Ade Coker (born 19 May 1954) is a former

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

player who played as a striker. Coker began with English club

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

then moved to the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the ...

and the Major Indoor Soccer League. Born in Nigeria, he earned five

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Java ...

for the United States national team.

Professional career

Coker was born in Nigeria, but moved to England at the age of 11. He was playing schoolboy football when he was spotted by West Ham

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

Wally St Pier Stanley Walter St Pier (8 October 1904 – 1989) was an English association football, footballer and Scout (sport), scout. Career St Pier arrived at West Ham United F.C., West Ham United from Ilford F.C., Ilford in April 1929 making his senior ...

. In 1971, he signed with the English First Division club

when he was 17. His first start with the Hammers came on 30 October 1971, against Crystal Palace at

Selhurst Park Selhurst Park is a football stadium in Selhurst, in the London Borough of Croydon, England, which is the home ground of Premier League club Crystal Palace. The stadium was designed by Archibald Leitch and opened in 1924. It has hosted interna ...

following a late injury to

Geoff Hurst Sir Geoffrey Charles Hurst (born 8 December 1941) is an English former professional Association football, footballer. A Striker (association football), striker, he became the first player to score a Hat-trick#Association football, hat-trick in a ...

. He scored on his debut, a 3–0 victory, but despite this auspicious first game, he made only eleven first team appearances over three seasons.Belton, Brian (2006). ''The Black Hammers p.23-24'' Pennant Books. He spent the 1974 off-season with the

Boston Minutemen The Boston Minutemen were an American professional soccer team based in Boston, Massachusetts that played in the North American Soccer League (NASL). They played from 1974 to 1976. Their home fields included Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, ...

of the

(NASL), earning Second Team All Star honors. Returning to England, in December 1974 he joined Lincoln City on loan, making his debut in the 2–0 home victory over

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stockport, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in EFL League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton ...

on 20 December 1974. He remained with the Imps for a month before returning to West Ham. Coker then moved permanently to America, rejoining the

. Halfway through the 1976 season, Minutemen owner John Sterge began selling his players in order to forestall bankruptcy. Coker was sent to the

Minnesota Kicks The Minnesota Kicks was a professional soccer team that played at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota, from 1976 to 1981. The team was a member of the now defunct North American Soccer League (1968–84), No ...

. After the Kick's playoff victory over the

Tampa Bay Rowdies The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Championship in the second tie ...

, Coker's shoes were stolen off his feet by a jubilant fan. Three games into the 1978 season, Minnesota traded Coker to the San Diego Sockers. At the end of the 1979 season, the Sockers sent Coker to the Rochester Lancers for the 1980 season. Coker spent the 1980–1981 Major Indoor Soccer League club

Baltimore Blast The Baltimore Blast are an American professional indoor soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, that competes in the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL). Including one championship victory as the original Baltimore Blast, the team has won 10 c ...

. In 1982 Coker was back with San Diego as the Sockers began to transition towards indoor soccer. When the NASL collapsed following the 1984 season, the Sockers moved to MISL and became the league's dominant team. Coker remained with the Sockers until 1987. He spent one more season (1987–1988) in MISL with the St. Louis Steamers.

U.S. national team

Coker earned 5

with the U.S. national team. He earned his first cap in a September 9, 1984, scoreless draw with the

Netherlands Antilles The Netherlands Antilles (, ; ), also known as the Dutch Antilles, was a constituent Caribbean country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands consisting of the islands of Saba (island), Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten in the Lesser Antilles, ...

. A month later, he scored twice in a 4–0 victory over the Netherlands Antilles after coming on for

Chance Fry Chance Fry (born June 29, 1964, in Bellevue, Washington) is a retired U.S. soccer forward who began his career straight out of high school with the Seattle Sounders of the North American Soccer League. With the collapse of the NASL, he moved t ...

. He scored again two matches later, a 1–0 victory over

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

. He played his fifth and last match for the U.S. in a 2–1 loss to

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

on October 17, 1984.

Post-Career

In 2008, Coker alongside his West Ham teammates, Clive Charles and Clyde Best, were the subjects of the book 'East End Heroes, Stateside Kings'.

References

External links

Reminiscence of Coker at West Ham

West Ham stats

Lincoln City F.C. Official Archive Profile

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coker, Ade 1954 births Living people Footballers from Lagos American men's soccer players Baltimore Blast (1980–1992) players Boston Minutemen players Men's association football forwards English men's footballers English emigrants to the United States Lincoln City F.C. players Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) players Minnesota Kicks players New York Arrows players Nigerian men's footballers Nigerian emigrants to the United Kingdom American people of Yoruba descent Yoruba sportspeople North American Soccer League (1968–1984) indoor players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players Rochester Lancers (1967–1980) players San Diego Sockers (1978–1996) indoor players San Diego Sockers (1978–1996) players St. Louis Steamers (original MISL) players English Football League players United States men's international soccer players West Ham United F.C. players Naturalised association football players 20th-century American sportsmen 20th-century Nigerian sportsmen