Chris Nicholl - he will be remembered with respect and affection
THERE is sadness today in Grimsby - as elsewhere in the football world - at the death last Friday of Chris Nicholl.
Aged 77, a former player and assistant manager at Blundell Park, Nicholl made 70 appearances for the Mariners as centre-back after signing from Southampton in July 1983.
Previously, he had been a stalwart at Aston Villa where he was part of the side that won the Football League in 1975 and 1977.
In one First Division match against Leicester City, he scored all four goals (two of them own goals) in a 2-2 draw!
He also had playing spells at Witton Albion, Halifax Town and Luton and made 51 appearances for Northern Ireland.
After a year at Grimsby, as assistant boss to Dave Booth, he returned to Southampton in succession to Lawrie McMenemy and influenced the early careers of Alan Shearer and Matt Le Tissier, but was sacked at the end of the 1990-91 disease.
He later enjoyed a successful spell as manager at Walsall but left football in 2002.
In recent years, he had required care for dementia which he attributed to brain damage caused by frequent heading of the ball.
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