Keith Nelson (footballer)


Keith Robert Nelson was an association football player who represented New Zealand at international level.

Career

Born in Renfrew, Scotland, his first club in semi-professional football was with his hometown club Renfrew, but he quickly moved onto Cambuslang Rangers where he was a prolific goalscorer, winning the Scottish Junior Cup on four occasions in 1969, 1971, 1972 and 1973 as well as winning four caps with the Scottish Junior International team, scoring in all four games against Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales and England.
He emigrated to New Zealand to join Hamilton AFC in 1974, and played a prominent role in the Waikato club’s rise to the national league. He then continued to find the net with regularity at the highest level of domestic football.
Nelson became a naturalised New Zealand citizen in December 1976. He made his full All Whites debut in a 3–0 win over New Caledonia on 5 March 1977 and ended his international playing career with 20 A-international caps and 16 goals to his credit, including two hat-tricks against Chinese Taipei and Fiji. He gained his final cap gained in a 2–0 win over Ghana on 7 June 1983.
Nelson won New Zealand Player of the Year in 1976 and again in 1982, despite failing to make the final 23-man squad for New Zealand's first appearance at the World Cup finals that year.
Nelson died on 29 January 2020.