 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Arnold Oliver | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1907-05-22)May 22, 1907 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | New Bedford, Massachusetts, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of death | October 16, 1993(1993-10-16) (aged 86) | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of death | New Bedford, Massachusetts, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||
| Position | Attacking midfielder | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| Quisset Mill | |||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 1925–1926 | Shawsheen Indians | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 1926 | New Bedford Defenders | ||||||||||||||||
| 1926–1927 | New Bedford Whalers | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 1927 | Hartford Americans | 7 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
| 1927–1929 | J&P Coats | 58 | (38) | ||||||||||||||
| 1929 | New Bedford Whalers | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 1929 | Pawtucket Rangers | 3 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 1930 | Fall River F.C. | 5 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
| 1930 | Providence F.C. | 13 | (8) | ||||||||||||||
| 1931 | →Fall River F.C. | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 1931 | Pawtucket Rangers | 10 | (6) | ||||||||||||||
| –1938 | Santo Christo | ||||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | |||||||||||||||||
| 1966–1969 | UMass Dartmouth | ||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||
Arnold “Lucky Arnie” Oliver (May 22, 1907 – October 16, 1993) was an Americansoccermidfielder. He spent at least six seasons in theAmerican Soccer League and was a member of theUnited States national team at the1930 FIFA World Cup. He is also a member of theNational Soccer Hall of Fame.
Oliver, the son of British immigrants, began his career with the New Bedford Quisset Mill, a cotton mill, club when he was fourteen. He then played with theShawsheen Indians, a local amateur club which joined the professionalAmerican Soccer League in 1925. However, Oliver remained an amateur and when the Indians folded during the season, he moved to the Defenders Club, winning the 1926National Amateur Cup title with them.[1][2] Following the Amateur Cup final, Oliver turned professional when he signed with theNew Bedford Whalers. He played only one game with the Whalers and in 1927, he moved to theHartford Americans. However, they were kicked out of the league after only ten games and Oliver moved toJ&P Coats for the remainder of the season. He spent most of the 1928–1929 season with J&P Coats, where he was at one point in a three-way tie for the league's scoring lead, but finished the season with theNew Bedford Whalers.[3] Oliver then moved to thePawtucket Rangers for the fall 1929 season. In the fall of 1930, he began the season with the 'Marksmen' before transferring toProvidence F.C. In the spring of 1931, he played withFall River F.C. then with thePawtucket Rangers in the fall of 1931.[4] Some sources state Oliver ended his career in theAmerican Soccer League in 1931, others say 1935. However, all agree that he finished his career with the amateur Santo Christos in 1938.
In 1930, Oliver was called into theU.S. national team for the1930 FIFA World Cup. He did not enter any of the U.S. games at the tournament but played several exhibition games during the U.S. team's South American tour following the cup. However, none of those games are considered full internationals.
Following his retirement from playing, Oliver coached extensively. In 1966, he became the first head coach of theUMass Dartmouth men's soccer team. From the team's founding in 1966 through the 1969 season, Oliver took the team to a 40-11-2 record.[5]
Oliver was inducted into theNational Soccer Hall of Fame in 1968,[6] the New England Soccer Hall of Fame in 1981[7] and theUMass Dartmouth Hall of Fame in 1997.[8]
