Leonard George Goodson (1880–1922) was an English-born

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 an inside left and

left wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...

around the turn of the 19th century. He was the scorer of the first two goals for Doncaster Rovers 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 ...

. Born in

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

, Goodson played for the Marshgate Institute club before moving to Doncaster Rovers in March 1900. He was seen as having the makings of an exceptional player. His first goals were a

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...

in a 1−8 victory in a Midland League game at Rushden on 31 March 1900. In the 1900−01 season, he scored 20 goals in 26 league games, including two hat−tricks. His team were runners−up in the Midland League and were subsequently elected to the Football League for the 1901−02 season. Goodson scored the first two goals in a 3−3 draw in their first Football League fixture, at home to

Burslem Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley of ...

on 7 September. Goodson was sold to First Division

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

in late 1902. The money was used to finance a new stand built at Doncaster's Intake Ground at a cost of £200. He returned to Doncaster for the 1905−06 season in the Midland League after they failed to be re-elected to the Football League following a terrible season. From there he moved back to Marshgate. He was called back to Doncaster in February 1909, scoring twice in that month. This coincided with an upturn in their season's fortunes, with only one loss in their last 13 games. In his total time at Doncaster in all three periods, he scored 39 goals in the Midland and Football Leagues, and 4 in the FA Cup. He died in Doncaster aged 41 in 1922.

Honours

Doncaster Rovers * Midland League ''Runners up'': 1900−01

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Goodson, Len 1880 births 1922 deaths Footballers from Doncaster Men's association football outside forwards English Football League players Doncaster Rovers F.C. players Middlesbrough F.C. players Midland Football League players English men's footballers