James Valentine Smith (13 February 1887 – 10 November 1951) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

er. His

championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

career with the Meath and

Louth Louth may refer to: Australia *Hundred of Louth, a cadastral unit in South Australia * Louth, New South Wales, a town * Louth Bay, a bay in South Australia **Louth Bay, South Australia, a town and locality Canada * Louth, Ontario Ireland * Cou ...

senior teams spanned eleven seasons from 1909 until 1919. Born in

Drogheda Drogheda ( , ; , meaning "bridge at the ford") is an industrial and port town in County Louth on the east coast of Ireland, north of Dublin. It is located on the Dublin–Belfast corridor on the east coast of Ireland, mostly in County Louth ...

County Louth County Louth ( ; ga, An Lú) is a coastal county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. Louth is bordered by the counties of Meath to the south, Monaghan to the west, Armagh to the north and Down to the ...

, Smith was born to Francis and Margaret Smith (née Eakins). He was educated locally before later moving to

Julianstown Julianstown () is a village in County Meath, Ireland. It is located near Drogheda on the R132 regional road. In 1641, the Battle of Julianstown was fought here during the Irish Rebellion of 1641. Julianstown is situated on the River Nanny ( ...

where he worked as a farmer. Smith first played club football with the

Bettystown Bettystown (), previously known as Betaghstown and transliterated to ''Beattystown/Bettystown'', is a village in an area known as East Meath within County Meath, Ireland. Together with the neighbouring villages of Laytown and Mornington it co ...

club in Meath and won a county junior championship medal in 1908. He later transferred to the Tredaghs club in Drogheda and won county senior championship medals in 1910 and 1912. Smith made his debut on the inter-county scene as a member of the Meath junior and senior teams during the 1909 championship. After one season he transferred to Louth where he captained the team to

All-Ireland All-Ireland (sometimes All-Island) refers to all of Ireland, as opposed to the separate jurisdictions of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. "All-Ireland" is most frequently used to refer to sporting teams or events for the entire islan ...

titles in 1910 and 1912. Smith also won two

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

medals. He retired from inter-county football following the conclusion of the 1919 championship. Smith died at the age of 64 following a car accident on 10 November 1951.

Honours

;Bettystown *

Meath Junior Football Championship The Meath Junior Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition contested by lower-tier Meath GAA clubs. The winner of this championship will be promoted to the Intermediate division. The winner also represents Meath in the Le ...

(1): 1908 ;Tredaghs *

Louth Senior Football Championship The Louth Senior Football Championship is an annual Gaelic Athletic Association competition organised by Louth GAA among the top Gaelic football clubs in County Louth, Ireland. The winning club qualifies to represent the county in the Leinster ...

(2): 1910, 1912 ;Louth *

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (SFC) ( ga, Craobh Shinsir Peile na hÉireann) is the premier competition in Gaelic football. An annual tournament organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), it is contested by the county ...

(2): 1910,

1912 Events January * January 1 – The Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China is established. * January 5 – The Prague Conference (6th All-Russian Conference of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party) opens. * January 6 ...

Leinster Senior Football Championship The Leinster Senior Football Championship, known simply as the Leinster Championship and shortened to Leinster SFC, is an annual inter-county Gaelic football competition organised by the Leinster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA ...

(2): 1910,

(c)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Jim 1887 births 1951 deaths 20th-century Irish farmers Meath inter-county Gaelic footballers Louth inter-county Gaelic footballers