Lenin Steenkamp (born 9 September 1969 in

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

, South Africa) is a retired South African

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player who spent his entire career in the United States.

College

In 1989, Steenkamp entered the College of Boca Raton on a soccer scholarship. Steenkamp was a 1989, 1991 and 1992 First Team NAIA All American soccer player. In 1989 and 1990, Boca Raton finished runner-up in the

NAIA national men's soccer championship The NAIA Men's Soccer Championship is the annual tournament to determine the national champions of NAIA men's collegiate soccer in the United States and Canada. It has been held annually since 1959. The most successful program is Quincy (IL), ...

. In 1991, the school changed its name to Lynn University and the soccer team won the NAIA national championship. Steenkamp scored both goals in the final and was the tournament MVP. Steenkamp graduated in 1993 and is a member of the Lynn University Athletic Hall of Fame.

Club

During the 1992 college off-season, Steenkamp played for the Boca Raton Sabres of the

USISL United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues currently organized are the ...

. In 1993, Steenkamp played for the amateur Club Boca Rotan. This brought him to the attention of the

Fort Lauderdale Strikers Fort Lauderdale Strikers may refer to: *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977–1983), member of North American Soccer League from 1977 to 1983 *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1988–1994), member of American Soccer League from 1988 to 1989 and American Profes ...

who signed him for the 1994 American Professional Soccer League season. He missed the first nine games of the season because of visa problems. Then, in July and August 1994, the Strikers sent him on loan to the

Carolina Vipers The Carolina Vipers were an indoor soccer team based in Charlotte, North Carolina that played in the Continental Indoor Soccer League. They played only one season in 1994. Their home arena was Independence Arena. The Vipers were owned by former C ...

of the

Continental Indoor Soccer League The Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) was a professional indoor soccer league that played from 1993 to 1997. History In the summer of 1989 Dr Jerry Buss, the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers and California Sports, told his executive Vice Pre ...

. In 1995, he moved to the

Atlanta Ruckus Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 li ...

. In October 1995, Steenkamp signed with the

Tampa Bay Terror The Tampa Bay Terror is the name of an indoor soccer team based in the Tampa Bay, Florida area that competed in the defunct National Professional Soccer League (NPSL). The team existed for two seasons before folding: 1995–1996 and 1996–1997. ...

of the National Professional Soccer League. He was named to the 1995–1996 All Rookie Team. Steenkamp began the 1996 A-League season with the Ruckus, but was traded to the Montreal Impact in June 1996 despite leading the team with nine goals. The Impact then sent him to the

Rochester Rhinos Rochester New York FC, formerly known as the Rochester Rhinos, are an American professional soccer team based in Rochester, New York, United States. Founded in 1996, as the Rochester Raging Rhinos, they changed their name to Rochester Rhinos to ...

one day later in exchange for Gustavo Romanello and

Gustavo Villagra Gustavo Villagra is a retired Argentinian association football midfielder who played professionally in Argentina, Chile, the United States and Mexico. In 1991 and 1992, Villagra played for Newell's Old Boys. In 1995, he was with Inter de Tijuana ...

. Steenkamp remained with the Rhinos until his retirement. However, he continued to play indoor soccer, signing with the

Buffalo Blizzard The Buffalo Blizzard was a soccer club that existed from 1992 to 2001 in Buffalo, New York. History The team was originally owned by the Knox brothers who owned the Buffalo Sabres at the time, and additionally by the Riches who owned the minor l ...

in January 1997 and played through the end of the season. In 2003, Steenkamp became an assistant coach with the Rhinos.

Inaugural Member of Rochester Rhinos Hall of Fame

On 28 July 2011, the Rochester Rhinos announced that Steenkamp would be the first member to be inducted to the new Rhinos Hall of Fame in a ceremony that took place at halftime during the 5 August 2011 match at Sahlen's Stadium. Steenkamp is the all-time leader in games (268) and minutes played (21,613) for the Rochester Rhinos.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Steenkamp, Lenin 1969 births Living people Sportspeople from Durban American Professional Soccer League players Association football midfielders Atlanta Silverbacks players Boca Raton Sabres players Buffalo Blizzard players Carolina Vipers players Continental Indoor Soccer League players Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1988–1994) players Lynn Fighting Knights men's soccer players National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) players Rochester New York FC players South African soccer players South African expatriate soccer players South African soccer managers South African expatriate sportspeople in the United States Tampa Bay Terror players USL First Division players USISL players