James Saunders: Man United goalkeeper Profile & Stats
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Portrait of James Saunders

James Saunders

Position: goalkeeper

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PWDLFA

HAN P W D L F A Diff Win%
H 8 6 1 1 12 5 +7 75.00
A 5 0 1 4 3 11 -8 0.00
TOTALS 13 6 2 5 15 16 -1 46.15

Name: James Edward Saunders
Birthdate: 00-00-0000
Age: 0
Birthplace: Birmingham, England
Height: 5' 9" (1.75m)
Weight: 11st 6lbs (72.57kg)
Years at Club: 1901-1905
Signing Info: Transferred from: Middlesbrough, 08/1901, £
Previous Clubs: Glossop, Middlesbrough
Debut: 26/12/1901 v Lincoln City (A) 0-2 (League Division Two)
Farewell: Transferred to Nelson, 07/1905, £
Passed Away: PA

Biography

While keeping goal for Manchester St. Augustine's, James Saunders attracted the advances of Glossop North End who signed him in March 1900. With Herbert Birchenough ahead of him in the pecking order, the 5'9" teenager had to settle for a permanent run in the reserve team, with two exceptions: a friendly versus Lincoln City on April 5th, 1900, followed by his Football League debut two days later at Sheffield United. Despite losing 0-4, James was the star of the match!
In February 1901, Middlesbrough sought his services on a temporary basis, a deal which earned both them and Glossop a stern warning from the authorities, whose rules had been contravened. In the event, Saunders did not even make any appearances for Middlesbrough.
Instead, he was snapped up by Newton Heath in the 1901 close season and he spent the whole 1901-02 campaign competing with Jimmy Whitehouse for a place in the lineup. Despite only appearing in 11 league matches, Saunders had the honour of keeping goal in Heath's last ever league match in April 1902 before the name change to Manchester United, and he also earned a Manchester Senior Cup medal as Manchester City were defeated 2-1.
Unfortunately for Saunders, although he stayed at Bank Street for another three years, he only got to play one more time for the first team, as once again he found himself the understudy for Birchenough. Instead, he became a mainstay of the second eleven, where he still faced competition for places. So much so that, for a couple of matches in September 1903, United's reserves fielded three keepers simultaneously: Moger in goal, Valentine at full-back, and Saunders on the left wing!
James finally moved in 1905, spending a season with Nelson, before reaching the peak of his career at Lincoln City. He was their main custodian for three seasons, winning a Lincolnshire Cup medal in 1908 and a Midland League medal in 1909. Chelsea now brought him into Division One for the first time, but he only played twice during 1909-10: on Christmas Day and two days later.
Saunders stayed in London, joining Southern League side Watford, only to lose his place after just four matches in September 1910. It was not until November 1911 that he saw some action again, and that was when he transferred to Lincoln Liberal Club where he eventually ended his career. However, James enjoyed one more moment in the spotlight. In January 1918, while on a short leave from serving in Loos, France, he guested for Lincoln City in a war game against Rotherham County. Despite looking "as fit as ever", he could not prevent a 0-2 defeat. Biography kindly provided by Charbel Boujaoude.
 
League League Cup FA Cup Charity Shield European Cup Europa League Super Cup Cup Winners Cup Inter-cont Cup World Clubs Cup    
Season Goals Season Apps
No Season League Goals League Apps LC Goals LC Apps FAC Goals FAC Apps CS Goals CS Apps EC Goals EC Apps Europa Goals Europa Apps SC Goals SC Apps CWC Goals CWC Apps IC Goals IC Apps CWC Goals CWC Apps Season
Goals		 Season
Apps
1. 1901-1902 0 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 11
2. 1902-1903 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
TOTALS 0 12 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 13

Detailed Match & Performance Charts

MUFC Player Goals MUFC Player Appearances MUFC Player Opponent Manager MUFC Player Club Manager
No Opponent Goals Appearances
Player has never scored for club.
No Opponent Appearances Goals
1. Lincoln City 2 0
2. Barnsley 2 0
3. Preston North End 1 0
4. Gainsborough Trinity 1 0
5. Stockport County 1 0
6. Burnley 1 0
7. Glossop 1 0
8. Doncaster Rovers 1 0
9. Leicester City 1 0
10. Chesterfield 1 0
11. Oswaldtwistle Rovers 1 0
No Opponent Manager No
1. Calderhead (Snr), David 2
2. McCartney, John 2
3. Preston North End Committee 1
4. Gainsborough Trinity Committee 1
5. Stewart, Fred 1
6. Mangnall, Ernest 1
7. Glossop Committee 1
8. Doncaster Rovers Committee 1
9. Johnson, George 1
10. Hind, E.F. 1
11. ? 1
No MUFC Managers Count
1. West, James 13
Stadiums Competition Opponents Opponent Nationality
No Stadium Count
1. Bank Street 8
2. Green Lane 1
3. Oakwell 1
4. Sincil Bank 1
5. The Northolme 1
6. Town Moor Avenue 1
No Competition Count
1. League Division Two 12
2. FA Cup 1
No Opponent Count
1. Lincoln City 2
2. Barnsley 2
3. Preston North End 1
4. Gainsborough Trinity 1
5. Stockport County 1
6. Burnley 1
7. Glossop 1
8. Doncaster Rovers 1
9. Leicester City 1
10. Chesterfield 1
11. Oswaldtwistle Rovers 1
No Opponent Nationality Count
1. England 13
Roy Keane own goal v Real Madrid Old Trafford 2000 Cup Finals
No Date Opponent Competition Own Goals
Player has never scored an own goal against the club.
No Date Opponent WDL F-A Competition
Player never featured in a Cup Final.
Penalties scored for Manchester United Manchester United Hat-Tricks
No Date Opponents Competition Penaltys
Player has never scored a penalty for the club.
No Date Opponent Competition Goals
Player has never scored a hat-trick or better during a game.
 
Red Cards  
No Date Opponent Competition
Player has never been sent off during a match.
 

All Matches played
No Date Comp Opponent WDL F-A HAN Goal!! Scorers Opponent scorers
1. 26-12-1901 Div 2 Lincoln City L 0-2 A 0 Thomas McInnes 60', 89'
2. 01-01-1902 Div 2 Preston North End L 0-2 H 0 Robert Jack ??', Ernest Pegg ??'
3. 04-01-1902 Div 2 Gainsborough Trinity D 1-1 A 0 Hubert Lappin 20' William Jenkinson 39'
4. 01-02-1902 Div 2 Stockport County L 0-1 A 0 Andrew Swann 5'
5. 11-02-1902 Div 2 Burnley W 2-0 H 0 Hubert Lappin ??', Stephen Preston ??'
6. 15-02-1902 Div 2 Glossop W 1-0 H 0 Fred Erentz 87' (pen)
7. 22-02-1902 Div 2 Doncaster Rovers L 0-4 A 0 John Murphy ??', ??', ??', Billy Langham ??'
8. 01-03-1902 Div 2 Lincoln City D 0-0 H 0
9. 22-03-1902 Div 2 Barnsley L 2-3 A 0 Walter Cartwright ??', James Higson ??' Benny Green ??', James Carroll ??', Herbert Dartnell ??'
10. 29-03-1902 Div 2 Leicester City W 2-0 H 0 William Griffiths ??', Vince Hayes ??'
11. 23-04-1902 Div 2 Chesterfield W 2-0 H 0 James Coupar ??', Stephen Preston ??'
12. 13-11-1902 FAC Oswaldtwistle Rovers W 3-2 H 0 Ernest Pegg 15', Arthur Beadsworth 85', Frederick Williams 86' (pen) Pope 30', 53'
13. 27-12-1902 Div 2 Barnsley W 2-1 H 0 Jack Peddie 55', Hubert Lappin 84' Don Lees 30'
 

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