A true Boro’ stalwart if ever there was one, defensive rock Richard Nugent saw action at Broadhall Way in three different spells with the club. And such was his love for us that he even gave his son, Ben, to follow in his footsteps later down the line. Is that love? We do believe so. But that’s not to belittle his own achievements on the pitch for us. And of them there were many to speak about.
Nugent made his Boro’ debut at the age of 20 in an Eastern Floodlit League match away to Harlow. He saw an increasing amount of action towards the end of the 1985-6 season and into the next season, before moving on in September 1986. He was away from us for three years, but we wasted no time in bringing him back in 1989 on loan from Barnet. But it wasn’t until 1993 when Nuge came home for good. Well, not for “good” – but you know what we mean.
In his third spell with the club, he was part of the dominant Boro’ side under Cloughie that won the Diadora League Premier Division. In doing so, it was up to the Conference and a stage that suited the defender just as well. He helped steer us through the choppy waters of our first few months at that level, before setting us on the path to glory in 1995-6 with a number of important appearances in the first half of the season. He wasn’t around to help lift the trophy, however, as he’d already made tracks for Yeovil.
