Jimmy Cookson

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.[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.[1] 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,[1] 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.[1] 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.