Ken Nicholas

Ken Nicholas

Personal information
Full name	Kenneth William Nicholas
Date of birth	(1938-02-03)3 February 1938
Place of birth	Northampton, England
Date of death
Position(s)	Full back
Youth career
1955	Arsenal
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1955–1959	Arsenal	0	(0)
1959–1965	Watford	198	(4)
1965–1966	Guildford City
1966–1968	Hastings United
	Tonbridge
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Kenneth William Nicholas (3 February 1938 – 24 March 2007) was an English sportsman, best known for his football career. After playing both football and rugby for his country at schoolboy level, Nicholas became a professional footballer, playing in England as a full back for Arsenal, Watford, Guildford City, Hastings United and Tonbridge, before finishing his career in Portuguese football.

Career

Born in Northampton, Nicholas represented England's schoolboy and youth football teams, as well as its rugby schoolboys team. He joined Football League First Division side Arsenal in 1955, but was unable to break into the team, and joined Fourth Division Watford on a free transfer in 1959. By contrast to his time at Arsenal, Nicholas immediately became a first-choice starter in Watford's team, under the management of Ron Burgess. In 1959–60, his first season at Watford, Nicholas helped Watford gain promotion to the Third Division for the first time in their history. Nicholas continued to play regularly over the following five seasons; at the end of his Watford career he had made 219 appearances in all competitions under 3 different managers.

Ken Furphy, a full back himself, became Watford player-manager in November 1964, and the 1964–65 season proved to be Nicholas's last at Vicarage Road. At the end of the season he joined Southern League side Guildford City. The following year he moved to Hastings United, and after a spell at Tonbridge, Nicholas moved to the Algarve in Portugal, where he finished his career.

Nicholas died on 24 March 2007, after a long illness.