Jimmy Jones (footballer, born 1928)

Jimmy Jones (25 July 1928 – 13 February 2014) was a Northern Irish footballer. He is the leading goalscorer in the history of Irish League football with a total of 646 goals.[1]

Jimmy Jones
Personal information
Full name James Jones
Date of birth (1928-07-25)25 July 1928
Place of birth Keady, Northern Ireland
Date of death 13 February 2014(2014-02-13) (aged 85)
Playing position(s) Centre forward
Youth career
Shankill Young Men
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1946–1949 Belfast Celtic 33 (43)
1950 Larne
1950–1951 Fulham 0 (0)
1951–1962 Glenavon 222 (269)
1962–1963 Portadown 14 (8)
1963–1964 Bangor 20 (12)
1964–1965 Newry Town
National team
1956–1957 Northern Ireland 3 (1)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

In a career spanning almost 20 years, Jones started his career with Belfast Celtic. After having his leg broken by rival supporters, he spent over a year out of the game, before returning at intermediate level with Larne. After a short spell there and a season in English football with Fulham, he joined Glenavon where he help to propel the club to the most successful period in their history. He later represented Portadown, Bangor and Newry Town. He also won 3 caps for Northern Ireland, scoring 1 goal.

Early life

Jones was born in his maternal grandmother's home in Keady, County Armagh, Northern Ireland, the only child of Thomas Jones, a police sergeant, and his wife Ellen (née Wilson). After education at Carrick Primary School and Lurgan Technical College, he served his apprenticeship as a mechanic, while making an impact as a footballer.[2]

Club career

Belfast Celtic

Jones signed for Belfast Celtic in 1946 after playing youth football with Shankill Young Men. Jones made an immediate impact, scoring 62 goals in all competitions in the 1947–48 season. Such was his ability that his club rejected a £16,000 offer from Newcastle United. During the following season, Jones had 27 goals from 19 games (including six hat-tricks), prior to an infamous match on Boxing Day 1948 with Linfield. At the end of the match, Linfield supporters invaded the pitch and Jones was chased onto terracing and stamped on until his leg was broken. Such was the outcry over this incident, Belfast Celtic resigned from the league at the end of the season and left football.[3]

Jones had surgery to save his leg (which left his right leg shorter than the left), but would not play again until March 1950, when he signed for Irish Intermediate League side Larne.[4] After a short spell there, he joined Fulham in the summer of 1950, where he spent one season but made no first-team appearances due to a technicality over his registration which meant he could only play in reserve team matches.[5]

Glenavon

In 1951, he joined Glenavon where he would spend 11 years and became a club legend. He was the leading Irish League goalscorer for some years in the fifties, and finished as Irish League outright leading goalscorer in 6 seasons (a record still unbroken), during the most successful period in Glenavon's history where they won the Irish League championship and Irish Cup three times each.[6] Jones also hit a record 74 goals (in all competitions) during the 1956–57 Irish League season.[7] He scored 517 goals in total for the Lurgan Blues.[8]

Later career

Jones later represented Portadown, Bangor and Newry City, before retiring in 1965 with a national domestic record of 646 goals. He remains the leading goalscorer in Irish league history.[9][10]

International career

Jones scored three goals in the Irish League representative team which defeated the Football League 5–3 at Windsor Park in 1953, and played in three full international games for Northern Ireland, scoring once against Wales in Cardiff in the 1956 British Home Championship.[11]

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References
  1. "Jimmy Jones: Rumbustious striker whose goals made him one of the most prolific scorers in the history of Irish football". The Independent. 26 February 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  2. "Belfast Celtic legend renowned as teak -tough and prolific centre-forward". The Irish Times. 14 March 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  3. "70 years since Linfield v Celtic day of shame that left Jimmy Jones with broken leg at Windsor Park". Belfast Telegraph. 27 December 2018. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  4. "Jimmy Jones Signs For Intermediate Club". Belfast Newsletter. 6 March 1950. p. 7.
  5. "Jimmy Jones, the Lurgan legend". UEFA. 26 February 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  6. "The infamous day a 'savage mob' broke bones and a club died". BBC. 27 December 2018. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  7. "Football in mourning for legend Jimmy Jones, the man caught up in one of local game's darkest days". Belfast Telegraph. 14 February 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  8. "Jimmy Jones dies: Veteran footballer who still holds Irish League goal record". Belfast Telegraph. 13 February 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  9. "Irish League soccer legend Jimmy Jones dies". Newsletter. Johnston Publishing. 13 February 2014. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 13 February 2014.
  10. "Jimmy Jones: genius, gentleman... legend". Belfast Telegraph. 14 February 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  11. "Jimmy Jones". National-Football-Teams.com.

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