Frank Ronald Parsons (born 29 October 1947) is an English-born, former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who represented Wales at under-23 level. He played as a goalkeeper in the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

for Crystal Palace,

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

and Reading, in addition to a brief spell at

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...

where he did not make an appearance. He also played

non-league football Non-League football describes football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is specifically used to de ...

for

Staines Town Staines Town Football Club was a semi-professional football club based in Staines-upon-Thames, Middlesex. History Early days Staines Town FC was founded in 1892 and was known under various names including ''Staines F.C.'',''Staines Albany F ...

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in northwest Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'' and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement o ...

, and Slough Town.

Playing career

Parsons was born in

Amersham Amersham ( ) is a market town and civil parish within the unitary authority of Buckinghamshire, England, in the Chiltern Hills, northwest of central London, from Aylesbury and from High Wycombe. Amersham is part of the London commuter belt. ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

and began his youth career at Crystal Palace, signing professional terms in July 1965. However, his appearances were limited as

John Jackson John or Johnny Jackson may refer to: Entertainment Art * John Baptist Jackson (1701–1780), British artist * John Jackson (painter) (1778–1831), British painter * John Jackson (engraver) (1801–1848), English wood engraver * John Richardson ...

was the regular first team 'keeper. His four

League League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football Sports * Sports league * Rugby league, full contact footba ...

appearances came at the end of the 1966–7 season, making his debut in a home 2–1 win over Birmingham City on 22 April. In August 1970, Parsons moved on to

, where he made 17 appearances over the next four years, before brief spells at

and Reading. Parsons then moved into

with

in 1975. In 1977, he moved to

and subsequently joined Slough Town in 1980 for a fee of £3,000. He remained as a player with Slough Town until November 1983 and in October that year scored the winning goal in a 3–2 win over Hampton F.C in the FA Cup third qualifying round. Although English-born, Parsons represented Wales at under-23 level and also played for an

Isthmian League The Isthmian League () is a regional men's football league covering Greater London, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs. Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, the league now consists of 82 tea ...

representative XI.

Personal life

Parsons is married with two children and after retirement lived in the

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

area where he ran a

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References

External links

*
Profile at sloughtownfc.netFrank Parsons at holmesdale.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parsons, Frank 1947 births Living people English men's footballers Men's association football goalkeepers People from Amersham Crystal Palace F.C. players Cardiff City F.C. players Reading F.C. players Fulham F.C. players Staines Town F.C. players Woking F.C. players Slough Town F.C. players Wales men's under-23 international footballers English Football League players Footballers from Buckinghamshire