What’s happening with the former Man Utd and Hull City goalkeeper who made Premier League history with an ‘unbeatable’ record?
It’s August 21, 1999, and referee Graham Poll has just blown the whistle to end the game at Highbury. After a tough and exciting match, Sir Alex Ferguson and his Manchester United team are celebrating a 2-1 win over their fierce rivals. Captain Roy Keane helped secure the victory with two goals in the second half. Dennis Bergkamp had put Arsenal ahead earlier, but Manchester United fought back hard.
The game wasn’t simple, though. Right at the end, Arsenal’s goalkeeper Raimond van der Gouw got injured and had to leave the field. With Peter Schmeichel gone after United’s big treble-winning season, a young goalkeeper named Nick Culkin was set to make his Premier League debut – and it happened in the last moments of the match.
Culkin had joined United’s youth team in 1995 after leaving his hometown club, York. When Ferguson called him to get ready, he said, “Nick, get yourself ready, you’re going on.” Culkin quickly changed into his gear with no time to warm up. Right after coming on, he got his first touch of the ball—a free kick—but then Poll blew the final whistle immediately.
Culkin’s debut lasted just two seconds, setting a record for the shortest Premier League debut ever. “Whether it was lucky or unlucky—for me, unlucky—the game ended right away,” he said. “I celebrated like we’d won the World Cup and ran off with my arm in the air like Alan Shearer!”
What does Culkin remember most? A clean sheet, a bonus on his paycheck, and Sir Bobby Charlton’s laughter in the locker room. “I still have the wage slip from that day,” he said. “I got a win bonus of about £600, so I made around £1,100 from that one kick. That paid for my next summer holiday!” He also joked about having the shortest careers for both Manchester United and the Premier League—two records no one will beat.
That two-second moment would be Culkin’s only kick in the Premier League. He went on several loan spells before joining QPR in 2002, where he played three seasons before retiring at 26 due to a knee injury. Later, in 2010, he returned to non-league football and made another mark.
In 2014, Culkin played for FC United of Manchester—a club formed to oppose Manchester United’s takeover. This made him the first player to appear competitively for both FC United and Manchester United.
After hanging up his boots, Culkin started a gardening business in Manchester. In 2019, he said, “I ended up with the shortest United career and shortest Premier League career, and I often get messages from people saying I’ve come up in pub quizzes. That always makes me smile.”