GoS-DB Players

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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PADDY BLATCHFORD

Full Name: Patrick John Blatchford

Born: 28 December 1925

Came from: Saltash United Went to: Leyton Orient

First game: 13 November 1948 Last game: 05 May 1951

Appearances: 19 (19/0) Goals: 2

After playing for Saltash United, Blatchford made his debut for Argyle Reserves in October 1948 as an amateur on Football Combination forms. Playing for the A team (Argyle's third side) a few days later, the Western Morning News described him as "in a class of his own". In early November, whilst continuing as a civil servant with the Admiralty, the 22-year-old signed as a part-time professional for the club, and a week later made his first-team debut on the left wing at Coventry as a replacement for the injured Bill Strauss.

With the emergence of Alex Govan, Blatchford was unable to win a regular place in the team during his three years at Home Park and moved on to Leyton Orient in 1951. He spent two seasons at Orient, making 69 appearances and scoring nine. Records then show him playing for Bideford in 1954 and Bridgwater Town in 1955.

In his time as a Pilgrim, one of Blatchford's finest performances won't be found in official records. In a friendly match against Southampton in January 1949, reports describe the Plymouth-born winger as giving the visitors' right-back a torrid time. That right-back had made his full England debut the month before, and went on to become England's captain and later World Cup winning manager, Alf Ramsey.

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.