Werner "Scotty" Nilsen (February 4, 1904 in

Skien Skien () is a city and municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county in Norway. In modern times it is regarded as part of the traditional region of Grenland, although historically it belonged to Grenmar/Skiensfjorden, while Grenland referred the ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

– May 10, 1992 in St. Louis, Missouri) is a former Norwegian American soccer forward. He is one of the highest scoring players in U.S. soccer history, scoring 131 goals in 239 games with the Boston Soccer Club. He won five consecutive National Challenge Cups during his career, and four doubles. He also earned two

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Ja ...

with the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

in 1934, one at the

1934 FIFA World Cup The 1934 FIFA World Cup was the second edition of the FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams. It took place in Italy from 27 May to 10 June 1934. The 1934 World Cup was the first in w ...

. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.

Club career

Early career

Nilsen played for Norwegian club Skiens Grane before moving to the United States in 1923. When he arrived, he settled in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

where he began playing for local amateur and semi-professional soccer teams including the Norwegian-Americans and Hub F.C., both in the Boston and District League.

Boston

In 1926, Nilsen signed with the Boston Soccer Club of the American Soccer League (ASL). At the time, the ASL was establishing itself as one of the top leagues, both nationally and internationally, and the Wonder Workers were a rising team in the league. Nilsen began as a right half, then moved into the front line as either a center forward or right inside. He won his first league cup (Lewis Cup) in 1927, then his first league title in the 1927–28 season. The next year, he tied János Nehadoma of the

Brooklyn Wanderers The Brooklyn Wanderers was a U.S. soccer team which was a founding member of the National Association Football League in the late nineteenth century. Later versions joined the original American Soccer League and the reorganized American Soccer Le ...

as the top goal scorers with 43 goals a piece. He also joined Viking F.C. for a tour of

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...

. Viking F.C. was an ad hoc traveling team composed of U.S.-based players with ethnic roots in Scandinavia.

Fall River

Nilsen began the 1929–30 season in Boston, but was transferred to the

Fall River Marksmen Fall River Marksmen was an American soccer club based in Fall River, Massachusetts. They originally played as Fall River United before becoming known as the Marksmen after their owner, Sam Mark. During the 1920s and early 1930s they were one of t ...

after three games. In Fall River, he played alongside

Bert Patenaude Bertrand "Bert" Arthur Patenaude (; November 4, 1909November 4, 1974) was an American soccer player who played as a forward. Although it was formerly disputed, he is now officially credited by FIFA as scorer of the first hat-trick in the World ...

on the front line. The onset of the Great Depression in 1929, combined with the costs imposed by the "Soccer Wars" between the ASL and

United States Football Association The United States Soccer Federation (USSF), commonly referred to as U.S. Soccer, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and the official governing body of the sport of soccer in the United States. Headquartered in Chicago, the federation is a ...

(USFA) led to severe financial problems with the league and its teams. This led to the rapid collapse of several teams and the eventual collapse of the ASL in 1933. Before these happened, Nilsen would win his first "double" as the Marksmen took the 1929–30 league title and the 1930 National Challenge Cup. With financial problems mounting,

Sam Mark Sam Mark (born Markelevitch in Fall River, Massachusetts) is a former United States soccer club owner. During the 1920s and early 1930s he was the owner of Fall River Marksmen, one of the era's most successful teams. Mark's continued to own the tea ...

, owner of the Marksmen, merged the team with the

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to form the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

. The Yankees competed in the spring 1931 season. While the league standings reflect the Yankee name, the team won the 1931 National Challenge Cup under the Fall River Marksmen name. As in 1928, Nilsen joined a collection of U.S.-based Scandinavian players in 1931 to make a tour of that region, this time as part of Brooklyn Gjoa.

New Bedford

To make matters more confusing, in summer of 1931 the Yankees moved to New Bedford, Massachusetts, merged with

Fall River F.C. Fall River Football Club, also referred to as Fall River Field Club, was the name used by two United States soccer clubs, based in Fall River, Massachusetts. Both played in the American Soccer League during the early 1930s. The name is often used ...

and became the second team to be named the

New Bedford Whalers New Bedford Whalers was the name of three American soccer teams based in New Bedford, Massachusetts. The first Whalers played in the Southern New England Soccer League between 1914 and 1918. The second Whalers played in the American Soccer League ...

. Despite the turmoil, Nilsen and his teammates added another "double" to their resumes as they took both the 1932 league title and the National Challenge Cup. In league play, Nilsen finished second to ex-teammate Patenaude for the scoring title. The Whalers won the 1932 Challenge Cup title over the St. Louis-based

Stix, Baer and Fuller F.C. Stix, Baer and Fuller F.C. was a U.S. soccer club which played in the St. Louis Soccer League from 1931 to 1934. The team was known as Hellrungs from 1929 to 1931, St. Louis Central Breweries F.C. from 1934 to 1935 and St. Louis Shamrocks from 19 ...

Both legs of the cup final were held in St. Louis. The first ended in a 3-3 tie. A week later, Whalers won the game and the title with a 5-2 victory; Nilsen scoring one of the goals. After the games, Whaler's Scottish international Alex McNab decided to join Stix as a player/coach for the 1932–33 season. McNab convinced several of his Whalers teammates, including Nilsen, Billy Gonsalves, Bill McPherson and Billy Watson to also make the move west.

St. Louis

The addition of the core of the Whalers team to an already strong Stix, Baer and Fuller team created a team which dominated the St. Louis and Challenge Cup competitions for several years. The team ran away with the 1932–33 St. Louis Major League title, then won the

1933 National Challenge Cup The 1933 National Challenge Cup was the annual open cup held by the United States Football Association now known as the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. As in 1931, the ASL teams played a round robin format instead of direct knockout games. The five New ...

title, giving Nilsen his third "double". Stix, Baer and Fuller won both games, 1-0 and 2-1 over the

New York Americans The New York Americans, colloquially known as the Amerks, were a professional ice hockey team based in New York City from 1925 to 1942. They were the third expansion team in the history of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the second to play ...

. Nilsen again scored in the second game. Stix, Baer and Fuller repeated the double the next year as it again won the league and open championships, giving Nilsen five consecutive Open Cup titles and four "doubles". Following the

1934 National Challenge Cup The 1934 National Challenge Cup was the annual open cup held by the United States Football Association now known as the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Eastern Division Western Division a,b) aggregate after 3 games Final First game Second game ...

title game,

St. Louis Central Breweries F.C. Stix, Baer and Fuller F.C. was a U.S. soccer club which played in the St. Louis Soccer League from 1931 to 1934. The team was known as Hellrungs from 1929 to 1931, St. Louis Central Breweries F.C. from 1934 to 1935 and St. Louis Shamrocks from 19 ...

took over sponsorship of the team. Nilsen remained with Central Breweries which won the 1934–35 league championship, but did not participate in the team's 1935 Challenge Cup victory due to injury. The team experienced yet another name change, this time to the St. Louis Shamrocks. Shamrocks went to both the 1936 and 1937 Challenge Cup finals, but lost both times. In 1937, Nilsen joined his last team,

South Side Radio South Side Radio was a U.S. soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a p ...

before retiring at the end of the 1937–38 season. Nilsen was inducted into the St. Louis Old Time Soccer Players Hall of Fame in 1983.

International career

In 1934, Nilsen earned two

with the

when he was selected to the

roster. His first game with the U.S. came on a May 24, 1934 World Cup qualification victory over

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. His next game did not end as successfully for the U.S. as it lost to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

on May 27, 1934 in the finals first round.

Managerial career

Nilsen coached the St. Louis Raiders during the 1946–47 season.

Personal life

According to the Soccer Hall of Fame, Nilsen worked as a machinist and a men's clothing model in both Boston and St. Louis.

National Soccer Hall of Fame

The National Soccer Hall of Fame inducted Nilsen in 2005 as part of a process of recognizing significant pre-1950s players. According to the Hall of Fame, "We were aware that in the early decades of the Hall of Fame a number of outstanding players had slipped through the cracks of the selection process. In order to correct these oversights we established a Blue Ribbon panel consisting of historians Colin Jose, Roger Allaway and Hall of Famer

Walter Bahr Walter may refer to: People * Walter (name), both a surname and a given name * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968) * Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 19 ...

, to review the credentials of all Veterans from the pre-NASL era. Out of a total of 150 players who met the eligibility criteria, the panel unanimously recommended, and the Board approved, the special induction of these five players." Nilsen and Alex McNab, teammates on both the Whalers and Stix, Baer and Fuller were among the five selected.National Soccer Hall of Fame announcement
/ref>

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nilsen, Werner 1904 births 1992 deaths Sportspeople from Skien Norwegian footballers American soccer players United States men's international soccer players American Soccer League (1921–1933) players Boston Wonder Workers players Fall River Marksmen players New York Yankees (soccer) players New Bedford Whalers players St. Louis Soccer League players Stix, Baer and Fuller F.C. players St. Louis Central Breweries players St. Louis Shamrocks players St. Louis South Side Radio players American soccer coaches National Soccer Hall of Fame members 1934 FIFA World Cup players Norwegian emigrants to the United States Association football forwards Association football midfielders