GoS: Player Details

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Greens on Screen started its life in 1999 before many of the football sites that we are familiar with today, including Plymouth Argyle's own official site. Greens on Screen is dedicated to the sights, sounds and history of Plymouth Argyle Football club. It is owned and run by the Plymouth Argyle Heritage Archive, a charity dedicated to the promotion, preservation, and display of the heritage of our great football club.

The site owes its existence to Steve Dean. Without Steve's dedication and commitment for over 25 years, GoS would not exist and be the valued and loved resource for all football fans that it is today. The site is truly the envy of many clubs, and we owe a huge debt to Steve for his tireless work, and continued support behind the scenes.

Greens on Screen's first page was published in January 1999. Its early purpose was to bring Plymouth Argyle a little closer to those unable to see their team, and whilst it has changed a great deal over the years, its core themes - sights and sounds for Westcountry exiles - still stand. The site was very lucky to take on the content of Trevor Scallan's Semper Viridis in the summer of 2007, and in 2009 launched GoS-DB, a wealth of facts and figures from PAFC's history. A year later, we embarked on a complete history of Argyle, with much-valued contributions from chapter authors. Greens on Screen was taken over by its new custodians, The Argyle Archive, in 2024.

Greens on Screen is an amateur website and proud of it. It is run by a team of volunteers from the Plymouth Argyle Heritage Archive (Argyle Archive). Without the hard work and much-valued contributions of these volunteers, running the site would not be possible. Greens on Screen is self-taught and as a result, a little bit quirky.

Greens on Screen remains advertisement free, which means we are grateful for the generous support of our donors and the work of our volunteers to help keep it free of promotions. If you would like to support the work of Greens on Screen, please consider donating to the Plymouth Argyle Heritage Archive.

GoS's sole aim is to be a service to fellow supporters, and we look forward to continuing to celebrate Argyle's history for many years to come.

Plymouth Argyle Heritage Archive.
April 2024

Can you help? This page is the result of the best endeavours of all concerned. If you spot a mistake or know of facts to add, or have a better photo, please get in touch using 'Contact Us' (top, right).

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RAY GODDARD

Born: 17 October 1920

Came from: Chelsea Went to: Exeter City

First game: 21 August 1948 Last game: 14 September 1949

Appearances: 44 (44/0) Goals: 1

Born in Ecclesfield, in north Sheffield, in present-day South Yorkshire, he began his career in junior football in Ecclesfield with Red Rovers, the club which later became known as Ecclesfield Red Rose and still plays in the Sheffield & Hallamshire League.

His performances at centre-half earned him a move to top-flight Wolverhampton Wanderers before the outbreak of war, and he made four appearances in the 1938-39 season.

During the Second World War, he enlisted with the RAF and served abroad. Whilst doing so, he was selected to play for the Services' Representative Team while serving in India. He later returned to the UK and served with RAF Transport Command. He continued to be registered with Wolves and made appearances for them in the wartime leagues when he was able.

Once hostilities ceased, he joined Chelsea in September 1946 and spent two years at Stamford Bridge, making 14 appearances and scoring once. His debut was certainly memorable, coming in a remarkable 7-4 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield, in the month he joined. His only goal for the club came in his last game for Chelsea, in February 1948, ironically against his former club Wolves, at Stamford Bridge, in a 1-1 draw.

He then moved to Argyle in the summer of 1948 as a Jimmy Rae signing for £6,000 and was appointed captain on his arrival at Home Park. However, his time at centre-half was disrupted by injury and he found himself out of the team after less than 18 months. Having made 44 appearances and scored once, he moved to Exeter City, with Argyle recouping their £6,000 fee in what was then a club-record transfer for City. As had happened at Home Park, he was immediately made captain and went on to make 130 appearances and scored twice in five years.

Following his release by Exeter in April 1954, he became player-manager of Bideford in the Western League. He remained in the post until December 1954, before taking a job with a transport company. He later became the landlord of The Bird in Hand pub in Tettenhall Wood, Wolverhampton, from 1956 onwards.

He remained in the local area until his death in nearby Gornal, Dudley, in February 1974, aged just 53, and was laid to rest at St Peter's Church, Upper Gornal.

YOUR CONTRIBUTION

If you can add to this profile, perhaps with special memories, a favourite story or the results of your original research, please contribute here.

APPEARANCE DETAILS [reselect competitions]

The details below reflect appearances in all first-team competitions.

We are very grateful to many who have helped write GoS-DB's player pen-pictures, and to Dave Rowntree and the PAFC Media Team for their help with photos. Thanks also to staff at the National Football Museum, the Scottish Football Museum and ScotlandsPeople for their valuable assistance.

The following publications have been particularly valuable in the research of pen-pictures: Plymouth Argyle, A Complete Record 1903-1989 (Brian Knight, ISBN 0-907969-40-2); Plymouth Argyle, 101 Golden Greats (Andy Riddle, ISBN 1-874287-47-3); Football League Players' Records 1888-1939 (Michael Joyce, ISBN 1-899468-67-6); Football League Players' Records 1946-1988 (Barry Hugman, ISBN 1-85443-020-3) and Plymouth Argyle Football Club Handbooks.

Greens on Screen is run as a service to fellow supporters, in all good faith, without commercial or private gain. We have no wish to abuse copyright regulations and apologise unreservedly if this occurs. If you own any of the material on this site, and object to its inclusion, please get in touch using the 'Contact Us' button at the top of the page.