David Anthony Pullan was born on 1 May 1944 at Farsley, Leeds, Yorkshire; he was a specialist wicketkeeper with few pretensions with the bat who became an important figure locally in sports administration.
Pullan played for Notts from 1970 to 1974 in Championship and List-A matches and Second Eleven games although he began his playing career for Yorkshire Seconds in the Minor Counties Championship (1961 to 1967). He was awarded his Second XI cap at Yorkshire in 1966, during which season he made his highest score and his only half-century - 56 against Cheshire at Wallasey.
At the rather advanced age of 26, he signed for Notts as wicket-keeper to replace Deryck Murray who, although playing for the Rest of the World side in 1970, was studying at Nottingham University and did not play wish to county cricket. Murray subsequently joined Warwickshire in 1972.
For Notts, Pullan played 95 matches scoring a total of 613 runs at an average of 8.75 and took 207 catches and 27 stumpings during his First-Class career; he also played 49 List-A matches scoring 38 runs at an average of 3.16, caught 43 opponents and stumped a further two. His full Nottinghamshire cap was awarded in 1971, a season when he was second in the wicket keeping dismissals list and that The Cricketer described as "an outstanding season behind the stumps".
Three seasons later, the batting at Notts was struggling and it was decided to replace Pullan with a batter who might contribute more runs - initially Mike 'Pasty' Harris - and Dave Pullan left Trent Bridge.
Dave Pullan returned to Notts CCC in 1979, appointed as General Manager to 'develop and improve facilities on the ground and to encourage sponsorship and the interest of local businesses in the Club '. He left in 1982 to make the short hop to the City Ground, as Commercial Manager for Nottingham Forest FC, where he stayed for many years.
In 2000 he commenced a seven-year period as Director of Ilkeston Town Football Club.
A regular attendee at the annual Notts Old Players Reunions he died on 6 October 2022, aged 78 years. His wife (Ann) and daughter (Rachel) were prominent squash players and were mainstays of the Trent Bridge Squash Club.
February 2023
Nottinghamshire First-Class Number: 456