On this day in history : 5th December 1900 – The birth of footballer Jimmy Dimmock, who scored the winning goal for Tottenham Hotspur in the 1921 FA Cup Final and who also won three caps for England….
Jimmy was one of six brothers born in Edmonton, London and played junior football before signing as an amateur player for Tottenham Hotspur in 1916…. His budding football career was halted temporarily by WWI, during which he served as a gunner with the Royal Feild Artillery….
In May 1919 he returned to the sport turning professional with Tottenham – and he was to become a star at a young age…. His first professional match was against Lincoln City and he was to go on to play in some 400 league games for the club, scoring over 100 goals – 12 of which were in FA cup matches…. Jimmy, at 20, was the youngest Tottenham Hotspur player to play in the FA Cup Final – a record for the club still standing today…. In 1921, on a rain sodden pitch, he was to score the winning goal against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the FA Cup Final – despite having sustaining an injury early on in the game…. He made his international debut against Scotland in April 1921 – and won three caps for England in his career….
His career with Tottenham ended in 1931 and he went to play briefly for Thames Association FC – and a couple of seasons for Clapton Orient…. In 1934 he joined Ashford Town to play in the Kent League – but retired from the game in 1936….
After his footballing career had ended Jimmy was to work in the road haulage business…. He had married young and had five children by the age of 33…. After the death of two of his young daughters and then his wife he was deeply affected and never got over his grief…. His health declined, resulting in the loss of both of his legs, confining him to a wheelchair…. Jimmy died in the North Middlesex Hospital, Edmonton, on the 23rd of December 1972….
Cottage Capers 