Jimmy Cookson

James Cookson (6 December 1904 – December 1970), better known as Jimmy Cookson, was an English footballer who played as a centre forward in the Football League for Manchester City, Chesterfield, West Bromwich Albion, Plymouth Argyle and Swindon Town.

Jimmy Cookson
Personal information
Full name James Cookson[1]
Date of birth (1904-12-06)6 December 1904
Place of birth Manchester, England
Date of death December 1970 (aged 65 or 66)
Place of death Warminster, England
Playing position(s) Centre forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1923–1925 Manchester City 0 (0)
1925–1927 Chesterfield 74 (85)
1927–1933 West Bromwich Albion 122 (103)
1933–1936 Plymouth Argyle 46 (37)
1936–1938 Swindon Town 50 (31)
Total 292 (256)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Life and career

Cookson was born in Manchester.[1] He began his career as a wing half with South Salford Lad's Club and then played for Clayton and Manchester North End.[2] He turned professional with Manchester City in August 1923,[3] but was unable to break into the first team and was sent to Southport on loan for a trial period in 1924.[2] He was transferred to Chesterfield in April 1925,[3] and converted to a centre forward.[2][4] He was the leading goalscorer in the Third Division North for the 1925–26 season with 44 goals,[5] and scored 85 overall in 74 league appearances.[1] In August 1927, he joined West Bromwich Albion for a £2,500 fee.[3] He continued to score goals at his new club and was a member of the 1930–31 squad that won the FA Cup and promotion to the First Division.[4] Later in 1931, Cookson was selected for the Football Association tour of Canada.[2][4]

He scored 103 league goals in 122 matches for Albion,[1] including six in a Second Division game against Blackpool in 1927.[4] Cookson was also the leading goalscorer in the Second Division for the 1927–28 season with 38 goals.[5] Cookson maintained his high goalscoring ratio after joining Second Division club Plymouth Argyle in 1933.[2] He scored 28 goals in his first season with Argyle, including 27 in 29 league appearances, but injuries restricted his playing time over the next two campaigns.[2][4] Cookson managed a further 10 goals in 17 matches to bring his overall tally to 38 goals in 48 games.[2][4] He moved to Swindon Town in 1936, where he played on for two more seasons, and scored 31 goals in 50 league appearances.[1] Cookson retired from the game in May 1938 to become a publican.[3]

Cookson's Football League record of 256 goals scored in 292 appearances is one of the best in the League's history. His great quality was a willingness to shoot, and shoot early, whenever a chance presented itself.[4] Cookson died in Warminster in December 1970.

gollark: You want to retroactively do it? I mean, I guess so.
gollark: We should initiate society advancement laser strikes from orbit.
gollark: You sound wrong.
gollark: According to some researchers, humans are not perfectly rational agents.
gollark: And htop is congratulating me!

References
  1. Joyce, Michael (2004). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: SoccerData. p. 60. ISBN 1-899468-67-6.
  2. "Jimmy Cookson". GoS–DB. Greens on Screen. Retrieved 23 February 2012.
  3. Matthews, Tony (2005). The Who's Who of West Bromwich Albion. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 54. ISBN 1-85983-474-4.
  4. Knight, Brian (1989). Plymouth Argyle: A Complete Record 1903–1989. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 126. ISBN 0-907969-40-2.
  5. Ross, James M. (15 July 2011). "English League Leading Goalscorers". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 8 June 2009. Retrieved 23 February 2012.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.