Frank Mijnals (born 8 February 1933) is a Surinamese former football player who has played for S.V. Robinhood in the

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...

Hoofdklasse The Vierde Divisie, formerly known as Hoofdklasse () is the second-highest league of amateur football in the Netherlands, and the fifth tier in general. Background The league is divided into two sections: Saturday and Sunday. This is a result of ...

, and for USV Elinkwijk in the Dutch

Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is c ...

. He also played for the Suriname national team. He is the son of former Surinamese international football player Louis Mijnals, and the younger brother of

Humphrey Mijnals Humphrey August Mijnals (21 December 1930 – 27 July 2019) was a footballer who played international football for both the Netherlands and Suriname. Career Mijnals began his career with the Surinamese football club S.V. Robinhood in the 1950s, ...

, an international footballer as well with whom he played for the majority of his career.

Career

Early career

Mijnals started his playing career on the

Mr. Bronsplein Established in 1948, Mr. Bronsplein is a large sports complex located on the Gemenelandsweg, in Paramaribo, Suriname. History Before World War II the field was already used for association football matches, and was known in the Sranan Tongo, Srana ...

Paramaribo Paramaribo (; ; nicknamed Par'bo) is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's ...

, Suriname, together with his brother. The two would be coached by their father, then Hoofdklasse player, and Surinamese International Louis Mijnals. Mijnals played in the youth ranks of Remo on the Bronsplein before getting picked up by S.V. Robinhood.

SV Robinhood

In 1951, Mijnals joined Robinhood where his older brother had already been playing. As an attacker he was known for his speed and goal scoring ability. While his brother departed for a professional career in Brazil, Mijnals remained in Suriname, helping Robinhood to four national titles during his tenure with the club. In 1957, Mijnals moved to the Netherlands in pursuit of a professional career, joining USV Elinkwijk of

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city and a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, pro ...

where he would play with his brother once more.

USV Elinkwijk

In 1957, Mijnals joined USV Elinkwijk from Utrecht competing the Dutch

, the top flight of football in the Netherlands. He joined his brother and former Robinhood teammates Michel Kruin, Erwin Sparendam and Charley Marbach once more. Together they made up what was known as the "five-leaf clover", a group of Surinamese players who had been signed by the club. He amassed 66 caps for Elinkwijk scoring 7 regular season goals in three seasons with the club. He was then transferred to SV Zeist, remaining in Utrecht.

Final years

In 1960, Mijnals was transferred to SV Zeist, relegating to

second division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

. He would go on to play for VV Zwartemeer and FC Hilversum before retiring as a player.

International career

Mijnals played for the Suriname national team. He made two appearances in 1954, in a set of friendly matches against the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

at the André Kamperveen Stadion in Paramaribo. The first match ended in a 4–3 loss, with his brother scoring the third goal of the match. The second encounter ended in a 2–0 loss.

Personal life

Mijnals is the second son of former

Suriname International The Suriname International Badminton Tournament is a Pan American Circuit badminton event first held inaugural in 1998 at the Anthony Nesty Indoor Stadium in Paramaribo, Suriname. The Suriname International Badminton Tournament is now held annual ...

Louis Mijnals. His older brother

played for both the Netherlands, and the Suriname national teams, and was the first player of Surinamese descent to play for the Dutch national team. He and his brother played together for almost the entirety of their playing careers. His younger brother Stanley Mijnals was also a professional football player in Suriname.

Honours

Club

;S.V. Robinhood *

SVB Hoofdklasse The SVB Eerste Divisie is the highest football championship for clubs run by the Surinaamse Voetbal Bond. The Topklasse is at the top of the system of Surinamese football championships. The league currently comprises twelve teams and operates a ...

(4): 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mijnals, Frank Living people 1933 births Surinamese men's footballers Suriname men's international footballers S.V. Robinhood players USV Elinkwijk players SVB Eerste Divisie players Eredivisie players Tweede Divisie players Surinamese expatriate men's footballers Surinamese expatriate sportspeople in the Netherlands Surinamese emigrants to the Netherlands Men's association football forwards FC Hilversum players