Jimmy Jones (soccer player, 1928)
| Jimmy Jones | ||
| Personnel | ||
|---|---|---|
| Surname | James Jones | |
| birthday | July 25, 1928 | |
| place of birth | Keady , Northern Ireland | |
| date of death | February 13, 2014 | |
| position | Center Forward | |
| Men's | ||
| Years | station | Games (goals) 1 |
| 1947-1949 | Belfast Celtic | 29 (37) |
| 1949-1950 | Larne FC | |
| 1950-1951 | Fulham FC | 0 (0) |
| 1951-1962 | Glenavon FC | 222 (275) |
| 1962-1963 | Portadown FC | 19 (8) |
| 1963-1964 | Bangor FC | 20 (12) |
| 1964-1965 | Newry Town | |
| National team | ||
| Years | selection | Games (goals) |
| 1956-1957 | Northern Ireland | 3 (1) |
| 1 Only league games are given. | ||
James "Jimmy" Jones (born July 25, 1928 in Keady , County Armagh , † February 13, 2014 ) was a Northern Irish football player . The striker was the top scorer in the Irish Football League six times , winning the league title with Belfast Celtic and Glenavon FC . He also played three internationals for the Northern Irish national team .
Athletic career
Jones was born the son of a Special Constabulary sergeant instructor . As a high school student, he played soccer for Lurgan Tech , Lurgan Boys Brigade , Lurgan Sunnyside and Glenavon Juniors before joining the then top club Belfast Celtic. With the club, which was champions four times in a row before the Second World War , he joined 1947/48 in the first season after the war-related break. He was named the top scorer with 25 goals in 22 games, and he also won the championship title and the Irish Cup with the club . The following season also got off to a promising start: by Christmas he had scored twelve goals in seven games - across all competitions he estimated 33 goals. In the local derby against Linfield FC on Boxing Day 1948, however, there were riots in Windsor Park , in which his leg was broken by opposing supporters - as a result, he was out for two years and his club withdrew permanently from the game.
After his recovery, Jones moved to England's Fulham FC for £ 3,000 but was only allowed to play on the reserve team due to a formal mistake from the English league. In 1951 he returned to Northern Ireland and joined Glenavon FC . Together with Wilbur Cush and Jackie Denver he coined the most successful time of the club as the "Three Muskateers" and became the top scorer of the Northern Irish championship in his first season, leading his new club to the first championship title in club history. In the years 1952 to 1962 Jones was the most successful goalscorer, 1954, 1956, 1957 and 1960 he was each top scorer of the league. In the 1956/57 season Jones scored 74 goals across all competitions and holds the record in Northern Ireland to this day. In 1957 and 1960 he won two more championship titles with Glenlavon and the Irish Cup again in 1957, 1959 and 1961. In 1960 he was the captain of Glanvon on the club's USA tour.
Despite outstanding performances in the league, Jones completed only three international matches, after his debut in the British Home Championship in April 1956 against Wales - in the 1-1 draw he scored his only national team goal - he ran in this competition two more times until 1957 on. He was denied participation in the 1958 World Cup tournament , when Northern Ireland made its debut in the finals.
In 1962 Jones left Glenavon FC and went to league rivals Portadown FC . After a season in which he met eight times in 19 championship games, he moved on to Bangor FC . Here he also played a season in which he scored twelve goals in 20 championship games. He then let his career end at Newry Town in a lower class. After his career as a player, he was the manager of Glenavon FC from 1969 to 1972.
Overall, Jones scored 646 goals in all Northern Irish competitions, including 517 for Glenavon FC.
The Belfast Celtic Society elected Jones as its first president when it was founded in 2003.
Web links
- Jimmy Jones career stats from the Irish Football Association
- Jimmy Jones, the Lurgan Legend on UEFA.com
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c belfasttelegraph.co.uk: "Belfast Celtic fans will always have a special place in their hearts for Jimmy Jones" (accessed February 17, 2014)
- ↑ belfastceltic.org: "Jimmy Jones" (accessed February 17, 2014)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Jones, Jimmy |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Jones, James (real name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Northern Irish soccer player |
| DATE OF BIRTH | July 25, 1928 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Keady , County Armagh, Northern Ireland |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 13, 2014 |