At the time John Arnold signed for the Saints in 1928 he was qualifying, by residence, as a professional cricketer for Hampshire and it was reputed that as soon as Arthur Chadwick, the Saints’ manager saw him play football he said

“I have a star here”.

A star he certainly became, as not only did he create a Saints record by scoring 21 goals from the left-wing in the 1931-32 season, but eventually he was to become a “double international” by representing his country at both football and cricket (1931) – one of only 12 men who have achieved this feat (CB Fry is another). Unfortunately for Saints’ fans his solitary England football cap was gained one month after leaving The Dell for Craven Cottage, in a double transfer with Mike Keeping, which cost Fulham £5,000 and kept Southampton financially afloat. Arnold himself would afterwards reflect on Southampton’s dire financial situation by joking “if they hadn’t sold me, they would have had to sell the lawn mower”.

The war ended his full-time footballing career
and he returned to the Southampton area, where he was involved in the fire service throughout the hostilities. He recommenced his cricket career after the war and, when retiring in 1950 through illness he had played 396 matches for his county, scoring 21,831 runs. He then spent 11 years as a first class umpire and also ran the Criterion Public House in St. Mary’s Rd from 1946 into to the early 50s. He maintained his lifelong interest in cricket and Hampshire CCC and was always on hand to pass on his expertise (see scrapbook section).