Bob McNicol
Scottish footballer (1933–1980) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Robert Hugh McNicol[a] (13 February 1933 – 25 April 1980) was a Scottish professional footballer who played as a full back. He made 56 Scottish League appearances for Stirling Albion and 228 in the English Football League playing for Accrington Stanley, Brighton & Hove Albion and Carlisle United.[1][3]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Robert Hugh McNicol[a] | ||
| Date of birth | 13 February 1933[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Cumbernauld, Scotland | ||
| Date of death | 25 April 1980 (aged 47)[1] | ||
| Place of death | Tenerife,[1] Spain | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Full back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Vale of Leven Academy FP | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Vale of Leven | |||
| 1953–1956 | Stirling Albion | 56 | (1) |
| 1956–1959 | Accrington Stanley | 134 | (5) |
| 1959–1962 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 93 | (0) |
| 1962–1963 | Gravesend & Northfleet | ||
| 1963–1964 | Carlisle United | 1 | (0) |
| 1964–19?? | Stalybridge Celtic | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
McNicol was born in 1933 in Cumbernauld, Scotland,[2] and attended Vale of Leven Academy.[4] He went on to train as a carpenter and played football for his school's Former Pupils team, from where he joined junior club Vale of Leven. He was a member of their team that won the 1952–53 Scottish Junior Cup;[5][6] the match programme described him as "a strong, resolute defender who has a senior future if desired".[4] His senior future began forthwith: he joined Stirling Albion for the 1953–54 Division One season, and made 56 appearances in the top flight while completing his National Service obligations with the RAF.[3][2]
After three years, McNicol moved to England to join Accrington Stanley of the Third Division North. He made 147 consecutive appearances in league and cups, a run ended when he broke a toe while playing in goal.[2] He signed for Third Division club Brighton & Hove Albion in June 1956, but despite making 99 appearances in all competitions, he failed to settle, twice submitted transfer requests, and was eventually allowed to leave on a free transfer in July 1962. He helped Gravesend & Northfleet of the Southern League reach the fourth round of the 1962–63 FA Cup, in which they were eliminated by Sunderland only after a replay. He attempted a return to the Football League with Carlisle United, but appeared only once, and ended his football career with Stalybridge Celtic.[2]
He became a newsagent, and later worked in the family haulage business.[2] In 1980, McNicol and members of his family died in the Dan-Air Flight 1008 crash in Tenerife.[5][2]
- Some recent database sources, including Hugman's Football League Player Records and related sources such as Neil Brown's site and the ENFA website,[b][c][d] spell the surname McNichol. However, contemporary sources including the match programme for the 1953 Scottish Junior Cup Final,[e] the Glasgow Herald's match report,[f] and multiple newspaper reports of the player's career, have McNicol without an "h", as do other recent sources such as Carder and Harris's Albion A–Z.[g] That spelling is supported by primary sources, including death and probate records.[h][i]
- "Player search". English National Football Archive. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
- "Results for Civil Deaths & Burials in Birth, Marriage, Death & Parish Records: Robert Mcnichol 1980". Findmypast. Retrieved 21 September 2018.
- "Wills and Probate 1858–1996: Mcnichol 1981". Probate Service. Retrieved 21 September 2018.
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