Joseph Lapira
Irish footballer (born 1986)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Joseph Lapira (born 13 August 1986) is a retired footballer. Born in the United States, he played for Ireland in a single friendly match.[1] Besides the United States, he has played in Norway and India.[2][3]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Joseph John Lapira | ||
| Date of birth | 13 August 1986 | ||
| Place of birth | Rochester, New York, United States | ||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2000–2004 | St. Louis Saints | ||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2004–2007 | University of Notre Dame | 89 | (41) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2003 | Louisiana Outlaws | 4 | (1) |
| 2004 | Lafayette Swamp Cats | 2 | (0) |
| 2007 | Baton Rouge Capitals | 7 | (3) |
| 2008–2009 | Nybergsund | 55 | (16) |
| 2011 | United Sikkim FC | 3 | (2) |
| 2011 | Nybergsund | 8 | (1) |
| 2013 | Nybergsund | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2007 | Republic of Ireland | 1 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 9 December 2011 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 17 November 2010 | |||
Early life
Lapira graduated from St. Louis Catholic High School in Lake Charles, Louisiana.[4] After high school, he continued a family tradition and attended the University of Notre Dame.[5] He is of Maltese descent.[6]
Club career
In 2006, he was the winner of the Hermann Trophy, awarded to the top collegiate player of the year,[7] after scoring 22 goals for Notre Dame.[8] During his college years, Lapira also played in the USL Premier Development League with Louisiana Outlaws, Lafayette Swamp Cats and Baton Rouge Capitals.[citation needed]
In April 2007, it was reported that Lapira would be joining Scottish Premier League side Aberdeen for a trial at some point in summer 2007,[9] although he eventually went on trial at Rangers instead.[10] Lapira broke down with a calf injury minutes into his first training session with the Ibrox club.[11] In January 2008, Lapira finally joined Aberdeen for a week-long trial after recovering from his calf injury.[12] He played for the reserve side in a 1–1 draw with Falkirk reserves but did not do enough to earn a contract with the Dons.[13]
Instead, Lapira was selected in the third round of the 2008 MLS SuperDraft by Toronto FC,[14] but never signed a contract with Major League Soccer.[6]
On 1 April 2008, Lapira signed with Norwegian Adeccoligaen side Nybergsund IL-Trysil,[15] who played in the second tier after being promoted from the third tier in 2007.[16] Lapira scored a brace in his Nybergsund debut, a 3–0 victory.[17]
In March 2011, Lapira signed for I-League 2nd Division side United Sikkim FC.[18][19]
In the summer of 2011, Lapira returned to Norway after signing again with Nybergsund IL-Trysil.[20]
Career statistics
| Season | Club | Division | League | Cup | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| 2008 | Nybergsund-Trysil | Adeccoligaen | 29 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 8 |
| 2009 | Adeccoligaen | 26 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 8 | |
| 2011 | United Sikkim | I-League 2nd Division | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| 2011 | Nybergsund-Trysil | Adeccoligaen | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 |
| Career total | 65 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 65 | 19 | ||
International career
Lapira is a full international for the Republic of Ireland. He qualifies for the Republic by virtue of his Irish mother,[16] and came to the attention of former Irish boss Steve Staunton through Lapira's uncle, who worked at the FAI.[7] He gained a cap for Ireland on 23 May 2007, against Ecuador,[21] becoming the first amateur player to play for Ireland since Willie Browne in 1964.[11]
Awards and honours
- M.A.C. Hermann Trophy Winner (2006)
- Soccer America National
- Player of the Year (2006)
- All-America First Team (2006)
- All-BIG EAST First Team (2006)
- BIG EAST Offensive
- Player of the Year (2006)
- All-BIG EAST Third Team (2005)
- Participated in the 2019 Joe Lapira FIFA tournament, placing a respectable 21st out of 22 participants (2019)