The Longside Reference

.Geoff Nulty, few players score on debut, let alone league debut, but Nulty did both!

Released by Stoke City after turning pro in the potteries, Geoff Nulty failed to make an impression, failed to make a first team appearance, but what was Stoke City's loss would be Burnley's gain.

With all the legends breaking through at Turf Moor, Geoff found breaking into the first team hard, he would make his first appearance for Burnley form the substitutes bench as a replacement for Dave Thomas a year after he signed for Burnley, he would repeat the feat once more before starting his first game, wearing the No8 shirt again deputising for Dave Thomas, this time in a League cup game at home to Rotherham United where Geoff got off the mark with the first goal in a 2-0 win in September 1969.

It would be a further month down the line before Geoff would be given his first League start, again at home this time to Manchester United, Best Charlton and co, but with Best scoring for United early doors, Nulty popped up with a 42nd minute equaliser, the match finished 1-1 and that goal and Frank Casper's injury gave Geoff a prolonged stay in the first team, wearing the No9 shirt .Geoff would play a further 3 games but it wasn't until late March where Nulty would be picked again, again wearing the No9 shirt against his former employees Stoke City, but there would be no fairytale, the game ended 1-1 with a goal form former youth team player Eric Probert.

The following season, Adamson's Team of the seventies were famously relegated from the top flight, Nulty started the season wearing the No 9 shirt but his versatility would be a key issue with injuries to key players and loss of form for others Geoff would be played all over the park.  He made 33(1) appearances in all comps, scoring on 3 occasions, He never quite made one shirt his own, apart form wearing the No9 vacated by Frank Casper, he went on to wear No's 2,3, 4, 6, 8, 11 and the Substitutes No12.

Burnley's promotion bid failed at the first time of asking, Geoff Nulty only managed 11 appearances all in the No3 shirt as the back four, changed on almost a monthly basis! the left back role would pass from Eddie Cliff to Harry Wilson to Jim Thompson to Geoff Nulty, with Waiters on the transfer list (at his own request) Burnley used four goalkeepers Waiters, Mellor, Parton and the dependable Alan Stevenson. Burnley finished 7th Nulty and Burnley were again to embark on another season outside the top flight.

Champions in 1972/73 and Geoff played in 35 of those 42 League games, making the No7 shirt his own, after Dave Thomas's transfer to QPR for £165k, ironically QPR and Dave Thomas finished 2nd to Burnley as both teams were Promoted to the top flight.

No 7 Geoff Nulty, on all the programmes, in all the papers, as Burnley and Nulty had a season to remember back in the top flight, as Burnley's only ever-present Geoff would net 9 goals making him Burnley's second top scorer behind Frank Casper, Geoff would play in all Burnley FA Cup games that year, Burnley who made the semi-final, being beaten by Newcastle United, who Geoff would go on to play for only nine months later.

Geoff's hold on Burnleys No7 shirt would be short lived the following year, after a disastrous first three games in which Burnley lost 2 and drawn 1, Geoff would be left out of the first team handing his shirt to first Ian Brennan, then to Peter Noble and finally a young Welshman Brian Flynn.

Wolverhampton Wanderers away on the 14th December 1975 would be Geoff Nulty's final appearance in Claret and Blue when he came of the bench to replace Billy Rodaway. Shortly after that game Geoff would be transferred to Newcastle United for a fee of £120k.

Shortly after Nulty's transfer to St James's park, Newcastle would replace Joe Harvey with Gordon Lee as manager, who would hand Nulty the Captains armband, but bad luck wasn't far behind, as Nulty was instrumental in the Geordie's League cup run, scoring the winner in the semi-final against Spurs, he fractured his jaw just a month later in an FA Cup game at Bolton, which ruled him out for the rest of the season including the League Cup final against Manchester City.

Relegation followed in 1978, the second time Nulty has felt relegation, this time instead of second division football, Nulty moved to merseyside and Everton, re joining former manager Gordon Lee and former Claret team mate Martin Dobson.

He played 28 League games for the Toffeemen, the last against local rivals Liverpool, which turned out to be Geoff Nultys last ever game, a Jimmy Case tackle caused knee damage which turned out to be so severe Nulty would never grace a competitive game again.

After football Geoff coached at Everton and Preston, then pursued an academic career, gaining a degree in social services.

Below is a report written by Jimmy Adamson, in his programme notes, its quite unusual that a player who on his return to a former team gets such glowing praise, Geoff Nulty did.