James J. Gill (9 November 1894 – 1964) 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 lea ...

. He was born in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

. Gill began his career at hometown side

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an off ...

in 1913. With the club suffering financial difficulties he was sold to

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...

in 1920 for £750 and was the club's top scorer in its first year in the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

. He would go on to consistently challenge for the award along with strike partner

Len Davies Leonard Stephen Davies (28 April 1899 – 1945) was a Welsh professional footballer. Born in Cardiff, he trained as a marine engineer before becoming a footballer, making his senior debut for his hometown club Cardiff City in 1919 in the Southe ...

during his five years at the club. While at the club he also played in the

1925 FA Cup Final The 1925 FA Cup final was an association football match contested by Sheffield United F.C., Sheffield United and Cardiff City F.C., Cardiff City on 25 April 1925 at Wembley Stadium (1923), Wembley Stadium in London, England. The final was the s ...

, which they went on to lose 1–0 to

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...

. The following season, he left to join Frank Buckley's

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...

. He made a scoring debut for Blackpool on 24 October 1925, in a 4–0 victory over

Wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...

Bloomfield Road Bloomfield Road is a association football, football stadium in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, which has been the home of Blackpool F.C., Blackpool Football Club since 1901. It is the third stadium in the club's existence, the previous two be ...

, netting the first goal. He made a further fourteen appearances during the 1925–26 league campaign, scoring three more goals. His final game for Blackpool occurred on 6 February 1926, in a 5–0 defeat at

Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in , the third tier of the English football league system. Vale are named after the valley of ports on the Trent and Mersey Canal ...

. Gill ended his career with spells at

Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club in Derby, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. One of the 12 founder members of the English Football ...

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition buildin ...

and

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...

References

;Footnotes ;Sources * * * 1894 births 1964 deaths Footballers from Sheffield English men's footballers Men's association football forwards Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Cardiff City F.C. players Blackpool F.C. players Derby County F.C. players Crystal Palace F.C. players Scarborough F.C. players English Football League players 20th-century English sportsmen {{England-footy-forward-1890s-stub