John Edward James (born 19 February 1934) is an English former professional footballer who made 130 appearances in the Football League playing for Birmingham City and Torquay United.
As a youngster he was on the books of Brighton & Hove Albion, but he was working in a brass foundry when Birmingham City signed him in as a junior in June 1950.
He turned professional the following year,[2] and made his first-team debut on 4 March 1953, replacing the injured Peter Murphy in a sixth-round FA Cup replay against Tottenham Hotspur which finished as a 2–2 draw.
[3] He played in the next three league games, scoring twice in the last of these to secure a 3–1 win against Barnsley, but managed only two first-team games in the next season and one the season after,[4] and moved on to Torquay United at the end of the 1954–55 season.
[2] James spent six seasons with Torquay, and scored 11 goals from 125 league appearances.