| Jimmy Cookson | |
| Fullname: | James Cookson |
| Birth Date: | 6 December 1904 |
| Birth Place: | Manchester, England |
| Death Place: | Warminster, England |
| Height: | [1] |
| Years1: | 1923–1925 |
| Clubs1: | Manchester City |
| Caps1: | 0 |
| Goals1: | 0 |
| Years2: | 1925–1927 |
| Clubs2: | Chesterfield |
| Caps2: | 74 |
| Goals2: | 85 |
| Years3: | 1927–1933 |
| Caps3: | 122 |
| Goals3: | 103 |
| Years4: | 1933–1936 |
| Clubs4: | Plymouth Argyle |
| Caps4: | 46 |
| Goals4: | 37 |
| Years5: | 1936–1938 |
| Clubs5: | Swindon Town |
| Caps5: | 50 |
| Goals5: | 31 |
| Totalcaps: | 292 |
| Totalgoals: | 256 |
James Cookson (6 December 1904 – 14 December 1970) 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.
Cookson was born in Manchester.[2] He began his career as a wing half with South Salford Lad's Club and then played for Clayton and Manchester North End.[3] He turned professional with Manchester City in August 1923,[4] but was unable to break into the first team and was sent to Southport on loan for a trial period in 1924.[3] He was transferred to Chesterfield in April 1925,[4] and converted to a centre forward.[3] [5] He was the leading goalscorer in the Third Division North for the 1925–26 season with 44 goals,[6] and scored 85 overall in 74 league appearances.[2] In August 1927, he joined West Bromwich Albion for a £2,500 fee.[4] 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.[5] Later in 1931, Cookson was selected for the Football Association tour of Canada.[3] [5]
He scored 103 league goals in 122 matches for Albion,[2] including six in a Second Division game against Blackpool in 1927.[5] Cookson was also the leading goalscorer in the Second Division for the 1927–28 season with 38 goals.[6] Cookson maintained his high goalscoring ratio after joining Second Division club Plymouth Argyle in 1933.[3] 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.[3] [5] Cookson managed a further 10 goals in 17 matches to bring his overall tally to 38 goals in 48 games.[3] [5] He moved to Swindon Town in 1936, where he played on for two more seasons, and scored 31 goals in 50 league appearances.[2] Cookson retired from the game in May 1938 to become a publican.[4]
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.[5] Cookson died in Warminster on 14 December 1970.