Frederick Belfield was a 19th century footballer. He played 51 games (including 31 Midland League

Midland Football League

There have been at least two different football competitions in England which used the name Midland Football League.One existed until 1982 before merging with the Yorkshire League to form the Northern Counties League....

 and 12 Football League

The Football League

The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...

) and scored 10 goals (including 31 Midland League and 3 Football League) for Burslem Port Vale

Port Vale F.C.

Port Vale Football Club is an English football club currently playing in Football League Two. They are based in Burslem, Staffordshire — one of six towns that make up the city of Stoke-on-Trent. The club's traditional rivals in the city are Stoke City, and games between the two clubs are known as...

.

Playing career

Belfield joined Burslem Port Vale

Port Vale F.C.

Port Vale Football Club is an English football club currently playing in Football League Two. They are based in Burslem, Staffordshire — one of six towns that make up the city of Stoke-on-Trent. The club's traditional rivals in the city are Stoke City, and games between the two clubs are known as...

 in September 1893, a year later he had made his debut in a 1–0 home win over Walsall Town Swifts

Walsall F.C.

Walsall Football Club are an English association football club based in Walsall, West Midlands. They currently play in League One. The club was founded in 1888 as Walsall Town Swifts, an amalgamation of Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. The club was one of the founder members of the Second...

. He was a first team regular from October 1896 but broke a leg on 27 November 1897, in a friendly

Exhibition game

An exhibition game is a sporting event in which there is no competitive value of any significant kind to any competitor regardless of the outcome of the competition...

 with rivals

Potteries derby

The Potteries derby is the football local derby in Stoke-on-Trent between Port Vale and Stoke City. The fans of each club both consider the other to be their main rivals; this has led to a heated atmosphere at these matches, especially with the rise of football hooliganism and the 'Naughty Forty'...

 Stoke

Stoke City F.C.

Stoke City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire that plays in the Premier League. Founded in 1863, it is the oldest club in the Premier League, and considered to be the second oldest professional football club in the world, after Notts...

. Once he recovered he barely played and was instead released at the end of the 1898–99 season

1898–99 Burslem Port Vale F.C. season

The 1898–99 season was Burslem Port Vale's fifth season of football in the Football League; it followed a two season absence, which the club spent in the Midland Football League. A solid return to the Football League, they finished in mid-table. They had the strongest defence in the division as...

.