injured and missed 5 months of the campaign. After the injury he returned to his preferred central midfield position and contributed to Luton's 10th-place finish. In the 2004–05 season Nicholls was voted Player of the Year by Luton supporters as the club won the League One championship. It was Nicholls who lifted the championship trophy following a 4–2 victory against Brentford in April. He scored 14 goals, most of which came, crucially at times, from the penalty spot. Nicholls was a vital part of the Luton side that not only finished 10th in the Championship in their first season, but in the match against Liverpool in the FA Cup; a game in which the Hatters went into a 3–1 lead courtesy of Nicholls, once again, with a penalty. The Hatters eventually fell short of the quality to see out the game, losing 5–3, but many of the players, such as Nicholls, who had spent the majority of their careers in the lower leagues, were now in the public eye. Leeds United On 26 July 2006, Nicholls signed for Leeds United for a fee of £700,000. In his first training session with Leeds, he damaged his knee ligaments but hoped to be fit within three months. Nicholls' quick rehabilitation allowed him to make his debut for the club as a substitute in Leeds' match against Sunderland on 13 September 2006, over a month before he was due back. Nicholls picked up another injury on 30 September 2006 against West Bromwich Albion, which kept him out until December. On 26 October 2006, he was made the new captain of Leeds United by new manager Dennis Wise, with Shaun Derry being appointed his deputy. Nicholls returned from injury on 16 December 2006, starting in the 1–0 loss against Ipswich Town. This was his first game as captain of Leeds and it ended with a red card in the dying minutes. Leeds manager Dennis Wise decided not to appeal against the decision, so Nicholls missed Leeds' following three matches over the Christmas period. Nicholls returned to the side once his suspension had been served in a 2–1 victory over Coventry City. On 3 March 2007, Nicholls was dropped for Leeds' home match against Sheffield Wednesday. In his post-match interview, Wise stated that Nicholls had asked to leave the club and return to his former club Luton Town. However, Wise demanded that he would not