Mannes Francken (20 May 1888 – 19 November 1948) was a Dutch football player, who played for HFC and the Netherlands national team.

Biography

Francken started out as a goalkeeper, but quickly became a forward. He made his international debut for the Netherlands on 29 April 1906 in a 5–0 away defeat to Belgium. He would go on to play 22 caps, scoring 17 goals, including a then national record of three hat-tricks, all of which against Belgium. Remarkably, 12 of his international goals, including his three hat-tricks, came in friendly cup duels between Dutch and Belgians, a tally that makes him the all-time top scorer in the competition's history, however, if we include the four unofficial trophies between 1901 and 1904 then he shares this position with Herbert Potts of Belgium. The final of these goals, against Belgium on 9 March 1913, made him the all-time top scorer for the Netherlands, a record he held for more than 20 years, until when on 3 November 1935, Beb Bakhuys of HBS Craeyenhout scored his 18th goal for the Netherlands national team. Nearly a century after his last match Francken, he is ranked 11th in the list of all-time top scorers. Francken played his final match for the Netherlands in 1914. He moved to the Dutch East Indies in 1916. Francken died in 1948. His brothers Harry, Jacques and Peddy Francken also played for HFC.

Career statistics

Records