‘I loved him to bits’: Gerry Armstrong pays tribute to former team-mate Chris Nicholl

Former Northern Ireland defender Chris Nicholl has passed away at the age of 77

Northern Ireland legend Gerry Armstrong has paid a warm tribute to former international team-mate and fellow World Cup hero Chris Nicholl who has passed away at the age of 77.

Nicholl played 51 times for Northern Ireland and was one of the stars of Billy Bingham’s legendary 1982 World Cup side.

The centre-back also had a brilliant club career, most notably with Aston Villa and Southampton where he was a fan favourite for both clubs. He also played for Halifax, Luton and Grimsby.

In 1975 and 1977 he won the League Cup with Villa, captaining the team to glory in the latter success and scoring a stunning goal in a 3-2 victory in the second replay of the final against Everton. Famously he scored all four goals in a game between Villa and Leicester in 1976 that ended 2-2.

Later, Nicholl, who had been living with dementia prior to his death, would manage the Saints, where he brought Alan Shearer and Matt le Tissier through to the first team, and was a successful boss at Walsall before taking charge of the Northern Ireland Under-21 side, giving opportunities to the likes of David Healy, Damien Johnson and Roy Carroll.

Armstrong told the Belfast Telegraph: “I loved Chris to bits. He was the consummate professional and a lovely and special man.

“He was always consistent and hugely respected by all the Northern Ireland players.

“I’ve been in touch with a lot of the boys from the 1982 squad, including his great friend and room-mate John O’Neill, David McCreery, Jimmy Nicholl, Billy Hamilton, Sammy McIlroy, Pat Jennings, Jim Cleary, Felix Healy and John McClelland, who said what a big help Chris was to him in international football, and they were all