Irving Nattrass
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 20 December 1952 | ||
| Place of birth | Fishburn, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[1] | ||
| Position | Right back[2] | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Newcastle United | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1970–1979 | Newcastle United | 238 | (16) |
| 1979–1986 | Middlesbrough | 191 | (2) |
| Total | 429 | (18) | |
| International career | |||
| 1976 | England U23 | 1 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Irving Nattrass (born 20 December 1952) is an English former footballer who played primarily as a right back for Newcastle and Middlesbrough.[2]
Born in Fishburn, England, Nattrass attended Ferryhill Grammar School and signed with Newcastle at age 16 on an apprenticeship.
As a youth player Nattrass lacked confidence and made slow progress within the club, even going so far as to look for employment elsewhere as a mechanic. However, he soon found his stride and went on to sign professionally for the club in July 1970, aged 17. A year later Nattrass went on to make his debut against Derby.
The then Newcastle manager Joe Harvey once commented "Nattrass is my Paul Madeley and I can't pay him a bigger compliment than that". Madeley was a Leeds and England player who was dubbed the "Rolls-Royce" of footballers.
Hampered by injuries and disagreements with the Newcastle board he eventually moved to Middlesbrough for the sum of £375,000. Nattrass made his league debut for them against Arsenal on 15 September 1979.