Stuart Nicholson

Stuart Nicholson
Personal information
Full nameStuart Ian Nicholson
Date of birth3 February 1987
Place of birthNewcastle upon Tyne, England
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Playing positionStriker
Club information
Current team
Preston Lions FC
Youth career
West Bromwich Albion
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2005–2008West Bromwich Albion9(4)
2006–2007Bristol Rovers (loan)10(2)
2007Bristol Rovers (loan)12(8)
2007Shrewsbury Town (loan)14(1)
2008→Wrexham (loan)13(0)
2008–2009Newcastle Blue Star5(5)
2009Tamworth7(4)
2009AFC Telford United (loan)1(0)
2009–2010West Allotment Celtic5(8)
2010Sunshine George Cross9(3)
2010Northcote City8(1)
2010Birtley Town7(9)
2010–2011Hebburn Town7(9)
2011Bentleigh Greens11(3)
2012–Moreland Zebras9(2)
National team
England U19
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 15:56, 2 January 2011 (UTC).

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 16:30, December 12, 2009 (UTC)

Stuart Ian Nicholson (born 3 February 1987 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England) is a former professional footballer, currently playing for Preston Lions FC.

Stuart was also a former England Under-19 international.[1]

Career

West Bromwich Albion

Nicholson, made his debut for West Bromwich Albion on 17 January 2006, coming on as an extra-time substitute in a 3–2 FA Cup defeat away at Reading. He made his Premiership debut four days later in the 1–0 loss against Sunderland at The Hawthorns, when he replaced Nathan Ellington, whom he describes as his childhood hero.[2] He won the West Bromwich Albion Young Player of the Year award for 2005–06 and earned the nickname "The Knife" for his sharpness in front of goal.[3] He was given a place in the first team squad for the 2006-07 season, and marked his first start with a goal against Leyton Orient on 24 August in the first round of the League Cup.

Bristol Rovers

Nicholson joined Bristol Rovers on loan in November 2006. Unusually for someone born in the north-east of England, he has been a fan of the club since being given a Bristol Rovers shirt as a present when he was 14.[2] The loan was due to last three months, but Nicholson was recalled four weeks early by West Brom,[4] before returning to Bristol Rovers for a second loan spell during the same season.[5]

He scored a brace on 17 March 2007 against Notts County and followed it up with the winner against Stockport County on 20 March, both games at the Memorial Stadium. A stomach injury then kept him out of the team, and his loan spell was cut short in April when he returned to West Brom to have a hernia operation.[6]

Shrewsbury Town

In August 2007 Nicholson joined Shrewsbury Town on a scheduled season-long loan.[7] However, by December he had found the net just once for the Shrews in 14 league appearances. On 18 December it was announced that he had returned to Albion due to an ongoing "personal problem", with his loan spell at Shrewsbury set to be officially ended in January.[8]

Wrexham

On 18 January 2008 Nicholson joined Wrexham on a three-month loan deal.[9] In April Albion confirmed that they would release the player in the summer when his existing contract expires.[1]

Newcastle Blue Star

He signed with Newcastle Blue Star in August 2008.[10]

On 7 November Nicholson joined A.F.C. Bournemouth on a week's trial,Bournemouth could not meet the asking price having been made available for transfer by Newcastle Blue Star after making five substitute appearances scoring in all up to that point in the 2008–09 season.[11] After having been released by Blue Star midway through the 2008–09 season, Nicholson trained with Blyth Spartans[12]

Tamworth

Nicholson's next move was a return to the midlands to team up with Conference North side Tamworth in January, 2009. Stuart made his debut for Tamworth on 27 January 2009 against King's Lynn in a home Conference North fixture in a year that Tamworth won promotion to the Conference National. On 11 September 2009 Nicholson joined AFC Telford United of the Conference North on a one-month loan.

Preston Lions FC

Preston Lions FC has signed former West Bromwich Albion striker Stuart Nicholson for the 2015 Victorian State League 1 NW season. Stuart comes across from Moreland Zebras where he spent two years and it is the first new summer signing for coach Andy O’Dell, who says the addition of the pacey striker as ‘an excellent opportunity both for player and club’.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Nicholson to leave Baggies". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 9 April 2008. Retrieved 9 April 2008.
  2. 2.0 2.1 "How Stuart became hooked on Gas". bristolrovers.co.uk. 15 November 2006. Retrieved 7 May 2007.
  3. "It's Nich the Knife!". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 25 September 2006. Retrieved 9 August 2008.
  4. "West Brom recall Pirates loanee". BBC Sport. 19 January 2007. Retrieved 7 May 2007.
  5. "Nicholson is high on Gas". bristolrovers.co.uk. 1 February 2007. Retrieved 7 May 2007.
  6. "Nicholson ends Rovers loan spell". BBC Sport. 26 April 2007. Retrieved 7 May 2007.
  7. "Nicholson joins Shrewsbury on loan". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 16 August 2007. Retrieved 16 August 2007.
  8. "Nicholson sent back to West Brom". BBC Sport. 18 December 2007. Retrieved 22 December 2007.
  9. "Quartet join Wrexham with one out". BBC Sport. 18 January 2008. Retrieved 18 January 2008.
  10. "Starring role for ace Stuart Nicholson". Evening Chronicle (England). 29 August 2008. Retrieved 2 September 2008.
  11. "Blue Star primed to face Cup shock troops". Evening Chronicle. 14 November 2008. Retrieved 15 November 2008.
  12. "Dunn gathers his troops for injury-hit Blyth". Chronicle Live (ncjMedia). 31 December 2008. Retrieved 16 January 2009.

External links