ "1961 England 9 Scotland 3 | Football | The Guardian". TheGuardian.com.
- ^ "Hapless Haffey finds absolution 40 years on | Football | The Guardian". TheGuardian.com.
- ^ "19610415 Sat 15 Apr 1961 England 9 Scotland 3".
External links
- Frank Haffey at the Scottish Football Association
- Frank Haffey at Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Transfer Database
- Short Article on a Photograph of Haffey
- Interview with Haffey from The Scotsman
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