Henk Nienhuis

Henk Nienhuis (11 August 1941 – 18 February 2017) was a Dutch footballer and manager. He spent the major part of his career at BV Veendam, hence his nickname Mister Veendam.^[1]

Henk Nienhuis

Personal information
Full name	Hendrik Evert Nienhuis
Date of birth	(1941-08-11)11 August 1941
Place of birth	Nieuw-Buinen, Netherlands
Date of death	18 February 2017(2017-02-18) (aged 75)
Place of death	Veendam, Netherlands
Position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
	VV Nieuw Buinen
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1963–1973	Veendam
Managerial career
1984–1989	BV Veendam
1993–1994	BV Veendam
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Playing career

Nienhuis played in midfield for BV Veendam from 1963 to 1973, after joining them from hometown amateur side Nieuw Buinen.^[2] He made his debut for Veendam on 25 August 1963 against Excelsior.^[3]

He attracted interest from Feyenoord and was called up for Netherlands U-21 in November 1964,^[3] only for a severe injury to spoil his chances.^[4]

Managerial career

Nienhuis managed Veendam during the second half of the eighties, clinching promotion with them to the Eredivisie twice. He later worked as a director at the club, as he did at FC Groningen.^[1]

Personal life

He was honoured as a Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau in 2000 for his services to football in the Netherlands.^[5] His son Evert-Jan also played for Veendam.

Nienhuis died in February 2017 of prostate cancer.^[6] Stadium De Langeleegte was renamed Henk Nienhuis stadium in his honour.^[7]