Jack Aiken
| Jack Aitken | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1929-30 | ||
| Apps | Goals | |
| League | 17 | 3 |
| FAI Cup | 3 | 3 |
| Shield | 6 | 4 |
| Leinster Cup | 4 | 6 |
| Totals | 30 | 16 |
| Total Appearances: | 30 |
| Total Goals: | 16 |
| Position: | CF |
| Nationality: | NI |
| Debut: | 25-Aug-29, League, (H) v. Shamrock Rovers |
Bio:
From the Belfast Intermediate club Willowfield, Jack Aiken had Junior International caps to his credit when he came to Dundalk in the summer of 1929 and according to Dundalk Democrat, “is described as the fastest player in the North with the ball, with a goal scoring record over the past three seasons that reads 42, 37 and 57 last year.â€
He went straight into the first team at outside right, where he made his first 16 appearances. At this stage, with the season half over, five different centre forwards (including Sam Patton) had been tried and apart from an 8-2 win over the whipping boys, Jacobs, wins and goals were rare.
For the January FAI Cup tie against Cork Bohemians, Jack was tried out at centre forward, scored two goals in a 2-1 win and stayed at number 9 for the remainder of the season. He scored in the next round FAI tie and followed that with a hat trick against Ormeau in the Leinster Cup. Another hat trick in April, against Jacobs, helped him to a season best total of 16 goals, one more than Sam Patton.
He had been with Dunmurry before moving to Willowfield, where he had his most outstanding success when the non-leaguers shocked a succession of senior clubs (Barn in the quarter-final and Belfast Celtic in the replayed semi-final ) en route to the 1927-28 Irish Cup final. They finished the job in the final where another Irish League club Larne awaited them and in another replay Jack scored the only goal for the non-league team.
Honours:
Leading Scorer:
1929-30