*Indicates unconfirmed information. Figures in brackets after English team names indicate all appearances made and goals scored in competitive matches for Football League clubs from 1888 onwards. For Scottish League clubs the figures show details of all competitive appearances and goals scored from 1946/47 onwards.
Nicky Forster
Appearances: 1 Goals: 1
Date / Year of birth: 8th September 1973
Position: Striker
Season of first appearance: 1991/92
Season of last appearance: 1991/92
Also played for: Horley Town, Gillingham (63+15,26), Hythe Town, Brentford (146+16,48), Birmingham City (29+46,12), Reading (179+35,67), Ipswich Town (22+3,8), Hull City (27+10,6), Brighton & Hove Albion (107+12,51), Charlton Athletic (8+2,2), Lingfield Town and Dover Athletic
5' 9" tall striker born in Caterham who started his senior career with Dan-Air League side Horley.
In December 1991 Nicky was signed by Gillingham on a youth contract and became a regular in the club's Under-18's side. On 2.2.92 he got the Gills' goal in a 3-1 defeat against Margate Under-18's and at the end of March 1992 Nicky joined Margate on loan along with team-mate Paul Golden.
He made his debut in a Southern League match at Newport IOW on 28.3.92 and scored the only goal of the game with a clever lob after just three minutes. It was Nicky's only appearance for Margate and the very next day he played for Gillingham's Under-18's against Margate and scored the only goal of the game for the Gills.
Just before the end of the 1991/92 season Nicky had another taste of Southern League football when Gillingham loaned him to Hythe.
In May 1992 the Gills gave Nicky a full-time contract and on 1.9.92 he made his first team debut when he came on as a substitute in a 4-1 win over Wrexham at Priestfield. He was the Gills' top scorer with 18 goals during 1993/94 and in total Nicky scored 26 goals in 78 appearances (15 as sub) before Brentford paid £320,000 for him in June 1994.
The 1994/95 campaign was an excellent one for Nicky as he played for England's Under-21 side and was selected in the PFA's Division 2 team of the season. He'd scored 47 goals in 136 games (two as sub) for Brentford when Birmingham signed him for £700,000 in January 1997.
Nicky managed 12 goals in 75 appearances (46 as sub) for Birmingham before £650,000 took him to Reading in June 1999.
Nicky's time with the Royals was very successful and he scored 67 goals in 214 appearances (35 as sub) for them up to the end of the 2004/05 season.
In June 2005 he left Reading to join Ipswich on a free transfer and scored on his debut for the Tractor Boys - a 1-0 win over Cardiff at Portman Road on 6.8.05. He went on to score eight goals during 2005/06.
In August 2006 Nicky was on the move again as Hull bought him for £250,000 and he made 37 appearances (ten as sub) there during the 2006/07 campaign, scoring six goals.
In the summer of 2007 he joined Brighton for £75,000 and scored 19 goals for the Seagulls during 2007/08 before adding another 16 in the 2008/09 campaign.
He stayed with Brighton for the 2009/10 season but in March 2010 the club loaned him to fellow League One club Charlton. Nicky joined a squad featuring former Margate players Akpo and Sam Sodje and scored twice in ten appearances (two as sub) in a spell that ended in May 2010 when the Addicks lost in the play-off semi-final to Swindon.
He rejoined Brentford for the 2010/11 campaign and at the start of February 2011 Nicky became the club's caretaker player-manager. Despite leading the Bees to a mid-table finish and the Football League Trophy final Nicky was told he wouldn't be considered for the permanent manager's job and in May 2011 he left the club and announced his retirement as a player. He'd scored 220 goals in 720 appearances in a professional career spanning almost 20 years.
In June 2011 Nicky's stepson Jake Forster-Caskey played for England in the Under-17's World Cup in Mexico. He was on Brighton's books at that time.
Later in the summer of 2011 Nicky took up a scouting role with Swindon to help search out talent for their new manager Paolo Di Canio.
In August 2011 Nicky came out of his brief retirement to play for Sussex County League side Lingfield, he also helped out with coaching at the club. He told the Surrey Mirror "I always said I'd come back and play my last season of football locally. Lingfield are my local club and with the coaching as well I like to think I'm doing my bit and giving something back to local football." Nicky made his debut in an FA Cup tie at Hailsham on 20.8.11 and scored twice in a 4-0 win. He made eight more appearances for Lingfield over the next few weeks and scored at least once in every one of them. He'd notched up 15 goals in only nine games when he was appointed as Conference South club Dover's new manager on 27.9.11.
Nicky didn't play for Dover during the remainder of the 2011/12 season but he registered himself as a player ahead of the 2012/13 campaign, intending to turn out when necessary. On 7.7.12 he made his first appearance as a Dover player in a friendly at Deal and scored twice before going off at half-time in a 6-1 win. Nicky then featured regularly, usually as a substitute, in Dover's competitive matches at the start of 2012/13.
In January 2013 he was placed on 'gardening leave' after Dover suffered five successive defeats although at the time the club were third in the Conference South table. Soon afterwards Dover appointed Margate's Chris Kinnear as Nicky's replacement.
In March 2013 Nicky rejoined Lingfield as a player and scored a hat-trick in his first outing - a 4-1 win at Dorking Wanderers on 19.3.13. He went on to bag ten goals from his first six appearances.
Nicky also played for Lingfield during the first few weeks of the 2013/14 campaign and started the season with a hat-trick in a 3-1 win at Hailsham on 10.8.13. He managed five goals from six appearances before leaving the club towards the end of September 2013.
|
SEASON (CLUB) |
FULL (MAX) |
SUB |
GLS |
FAC |
FAT |
SLC |
KSC |
| |
|
1991/92 (MFC) |
1 (52) |
0 |
1 |
SOUTHERN LEAGUE SOUTHERN DIV. (14TH OF 22) |
1QR |
3QR |
1R |
1R |