An experienced goalkeeper, Frank Drabble made his début for Tottenham as an amateur in an abandoned match at Preston on 23 October 1909. His only League match for Spurs came the following week against Notts County. His best season was 1913–14 with Bradford Park Avenue, where he made 23 appearances.During World War I, Drabble guested for Fulham and Brentford and played regularly for Southport Central in 1915–16 when they joined the Lancashire Section of the Football League. He became Southport’s first-ever Football League goalkeeper but was surprisingly replaced by Salty Halsall after two Northern Section games and played just three more matches. He later reappeared briefly with QPR in 1923–24.A capable cricketer with Southport & Birkdale Cricket Club, Drabble worked as an estate agent and briefly as a bookmaker. He continued some estate agency work after retiring, living by the Thames in Staines. He died of a heart attack shortly after his 76th birthday.

Profile reproduced with Permission from:
The Sandgrounders: The Complete League History of Southport F. C., by Michael Braham and Geoff Wilde (Palatine Books, 1995). ISBN 978-1-874181-14-9