Nigel Algernon D. NUGENT

An inside- or centre-forward, Neil Nugent started playing competitive hockey with Gravesend in his early 20s, and later played for Tulse Hill, Thorney Island and Odiham. A county player, he made his Kent début in 1949, and also won representative honours with The South and the Hockey Association. Nugent joined the Royal Air Force as a Flying Officer in June 1953, and rose to the rank of Wing Commander. He played hockey for the RAF and Combined Services, and was still captain of the RAF side in 1965, when in his 40th year.

Selected for the 1952 Olympics, Nugent scored the only goal of the game against Belgium that put Great Britain into the semi-final against India. He also played in that game, which India won, but missed the 2-1 win over Pakistan in the bronze medal match. As only 11 medals were awarded, both Nugent and team-mate Derek Day missed out on a bronze, until 2010 when, thanks to the intervention of another team-mate Tony Nunn and 1988 gold medallist Richard Leman, they eventually received their medals from the then BOA chairman Colin Moynihan.