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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DAVE THOMAS

Full Name: David Watkin John Thomas

Born: 06 July 1917

1. Came from: Romford Went to: Career interrupted by WW2

1. First game: 14 September 1938 Last game: 09 December 1939

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

2. First game: 28 April 1945 Last game: 17 January 1948

Appearances: 101 (101/0) Goals: 45

Born in Stepney, Thomas was a prolific centre-forward throughout his career which started locally with non-league Romford. He was Jack Tresadern's first signing, to replace Old Trafford-bound Bill Hullett, and he chalked up 23 appearances before the Second World War interrupted his Football League career. He continued to play in the 1939-40 South West Regional League and 1945-46 Football League South, and then resumed his Football League career with a highly prolific 1946-47 campaign. Maurice Tadman's arrival in the summer of 1947 limited his chances the following season and he left Home Park early in 1948, having played exactly a century of games and scoring an impressive 44 goals. He then spent three years with Watford, playing 105 times and scoring 41 goals before moving to Gillingham in 1950 where he still hit the net with even more regularity, scoring 42 in just 80 games, before retiring and winding down with non-league Sittingbourne.

His brother Bob – also a free-scoring forward – played for Argyle at the end of the Football League South season and was a virtual ever-present in the 1946-47 campaign alongside Dave, the brothers scoring 36 goals in that one season.

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.