Shaun Goater
Encyclopedia
Leonard Shaun Goater MBE
(born 25 February 1970) is a Bermudian
footballer who played as a striker for a number of English clubs in the 1990s and 2000s. Currently, he is the chairman of, and occasional player for, the Bermuda Hogges
in the USL Second Division
.
Goater's first professional club was Manchester United
, but he did not reach the first team, making his League debut in 1989 after moving to Rotherham United
. He played for Rotherham for seven years before moving to Bristol City
in 1996. Two years later he moved to Manchester City
for a fee of £400,000.
He is most well known for his time at Manchester City, where he scored over 100 goals between 1998 and 2003, finishing as the club's top scorer for four consecutive seasons. After leaving City, Goater had spells with Reading
, Coventry City
and Southend United
, before retiring in May 2006. He represented Bermuda
36 times, scoring 32 goals.
, living with his mother Lynette, his grandmother and two aunts. His introduction to English football came in April 1987 when he was invited to join the Saltus Grammar School
football and basketball tour. He spent two weeks playing against various English high school teams, including the Leicester City
youth team. At the age of 17, he left home to further his education in the United States, where he had a soccer scholarship at Columbia High School
, New Jersey
. Whilst home in Bermuda during his Thanksgiving
break, Goater was spotted by scouts from Manchester United
, who invited him to England for a trial. With encouragement from his mother, who was a former football player herself, Goater accepted, forfeiting his scholarship by doing so. At this time, Goater did not play as a striker, but instead played as a creative midfielder.
in order to play first team football. At this time, Goater suffered homesickness, finding it difficult to adapt to the English climate: "It took me a good two years to get used to life in England. At first I thought the sun never shone and it wasn't for me.". However, he gradually got used to living in England, and over the course of seven seasons at Rotherham he gained a reputation as a reliable lower division striker, scoring 86 goals in 262 appearances, with a winner's medal for the 1996 Auto Windscreens Shield
the highlight. In 1993, Goater also had a brief loan spell at Notts County
, though he made only one appearance for the Nottingham club. Towards the end of the 1995–96 season, Goater had a disagreement with Rotherham manager Archie Gemmill
, and decided his future lay elsewhere.
In the 1995–96 close season, Goater received offers from Spanish club Osasuna
and newly formed South Koreans Suwon Samsung Bluewings
, but having recently married, he decided to stay in England. Shortly after, he moved to Bristol City
for a fee of £175,000. Goater's Bristol City debut came against Gillingham
. Goater scored, but Bristol City lost 3–2. City finished the season in fifth, qualifying for the playoffs, but lost to Brentford
. The following season Bristol City were pushing for promotion into the First Division
, and Goater scored regularly, eventually being named in the PFA Team of the Year
for the division. In a little under two years with the Bristol City, he scored 45 goals in 81 appearances. On 26 March 1998, transfer deadline day
, Goater signed for Manchester City
, who paid Bristol City £400,000 for his services.
battling to save the club from relegation to Second Division. Goater scored three goals in the seven remaining matches of the 1997–98 season, but this was not enough to prevent the club from being relegated to the third tier of English Football for the first time ever. Fans were initially sceptical as to Goater's ability, but as goals were scored supporters were gradually won over, creating a song in his honour, "Feed The Goat And He Will Score" (to the tune Cwm Rhondda
). The 1998–99 season saw Goater score 21 goals, finishing the season as Manchester City's top goalscorer. The last of these was the winning goal in a play-off semi-final against Wigan Athletic
, sending Manchester City to Wembley Stadium for a playoff final which saw City promoted after a penalty shootout.
The 1999–2000 season was even more successful for Goater. He was the club's top goalscorer once again, this time with 29 goals, and was named Manchester City's Player of the Year by the supporters after Manchester City were promoted for the second successive year. In the summer, Goater was awarded the freedom of Bermuda
, with 21 June declared as "Shaun Goater Day" on the island. The following season Goater made his first appearance in top flight football at the age of 30, though injury and the presence of new signings Paulo Wanchope
and former World Player of the Year George Weah
meant he had to wait three months to do so. Once again established in the first team, Goater was Manchester City's top goalscorer for the third consecutive season, but his 11 goals could not save the team from relegation.
During the 2000–01 close season, upheaval took place at Manchester City, with manager Royle departing to be replaced by Kevin Keegan
. In the 2001–02 season, Goater became the first Manchester City player since Francis Lee
in 1972 to score more than 30 goals in a season. City were promoted as champions, and he was the club's top scorer for the fourth time in a row, as well as being the top scorer in the division.
Over the summer of 2001–02, there was speculation that Goater would be transferred, as Manchester City had twice broken their transfer record by buying strikers Jon Macken
and Nicolas Anelka
. Goater stayed, but opportunities were limited. He started just 14 games, but scored seven goals, including his 100th for the club, which came in a derby match
against local rivals Manchester United. In February 2003, Goater struck against the same opposition to score the fastest goal by a substitute in Premier League history, just 9 seconds after coming onto the pitch. He also scored a goal that would have won City the match, but it was disallowed.
Shortly before the end of the 2002–03 season, Goater announced his intention to leave Manchester City when the season finished in order to seek regular first team football. In his final match for Manchester City, he was asked to captain the side in Manchester City's final game at Maine Road
. In total, Goater scored 103 goals in 212 appearances for Manchester City. Since ending his footballing career, Goater has been critical of both Kevin Keegan, who he claims never praised him and Nicolas Anelka, who he feels wanted to be 'the daddy' of Manchester City.
on 1 August 2003. Reading chairman John Madejski
described the transfer as "the biggest in Reading Football Club's history", but Goater's time there was not a happy one. Shortly after Goater's arrival, Reading manager Alan Pardew
left for West Ham United
, and Pardew's replacement, Steve Coppell
, did not regard Goater as part of his plans. In his second and final season at Reading, Goater played just four times, and was loaned to Coventry City
. Goater then considered retirement, but instead moved to League One
club Southend United
for a final season as a professional. The move, a free transfer, was completed on 3 August 2005. At Southend, Goater acted as a mentor for young striker Freddy Eastwood
, and contributed towards a second successive promotion for the Shrimpers, scoring 11 goals. His final appearance before retirement was on 6 May 2006, when Southend played Bristol City, one of Goater's former clubs. The crowd included an estimated 400 Manchester City fans who travelled to Southend to mark the occasion.
Goater has also played for the Bermudian national team
36 times, scoring 32 goals, though due to Bermuda's lowly standing in world football he never played in a major international tournament. He made his first international appearance at the age of 17 against Canada
, and his final appearance was in 2003 against El Salvador
.
After retiring, Goater returned to Bermuda, receiving an official welcome from the Premier of Bermuda Alex Scott
on his arrival. A week later, Southend played the Bermuda national team in an appreciation game for their former striker. Goater has expressed a wish to enter coaching following his retirement, and studied for the UEFA
B coaching licence in 2005. Since 2003, Goater has organised the annual Shaun Goater Grass-roots Soccer Festival, a football coaching event for children in Bermuda. On 14 September 2006, Goater and the United Soccer Leagues
announced that Bermuda would receive a professional football team that would play in the third division of American football, the USL Second Division
. The team, of which Goater is a director and player, is named the Bermuda Hogges
. He has been linked in the British press with a move back to Manchester City.
Goater and three other partners in the Bermuda based East End Group Limited announced an amalgamation with Telecommunications Networks Limited (now renamed East End Telecom) on 9 November 2007, which added to the group's two other business subsidiaries, East End Asphalt and East End Aviation. Goater currently serves as the group's Business Development Manager.
In 2008, Goater announced his retirement from football.
, Manchester
). He was awarded the MBE
in 2003 for services to sport and young people in Bermuda. His autobiography, Feed the Goat: The Shaun Goater Story was published in September 2006.
|1989–90||Manchester United
||First Division
||0||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1989–90||rowspan="5"|Rotherham United
||rowspan="2"|Third Division
||12||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|1990–91||22||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|1991–92||Fourth Division
||24||9||||||||||||||||
|-
|1992–93||rowspan="2"|Second Division
||23||7||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94||39||13||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94||Notts County
||First Division
||1||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1994–95||rowspan="2"|Rotherham United
||rowspan="2"|Second Division
||45||19||||||||||||||||
|-
|1995–96||44||18||||||||||||||||
|-
|1996–97||rowspan="2"|Bristol City
||rowspan="2"|Second Division
||42||23||1||0||4||1||||||47||24
|-
|1997–98||33||17||||||||||||||||
|-
|1997–98||rowspan="6"|Manchester City
||First Division
||7||3||0||0||0||0||||||7||3
|-
|1998–99||Second Division
||43||17||4||1||3||2||||||50||20
|-
|1999–2000||First Division
||40||23||2||3||3||2||||||45||28
|-
|2000–01||Premier League||26||6||3||3||3||2||||||32||11
|-
|2001–02||First Division
||42||28||2||2||2||2||||||46||32
|-
|2002–03||Premier League||26||7||1||0||2||0||||||29||7
|-
|2003–04||rowspan="2"|Reading
||First Division
||34||12||||||||||||||||
|-
|2004–05||Championship
||9||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2004–05||Coventry City
||Championship
||6||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2005–06||Southend United
||League One
||33||11||||||||||||||||
|-
|2007
||rowspan="2"|Bermuda Hogges
||rowspan="2"|USL Second Division
||8||3||||||||||||||||
|-
|2008
|||1||0||||||||||||||||
551||217||||||||||||||||
9||3||||||||||||||||
560||220||||||||||||||||
Manchester City
Southend United
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 25 February 1970) is a Bermudian
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
footballer who played as a striker for a number of English clubs in the 1990s and 2000s. Currently, he is the chairman of, and occasional player for, the Bermuda Hogges
Bermuda Hogges
Bermuda Hogges is a Bermudian soccer team based in Hamilton, Bermuda. Founded in 2006, the team plays in the USL Premier Development League , the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Mid Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference....
in the USL Second Division
USL Second Division
The United Soccer Leagues Second Division was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, part of the United Soccer Leagues league pyramid...
.
Goater's first professional club was Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
, but he did not reach the first team, making his League debut in 1989 after moving to Rotherham United
Rotherham United F.C.
Rotherham United Football Club are an English professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, who compete in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club's colours have traditionally been red and white, although these have evolved through history...
. He played for Rotherham for seven years before moving to Bristol City
Bristol City F.C.
Bristol City Football Club is one of two football league clubs in Bristol, England . They play at Ashton Gate, located in the south-west of the City...
in 1996. Two years later he moved to Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
for a fee of £400,000.
He is most well known for his time at Manchester City, where he scored over 100 goals between 1998 and 2003, finishing as the club's top scorer for four consecutive seasons. After leaving City, Goater had spells with Reading
Reading F.C.
Reading Football Club is an English association football club based in the town of Reading, Berkshire who currently play in the Championship...
, Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
and Southend United
Southend United F.C.
Southend United Football Club is an English football club based at Roots Hall Stadium, Prittlewell, Southend-on-Sea, Essex, who play in Football League Two. Their home ground is Roots Hall, and the club plan to move into a new 22,000-seater stadium located at Fossetts Farm.-Stadium:The club has had...
, before retiring in May 2006. He represented Bermuda
Bermuda national football team
The Bermuda national football team is the national team of Bermuda and is controlled by the Bermuda Football Association. A member of CONCACAF, it is not among its strongest teams....
36 times, scoring 32 goals.
Early life
Goater was born in the Bermudian capital HamiltonHamilton, Bermuda
Hamilton is the capital of the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda. It is the territory's financial centre and a major port and tourist destination.-Geography:...
, living with his mother Lynette, his grandmother and two aunts. His introduction to English football came in April 1987 when he was invited to join the Saltus Grammar School
Saltus Grammar School
Saltus Grammar School, founded in 1888, is an independent school in Hamilton, the capital of Bermuda. It was a boys' school until 1992 when it became fully co-educational. It has two campuses, one for the Preparatory Department and one for the Junior Department, Senior Department and Graduate...
football and basketball tour. He spent two weeks playing against various English high school teams, including the Leicester City
Leicester City F.C.
Leicester City Football Club , also known as The Foxes, is an English professional football club based at the King Power Stadium in Leicester...
youth team. At the age of 17, he left home to further his education in the United States, where he had a soccer scholarship at Columbia High School
Columbia High School (New Jersey)
Columbia High School is a four-year comprehensive regional public high school located at 17 Parker Avenue in Maplewood, New Jersey, which serves students in grades nine through twelve within the South Orange-Maplewood School District, which includes Maplewood and South Orange Townships...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. Whilst home in Bermuda during his Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving Day is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada. Thanksgiving is celebrated each year on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. In Canada, Thanksgiving falls on the same day as Columbus Day in the...
break, Goater was spotted by scouts from Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
, who invited him to England for a trial. With encouragement from his mother, who was a former football player herself, Goater accepted, forfeiting his scholarship by doing so. At this time, Goater did not play as a striker, but instead played as a creative midfielder.
Early career
Goater's trial resulted in the offer of a professional contract, but he did not break into the first team. In 1989, Goater signed for Rotherham UnitedRotherham United F.C.
Rotherham United Football Club are an English professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, who compete in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club's colours have traditionally been red and white, although these have evolved through history...
in order to play first team football. At this time, Goater suffered homesickness, finding it difficult to adapt to the English climate: "It took me a good two years to get used to life in England. At first I thought the sun never shone and it wasn't for me.". However, he gradually got used to living in England, and over the course of seven seasons at Rotherham he gained a reputation as a reliable lower division striker, scoring 86 goals in 262 appearances, with a winner's medal for the 1996 Auto Windscreens Shield
Football League Trophy
The Football League Trophy, currently known as the Johnstone's Paint Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football knock-out competition open to the 48 clubs in Football League One and Football League Two, the bottom two divisions in the four fully professional top...
the highlight. In 1993, Goater also had a brief loan spell at Notts County
Notts County F.C.
Notts County Football Club are an English professional football club based in Nottingham. They are the oldest of all the clubs in the world that are now professional, having been formed in 1862. They currently play in League One of The Football League, the third tier of the English football system...
, though he made only one appearance for the Nottingham club. Towards the end of the 1995–96 season, Goater had a disagreement with Rotherham manager Archie Gemmill
Archie Gemmill
Archibald "Archie" Gemmill is a Scottish former footballer, most famous for a goal he scored against the Netherlands in the 1978 FIFA World Cup...
, and decided his future lay elsewhere.
In the 1995–96 close season, Goater received offers from Spanish club Osasuna
CA Osasuna
Club Atlético Osasuna, known as Osasuna, is a Spanish football team based in Iruñea-Pamplona, in the autonomous community of Navarre.Founded in 1920, it currently plays in the Spanish first division, holding home games at the 19,553-capacity Estadio Reyno de Navarra...
and newly formed South Koreans Suwon Samsung Bluewings
Suwon Samsung Bluewings
Suwon Samsung Bluewings is a South Korean football club based in the city of Suwon, South Korea, that plays in the K-League. Founded in December 1995, they have become one of Asian football's most famous clubs with a host of domestic and continental honours...
, but having recently married, he decided to stay in England. Shortly after, he moved to Bristol City
Bristol City F.C.
Bristol City Football Club is one of two football league clubs in Bristol, England . They play at Ashton Gate, located in the south-west of the City...
for a fee of £175,000. Goater's Bristol City debut came against Gillingham
Gillingham F.C.
Gillingham Football Club is an English professional football club based in the town of Gillingham, Kent. The only Kent-based club in the Football League, they play their home matches at the Priestfield Stadium...
. Goater scored, but Bristol City lost 3–2. City finished the season in fifth, qualifying for the playoffs, but lost to Brentford
Brentford F.C.
Brentford Football Club are a professional English football club based in Brentford in the London Borough of Hounslow. They are currently playing in Football League One....
. The following season Bristol City were pushing for promotion into the First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
, and Goater scored regularly, eventually being named in the PFA Team of the Year
PFA Team of the Year
The Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year is an annual award given to a set of 44 footballers in the top four tiers of English football; the Premier League, the Championship, League One and League Two, whom are seen to be deserving of being named in a "Team of the Year".The award...
for the division. In a little under two years with the Bristol City, he scored 45 goals in 81 appearances. On 26 March 1998, transfer deadline day
Transfer window
The transfer window is the period during the year in which a football club can transfer players from other countries into their playing staff. Such a transfer is completed by registering the player into the new club through FIFA...
, Goater signed for Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
, who paid Bristol City £400,000 for his services.
Manchester City
Goater joined Manchester City at a turbulent point in their history, with newly appointed manager Joe RoyleJoe Royle
Joseph "Joe" Royle is an English football manager. In his club career, he played for Everton , Manchester City, Bristol City, Norwich City, and the England national team...
battling to save the club from relegation to Second Division. Goater scored three goals in the seven remaining matches of the 1997–98 season, but this was not enough to prevent the club from being relegated to the third tier of English Football for the first time ever. Fans were initially sceptical as to Goater's ability, but as goals were scored supporters were gradually won over, creating a song in his honour, "Feed The Goat And He Will Score" (to the tune Cwm Rhondda
Cwm Rhondda
Cwm Rhondda, the Welsh name for the Rhondda Valley, is a popular hymn tune written by John Hughes and first performed in 1907. It is often erroneously called Bread of Heaven and is usually used in English as a setting for William Williams's text Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah , originally...
). The 1998–99 season saw Goater score 21 goals, finishing the season as Manchester City's top goalscorer. The last of these was the winning goal in a play-off semi-final against Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic F.C.
Wigan Athletic Football Club is an English Premier League Association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, having been promoted from the Championship in 2005. Wigan's current spell in the Premier League is the only top flight run in the club's history.They have played at the DW...
, sending Manchester City to Wembley Stadium for a playoff final which saw City promoted after a penalty shootout.
The 1999–2000 season was even more successful for Goater. He was the club's top goalscorer once again, this time with 29 goals, and was named Manchester City's Player of the Year by the supporters after Manchester City were promoted for the second successive year. In the summer, Goater was awarded the freedom of Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
, with 21 June declared as "Shaun Goater Day" on the island. The following season Goater made his first appearance in top flight football at the age of 30, though injury and the presence of new signings Paulo Wanchope
Paulo Wanchope
Pablo César Wanchope Watson , more commonly known as Paulo Wanchope, is a Costa Rican former professional footballer. As of February 2009, Wanchope is the second most prolific goalscorer in the history of the national football team, behind Rolando Fonseca, with 45 goals in 73 international...
and former World Player of the Year George Weah
George Weah
George Tawlon Manneh Oppong Ousman Weah is a Liberian humanitarian and politician, and an ex-footballer. He ran unsuccessfully for president in the 2005 election, losing to Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in the second round of voting...
meant he had to wait three months to do so. Once again established in the first team, Goater was Manchester City's top goalscorer for the third consecutive season, but his 11 goals could not save the team from relegation.
During the 2000–01 close season, upheaval took place at Manchester City, with manager Royle departing to be replaced by Kevin Keegan
Kevin Keegan
Joseph Kevin Keegan, OBE is a former international footballer and former manager of the England national football team and several English clubs, most notably Newcastle United....
. In the 2001–02 season, Goater became the first Manchester City player since Francis Lee
Francis Lee
Francis Henry Lee is a former professional footballer, who played in the 1960s and 1970s, including 27 appearances for the England national team. Lee played for Bolton Wanderers, Manchester City, and Derby County...
in 1972 to score more than 30 goals in a season. City were promoted as champions, and he was the club's top scorer for the fourth time in a row, as well as being the top scorer in the division.
Over the summer of 2001–02, there was speculation that Goater would be transferred, as Manchester City had twice broken their transfer record by buying strikers Jon Macken
Jon Macken
Jonathan Paul "Jon" Macken is an English-born Irish footballer who plays as a striker and currently plays for League One Walsall...
and Nicolas Anelka
Nicolas Anelka
Abdul-Salam Bilal on 14 March 1979) is a French international footballer, who plays as a striker for English Premier League club Chelsea. Anelka was also a regular starter for the French national team...
. Goater stayed, but opportunities were limited. He started just 14 games, but scored seven goals, including his 100th for the club, which came in a derby match
Local derby
In many countries the term local derby, or simply just derby means a sporting fixture between two, generally local, rivals, particularly in association football...
against local rivals Manchester United. In February 2003, Goater struck against the same opposition to score the fastest goal by a substitute in Premier League history, just 9 seconds after coming onto the pitch. He also scored a goal that would have won City the match, but it was disallowed.
Shortly before the end of the 2002–03 season, Goater announced his intention to leave Manchester City when the season finished in order to seek regular first team football. In his final match for Manchester City, he was asked to captain the side in Manchester City's final game at Maine Road
Maine Road
Maine Road was a football stadium in Moss Side, Manchester, England that was home to Manchester City F.C. from its construction in 1923 until 2003...
. In total, Goater scored 103 goals in 212 appearances for Manchester City. Since ending his footballing career, Goater has been critical of both Kevin Keegan, who he claims never praised him and Nicolas Anelka, who he feels wanted to be 'the daddy' of Manchester City.
Subsequent career
Goater moved to ReadingReading F.C.
Reading Football Club is an English association football club based in the town of Reading, Berkshire who currently play in the Championship...
on 1 August 2003. Reading chairman John Madejski
John Madejski
Sir John Robert Madejski OBE DL is an English businessman, with commercial interests, spanning property, broadcast media, hotels, restaurants, publishing and football...
described the transfer as "the biggest in Reading Football Club's history", but Goater's time there was not a happy one. Shortly after Goater's arrival, Reading manager Alan Pardew
Alan Pardew
Alan Scott Pardew is an English football manager and former player, currently the manager of Newcastle United....
left for West Ham United
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
, and Pardew's replacement, Steve Coppell
Steve Coppell
Stephen James "Steve" Coppell is an English former footballer and manager, currently without a club.As a player, he was a highly regarded right winger known for his speed and work rate. He won domestic honours with Manchester United and represented England at the World Cup...
, did not regard Goater as part of his plans. In his second and final season at Reading, Goater played just four times, and was loaned to Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
. Goater then considered retirement, but instead moved to League One
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
club Southend United
Southend United F.C.
Southend United Football Club is an English football club based at Roots Hall Stadium, Prittlewell, Southend-on-Sea, Essex, who play in Football League Two. Their home ground is Roots Hall, and the club plan to move into a new 22,000-seater stadium located at Fossetts Farm.-Stadium:The club has had...
for a final season as a professional. The move, a free transfer, was completed on 3 August 2005. At Southend, Goater acted as a mentor for young striker Freddy Eastwood
Freddy Eastwood
Freddy Eastwood is an English-born footballer, currently playing for Coventry City. He is a Welsh International, eligible to play for the Wales national football team as his maternal grandfather was born in Llanelli, Wales...
, and contributed towards a second successive promotion for the Shrimpers, scoring 11 goals. His final appearance before retirement was on 6 May 2006, when Southend played Bristol City, one of Goater's former clubs. The crowd included an estimated 400 Manchester City fans who travelled to Southend to mark the occasion.
Goater has also played for the Bermudian national team
Bermuda national football team
The Bermuda national football team is the national team of Bermuda and is controlled by the Bermuda Football Association. A member of CONCACAF, it is not among its strongest teams....
36 times, scoring 32 goals, though due to Bermuda's lowly standing in world football he never played in a major international tournament. He made his first international appearance at the age of 17 against Canada
Canada men's national soccer team
The Canada men's national soccer team represents Canada in international soccer competitions at the senior men's level. They are overseen by the Canadian Soccer Association and compete in the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football .Their most significant...
, and his final appearance was in 2003 against El Salvador
El Salvador national football team
El Salvador's national football team represents El Salvador in international football and is sanctioned by the Federación Salvadoreña de Fútbol . In 1899, Santa Ana and San Salvador met for the first hosted football game in El Salvador...
.
After retiring, Goater returned to Bermuda, receiving an official welcome from the Premier of Bermuda Alex Scott
William Alexander Scott
William Alexander "Alex" Scott JP, MP is a politician in Bermuda who is the MP for the Warwick South East constituency. Between 2003 and 2006 he served as the Premier of Bermuda and leader of the Progressive Labour Party ....
on his arrival. A week later, Southend played the Bermuda national team in an appreciation game for their former striker. Goater has expressed a wish to enter coaching following his retirement, and studied for the UEFA
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....
B coaching licence in 2005. Since 2003, Goater has organised the annual Shaun Goater Grass-roots Soccer Festival, a football coaching event for children in Bermuda. On 14 September 2006, Goater and the United Soccer Leagues
United Soccer Leagues
The United Soccer Leagues is the organizer of several soccer leagues with teams in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. It includes men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Leagues currently organized are the USL Pro, the USL Premier Development League, the W-League, and...
announced that Bermuda would receive a professional football team that would play in the third division of American football, the USL Second Division
USL Second Division
The United Soccer Leagues Second Division was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, part of the United Soccer Leagues league pyramid...
. The team, of which Goater is a director and player, is named the Bermuda Hogges
Bermuda Hogges
Bermuda Hogges is a Bermudian soccer team based in Hamilton, Bermuda. Founded in 2006, the team plays in the USL Premier Development League , the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Mid Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference....
. He has been linked in the British press with a move back to Manchester City.
Goater and three other partners in the Bermuda based East End Group Limited announced an amalgamation with Telecommunications Networks Limited (now renamed East End Telecom) on 9 November 2007, which added to the group's two other business subsidiaries, East End Asphalt and East End Aviation. Goater currently serves as the group's Business Development Manager.
In 2008, Goater announced his retirement from football.
Personal life
Goater is married to Anita, his childhood sweetheart, and has two daughters, Amaya and Anais (born 3 October 2000 in WythenshaweWythenshawe
Wythenshawe is a district in the south of the city of Manchester, England.Formerly part of the administrative county of Cheshire, in 1931 Wythenshawe was transferred to the City of Manchester, which had begun building a massive housing estate there in the 1920s to resolve the problem of its inner...
, Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
). He was awarded the MBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
in 2003 for services to sport and young people in Bermuda. His autobiography, Feed the Goat: The Shaun Goater Story was published in September 2006.
Career statistics
|-|1989–90||Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
||First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||0||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1989–90||rowspan="5"|Rotherham United
Rotherham United F.C.
Rotherham United Football Club are an English professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, who compete in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club's colours have traditionally been red and white, although these have evolved through history...
||rowspan="2"|Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
||12||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|1990–91||22||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|1991–92||Fourth Division
Football League Fourth Division
The Fourth Division of The Football League was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season...
||24||9||||||||||||||||
|-
|1992–93||rowspan="2"|Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
||23||7||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94||39||13||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94||Notts County
Notts County F.C.
Notts County Football Club are an English professional football club based in Nottingham. They are the oldest of all the clubs in the world that are now professional, having been formed in 1862. They currently play in League One of The Football League, the third tier of the English football system...
||First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||1||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1994–95||rowspan="2"|Rotherham United
Rotherham United F.C.
Rotherham United Football Club are an English professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, who compete in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club's colours have traditionally been red and white, although these have evolved through history...
||rowspan="2"|Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
||45||19||||||||||||||||
|-
|1995–96||44||18||||||||||||||||
|-
|1996–97||rowspan="2"|Bristol City
Bristol City F.C.
Bristol City Football Club is one of two football league clubs in Bristol, England . They play at Ashton Gate, located in the south-west of the City...
||rowspan="2"|Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
||42||23||1||0||4||1||||||47||24
|-
|1997–98||33||17||||||||||||||||
|-
|1997–98||rowspan="6"|Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
||First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||7||3||0||0||0||0||||||7||3
|-
|1998–99||Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
||43||17||4||1||3||2||||||50||20
|-
|1999–2000||First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||40||23||2||3||3||2||||||45||28
|-
|2000–01||Premier League||26||6||3||3||3||2||||||32||11
|-
|2001–02||First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||42||28||2||2||2||2||||||46||32
|-
|2002–03||Premier League||26||7||1||0||2||0||||||29||7
|-
|2003–04||rowspan="2"|Reading
Reading F.C.
Reading Football Club is an English association football club based in the town of Reading, Berkshire who currently play in the Championship...
||First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||34||12||||||||||||||||
|-
|2004–05||Championship
Football League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
||9||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2004–05||Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
||Championship
Football League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
||6||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2005–06||Southend United
Southend United F.C.
Southend United Football Club is an English football club based at Roots Hall Stadium, Prittlewell, Southend-on-Sea, Essex, who play in Football League Two. Their home ground is Roots Hall, and the club plan to move into a new 22,000-seater stadium located at Fossetts Farm.-Stadium:The club has had...
||League One
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
||33||11||||||||||||||||
|-
|2007
United Soccer Leagues 2007
The 2007 Season is the 21st edition of the United Soccer Leagues season.The season kicked off on Friday, April 13 when the 2006 league runners-up Rochester Raging Rhinos traveled to the Juan Ramon Loubriel Stadium in Bayamon to take on the Puerto Rico Islanders.-General:* Two new teams join the...
||rowspan="2"|Bermuda Hogges
Bermuda Hogges
Bermuda Hogges is a Bermudian soccer team based in Hamilton, Bermuda. Founded in 2006, the team plays in the USL Premier Development League , the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Mid Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference....
||rowspan="2"|USL Second Division
USL Second Division
The United Soccer Leagues Second Division was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, part of the United Soccer Leagues league pyramid...
||8||3||||||||||||||||
|-
|2008
United Soccer Leagues 2008
The 2008 Season is the 22nd edition of the United Soccer Leagues season.The season kicked off on Friday, April 12 with two First Division games, as the Charleston Battery visited Miami FC and the Montreal Impact visited the Vancouver Whitecaps.-General:...
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551||217||||||||||||||||
9||3||||||||||||||||
560||220||||||||||||||||
International goals
- Scores and results list Bermuda's goal tally first.
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition 1. 12 April 1989 Barbados BarbadosBarbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
1–0 2–1 Friendly Exhibition gameAn exhibition game is a sporting event in which there is no competitive value of any significant kind to any competitor regardless of the outcome of the competition...2. 13 May 1990 Castries CastriesCastries , population 10,634, aggl. 37,963 , is the capital city of Saint Lucia, a country in the Caribbean. The district with the same name had a population of 61,341 in 2001-05-22, and stretches over an area of ....
, Saint LuciaSaint LuciaSaint Lucia is an island country in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. Part of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent, northwest of Barbados and south of Martinique. It covers a land area of 620 km2 and has an...
1–0 2–0 1990 Carribean Cup qualifier 3. 13 May 1990 Castries, Saint Lucia 
Saint Lucia 2–0 2–0 1990 Carribean Cup qualifier 4. 26 April 1992 Hamilton, Bermuda Hamilton, BermudaHamilton is the capital of the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda. It is the territory's financial centre and a major port and tourist destination.-Geography:...
1–0 1–0 1994 World Cup qualification 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF)Listed below are the dates and results for the 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the North, Central American and Caribbean zone . For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification....5. 25 May 1992 Port-au-Prince Port-au-PrincePort-au-Prince is the capital and largest city of the Caribbean nation of Haiti. The city's population was 704,776 as of the 2003 census, and was officially estimated to have reached 897,859 in 2009....
, HaitiHaitiHaiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
Haiti 1–0 1–2 1994 World Cup qualification 6. 4 July 1992 Hamilton, Bermuda 1–1 2–1 1994 World Cup qualification 7. 4 July 1992 Hamilton, Bermuda 
Antigua and Barbuda 2–1 2–1 1994 World Cup qualification 8. 1 November 1992 San Salvador San SalvadorThe city of San Salvador the capital and largest city of El Salvador, which has been designated a Gamma World City. Its complete name is La Ciudad de Gran San Salvador...
, El SalvadorEl SalvadorEl Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
1–4 1–4 1994 World Cup qualification 9. 8 November 1992 Kingston Kingston, JamaicaKingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
, JamaicaJamaicaJamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
2–2 2–3 1994 World Cup qualification 10. 15 November 1992 Burnaby, Canada CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
1–3 2–4 1994 World Cup qualification 11. 5 March 2000 Sherly Ground Sherly GroundThe A.O. Shirley Recreation Ground is a multi-use stadium in Road Town, British Virgin Islands. It is currently used mostly for football matches and usually hosts the British Virgin Islands national football team's games. The stadium holds 3,000 people....
, Road TownRoad Town-See also:* Government House, the official residence of the Governor of the British Virgin Islands located in Road Town-External links:*****...
, British Virgin IslandsBritish Virgin IslandsThe Virgin Islands, often called the British Virgin Islands , is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union, located in the Caribbean to the east of Puerto Rico. The islands make up part of the Virgin Islands archipelago, the remaining islands constituting the U.S...
3–0 5–1 2002 World Cup qualification 12. 5 March 2000 Sherly Ground, Road Town, British Virgin Islands 
British Virgin Islands 4–0 5–1 2002 World Cup qualification 13. 5 March 2000 Sherly Ground, Road Town, British Virgin Islands British Virgin Islands 5–1 5–1 2002 World Cup qualification 14. 31 March 2004 Bermuda National Sports Centre, Hamilton, Bermuda 1–0 3–0 Friendly 15. 31 March 2004 Bermuda National Sports Centre, Hamilton, Bermuda 
Nicaragua 2–0 3–0 Friendly
Club
Rotherham United- Auto Windscreens ShieldFootball League TrophyThe Football League Trophy, currently known as the Johnstone's Paint Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football knock-out competition open to the 48 clubs in Football League One and Football League Two, the bottom two divisions in the four fully professional top...
(1): 1995–96
Manchester City
- Football League Second Division play-offsFootball League One play-offsThe Football League One Playoffs are a series of playoff matches, contested by the teams finishing from 3rd to 6th in the NPower Football League One table to determine the third spot for promotion to the second tier of English football, the Championship....
(1): 1998–991999 Football League Second Division play-off FinalThe 1999 Football League Second Division playoff final was a football match played at Wembley Stadium on 30 May 1999, to determine the third and final team to gain promotion from the Second Division to the First Division of The Football League in the 1998–99 season. Gillingham faced... - Football League First DivisionFootball League ChampionshipThe Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
(1): 2001–02
Southend United
- Football League OneFootball League OneFootball League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
(1): 2005–06
Individual
- Football League First Division Top ScorerFootball League OneFootball League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
(1): 2001–02 - PFA Team of the YearPFA Team of the YearThe Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year is an annual award given to a set of 44 footballers in the top four tiers of English football; the Premier League, the Championship, League One and League Two, whom are seen to be deserving of being named in a "Team of the Year".The award...
(2): 1997–98, 2001–02