Born in Hackney and raised in Plaistow, Goulden progressed rapidly
as a teenager, winning selection for England schoolboys in 1926 and
joining the Hammers as an amateur five years later. As was then the
custom, he was farmed out to gain experience with local non-league
clubs, in his case Chelmsford and Leyton, before turning professional
at Upton Park in the spring of 1933. So eyecatching was Goulden's
talent that he was pitchforked immediately into senior action,
emerging as his team's star performer for the remainder of the decade.
Yet despite Goulden's frequently brilliant efforts, West Ham failed
to gain promotion, and his only club honour was a Football League
wartime cup medal, received for his part in victory over Blackburn
Rovers at Wembley in 1940. There was stirring consolation in his
country's colours, beginning with a scoring debut in the 6-0 thrashing
of Norway in Oslo in 1937 and ending prematurely with the outbreak of
war in 1939.
After the hostilities, during which he served in the police force,
Goulden realised, then 33, that if he was to sample life in the First
Division he would have to forsake the Hammers. Accordingly in 1945 he
joined Chelsea in a £5,000 deal.
At Stamford Bridge, Goulden spent five largely fulfilling seasons,
including a two-year stint fashioning bullets for the great
centre-forward Tommy Lawton to fire and a later productive spell as a
wing-half. Sadly, though, his trophy cabinet remained devoid of
medals, the nearest he came to glory being an FA Cup semi-final defeat
by Arsenal in 1950.
That year Goulden retired as a player, joining the Chelsea coaching
staff before becoming boss of Watford in 1952. Alas, despite guiding
the Hornets to fourth place in the Third Division (South) in 1954, he
proved too easy going for management and was dismissed in 1956. There
followed three years as a sub post master before a three-season return
to Watford as part-time coach, two years passing on his knowledge in
Libya and a spell in charge of non-league Banbury Town. A final
coaching post with Oxford Utd in 1969 signalled his farewell to the
game. Thereafter he worked on a United States Air Force base in
Northamptonshire before retiring to Cornwall. Goulden, whose son Roy
played briefly for Arsenal and Southend Utd, will be remembered as one
of England's most cultured schemers and a humourous, immensely popular
man. - The Independent Obituary
England
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