George Goss
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | George William Semple Goss[1] | ||
Date of birth | 29 June 1893 | ||
Place of birth | Marchwood, Hampshire, England | ||
Date of death | 22 May 1967 | (aged 73)||
Place of death | Westminster, London, England | ||
Managerial career | |||
Years | Team | ||
1936–1937 | Southampton |
George William Semple Goss (29 June 1893 – 22 May 1967) was a naval officer and football manager, who was manager of Southampton F.C. for the 1936–37 season.[2]
Family
George Goss was born in Marchwood, Hampshire on 29 June 1893,[1] the son of William and Charlotte (Semple) Goss. He was baptised at St. John's Church, Marchwood on 6 August 1893.[3]
On 25 May 1921, at St Michael's Church, Pimlico, London, 27-year old George Goss married 25-year old Lucy World.[4]
Goss enlisted in the Royal Navy on 25 May 1909, shortly before his 16th birthday, signing on for 12 years' service on his 18th birthday, 29 June 1911.[1] He served throughout the First World War, eventually retiring from the Royal Navy on 7 December 1921 with the rank of Petty Officer.[1]
He played football for the naval side between 1916 and 1921.[2]
Southampton FC
On leaving the navy, he joined the staff of Southampton F.C. as assistant secretary to Ernest Arnfield, taking over as secretary on Arnfield's retirement.[2]
Following
In June 1936, the club was suffering severe financial difficulties, and the entire board of directors resigned. The new board of directors asked manager George Kay to leave in order to trim the payroll,[8] and in August, Kay moved on to Liverpool, taking long-serving trainer Bert Shelley with him.[8] Goss then combined the roles of secretary and manager, with club captain Johnny McIlwaine taking on the role of assistant manager.[2][9]
Following the upheavals in the boardroom, the club was able to raise sufficient finances to purchase new players, most prominent of whom was the former Irish international forward Jimmy Dunne who was signed from Arsenal[10] for a reported fee of £1,000.[citation needed]
The 1936–37 season was not an outstanding success and Saints struggled to avoid relegation from Division 2.[8] On 16 January 1937, Saints played Sunderland in a first round FA Cup tie. Although Saints lost 2–3, this game was attended by a crowd of 30,380 which remained an all-time record attendance at The Dell.[11]
By March, Goss and McIlwaine were feeling the pressure and Goss resigned his position as manager and in March 1937 was replaced by former Saints and Arsenal player Tom Parker.[2]
Later life
At the end of the 1936–37 season, Goss left the club completely, after over 13 years service, initially to run the Railway Hotel in
He returned to England in 1959 and died in Westminster, London on 22 May 1967.[13]
References
- ^ a b c d "Goss, George William Semple ADM 188/655/4411". The National Archives. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
- ^ ISBN 0-907969-22-4.
- ^ "Hampshire, England, Church of England Baptisms, 1813-1921". Ancestry.co.uk. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
- ^ "Westminster, London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1935". Ancestry.co.uk. Retrieved 17 June 2023.
- ISBN 0-907969-22-4.
- ISBN 0-907969-22-4.
- ISBN 0-9534474-1-3.
- ^ ISBN 0-907969-22-4.
- ^ "World of Sport". Portsmouth Evening News. Via British Newspaper Archive. 20 August 1936. p. 8. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
- ISBN 978-0-9926-8640-6.
- ISBN 0-9534474-1-3.
- ^ "UK, Navy Lists, 1888–1970". Ancestrry.co.uk. Retrieved 17 June 2023.
- ^ "England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007". Ancestry,co,uk. Retrieved 17 June 2023.