Players - Fred Hopkin

Fred Hopkin
Birthdate: 23 September 1895
Birthplace: Dewsbury, England
Date of death: 5 March 1970
Other clubs: Darlington (1912-19); Tottenham Hotspur (wartime guest); Manchester United (1919-21), Darlington (2 / 1931-32)
Signed from: Manchester United
Signed for LFC: £2,800, May 1921
Liverpool debut: 27.08.1921
Last appearance: 15.04.1931
Debut goal: 03.03.1923
Last goal: 06.12.1930
Contract expiry: August 1931
Win ratio: 43.89% W:158 D:91 L:111
Honours: League Championship 1921/22, 1922/23
Total games/goals opposite LFC: 6 / 0
League games / goals: 335 / 10
Total games / goals: 360 / 12

Player Profile

Hopkin was signed by Liverpool from Manchester United in 1921. He had made 74 appearances and scored eight goals in two post-war seasons at United, where his career began in earnest. United were given a fine of £350 at the time for paying Hopkin more than the maximum wage and for promising to give him a cut of his transfer fee which was illegal. Left-winger Hopkin was an 'ever-present' during Liverpool's 1921/22 championship season. Another title followed a year later when Hopkin missed just two matches and scored his first goal for the club against Bolton Wanderers early in March 1923. The goal was followed by a fire in the Anfield Road stand. The joke was that Hopkin was to blame as people were so shocked he had actually scored in his seventy-eighth appearance for the club. The smoke clouded the field of play, but the fire brigade put the fire out and the game could go on and finished with a 3-0 win for Liverpool.

Hopkin was not renowned as a goalscorer, just 12 in ten seasons, but was certainly a provider from his position on the wing for the likes of Harry Chambers and Dick Forshaw during the two championship years and also later in the decade for Gordon Hodgson. Hopkin was an excellent sportsman who used his speed to go past defenders and to win several hurdling competitions. He was so described in the Derby Daily Telegraph in 1926: "Hopkin has turned out to be one of the best investments Liverpool have ever made. His head is now losing its hair, and he may not be as fast as he was, but he can still pull out a rare turn of speed, while as a dribbler he can be elusive. Clings to the touch-line, drops perfect centres, and rarely scores a goal."
Appearances per season
Season League FA LC Europe Other Total
Totals 335 24 0 0 1 360
1921-1922 42 3 0 0 1 46
1922-1923 40 4 0 0 0 44
1923-1924 33 5 0 0 0 38
1924-1925 26 4 0 0 0 30
1925-1926 33 0 0 0 0 33
1926-1927 36 4 0 0 0 40
1927-1928 36 2 0 0 0 38
1928-1929 22 0 0 0 0 22
1929-1930 31 1 0 0 0 32
1930-1931 36 1 0 0 0 37
A more detailed look at the player's appearances
Apps Minutes Opponent
19 1710 Sunderland
18 1620 Sheffield United
18 1620 Huddersfield Town
18 1620 Birmingham City
16 1440 Arsenal
16 1440 Newcastle United
16 1440 Aston Villa
16 1440 Cardiff City
15 1350 Manchester City
15 1350 Blackburn Rovers
15 1350 Everton
15 1350 Bolton Wanderers
14 1260 Burnley
13 1170 Manchester United
12 1080 Middlesbrough
12 1080 WBA
10 900 Tottenham
10 900 West Ham United
9 810 Derby
9 810 Leeds United
7 630 Bury
7 630 Preston North End
7 630 Chelsea
7 630 Sheffield Wednesday
6 540 Portsmouth
6 540 Nottingham Forest
6 540 Leicester City
6 540 Notts County
4 360 Oldham Athletic
3 270 Southampton
3 270 Bradford City
2 180 Grimsby Town
2 180 Blackpool
2 180 Stoke City
2 180 Bournemouth
1 90 Wolves
1 90 Bristol City
1 90 Southport
1 90 Darlington
Total Venue
186 Home
173 Away
1 Neutral
Total Competition
335 League
24 FA Cup
1 Charity Shield
Total W D L Win % Manager
181 75 47 59 41.4% Matt McQueen
102 38 25 39 37.3% George Patterson (2nd term)
63 35 15 13 55.6% David Ashworth
14 10 4 0 71.4% Caretaker Manager
Goals per season
Season League FA LC Europe Other Total
Totals 10 2 0 0 0 12
1921-1922 0 0 0 0 0 0
1922-1923 1 0 0 0 0 1
1923-1924 0 0 0 0 0 0
1924-1925 1 1 0 0 0 2
1925-1926 1 0 0 0 0 1
1926-1927 0 1 0 0 0 1
1927-1928 3 0 0 0 0 3
1928-1929 0 0 0 0 0 0
1929-1930 3 0 0 0 0 3
1930-1931 1 0 0 0 0 1
A more detailed look at the player's goalscoring
Total Competition
10 League
2 FA Cup
Total Goal origin
12 Open play
Milestone Appearances
# Date Against Stadium Competition
1 27.08.1921 Sunderland Roker Park League
50 16.09.1922 Preston North End Anfield League
100 13.10.1923 Everton Anfield League
150 17.01.1925 Manchester City Maine Road League
200 09.10.1926 Newcastle United St James' Park League
250 07.01.1928 Aston Villa Villa Park League
300 26.10.1929 Manchester City Anfield League
350 21.02.1931 Leeds United Elland Road League
Milestone Goals
# Minute Date Against Stadium Competition
1 49 03.03.1923 Bolton Wanderers Anfield League
Scrapbook
Liverpool Echo spotlight on Hopkin
Liverpool Echo spotlight on Hopkin
Sketch from Liverpool Echo - 7 February 1925
Sketch from Liverpool Echo - 7 February 1925
Other Clubs
Club Season Club rank League apps League goals Total apps Total goals
Darlington 1912-1919 North Eastern League N/A N/A N/A N/A
Manchester United 1919-1920 England First Division 39 5 41 5
Manchester United 1920-1921 England First Division 31 3 33 3
Darlington 1931-1932 England Third Division North 26 2 29 2
Total 96 10 103 10