James Warner (15 April 1865 – 7 November 1943) (one source claims Warner was born on 25 August 1863) was an English
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
who played as a
goalkeeper
In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...
for
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
and
Newton Heath
Newton Heath is an area of Manchester, England, north-east of Manchester city centre and with a population of 9,883.
Historically part of Lancashire, Newton was formerly a farming area, but adopted the factory system following the Industrial Re ...
in the late 19th century. He helped Aston Villa win the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
in
1887
Events
January–March
* January 11 – Louis Pasteur's anti-rabies treatment is defended in the Académie Nationale de Médecine, by Dr. Joseph Grancher.
* January 20
** The United States Senate allows the Navy to lease Pearl Har ...
.
Career
Aston Villa
Born in
Lozells
Lozells is a loosely defined inner-city area in West Birmingham, England. It is centred on Lozells Road, and is known for its multi-racial population. It is part of the ward of Lozells and East Handsworth and lies between the districts of Handsw ...
, Birmingham, Warner began his football career with Milton F.C., before moving to Aston Villa in May 1886. He played for Aston Villa for six years, making a total of 101 appearances in all competitions. In 1887, he was a member of the Villa side which defeated
Rangers 3–1 in the
FA Cup semi-final
The FA Cup semi-finals are played to determine which teams will contest the FA Cup Final. They are the penultimate phase of the FA Cup, the oldest football tournament in the world.
Location
The semi-finals have always been contested at neutr ...
, to set up a final against local rivals
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
. In
the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
, played at
Kennington Oval
The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since it ...
on 2 April 1887, Albion were the favourites having been (defeated) finalists the previous year, and also having defeated
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 ...
in the semi-final. In the first twenty minutes of the final, the Villa defence was put under heavy pressure, but "Warner played a brave game in goal, repeatedly foiling Albion's attempts to charge him, ball in hand, over his own goal-line." Warner successfully prevented the Albion forwards from scoring, and in the second half Villa score twice with goals by
Archie Hunter
Archibald Hunter (23 September 1859 – 29 November 1894) was a Scottish Association football, footballer who was the first captain of Aston Villa F.C., Aston Villa to lift the FA Cup, in 1887 FA Cup Final, 1887. He was one of Victorian football' ...
and
Dennis Hodgetts
Dennis Hodgetts (28 November 1863 – 25/26 March 1945), commonly known as Denny Hodgetts, was a footballer in the early years of professional football in England.
Signed as a Youth player for Mitchell St George's in 1878 and played for three ...
, to win the cup for the first time.
Season 1888-89
On 8 September 1888, Villa made their first appearance in
The 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 ...
on the first day of the inaugural season,
1888–89. In the match against
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...
, Warner was in goal when defender
Gershom Cox
Gershom Cox (28 September 1863 – October–December 1918) was an English professional footballer who played as a full-back for Aston Villa from 1887 to 1893.
Early career
Gershom Cox was first signed for Birmingham Excelsior in 1886. The cl ...
"had the misfortune of kicking the ball through his own goalposts".The final score was 1-1. Thus Cox scored and Warner conceded what was thought, until 2013, to be the first goal in the Football League.
Warner played 21 of the 22 League games Aston Villa played in season 1888–89. As a goalkeeper he played in a defence that achieved one League clean-sheet and kept the opposition to one-League-goal-in-a-match on no less than on eight occasions. In the first three league seasons, Warner was virtually ever-present, missing only two matches, with Villa gaining the runners-up spot in
1888–89. The following season, Villa were less successful finishing eighth in the table and were one of five clubs having to apply to be re-elected to the league.
1890–91 was similar, with Villa finishing ninth and again having to suffer "the indignation of the re-election process".
In
1891–92, injury restricted Warner to only eleven league appearances with
Albert Hinchley replacing him. Warner was able to recover to appear in all five FA Cup matches, when Villa reached the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
where they again met local rivals
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
. In the final, played at
Kennington Oval
The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since it ...
on 19 March 1892, Warner and his colleagues in the Villa defence were no match for
Billy Bassett
William Isiah Bassett (27 January 1869 – 8 April 1937) was an English association footballer, director, and club chairman who served West Bromwich Albion for over half a century.
Biography
Playing career
Born in West Bromwich, the eldest of ...
and the Albion forwards who won the match comfortably 3–0, with goals from
Jasper Geddes
Jasper, an aggregate of microgranular quartz and/or cryptocrystalline chalcedony and other mineral phases,Kostov, R. I. 2010. Review on the mineralogical systematics of jasper and related rocks. – Archaeometry Workshop, 7, 3, 209-213PDF/ref> i ...
, Sammy Nicholls and
Jack Reynolds.
Suspicions were immediately raised over Warner's performance in the Cup Final. In the weeks preceding the Final, Warner skipped training sessions with the rest of the Villa side, and was also seen in earnest conversation with a mysterious man in a sharp suit and hat. He fumbled Geddes long-range shot and allowed the ball into the back of the net for West Brom's first goal, while he fumbled a straightforward save twenty minutes later, allowing Nicholls to score. Then finally in the second half Reynolds long-range shot flew into the net past a hopelessly out-of-position Warner. Rumours began to circulate that Warner had lost a substantial amount of money on a bet and had agreed to throw the Cup Final to recoup his losses
Villa finished the 1891–92 in fourth place in the league, but Warner's Villa career was over and, in July 1892, he was transferred to
Newton Heath
Newton Heath is an area of Manchester, England, north-east of Manchester city centre and with a population of 9,883.
Historically part of Lancashire, Newton was formerly a farming area, but adopted the factory system following the Industrial Re ...
in Manchester.
Newton Heath
He became Newton Heath's first choice goalkeeper straight away in their first season in
the 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 ...
and made 20 consecutive appearances at the start of the season.
However, he failed to show up for an away match against
Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
on 7 January 1893, resulting in centre-half
Willie Stewart
William S. Stewart (11 February 1872 – July 1945) was a Scottish footballer who was born in Coupar Angus. He played as an inside forward before switching to his favoured half back position. He joined Newton Heath from Warwick County in July ...
having to play as a makeshift goalkeeper; the team lost 7–1. Warner explained to the club directors that he had missed his train to
Stoke
Stoke is a common place name in the United Kingdom.
Stoke may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
The largest city called Stoke is Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire. See below.
Berkshire
* Stoke Row, Berkshire
Bristol
* Stoke Bishop
* Stok ...
, but they were unconvinced and suspended him for a month. After his suspension was up, Warner made just three more appearances for Newton Heath (two in the league and one in the Manchester Senior Cup), and was sold to
Walsall Town Swifts
Walsall Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Walsall, West Midlands, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club's nickname, "The Saddlers", reflects ...
at the end of the season.
Walsall Town Swifts
His career at Walsall was short-lived too, and he retired in 1894.
Warner died in
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
, United States, on 7 July 1943.
One source described Warner as supple and shrewd, agile enough to reach (punch) the most difficult of shots (or headers).
Honours
Aston Villa
*
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
:
1887
Events
January–March
* January 11 – Louis Pasteur's anti-rabies treatment is defended in the Académie Nationale de Médecine, by Dr. Joseph Grancher.
* January 20
** The United States Senate allows the Navy to lease Pearl Har ...
Statistics
Source:
References
External links
Newton Heath career summary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Warner, Jimmy
1865 births
1943 deaths
Footballers from Birmingham, West Midlands
English footballers
Association football goalkeepers
Aston Villa F.C. players
Manchester United F.C. players
Walsall F.C. players
FA Cup Final players