Lee Nogan

Lee Nogan

Personal information
Full name	Lee Martin Nogan [1]
Date of birth	(1969-05-21) 21 May 1969 (age 54) [1]
Place of birth	Cardiff, [1] Wales
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) [2]
Position(s)	Forward
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1987–1991	Oxford United	64	(10)
1987	→ Brentford (loan)	11	(2)
1987	→ Southend United (loan)	6	(1)
1991–1995	Watford	105	(26)
1994	→ Southend United (loan)	5	(0)
1995–1997	Reading	91	(26)
1997	→ Notts County (loan)	6	(0)
1997–1999	Grimsby Town	74	(10)
1999–2000	Darlington	49	(6)
2000–2001	Luton Town	7	(1)
2001–2005	York City	165	(35)
2005–2006	Harrogate Town
2006	Pickering Town
2006–2009	Whitby Town
2011–2015	FC Halifax Town	0	(0)
Total		583	(117)
International career
	Wales U21
	Wales B
1992–1995	Wales	2	(0)
Managerial career
2006–2007	Whitby Town
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Lee Martin Nogan (born 21 May 1969) is a Welsh former professional footballer and manager. He is the elder brother of Kurt Nogan.

A forward, he began his career at Oxford United in 1987. He spent four years at the club, and also had loan spells at Brentford and Southend United. He was sold on to Watford for £350,000 in December 1991, where he would remain for another four years. He lost his first-team place after a change of manager in 1993, and again joined Southend United on loan. He was sold to Reading for £250,000 in January 1995, and played in the club's defeat in the 1995 First Division play-off final at Wembley Stadium. He spent time on loan at Notts County, before he joined Grimsby Town for a £170,000 fee in August 1997. He helped the club to win the Football League Trophy in 1998 and then to win promotion out of the Second Division via the play-offs at the end of the 1997–98 season. He moved on to Luton Town in 2000, before signing with York City in February 2001. He was also instated as assistant manager in May 2003, and left the club two years later. He scored a total of 139 goals in 673 league and cup appearances during a 19-year professional career, and also won two caps for Wales.

He was appointed manager at Whitby Town in June 2006, before resigning in October 2007. He remained on at the club as a player and assistant manager, before joining F.C. Halifax Town as an assistant to Neil Aspin. He followed Aspin to Gateshead in November 2015, and then Port Vale in October 2017.

Club career

Oxford United

Nogan turned professional at Oxford United under Maurice Evans. He joined Brentford on loan in March 1987, and spent the remainder of the 1986–87 season at Griffin Park, scoring two goals in 11 Third Division games for Steve Perryman's "Bees". ^[3] He then played four matches and scored one goal as the "U's" were relegated out of the First Division at the end of the 1987–88 season under the stewardship of Mark Lawrenson. He also played nine games on loan at Third Division Southend United, scoring one goal for the "Shrimpers". He made only occasional appearances for Oxford in the 1988–89 and 1989–90 campaigns, playing just eight first-team games under new manager Brian Horton. He established himself as a regular first-team player at the Manor Ground during the 1990–91 campaign, scoring seven goals from 40 appearances. He scored five goals from 25 games in the first half of the 1991–92 season.

Watford

Nogan joined Second Division rivals Watford for a £350,000 fee in December 1991, who were managed by former Brentford boss Steve Perryman. He ended the 1991–92 campaign with five goals from 23 games, helping the "Hornets" to a tenth-place finish. He scored 12 goals from 49 appearances in the 1992–93 season as Watford slipped to 16th-position. He lost his first-team place under new manager Glenn Roeder in the 1993–94 season, and scored only four goals from his 30 matches as Watford narrowly avoided relegation. He also returned to Southend United on loan, now in the First Division and under the stewardship of Peter Taylor. Again his stay at Roots Hall was brief however, and he played just five games for the "Seasiders". He returned to Vicarage Road and scored nine goals from 15 appearances in the first half of the 1994–95 campaign.

Reading

Nogan was sold on to Reading for £250,000 in January 1995. ^[4] He scored 12 goals in 23 appearances, including a hat-trick in a 3–3 draw with Port Vale at Elm Park, to help the "Royals" to secure a second-place finish in the First Division at the end of the 1994–95 season. ^{[5] [4]} A reduction in the size of the Premier League denied the club automatic promotion however, and though they eliminated Tranmere Rovers in the play-off semi-finals, they lost out to Bolton Wanderers in the play-off final at Wembley Stadium. ^[4] Nogan had put Reading ahead in the fourth minute with the first goal of the game, and by half-time they were 2–0 up, but two goals in the final 15 minutes saw Bolton force extra time and go on to claim a 4–3 victory. ^[4] Reading then struggled in the 1995–96 campaign, only managing a 19th-place finish, with Nogan contributing 11 goals from his 45 appearances. He went on to score a further six goals across 25 appearances in the 1996–97 season, as joint-managers Mick Gooding and Jimmy Quinn led the club to an 18th-place finish. Nogan also enjoyed a spell on loan with Notts County, playing six games during his short stay at Meadow Lane as the "Magpies" struggled at the foot of the Second Division.

Grimsby Town

Nogan signed with Grimsby Town for a £170,000 fee in August 1997, with manager Alan Buckley looking to replace Clive Mendonca. ^[6] He formed effective partnership with Jack Lester, and scored 13 goals in 54 appearances across the 1997–98 season to help the "Mariners" to reach the Second Division play-off final at Wembley Stadium. ^[6] There they defeated Northampton Town 1–0 to secure promotion. ^[7] He also played in the 1998 Football League Trophy final, as Grimsby won the Football League Trophy for the first time with a 2–1 extra-time victory over AFC Bournemouth. ^[8] However, he struggled back in the First Division, scoring just three goals in 42 matches across the 1998–99 campaign, as he failed to adapt to the pace and physicality of the higher division. ^[6] A lack of other options at Blundell Park left him unable to be replaced up front and caused him to receive criticism from some supporters as his confidence dipped. ^[6]

Darlington

Nogan joined Darlington on a free transfer in July 1999. A strike partnership with veteran forward Marco Gabbiadini failed to materialise however, as loan signings such as Craig Russell were preferred by "Quakers" manager David Hodgson, though Nogan still featured 39 times in the 1999–2000 season, contributing five goals. ^[6] He came on as an 84th minute substitute for Peter Duffield in the Third Division play-off final, as Darlington lost 1–0 to Peterborough United. ^[9] Shortly after Gary Bennett took charge at Feethams at the start of the 2000–01 season, Nogan was allowed to leave the club on a free transfer. ^[6]

Luton Town

Nogan moved back up to the Second Division to Luton Town as one of manager Lil Fuccillo's first signings at Kenilworth Road. ^[10] On 19 December, he opened the scoring as Luton defeated his former club Darlington 2–0 in the second round of the FA Cup. ^[11] He scored against another former club four days later, though this was during a 4–1 defeat at Reading. ^[12] He played just 11 times for the "Hatters" and scored just the two goals, as Luton suffered relegation at the end of the 2000–01 season under the stewardship of Joe Kinnear.

York City

Nogan signed with York City in February 2001; manager Terry Dolan said that "we needed a striker... with Chris Iwelumo finishing his time here it would have left us with just David McNiven and Scott Emmerson... Lee is experienced and hopefully that will help David McNiven and it also gives Alex Mathie a lot more breathing space to fully recover before he comes back." ^[13] He proved to be a key player in the club's upturn in form in the second half of the 2000–01 season, displaying hunger and a high work rate as he scored six goals from 16 appearances. ^[14] He scored 13 goals from 49 appearances for the "Minstermen" throughout the 2001–02 season, and made a further 50 appearances in the 2002–03 campaign, scoring six goals.

He was released in May 2003 following what were described as "drastic cost-cutting measures", though he ended up staying on at the club as a player and assistant manager to rookie manager Chris Brass. ^[15] He finished as York's top-scorer in the 2003–04 season with nine goals, although he was unable to prevent them from suffering relegation out of the Football League to the Conference. He remained at Bootham Crescent after relegation, and scored three goals from 24 games in the 2004–05 season, before leaving the club when caretaker manager Viv Busby was succeeded by Billy McEwan in February. He went on to join Conference North side Harrogate Town in March 2005 after being signed by manager Neil Aspin, his former teammate at Darlington. ^[16] He later played for Pickering Town, who were managed by former York teammate Alex Mathie. ^[17]

International career

Nogan won caps for the Wales under-21 and B team, before he won his first senior Wales cap in 1992. He picked up his second and final cap three years later.

Coaching career

Whitby Town

Nogan was appointed as manager of Whitby Town in June 2006. ^[18] He led the club to an 11th-place finish in the Northern Premier League Premier Division at the end of the 2006–07 season, though they did suffer early cup qualification exits to Frickley Athletic and Woodley Sports. ^{[19] [20] [21]} The "Blues" suffered a poor start to the 2007–08 campaign, and Nogan resigned on 22 October 2007 following an FA Trophy defeat at Ossett Town. ^[22] Despite being a former manager, he continued to play for the club, helping them to avoid relegation at the end of the season. ^[23] He served as assistant manager to manager Graeme Clark during the 2008–09 season, and continued to make first-team appearances. ^[24]

Assistant to Neil Aspin

Nogan went on to work as assistant to F.C. Halifax Town manager Neil Aspin. ^[25] On 1 October 2014, now aged 45, he came on as a 7th-minute substitute in a 3–0 defeat at Guiseley in the first round of the West Riding County Cup, and was taken off to be replaced by Aspin on 69 minutes. ^[26] Aspin was appointed as Gateshead manager on 27 November 2015, and the following day he hired Nogan to again work as his assistant. ^[27] Having been recruited by League Two club Port Vale, Aspin again took Nogan with him to work as a coach on 6 October 2017. ^[5] He departed Vale Park alongside Aspin on 30 January 2019. ^[28]

Personal life

Nogan has worked as a PE teacher in primary schools since ending his playing career. ^[29] His younger brother, Kurt Nogan, is also a former professional footballer. ^[25]

Career statistics

Club statistics

Source: ^[30]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Oxford United	1986–87	First Division	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	1987–88	First Division	3	0	0	0	1	1	4	1
	1988–89	Second Division	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
	1989–90	Second Division	4	0	1	0	0	0	5	0
	1990–91	Second Division	32	5	2	1	6	1	40	7
	1991–92	Second Division	22	5	0	0	3	0	25	0
	Total		64	10	3	1	10	1	77	12
Brentford (loan)	1986–87	Third Division	11	2	0	0	0	0	11	2
Southend United (loan)	1987–88	Third Division	6	1	0	0	3	1	9	2
Watford	1991–92	Second Division	23	5	0	0	0	0	23	5
	1992–93	First Division	42	11	1	1	6	0	49	12
	1993–94	First Division	26	3	1	0	3	1	30	4
	1994–95	First Division	14	7	0	0	1	2	15	9
	Total		105	26	2	1	10	7	117	34
Southend United (loan)	1993–94	First Division	5	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
Reading	1994–95	First Division	20	10	0	0	3	2	23	12
	1995–96	First Division	39	10	2	0	4	1	45	11
	1996–97	First Division	23	6	0	0	2	0	25	6
	Total		91	26	2	0	9	3	102	29
Notts County (loan)	1996–97	Second Division	6	0	0	0	0	0	6	0
Grimsby Town	1997–98	Second Division	36	8	4	2	14	3	54	13
	1998–99	First Division	38	2	0	0	4	1	42	3
	Total		74	10	4	2	18	4	96	16
Darlington	1999–2000	Third Division	31	2	3	0	5	3	39	5
	2000–01	Third Division	18	4	0	0	1	0	19	4
	Total		49	6	3	0	6	3	58	9
Luton Town	2000–01	Second Division	7	1	3	1	1	0	11	2
York City	2000–01	Third Division	16	6	0	0	0	0	16	6
	2001–02	Third Division	42	13	5	0	2	0	49	13
	2002–03	Third Division	46	5	2	0	2	1	50	6
	2003–04	Third Division	39	8	1	1	2	0	42	9
	2004–05 [31]	Conference National	22	3	1	0	1	0	24	3
	Total		165	35	9	1	7	1	181	37
FC Halifax Town	2014–15 [32]	Conference Premier	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
Career total [lower-alpha 1]			583	117	26	6	65	16	674	139

1. Statistics for Whitby Town not recorded.

International playing statistics

Wales national team
Year	Apps	Goals
1992	1	0
1993	0	0
1994	0	0
1995	1	0
Total [33]	2	0

Managerial statistics

Managerial record by team and tenure

Team	From	To	Record					Ref.
			P	W	D	L	Win %
Whitby Town	24 June 2006	22 October 2007	65	27	30	8	041.5	[34]
Total			65	27	30	8	041.5

Honours

Grimsby Town

• Football League Second Division play-offs: 1998 ^[7]
• Football League Trophy: 1998 ^[8]

References

1. "Lee Nogan". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
2. Rollin, Glenda; Rollin, Jack, eds. (2000). Playfair Football Annual 2000–2001. Headline. p. 49. ISBN   978-0-7472-6620-4.
3. Croxford, Mark; Lane, David; Waterman, Greville (2011). The Big Brentford Book of the Eighties. Sunbury, Middlesex: Legends Publishing. pp. 178–193. ISBN   978-1906796716.
4. "Reading FC Former Players Association: LEE NOGAN". www.readingfcformerplayers.co.uk. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
5. Baggaley, Michael (6 October 2017). "Port Vale appoint coaches Lee Nogan and Gary Brabin". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
6. "Slipped Through the Net Lee Nogan". thefishy.co.uk. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
7. "Grimsby bounce back to Division 1". BBC News. 24 May 1998. Retrieved 20 June 2015.
8. "BBC News | Football | Mariners catch Wembley cup win". BBC News. 19 April 1998. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
9. "BBC News | FOOTBALL | Posh pull it off at Wembley". BBC News. 26 May 2000. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
10. "Bennett calls on troops to show fighting spirit". The Northern Echo. 8 December 2000. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
11. "Luton Town v Darlington, 19 December 2000". 11v11.com. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
12. "Reading FC vs Luton Town - 23 Dec 2000". www.royals.org. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
13. "York swoop for Nogan". BBC Sport. 12 February 2001. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
14. "Lee Nogan". York Press. 23 July 2001. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
15. "Harford won't return". Daily Telegraph. 4 June 2003. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
16. "Gate opens for Lee". York Press. 4 March 2005. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
17. "Pikes Vase delight". The Scarborough News. 13 February 2006. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
18. "Former star Nogan gets Whitby job". Minstermen. 24 June 2006. Archived from the original on 7 August 2007. Retrieved 7 August 2007.
19. "Whitby Town FC » Brief History". www.whitby-town.com. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
20. "Horror show as Blues crash out of FA Cup". Whitby Gazette. 18 September 2006. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
21. "Blues in shock trophy exit". Whitby Gazette. 6 November 2006. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
22. "Blues boss quits after FA Trophy shocker". Whitby Gazette . 22 October 2007. Retrieved 23 October 2007.
23. "Blues survive in style". Whitby Gazette. 28 April 2008. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
24. "Blues drop to third-bottom in second Easter loss". Whitby Gazette. 15 April 2009. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
25. "Lee Nogan's tribute to Gary Speed". York Press. 3 December 2011. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
26. "Match Details - Guiseley 3-0 Halifax Town - WRCC - 1st October 2014 | Aylesbury United FC". www.aylesburyunitedfc.co.uk. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
27. "Nogan set for assistant role". Gateshead FC. 28 November 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
28. "Neil Aspin: Port Vale manager resigns after 15 months in charge". BBC Sport. 30 January 2019. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
29. "Lee Nogan". Watford Legends. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
30. Lee Nogan at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
31. "Games played by Lee Nogan in 2004/2005". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
32. "Stats". aylesburyunitedfc.co.uk. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
33. "Lee Nogan". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 10 July 2016.
34. "Whitby boss Nogan quits after defeat". Whitby Gazette. 22 October 2007. Retrieved 12 October 2017.

External links

• Lee Nogan at Soccerbase