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'ss 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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GEORGE SMITH

Born: 12 July 1879

Came from: Blackburn Rovers Went to: Southampton

First game: 01 September 1906 Last game: 27 April 1907

Appearances: 37 (37/0) Goals: 9

Born in Preston, Smith played youth football in his hometown for both St. Christopher's and Leyland. In 1899 he signed for Preston North End, and over the next two seasons made 28 appearances at half-back, scoring once. Following Preston's relegation at the end of the 1900-01 season, he was released and enjoyed a brief spell with Aston Villa, making five appearances during the 1901-02 campaign.

In 1902, Smith joined Southern League side New Brompton, who later became Gillingham. A move to inside-right proved successful, as he scored 10 goals in 30 appearances. His form earned him a transfer to Blackburn Rovers, where he spent the next three seasons, making 58 appearances and scoring four goals.

Smith arrived at Home Park in the summer of 1906 after William Fullarton had taken charge. A consistent performer throughout his only season with Argyle, the club handbook described him as a player who "knows when to play a close or open game, is a fine shot and an untiring worker". He made 37 Southern League appearances for the Greens, scoring nine goals.

In 1907, Smith joined Southampton, where he scored five goals in 21 appearances and helped the club reach the FA Cup semi-final. Southampton were defeated by Wolves, although Smith was reported to have had a "capital game".

In July 1908, only a few weeks after his marriage and nine days before his 29th birthday, Smith tragically collapsed after being ill for several days at his Southampton home. He died of pneumonia, having caught what was thought to be a chill playing cricket in the 1908 close season. In his obituary he was described as "gentlemanly and unassuming".

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.

I'm very grateful to many who have helped write GoS-DB's player pen-pictures, and to Dave Rowntree, the PAFC Media Team and Colin Parsons 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.