John James

Who is John James?

John Edward James is an English former professional footballer who made 130 appearances in the Football League playing for Birmingham City and Torquay United. He played as an inside forward.

James was born in Harborne, Birmingham. As a youngster he was on the books of Brighton & Hove Albion, but he was working in a brass foundry when Birmingham City signed him in as a junior in June 1950. He turned professional the following year, and made his first-team debut on 4 March 1953, replacing the injured Peter Murphy in a sixth-round FA Cup replay against Tottenham Hotspur which finished as a 2–2 draw. He played in the next three league games, scoring twice in the last of these to secure a 3–1 win against Barnsley, but managed only two first-team games in the next season and one the season after, and moved on to Torquay United at the end of the 1954–55 season. James spent six seasons with Torquay, and scored 11 goals from 125 league appearances.

James went on to be a very successful scout at both Torquay United and Plymouth Argyle, earning Torquay in particular many thousands of pounds in transfer fees from his talent spotting. Darren Moore and Mark Loram are examples of players he brought to the club. After his move to Plymouth, he was instrumental in signings including Dan Gosling who went on to play for Everton and England under-21s.