GoS-DB Players

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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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ERNIE SMITH

Born: 13 January 1912

1. Came from: Rotherham United Went to: Career interrupted by WW2

1. First game: 12 November 1938 Last game: 06 May 1939

2. Came from: Career interrupted by WW2 Went to: Retired

2. First game: 29 September 1945 Last game: 16 February 1946

Appearances: 21 (21/0) Goals: 5

Smith was born in Shirebrook, near Mansfield, and started out locally with Sutton Junction. A versatile, attacking player who could play on either flank, he was spotted by Burnley in 1931 and moved to Turf Moor, but scored just one goal in seven appearances in a three-year spell before signing for Nottingham Forest in 1934. Chances were even more limited at the City Ground - he played just twice, scoring once, before moving to Rotherham United in 1935 for what turned out to be the most successful spell of his career: 107 appearances and an impressive 44 goals in a three-year stay. He netted 14 goals for The Millers in the season before joining Argyle, and the season prior to that he was the club's leading scorer with 20. During his time at Millmoor he also became one of few Millers to score in six consecutive games.

Despite his prolific form, Rotherham agreed to allow his transfer to Argyle in 1938. Part of the reason would have been finances; United were formed in 1925 from the merger of Rotherham County and Rotherham Town, and the new club's first two decades were marked by struggling finances and the need to trade and sell players to stay afloat. Smith had actually been spotted by manager Jack Tresadern during his time as as secretary-manager of Tottenham Hotspur - he had gone to watch another Rotherham player on three occasions but had been impressed by Smith, both for his goal-scoring prowess and also his ability to create chances for others.

A promising start to his career in green - five goals in his first 12 appearances - was cut short when Argyle withdrew from the Football League as a results of the effects of the Second World War, although he did return at the age of 33 to play a further eight games for Argyle in the Football League South campaign of 1945-46.

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. I have no wish to abuse copyright regulations and apologise unreservedly if this occurs. If you own any of the material used on this site, and object to its inclusion, please get in touch using the 'Contact Us' button at the top of each page. Search facility powered by JRank Search Engine. UK time at page load: 14 October 2024, 09:59.