Arnold Woollard

Arnold Woollard
Personal information
Full name Arnold James Woollard
Date of birth (1930-08-24)24 August 1930
Place of birth Pembroke, Bermuda
Date of death October 2023(2023-10-00) (aged 93)
Position Defender
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
–1949 Bermuda Athletic Association
1949–1952 Northampton Town
1952–1953 Peterborough United 18 (0)
1953–1956 Newcastle United 10 (0)
1956–1962 Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic 161
1962–1963 Northampton Town 31
1963–1967 Bermuda Athletic Association
International career
1964 Bermuda 1 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Arnold James Woollard (24 August 1930 – October 2023) was a Bermudian footballer who played as a defender. He spent most of his career in England and was the first ever professional footballer from Bermuda.[1]

Early life

Born in Pembroke, Woollard spent his early childhood in St. George's, before returning to Pembroke and later attending Warwick Academy in Warwick.[2]

Club career

In 1949, Woollard was spotted by Northampton Town director Phillip Hutton, who was visiting the country at the time, and later signed him for the club in August 1949. While there, Northampton's coaches switched him to the full-back position. In his first season with the club, he helped them reach the fifth round proper of the 1949–50 FA Cup, where they were eliminated by Derby County.[3]

In 1952, he joined Midland Football League side Peterborough United,[3] where he played 25 matches, including seven in the FA Cup as they reached the second round. Following his performance in the FA Cup, his manager Jack Fairbrother alerted his former club, First Division side Newcastle United, about Wollard, with the club signing him after only half a season for £4,000, which at the time was Peterborough United's record sale.[4]

Woollard made his Newcastle United debut on 18 April 1953, in a match against Portsmouth, however he was not a regular starter at the club, primarily acting as a backup to Frank Brennan and Bobby Cowell.[5] Despite only playing 10 matches overall for the club, he was part of the club's 1954–55 FA Cup winning side, only missing the final after suffering an eye injury in a match against Fulham.[6] At the end of the 1955–56 season he was sold to Third Division South side Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic for £2000, becoming the club's record signing.[1][3]

In his first season at Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic, he was part of another notable FA Cup run, this time seeing his side beat the likes of Wolverhampton Wanderers and Tottenham Hotspur, before being eliminated by Manchester United in the sixth round, following a controversial penalty call.[5] In total, he made 161 appearances for Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic.[3]

In March 1962, he returned to Northampton Town in a swap deal for winger Ron Spelman.[5][3] He made 31 appearances for them,[2] helping them win the 1962–63 Third Division in his final season at the club,[5] before returning to Bermuda,where he worked for Butterfield Bank while continuing to play football for the Bermuda Athletic Association until his retirement in 1967.[3]

International career

In 1964, Woollard played in the first ever Bermuda national team match, being a 4–3 defeat against Iceland in Reykjavík.[1]

Personal life and death

Wollard had five siblings, including two brothers and three sisters.[2] In 1988, he moved back to England after spending 25 years in Bermuda.[3] In 2006, he was inducted into the Bermuda Sports Hall of Fame.[1]

Wollard died in October 2023, at the age of 93. He is survived by his wife.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "2006 Bermuda Sports Hall of Fame". islandstats.com. 12 August 2006. Retrieved 10 July 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 "Bermuda's 'forgotten' soccer star". Newcastle United F.C. 24 June 2009. Retrieved 10 July 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Bell, Jonathan (1 November 2023). "Arnold Woollard (1930-2023): island's first professional footballer". The Royal Gazette. Retrieved 10 July 2026.
  4. ↑ "Arnold Woollard - Players - The Posh Supporters Trust". www.theposhtrust.co.uk. Retrieved 10 July 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Scott, Kenneth H. "Arnold James Woollard". toon1892.com. Retrieved 10 July 2026.
  6. ↑ Thompson, Colin (18 February 2013). "Nahki's cup run thrills first pro Woollard". The Royal Gazette. Retrieved 10 July 2026.
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