Quick Facts
Biography
Barry Nicholson (born 24 August 1978 in Dumfries, Scotland) is a Scottish former professional footballer, who played as a midfielder. He is currently in charge of Fleetwood Town's development squad. He started his professional career with Rangers and went on to play over 100 games for each of Dunfermline Athletic, Aberdeen and Preston North End. He then played for Fleetwood Town before finishing his career at Kilmarnock. Nicholson earned three full caps for Scotland, all won during his time with Dunfermline.
Club career
Early years
As a boy, Nicholson was a supporter who watched home town club Queen of the South with his father. From playing youth football in Dumfries, he then joined Rangers. Limited appearances in Rangers' first team saw him move on in 2000. He scored once for Rangers, in a Champions League qualifier against FC Haka in 1999.
Dunfermline Athletic
Nicholson joined Dunfermline Athletic under the helm of Jimmy Calderwood and was first team regular in what was the Pars most successful period for a considerable period of time. 2002–03 in Scottish football saw them finish 5th. The following season, Dunfermline did even better by finishing in fourth place as well as reaching the 2004 Scottish Cup Final, which also saw them qualify for a UEFA competition for the first time since 1970.
Aberdeen
Nicholson's performances at East End Park saw him signed by Aberdeen for a fee of £250,000 in July 2005 and re-joined former boss Calderwood who had since moved to Pittodrie. The move paid dividends as his strong performances towards the end of the 2006–07 season saw him score vital goals. The most notable of these goals was the last minute equaliser against Hearts, which all but clinched third place for Aberdeen, with only two matches of the season left at that stage.
In season 2006/07, the club finished in third place in the league and thus qualified for the 2007-08 UEFA Cup from which the Dons qualified from their group after a 4–0 win against F.C. Copenhagen. The Dons in the next round were twice ahead at home against Bayern Munich before drawing 2–2. The Bavarians won the return leg comfortably.
In October 2007, Nicholson scored the first hat-trick of his career, by scoring three goals against Inverness Caledonian Thistle in the quarter finals of the CIS Cup, with two of these goals being penalties.
Nicholson scored the 2nd goal for Aberdeen against Queen of the South in the 2007/08 Scottish Cup semi finals. Queens won the 7 goal thriller 4–3 to make it to the final for the first in their history. He later magnanimously said, "I think that they were the better team and deserved to go through."
Preston North End
On 30 June 2008, Nicholson signed a two-year contract with an option of a third year on a free transfer for Preston North End, subject to passing a medical.
Nicholson scored his first goal for Preston in a 2–0 preseason friendly away to Chorley. On 22 August 2009, Nicholson sustained a suspected broken leg in the Championship game versus Peterborough United. Nicholson returned from injury for the final game of the 2009-10 season only to limp off the field within 15 minutes suffering from an injury to the same leg. Nicholson returned to the side in January 2011 playing regularly for the remainder of the season. Nicholson was released by Preston at the end of the 2011-12 season.
Later career
Nicholson signed for Fleetwood Town for the 2012-13 season. He then moved to Kilmarnock in August 2013 on a short term contract. On 24 August 2014, he scored his first goal for the club in a 2–1 defeat against Hibernian. In January 2014, Nicholson's contract was extended until the end of the season.
At the end of the 2013–14 season, Nicholson retired from playing and is currently the development manager at Fleetwood Town.
International career
Nicholson has won three caps for Scotland, the first being in the friendly draw with Poland in April 2001 while the last one was in the friendly defeat to Sweden in November 2004.
| # | Date | Opponent | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 April 2001 |  Poland | Poland 1–1 Scotland | Friendly match |
| 2 | 6 October 2001 |  Latvia | Scotland 2–1 Latvia | World Cup qualifier |
| 3 | 17 November 2004 |  Sweden | Scotland 1–4 Sweden | Friendly match |
Honours
- Dunfermline Athletic – 2004 Scottish Cup finalist