The Draper family has a rich footballing history in Royal Leamington Spa and a positive looking future!
Bill Draper was the first on the scene, a clinical striker who played for Lockheed. He turned out 117 times for the Brakes between 1948 and 1955 and scoring 87 goals, including 45 goals in 42 appearances during the 1954/55 season.
He turned down a full time move to Aston Villa for £13 per week as he was earning more at Lockheed in the experimental shop. After leaving in 1955 he played for Northampton Town, scoring against Coventry City at Highfield Road, Kettering Town - where he ended top scorer in each of his three seasons at Rockingham Road - and Rugby Town, where he lost the 1962 Birmingham Senior Cup Final to Lockheed at Highfield Road.
As with many families who worked at Lockheed, he lived close to the Windmill Ground and that was where his son Dave Draper grew up. Dave initially came through the successful AP Leamington youth side in the 1980s and was given his debut in 1984, scoring in a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Gravesend and Northfleet.
It was unfortunate that Dave emerged at a time when the club was on its downward spiral, and the turnover of players was high. After leaving the club and turning out for Southam United he was signed up by former Brakes boss Jimmy Knox at VS Rugby before returning to Leamington in 1987 for the last two months of the Southern League Midlands Division campaign.
After a stint managing Racing Club Warwick in the Southern League, with Jason Cadden as his assistant, in 1999 Dave was appointed Director of Football at Leamington as the club prepared for a return to playing, and he played a large part in helping to assemble the management and playing staff that would set Brakes back on the road to where they are today. He also fought our corner regularly on local radio, presenting the Non League show on BBC Coventry & Warwickshire with Nuneaton Borough die hard Dave Sharpe.
Dave laced up his boots once more, becoming one of two players to play for pre-1988 and post-2000 Brakes, and made a comeback for Brakes towards the end of our first season back in the Midland Combination Premier Divsion, scoring on his second debut for the club in a 5-1 win over our future Chairman Jim Scott's West Midlands Police side, the 02/03 season bringing his tally to 27 appearances with six goals scored, however his help in bringing back the football club earns legendary status alone.
Fast forward to 2023, and Dave's son Freddie Draper is set to play his first senior game on Harbury Lane on Tuesday 11 July. However, there is one slight difference to both his Dad and Grandad's games at Leamington grounds - he will be featuring for the away side.
After finishing studies at Princethorpe College, Freddie was a first year scholar at Derby County. He joined Lincoln City from the Rams, and he signed his first professional contract at the LNER Stadium on his seventeenth birthday. His Imps debut was October 2021 as he came off the bench against Sheffield Wednesday.
He spent the majority of the second half of the 2021/22 season on loan at Gainsborough Trinity in the Northern Premier League, becoming accostomed to mens football.
Ireland was the next destination for Draper as he joined League of Ireland Premier Division side Drogheda United on loan. After scoring 8 goals for the Drogs, including the first in a shock win over last season's title winners Shamrock Rovers to drag his side away from Cork City in the relegation play-off place, he broke the curse on Drogheda players and became the first player in Claret and Blue for nine years to win the League of Ireland Player of the Month award for his contributions in May 2023.
He returned to Lincoln City at the end of June and signed a new long term contract with the Imps before joining League Two Walsall on a season-long loan, with the Saddlers kicking off their pre-season at Your Co-op Community Stadium.
Everyone at Leamington Football Club wishes Freddie the best for his time at Walsall and are looking forward to welcoming his family and friends on Tuesday night.
