Freedman: Douglas Alan (Dougie)

2008-2008 (Leeds Player Details)(Player Details)

Striker

Born: Glasgow: 21-01-1974

Debut v Bournemouth (h) (Substitute): 08-03-2008

5’9” 11st (2007)

Freedman began his career with Queens Park Rangers in 1992, but never made their first team. Instead, he moved to Barnet on a free transfer on 26th July 1994. He made his league debut in August 1994 and quickly became the club's leading player as he struck twenty-four goals in his debut season. He carried on in similar vein and Crystal Palace paid £800,000 to secure his services on 8th September 1995. He scored twenty-seven times in forty-seven League appearances and a further five in ten other appearances for Barnet. Freedman showed he could continue his goalscoring at the higher level when he netted twenty times in the 1999-96 season, including the fastest hat-trick in Crystal Palace history, eleven minutes, against Grimsby Town on 5th Match 1996. In the following season he was not so prolific but eleven goals was enough to help the club to the promotion play-offs. He then scored crucial goals in the eighty-ninth and ninetieth minutes of their semi final tie with Wolverhampton Wanderers after coming off the bench with seventeen minutes remaing in the tie. Palace went on to win promotion in the Wembley Final, beating Sheffield United 1-0. Freedman only managed seven appearances in the EPL and, on 21st October 1997, went on loan to Wolverhampton Wanderers, the club he had helped to eliminate from the promotion play-offs. In his first spell at Selhurst Park Freedman scored thirty-four goals in one hundred and four games of which twenty-three were as substitute in all games. Wolves then paid £800,000 and defender Jamie Smith to take him to Molineux. He was the team's top goalscorer with thirteen in total in a campaign that failed to mount a serious promotion challenge. The emergance of Robbie Keane during the season helped convince Wolves to cash in on Freedman, and he was sold to Nottingham Forest for £950,000 in August 1998. He scored thirteen goals in thirty-six games, five as aubstitute, in all games for Wolves. Forest were in a slump and though Freedman played regularly he managed just nine goals as Forest were relegated. He remained with the club for a further full season as they were content with the mediocracy of mid-table in the CCCL. He had scored twenty-three goals in total for the club, in eighty-five appearances, of which twenty-two were as a substitute, before rejoining Crystal Palace in October 2000, for £600,000. He rejoined the club during a relegation threatened campaign, but one which ended with perhaps his most famous goal for the club. Relegation to the third tier loomed in their final game of the season at Stockport County, with three minutes left and no score. Dramatically, Freedman then scored the vital goal that kept Palace in the Division, and sent down Huddersfield Town instead. The following campaign saw him score twenty-one goals in all competitions, his best seasonal tally for the club. This also earned him a call-up to the Scotland team, to add to his earlier eight Under-twenty-one caps and Schoolboy and Scotland “B” honours. However, the next season was less of a personal success as he was dropped from the Scotland side, and began to find his appearances limited at Palace, as Ade Akinbiyi, Dele Adebola and Andy Johnson preceded him in the Palace pecking order. He was back in favour in 2003-04 as a strong late season surge saw Palace change from relegation contenders to a promotion play-off team. Freedman scored during the penalty shoot-out victory at Sunderland in the Semi-Finals to help the club to the final. He was an unused substitute in the final though, which saw the club beat West Ham United, to gain promotion for the club. 2004-05 again saw Freedman on the outer, and there was interest from Leeds United to assist with their promotion push as a loan player, Palace were relegated from the EPL. In the CCCL campaign Freedman again was down the ladder for the striking positions, but injuries to Andy Johnson and Jon Macken and the loss of form of Clinton Morrison saw him back in the first team to reach his one hundred goal mark with the club. However after playing well enough to be considered for Scotland once again, he saw more games on the bench than in the starting eleven in the following seasons. After much deliberation he decided to join Leeds United on loan for the rest of the season. It is expected that Freedman will be rewarded with a testimonial for ten years' service to Palace over two spells in the summer of 2008. His coaching career began when he was appointed reserve team manager of Palace in November 2007. He was in this role alongside his playing duties for the club's first team. Many see this appointment as the first steps towards a managerial/coaching career when Freedman eventually retires from playing. He is married to Ray Clemence’s daughter, which makes him Stephen Clemence’s brother-in-law. He had scored seventy-four goals in two hundred and sixty-five appearances, of which one hundred and four were as substitute in all games in his second spell with Palace. A total of one hundred and eight goals in three hundred and sixty-nine games for the club. He joined Southend United on 2nd September 2008. Freedman scored his first goal for Southend United on 6th September 2008 against Carlisle United. Freedman then scored two against Crewe Alexandra and then in Southend United's 3–0 win over Leyton Orient he made it four goals in his first four games. In the game against Leyton Orient on 26th September2008, Freedman was substituted in the seventy-fourth minute with a thigh injury and it kept him out for three months. Freedman made his long awaited return to the first team against Huddersfield Town on 13 December 2008, as a substitute. Freedman suffered another injury, this time with his shoulder, on 18 December 2008, but was back in the starting line up for the Boxing Day match against Northampton Town. On 20 January 2009 against Leyton Orient, he suffered a recurrence of the thigh injury that had kept him out for three months. Freedman played through the pain with his thigh heavily strapped, and scored his first goal in five months against Bristol Rovers on 31 January 2009. By the end of the 2009-10 season he had scored six League goals in twenty-one starts and fifteen games from the bench, together with one start and two substitute appearances in the F.A. Cup without scoring. He also made one substitute appearance in each of the League Cup and The Johnstone's Paint Trophy. He was appointed Assistant Manager at Crystal Palace in March 2010 and retired from playing. Together with former Leeds players, Manager Paul Hart and first team coach John Pemberton, he helped pilot palace to relegation survival. George Burley was appointed Manager on 17th June 2010 and Freedman was retained as Assistant Manager. Burley was sacked on 1st January 2011 and Freedman was appointed Caretaker Manager in the interim. On 11th January 2011 the club decided to give him a thirty month contract as the new Manager of the club. He brought in Lennie Lawrence as his Assistant Manager and Tony Popovic as first team coach. They avoided relegation at the end of the 2010-11 season and in 2011-12 they started the new season in good form maintaining a play off place in a very open League. They qualified for the League Cup Semi-Finals by defeating Manchester United at Old Trafford.