Durham-born David is eighth in the list of all-time leading appearance makers for the club having pulled on a Boro shirt 431 times. He joined the club in 1971 and made his debut against Blackpool in April 1972. He went on to be an ever-present in Jack Charlton's promotion winning side of 1973/74 and also went on to play for England. David holds the club record for the most consecutive league appearances, having made 305 between March 1973 and August 1980. In total, he made 358 consecutive appearances for Boro during that time. He also scored 77 goals for the club before he joined Southampton in 1981. He made a further 271 appearances for the Saints before joining Bournemouth in 1987 for one final season.
Such a lovely man - met him twice and saw him all the time when he used to do the commentary for someone in the press box at St Mary's. RIP David, 67 is no age, but then I am sure he would smile when i say he looked that age when he was playing for us Thanks for helping us to 2nd in the league in 1984, and THAT assist for Steve Moran at Norarf Krap
Oh no, not Spike... One of my all time favourite Saints, he really should've played for England more than the three times and was, along with Stevie, Bally and Nicky part of the best midfield in the club's history. I hope that he gets recognised at SMS in some way, i'm still angry that he was turned away by hospitality staff during Cortese's reign. This is a particularly good memory in the great season of 83/84 when anything seemed possible... R.I.P. Dave, forever a Saints legend....
Also remember a lastish minute winner v Man U at the Dell at the Milton Road end to win 3-2 and he ran right up to us in the crowd behind the goal. Bedlam, was probably 14 or 15 and everyone was climbing over each other to pat him. Edit: December 1981. I was 12
I will never forget being with my Chelsea supporting brother in the iconic Shed end, David Armstrong is getting abuse for being bald whilst preparing to take a corner. He responded by running both his hands through his "luscious locks" in response. Lol RIP to our Saints legend.
An incredible stat "Armstrong, an attacking midfielder, holds the record for the most consecutive appearances by a Boro player - an incredible 358 in all competitions between March 1973 and August 1980". A very good goal scoring record from midfield for Saints too. A rare two club legend it seems. RIP David the original Armstrong.
Absolutely....my abiding memory was taking my kids to The Dell to collect autographs, it was at the time when certain players were exhibiting their relative wealth by arriving in (then) top of the range cars. David arrived in a beat up red Ford Escort, he had time for every fan there. He was what I would loved to have been, a skilful down-to -earth footballer. Top man forever.
I am really shocked by this news. My late father always used to say that David armstrong was the best player he had seen playing for Saints. I only met him the once and would totally concur that he was a real gent and extremely personable . He was a truly great player. Saints legend.
Sad, sad news. Great player who played in a golden era for Saints and also a great guy off the pitch. very, very approachable.
Very sad news. A great player and a true Saints legend. RIP David. Ps I'm sure he was part of the squad that achieved our highest top flight finish is that correct?
Yes, 83-84 we finished second, 3 points behind Liverpool, and also lost the FA Cup semifinal to Everton. So close to the double, and Armstrong was a key part of it all.
Glen de La Cour has done a lovely piece on David Armstrong here: http://leagueoneminus10.blogspot.com/
