John Hodgkinson (1871–1944) was an English professional

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 at half-back for

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

and New Brompton in the 1890s.

Football career

Hodgkinson was born in Tunstall, Staffordshire and was playing for his local side when he was spotted by a scout from Southern League

. After a successful trial, he moved to the south coast in December 1895 making his debut for the "Saints" when he took over from George Marshall against

Chatham Chatham may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Canada * Chatham Islands (British Columbia) * Chatham Sound, British Columbia * Chatham, New Brunswick, a former town, now a neighbourhood of Miramichi * Chatham (electoral district), New Brunswic ...

at the Antelope Ground on 18 January 1896. Hodgkinson retained his place for the rest of the season, making seven appearances, scoring twice (both in a 5–0 defeat of New Brompton on 28 March) with Southampton finishing in third place. Saints' trainer, Bill Dawson, nicknamed him "''Ironside''", as his short cropped hair and rolled-up sleeves gave him a tough image, which he maintained throughout his time with the Saints. Hodgkinson retained his place for the start of the next season, as Saints went through the season undefeated. Hodgkinson and his fellow defenders only conceded 18 goals in 20 matches, as Southampton claimed the Southern League title for the first of six times over the next eight seasons. Hodgkinson missed the final five matches of the League season through injury, with local schoolmaster

William Ponting William Robert Ponting (1872 – 21 March 1952) was an English amateur footballer who played as a half-back for Southampton St. Mary's in 1896–97, when they won the Southern League title for the first of six occasions over the next eight y ...

replacing him. Hodgkinson was ever-present in 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 ...

where the Saints reached the Second Round proper, losing 3–1 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 ...

after a replay. In the close-season, Southampton recruited the experienced

Bob Petrie Robert Petrie (25 October 1874 – 1947) was a professional Association football, footballer who won the FA Cup with Sheffield Wednesday F.C., Sheffield Wednesday in FA Cup Final 1896, 1896 and was on the losing side in the FA Cup Final 1900, 19 ...

and Hodgkinson was released, joining fellow Southern League team, New Brompton.

Honours

Southampton * Southern League champions: 1896–97

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hodgkinson, John 1871 births 1944 deaths People from Tunstall, Staffordshire Footballers from Stoke-on-Trent English men's footballers Men's association football defenders Southampton F.C. players Gillingham F.C. players Southern Football League players