Leslie James Robert Cocker (18 September 1939 – February 2017) was an English professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

wing half In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

. He played one game in the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

for

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...

Career

Born in Wolverhampton, Cocker began his career in the youth team of

in 1956, playing in their 1958 FA Youth Cup triumph. He turned professional in Summer 1958 and eventually made his senior debut on 4 February 1961 in a 2–1 defeat at

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. Th ...

. This turned out to be his only appearance for Wolves' first team and he was released at the end of the season. He joined local non-league side Wellington Town immediately after, playing in over 200 games during the 1960–61 season. After breaking a

collar bone The clavicle, collarbone, or keybone is a slender, S-shaped long bone approximately long that serves as a strut between the shoulder blade and the sternum (breastbone). There are two clavicles, one on each side of the body. The clavicle is the ...

, he left and relocated to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

in February 1966 for a two-and-a-half-year spell with the Arcadia Shepherds, in which he was the club's top scorer. He then returned to England when he signed on with

Hereford United Hereford United Football Club was an association football club based in Hereford, England. They played at Edgar Street for their entire history. They were nicknamed 'The Whites' or 'The Lilywhites', after their predominantly white kit, or 'Th ...

. In 1969, he appeared as a substitute for

Kidderminster Harriers Kidderminster Harriers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, England. The team competes in the National League North, the sixth level of the English football league system. Formed in ...

in an FA Cup tie against Telford United at the latter's Bucks Head ground. In later life he lived at

Newport, Shropshire Newport is a market town and Civil parishes in Shropshire, civil parish in the borough of Telford and Wrekin in Shropshire, England. It lies north-east of Telford, west of Stafford, and is near the Shropshire-Staffordshire border. The 2001 Ce ...

until the time of his death in February 2017, aged 77.

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cocker, Les 1939 births 2017 deaths Footballers from Wolverhampton English men's footballers Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players English Football League players Men's association football wing halves Arcadia Shepherds F.C. players Telford United F.C. players Hereford United F.C. players Kidderminster Harriers F.C. players 20th-century English sportsmen