Nick Henry (born 21 February 1969) is an English former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

and spent most of his career at

Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional association football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. As of the 2025–26 EFL League Two, 2025–26 season, the team competes in EFL League Two, the fourth level of the Eng ...

Career

Oldham Athletic

Henry was born in

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

, England. He started his professional career with

after coming up through their youth academy. He made his debut in the 1986–87 season under

Joe Royle Joseph Royle (born 8 April 1949) is an English football manager and former footballer. In his playing career as a striker, he debuted for Everton at the age of 16 and went on to play for Manchester City, Bristol City, Norwich City, and the E ...

. He played a major part in the club's most successful period, including the 1989–90 cup runs, reaching the final of the League Cup and the semi-final of the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

, with Henry famously scoring in the 3–1 League Cup victory over Arsenal. He again played a major part in the club's promotion to the top flight the following season, and a year later he scored on the opening day of the brand new Premier League, in a 1–1 draw against Chelsea in 1992. In ten years at the club he made 273 league appearances, scoring 19 goals. During Oldham's

1989–90 FA Cup The 1989–90 FA Cup was the 109th season of the world's oldest football knockout competition, The Football Association Challenge Cup, or FA Cup for short. The competition started in September 1989 with the Preliminary Round and continued through ...

run, Henry was at the centre of a little-noticed incident which may have changed the course of footballing history. During the FA Cup semi-final replay against

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

, with the scores level, Henry's long range shot cannoned against the cross-bar and appeared, from television pictures, to have crossed the goal line before bouncing back out into play. No goal was given, and Manchester United went on to win the tie with a goal from

Mark Robins Mark Gordon Robins (born 22 December 1969) is an English football manager and former player who is the manager of club Stoke City. As a player, he was a striker and is best known for his time in the Premier League with Manchester United, Norw ...

Sheffield United

On 28 February 1997, Nick Henry earned a £500,000 move to

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...

. His debut came on 7 March 1997 against

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It is the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. The town's population was 71,422 in 2021, while the wider boroug ...

. The following season (1997–98) he only made one appearance against

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Charlton, south-east London, England. The team compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Their home ground is ...

. Henry went on to making only 21 appearances for the club, failing to score any goals, and towards the end of his

Bramall Lane Bramall Lane is a association football, football stadium in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which is the home of Sheffield United F.C., Sheffield United. The stadium was originally a cricket ground, built on a road named after the Bramall ...

spell he was loaned out to

Walsall F.C. Walsall Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Walsall, West Midlands, England. The team competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. The club's nickname, "The Saddlers", reflec ...

for two months at the end of the season, where despite failing to score any goals he helped contribute to the Black Country side winning promotion with six wins in his eight appearances.

Tranmere Rovers

Henry moved on to

Tranmere Rovers Tranmere Rovers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ...

in the Summer of 1999 where he spent a couple of years in the first team, making 89 appearances and playing in the 2000 Football League Cup Final, the second League Cup Final of his career, 10 years after the first. Earlier that season he scored the winning goal as Tranmere memorably beat

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

side

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

1–0 in the

Scarborough

On 12 July 2002, Henry joined

Scarborough F.C. Scarborough Football Club was a football club based in the seaside resort of Scarborough, North Yorkshire. They were one of the oldest football clubs in England, formed in 1879, before they were wound up on 20 June 2007, with debts of £2.5&nb ...

on a free transfer. On 17 August he got sent off on his Scarborough debut in the 1–1 draw at

Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third level of the English football league system. The club moved its home g ...

. He went on to make 24 appearances (two as sub) for Scarborough, scoring two goals. He later managed the club, before being sacked after a run of poor results.

Honours

Tranmere Rovers *

Football League Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

runner-up: 1999–2000

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Henry, Nick 1969 births Living people English men's footballers Footballers from Liverpool Men's association football midfielders Premier League players Oldham Athletic A.F.C. players Sheffield United F.C. players Walsall F.C. players Tranmere Rovers F.C. players Scarborough F.C. players English football managers Scarborough F.C. managers