James Alfred Metcalf (12 December 1898 – 20 February 1975) was an English professional footballer who played as a

wing half In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

. He was born in Whitburn,

County Durham County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England.UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne an ...

, and as an adolescent he played local football with Sunderland Schoolboys and Sunderland Royal Rovers. He later played for Southwick, where he won several local amateur trophies. Metcalf was signed by

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third tier ...

club

South Shields South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England; it is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. The town was once known in Roman Britain, Roman times as ''Arbeia'' and as ''Caer Urfa'' by the Early Middle Ag ...

in April 1920 and went on to play seven seasons with the Horsley Hill club, making 185 appearances and scoring twice. In June 1927 he joined Second Division rivals

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional association football club in Preston, Lancashire, England. They currently play in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English footbal ...

on a free transfer. During a single season with the Lancashire club, he played in 16 league matches. The following summer Metcalf joined

Third Division North The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to ...

side

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

for a transfer fee of £250. He made his debut for the club in the 2–2 draw away at Hartlepools United on 25 August 1928. Metcalf missed only one match of the 1928–29 season, the last game of the campaign against

Accrington Stanley Accrington Stanley Football Club is a professional association football club based in Accrington, Lancashire, England, that compete in the , the fourth level of the English football league system. They have spent their entire history playing a ...

. On 26 October 1929, he scored his first and only league goal for Nelson in the 4–1 win against

Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system after winning the 202 ...

at Seedhill. In his two years with Nelson, Metcalf made a total of 71 first-team appearances before retiring from professional football in the summer of 1930. In July 1931 Metcalf was appointed to the training staff of his former club Preston North End and remained at the club for eight years. Upon leaving Preston he became a trainer at

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

, but his stay was curtailed by the outbreak of the Second World War, which meant that competitive football was abandoned for six years in England. He was re-appointed to the position in August 1949.

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Metcalf, Jim 1898 births 1975 deaths Footballers from Whitburn, Tyne and Wear English men's footballers Men's association football wing halves Sunderland Rovers F.C. players Southwick F.C. (Durham) players Gateshead A.F.C. players Preston North End F.C. players Nelson F.C. players English Football League players Leicester City F.C. non-playing staff 20th-century English sportsmen