The centre-half was playing for Perth Soccer Club when he was selected for the Australian Under-17 squad for the 1994 youth World Cup, and came to the notice of Harry Redknapp, then manager of West Ham. Coyne signed for the Hammers as a teenager, but Premiership chances were few and far between, and after loan spells at Brentford and Southend, Coyne went to Dundee. A £50,000 cheque persuaded the Scottish Premier League club to let the defender move to Kenilworth Road in September 2001 and Coyne rapidly became a crowd favourite in the promotion run that followed and since then he has firmly established himself as a formidable rock at the heart of the Hatters defence. Coyne had a formidable season during the Club's League One success, collecting the Powerade Player of the Month for April and winning a place in the PFA League One Team of the Year. During the 2005/06 season, Coyne established a strong partnership with Markus Heikkinen in the centre of defence but he was unable to establish a long run in the side during the 2006/07 season because of injury. Chris is the Club's captain.