Early Life
Born in Scarborough, Yorkshire, the eighth of nine children, he worked briefly in a laundry after leaving school, but at the age of 16 he was invited to a trial at Tottenham Hotspur (Spurs), where he arrived on 16 March 1936. After a month's trial, he was taken on as a ground-staff boy at £2 a week. He signed as a full professional at the age of 18 and played a few matches for the first team before he joined the Durham Light Infantry on the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939. As a professional footballer he was sent on a Physical Education course and was made a sergeant-instructor, training new intakes of troops throughout the war. Although the war probably cost him half his playing career, he did not regret it as his experiences taught him the man-management skills which were to have such a great effect later in his career.
Read more about this topic: Bill Nicholson (footballer)
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