I'm an ex-City star who scored 340 goals in ONE season, but now I've got a chippy
IMAGINE scoring 289 goals in 40 league games – an average of 7.2 goals per game – and 340 in all competitions in just one season!
Incredibly, those were the astonishing goalscoring figures of former Manchester City frontman Paul Moulden when he played for the all-conquering Bolton Lads Club at the age of 14 in the 1981-82 season.
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This feat earned him a place in the Guinness Book of Records.
They are the kind of goals that would even put current City striker Erling Haaland in the shade.
When Moulden joined 'his' club Manchester City in 1984, he played in the side that won the FA Youth Cup in 1986, scoring nine goals on the way to their success.
Now 56, he recalls: “Before I joined City, Blackburn, Bolton, Manchester United, Leeds, Everton and Arsenal were all desperate to sign me. It was very flattering.”
He was even invited to Old Trafford when Dave Sexton was manager and had Sir Matt Busby meet him to clearly impress and lure the teenager.
Molden said: “There was something about United that I didn't like. My father, an ex-pro, told me to only join a club where I felt comfortable.”
He opted for his boyhood club instead, saying: 'As soon as I walked into City I knew this was it.
“I had three heroes growing up: Bolton striker Neil Whatmore and City idols Peter Barnes and Trevor Francis.”
He made his first-team debut for the club on New Year's Day 1986 at the age of 18 under Billy McNeill. Moulden said: “You never forget your debut. It was great to get those first minutes. It was at Aston Villa, a fantastic ground.”
He only played one more league match as a substitute in the 1985-1986 season.
But the teenager began to impress in the following campaign, scoring four in four games and quickly earning the nickname from City fans. . . Golden fungus.
He said: “I was impressed when my hero Barnsey returned for a second spell at City, so I was able to play for the same side. He was still a great player in the latter stages of his career.”
Moulden's best season was his last at Maine Road, when he scored seventeen goals in the 1988/89 season to help City win promotion back to the top flight, by which time he had fallen out with boss Mel Machin.
But even today he has no idea why Machin didn't like him.
He said: “For whatever reason I was in and out of the team which was mentally difficult for me.
“Then I was sold to Bournemouth in a deal that brought Ian Bishop to City.”
Unfortunately, what should have been a professional career shone in gold and goals were ruined by injuries, including FOUR broken legs and a broken back.
He played for eight clubs for twelve years, but was forced to retire in 1995 at the ridiculously young age of 29.
Moulden added: “It's a sad story about a whole series of injuries and misdiagnosis. The medical side of the game is chalk and cheese compared to when I played.
“I broke my leg three times FOR make my first-team debut.
“Of course I regret not being able to fulfill my potential. But looking back, I never rode long enough without injuries.
“I consider myself lucky to have had a football career at all. After I returned to Oldham from Bournemouth in 1990, the artificial pitch at Boundary Park caused huge problems for my ankle, so it was just another problem for me.
“After Oldham I played for five other clubs – including a spell in Norway for Molde – but I knew my time in the game would be short.
“It would be an excuse to say I was drinking and gambling, but that's just not the case. I just had a lot of bad luck.”
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He continued to be involved in the game, coaching at City's academy and also making a few appearances for Accrington during their non-league days.
But he then opened his own fish and chip shop in Bolton, just a stone's throw from the Bolton Lads Club where his goal-blitz and football journey had begun.
He ran Paul's Chippy – a thriving business – for 23 years before selling the franchise two years ago.
He said: “I have loved every moment of the company. Unfortunately, I had a brain hemorrhage a few years ago. I'm happy to report that I'm doing well now, but it was important to take a step back from day-to-day involvement.”
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Paul's youngest son Louie (below) played for City Under-18s and is now at Wolves, but is on loan at Northampton as a goalkeeper. He made his Cobblers league debut in their 1-1 home draw with Bolton last weekend and played in yesterday's 3-1 win against Bristol Rovers.
Moulden has two eldest sons: Joe is a coach at an American university and Ted is a kitman at Bolton.
And Paul said: “I'd like to think I've always been there for the boys.
“Louie is the last one still playing, but football has always been in the family blood and the gene has been passed on to the boys.”
LETHAL – The Extraordinary Life of Paul Moulden with David Clayton (Pitch Publishing, £22.99)
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