Yilmaz Orhan (born 13 March 1955 in

Nicosia Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaor ...

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

) is a former football forward who played professionally in the United States and England.

Career

Early career

Spotted by

Terry Matthews Sir Terence Hedley Matthews (born 6 June 1943) is a Welsh-Canadian business magnate, serial high-tech entrepreneur, and Wales' first billionaire. He was the richest man in Wales until 2012, when he was surpassed by Sir Michael Moritz. He h ...

while playing for

Aveley Aveley is a town and former civil parish in the unitary authority of Thurrock in Essex, England, and forms one of the traditional Church of England parishes. Aveley is 16 miles (26.2 km) east of Charing Cross. In the 2021 United Kingdom ...

, Orhan made his First Division debut for West Ham United in January 1976. He made eight league appearances, and featured in one cup game, but failed to score while with the club.

North America

In April 1977, Orhan moved to

Team Hawaii Team Hawaii was a soccer team based out of Honolulu that played in the NASL for one season, 1977. Their home field was Aloha Stadium. After two unsuccessful years as the San Antonio Thunder, the franchise moved to Hawai'i in time for the 1977 ...

for the franchise's single season in the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to: *North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league *North American Soccer League (2011–2017) The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...

. In 1978, he signed with the

Houston Hurricane The Houston Hurricane was a soccer team based out of Houston that played in the NASL. They played from 1978 to 1980. Their home field was the Astrodome. Their colors were orange, white and red. History The team was the last of six expansion te ...

, but was traded to the

San Diego Sockers San Diego Sockers may refer to: *San Diego Sockers (1978–1996), a soccer team in the North American Soccer League *San Diego Sockers (2001–2004), a soccer team in the World Indoor Soccer League and second Major Indoor Soccer League *San Diego S ...

during the season. He played through the 1980 outdoor season with the Sockers. He played on loan to the

Hartford Hellions The Hartford Hellions were a soccer team based out of Hartford, Connecticut that played in the Major Indoor Soccer League. They played from 1979 to 1981. The Hellions played their first season in the New Haven Coliseum before moving to the remo ...

for the 1979–1980 Major Indoor Soccer League season. In the fall of 1980, he left the Sockers and dedicated himself to indoor soccer. That fall, he signed with the St. Louis Steamers. He moved to the

Buffalo Stallions The Buffalo Stallions were a soccer team based out of Buffalo, New York, that played in the Major Indoor Soccer League from 1979 to 1984. Their home arena was Buffalo Memorial Auditorium. It was the last professional club for which the Portugues ...

for the 1981–1982 season. In 1982, he moved to the Kansas City Comets. In October 1983, the Comets put Orhan up for a trade after an altercation with the team's trainer. The team eventually waived him and he signed with the

Memphis Americans The Memphis Americans were a soccer team based out of Memphis, Tennessee that played in the original Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL). They played from 1981 to 1984. Their home arena was the Mid-South Coliseum. A new version of the team wi ...

. In 1984, the Americans moved to Las Vegas for the 1984–1985 season. The Americans released him at the end of the season. During the off-season, Orhan served his four-month sentence for drunken driving which led to his showing late to the

Baltimore Blast The Baltimore Blast is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The team is a part of the Major Arena Soccer League. The team has won 10 championships since it was founded in 1980. Beginning with t ...

with whom he had signed during the off season. In March 1986, the Blast sold Orhan's contract to the

Pittsburgh Spirit Pittsburgh Spirit were an indoor soccer team based in Pittsburgh and were one of the original six teams that played in the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL). The Spirit were founded in 1978, suspended operation for the 1980–81 season, then ret ...

. In the fall of 1986, he moved to the Kansas City Comets in 1987. He played five games for the Kansas City Comets before being released. He then signed with the

Louisville Thunder Louisville Thunder was an indoor soccer club based in Louisville, Kentucky that was one of the founding clubs competing in the American Indoor Soccer Association. Peter Mahlock served as President and General Manager and Keith Tozer was the head c ...

of the

American Indoor Soccer Association American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

for the remainder of the season. In October 1987, he signed with the

Milwaukee Wave The Milwaukee Wave is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded in 1984, they have been the oldest continuously operating professional soccer team in the United States and are seven-time league champions, m ...

References

External links

NASL/MISL stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Orhan, Yilmaz 1955 births Living people Cypriot emigrants to the United States American people of Turkish Cypriot descent Cypriot footballers American Indoor Soccer Association players Association football forwards Aveley F.C. players Baltimore Blast (original MISL) players Buffalo Stallions players Houston Hurricane players Kansas City Comets (original MISL) players Louisville Thunder players Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) players Milwaukee Wave players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) indoor players Sportspeople from Nicosia Pittsburgh Spirit players San Diego Sockers (original MISL) players San Diego Sockers (NASL) players St. Louis Steamers (original MISL) players Team Hawaii players Sportspeople of Turkish Cypriot descent West Ham United F.C. players English Football League players Expatriate footballers in England Expatriate soccer players in the United States Cypriot expatriate footballers