James Henry Collins (30 January 1911 – 1983) was an English footballer who played as a striker for a number of

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

clubs. His most successful spell was with

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

, finishing as the club's top scorer for two consecutive seasons.

Career

Collins began his career playing non-league football for Tooting and impressed enough for Queens Park Rangers to sign him in 1931. However, he struggled to make an impact in the

and returned to non-league football with

Tunbridge Wells Rangers Tunbridge Wells Football Club is a football club based in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England. They are currently members of the . They play their home games at Culverden Stadium. The club is affiliated to the Kent County Football Association ...

. His goalscoring exploits for Tunbridge saw him offered a second chance at professional football by Rochdale in 1933, later playing for Stockport County and Walsall. In January 1936, having scored 14 league goals during the first half of the season for Walsall, Collins was signed by Liverpool. He made his debut for the ''Reds'' in a 6–1 defeat to West Bromwich Albion and appeared in a further five matches in the following month. However, the following season, Collins found himself out of favour and was forced to wait a year for his next, and final appearance, for the club, playing in a 1–1 draw with

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...

on 13 March 1937 in place of Fred Howe. He was allowed to leave the club soon after, in May 1937, joining Football League Third Division South side

for a fee of £1,500, scoring the ''Bluebirds'' goal in a 1–1 draw with Clapton Orient on his debut and a hat-trick in his home debut in the following match, a 5–2 victory over Torquay United. His prolific form saw him finish as the club's top scorer in two consecutive seasons, between 1937 and 1939, forming an effective partnership with Bert Turner in his first season, and he continued in the same form during the abandoned 1939–40 season, scoring four goals in the three league matches that were completed prior to the suspension of the Football League following the outbreak of the Second World War. During the war, Collns appeared as a guest player for Swindon Town and Aberaman Athletic.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, James 1911 births 1983 deaths English men's footballers Tooting & Mitcham United F.C. players Queens Park Rangers F.C. players Rochdale A.F.C. players Stockport County F.C. players Walsall F.C. players Liverpool F.C. players Cardiff City F.C. players Swindon Town F.C. wartime guest players Men's association football forwards Footballers from the London Borough of Southwark People from Bermondsey