Full name Arthur Richard Cullum | Playing position Name Dick Cullum | |
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Date of birth (1931-01-28)28 January 1931 Date of death 9 April 2012(2012-04-09) (aged 81) Place of death Hemel Hempstead, England | ||
Place of birth Colchester, England | ||
Arthur Richard "Dick" Cullum (28 January 1931 – 9 April 2012) was an English footballer who played in the Football League as a forward for Colchester United.
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Career
Born in Colchester, Cullum signed for hometown club Colchester United from amateur football as a youth. He made his first team debut for Colchester aged 20 on 26 March 1951, Colchester's first season in the Football League. He scored on his debut in the 4–1 defeat to Torquay United. He made one further first team appearance for Colchester on 23 January 1954 in a 3–0 away defeat to Aldershot. He played for Sittingbourne after leaving Colchester.
Cullum, nicknamed the Mudlark was a prolific goalscorer in the Colts, Colchester A team and Colchester Reserves, always citing that his slim build as a centre forward and inside right in an aggressive game kept him from more first team games.
Newspaper cutting from the Essex County Standard states.. The year was 1948. Colchester United Colts had an outstanding season in the Ipswich & district League, and had they succeeded in completing their fixtures they would probably occupied second position. As it was they finished third - a highly creditable performance for such a young team.
In all matches including cup runs their record was:
Played 34, won 26, drawn 2, lost 6, goals for 173, against 48. Of this total, young centre forward Dick Cullum claimed a staggering 92 goals. Cullum captained the Reserves while still only 17.
November 1951: Five goals for Cullum
Because Colchester Reserves were without a match on Saturday, Dick Cullum, their centre forward, turned out for the A team. he had a field day, leading the side in dashing style, he scored five goals in a game Colchester won 8-1.
Also from the 1951 season: Dick Cullum is our brightest starlet
Hillman and Cullum were a delightful wind duo as Colchester UnIted drew 2-2 with West Ham A. Cullum’s recent form proves that his consideration for a first team place may come sooner rather than most of us anticipated. Young Dick has a racy style, and also possesses the vital qualities of accuracy and p[erseberance which have been sadly lacking in the first team just lately. What is more this lad can shoot hard and true!
As for the match, Moore scored Colchester’s first goal from the penalty after John Bond had punched the ball into the net and the West Ham right back deflected a Vic Keeble shot into his own goal after a glorious cross from Cullum.
Personal life
Outside of the game, Cullum was apprenticed to Benham & Co in his hometown as a teenager (his Dad wouldn't let him sign full-time professional saying ‘no footballer has ever earned good money’. After becoming assistant works manager in his thirties he took a similar role next door at QB Printers, before setting up a typesetting business Wolf Composition in Watford in 1970. In later working life, he was managing director of another typesetting business, Santype International in Salisbury, building it to be the largest technical typesetting company in the country. He died aged 81 on 9 April 2012. He had three sons, Steven, Gary and Dale.