Dirk "Dick" Hendricus Schoenaker (born November 30, 1952 in Ede

Ede

Ede may refer to:* Locations:** Ede, Netherlands** Ede, Nigeria* People and languages** the Ede people of Vietnam** Ede languages , languages related to Yoruba spoken by a million people in Benin* Given names...

, Gelderland

Gelderland

Gelderland is the largest province of the Netherlands, located in the central eastern part of the country. The capital city is Arnhem. The two other major cities, Nijmegen and Apeldoorn have more inhabitants. Other major regional centers in Gelderland are Ede, Doetinchem, Zutphen, Tiel, Wijchen,...

) is a retired football

Football (soccer)

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 midfielder

Midfielder

A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...

 from the Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

, who represented his native country

Netherlands national football team

The Netherlands National Football Team represents the Netherlands in association football and is controlled by the Royal Dutch Football Association , the governing body for football in the Netherlands...

 at the 1978 FIFA World Cup

1978 FIFA World Cup

The 1978 FIFA World Cup, the 11th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in Argentina between 1 June and 25 June. The 1978 World Cup was won by Argentina who beat the Netherlands 3–1 after extra time in the final. This win was the first World Cup title for Argentina, who became the fifth...

 in Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

, wearing the number three jersey.

Career

His football-career started at Wageningen and De Graafschap Doetinchem. He was bought by Ajax Amsterdam

Ajax Amsterdam

Amsterdamsche Football Club Ajax , also referred to as AFC Ajax, Ajax Amsterdam or simply Ajax , is a professional football club from Amsterdam, Netherlands...

 by leaving Ajax-coach Rinus Michels

Rinus Michels

Marinus Jacobus Hendricus Michels OON was a Dutch association football player and coach...

 at the end of the 1975/1976 season. He went to Ajax summer 1976, simultaneously with Hans Erkens and Johan Zuidema and has been by far the most successful of the 3 midfielders, their first Ajax-coach being Tomislav Ivic

Tomislav Ivic

Tomislav Ivić was a Croatian football player and manager.Often described as a brilliant strategist, Ivić is credited with helping develop the modern style of the game...

. Schoenaker displayed unbridled energy at the midfield, a rumbled ability to run, the vigour as attacking midfielder to disturb players of the opponent (defensive work) sometimes reconquering balls, achieved a high quote in scored goals per match and had been a very sporting player.

Also he has been captain of Ajax (1983–1984 and 1984–1985, his 9th and final season at Ajax). In Schoenaker's 9 seasons at Ajax, he won 6 Dutch Eredivisie

Eredivisie

The Eredivisie is the highest football league in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956 two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is currently ranked the ninth best league in Europe by UEFA....

 championship titles (seasons 1976-1977, 1978–1979, 1979–1980, 1981–1982, 1982–1983, 1984–1985) and 2 Dutch Cups (KNVB-Cups) (seasons 1978-1979, 1982–1983). In the period 1976-1985 Ajax also lost 3 Dutch Cup-finals (KNVB Cup-finals) (seasons 1977-1978, 1979–1980, 1980–1981).

European successes were scarce this period: 2 best achievements: semi-final European Cup I for Champions (season 1979-1980), quarter final European Cup I for Champions (season 1977-1978). In the season 1978-1979 Ajax was eliminated in the 3rd round of UEFA Cup

UEFA Cup

The UEFA Europa League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1971 for eligible European football clubs. It is the second most prestigious European club football contest after the UEFA Champions League...

, and in the season 1984-1985 Red Boys Differdange was beaten with 14-0 (returnmatch 1st round UEFA-Cup), a Dutch record, but in the 2nd round of that tournament Ajax was eliminated.

Summer 1985 Schoenaker went to play for FC Twente Enschede, where he ended his career. Schoenaker obtained a total number of thirteen caps, scoring six goals.

External links