1983–84 NASL indoor season
The 1983–84 North American Soccer League indoor season was the fourth and last in league history. The San Diego Sockers defeated the New York Cosmos for their third straight indoor title, having won the NASL Indoor title in 1981–82 and the MISL title in 1982–83.
| Season | 1983–84 |
|---|---|
| Champions | San Diego Sockers (2nd Title) |
| Premiers | San Diego Sockers |
| Matches played | 112 |
| Goals scored | 1,377 (12.29 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Steve Zungul (63 goals) |
← 1983 Final season → | |
Season recap
The NASL was struggling for life at this point, and finding teams to play the indoor season would be difficult. While San Diego, the Chicago Sting and the Golden Bay Earthquakes were committed to the league, filling out the ranks would be problematic. With the league making plain their desire to have both an indoor and outdoor element going forward, the Fort Lauderdale Strikers decided to move to Minnesota for the 1984 NASL season due to a lack of suitable arenas in the local area.[1]
The Tampa Bay Rowdies were unsure whether or not they would be able to play, as the previous owners had committed to play in the indoor season and then sold the team. This left the new owners in the lurch.[2] The lack of a suitable arena was also an issue, eventually forcing Rowdies' home games to be split among three sites.[3] The Tulsa Roughnecks were only in the league thanks to a fundraiser that put $65,000 in the team's coffers, even though the team had won the outdoor Soccer Bowl just weeks earlier.[4]
Despite the uncertainty, this would be the largest NASL indoor season ever as a 32-game regular season, a best-of-three semifinal round and a best-of-five championship series were on the schedule. Also, the first (and only) All-Star Game in NASL history took place on February 8 at Chicago Stadium. The hometown Chicago Sting took on an All-Star team of the six other squads. Despite four goals from Chicago's Karl-Heinz Granitza, the All-Stars won 9–8.[5]
Not surprisingly, the teams with steady management performed best through the season. The Sockers averaged over 11,000 for their home games and finished first, overcoming a slow 8-8 start.[6] The hot streak continued in the playoffs as the team won all five of their postseason games en route to the NASL title.[7]
The NASL confirmed plans for 40-game indoor seasons in 1985 and 1986 near the end of the season,[8] but folded for good in March 1985.[9] By then, San Diego, Minnesota, New York and Chicago had joined the MISL.[10] While the Sockers, Strikers and Sting experienced success in the MISL, the Cosmos would start the season but drop out on February 22, 1985.[11]
Teams
Regular season
The 1983–84 regular season schedule ran from November 11, 1983, to March 25, 1984. The 32 games per team was almost double the length of previous NASL Indoor seasons.
W = Wins, L = Losses, GB = Games Behind 1st Place, Pct. = Winning Percentage, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against
| Final Standings | W | L | Pct. | GB | GF | GA | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego Sockers | 21 | 11 | .656 | – | 196 | 148 | 14–2 | 7–9 |
| New York Cosmos | 20 | 12 | .625 | 1 | 219 | 198 | 13–3 | 7–9 |
| Chicago Sting | 20 | 12 | .625 | 1 | 183 | 148 | 12–4 | 8–8 |
| Golden Bay Earthquakes | 19 | 13 | .594 | 2 | 206 | 190 | 12–4 | 7–9 |
| Vancouver Whitecaps | 12 | 20 | .375 | 9 | 187 | 209 | 6–10 | 6–10 |
| Tulsa Roughnecks | 11 | 21 | .344 | 10 | 166 | 216 | 7–9 | 4–12 |
| Tampa Bay Rowdies | 9 | 23 | .281 | 12 | 177 | 225 | 5–11 | 4–12 |
Regular season statistics
Scoring leaders
GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steve Zungul | Golden Bay Earthquakes | 32 | 63 | 56 | 119 |
| Karl-Heinz Granitza | Chicago Sting | 32 | 59 | 33 | 92 |
| Juli Veee | San Diego Sockers | 28 | 45 | 29 | 74 |
| Carl Valentine | Vancouver Whitecaps | 32 | 44 | 26 | 70 |
| Chico Borja | New York Cosmos | 31 | 29 | 37 | 66 |
| Godfrey Ingram | Golden Bay Earthquakes | 32 | 38 | 25 | 63 |
| Tatu | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 30 | 49 | 11 | 60 |
| Stan Terlecki | New York Cosmos | 23 | 34 | 23 | 57 |
| Peter Ward | Vancouver Whitecaps | 28 | 42 | 12 | 54 |
| Kaz Deyna | San Diego Sockers | 27 | 28 | 24 | 52 |
Leading goalkeepers
Note: GP = Games played; Min – Minutes played; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; W = Wins; L = Losses
| Player | Team | GP | Min | GA | GAA | W | L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Gorsek | San Diego Sockers | 18 | 1074 | 73 | 4.08 | 14 | 4 |
| Victor Nogueira | Chicago Sting | 32 | 1873 | 136 | 4.36 | 20 | 10 |
| Bob Rigby | Golden Bay Earthquakes | 31 | 1890 | 184 | 5.84 | 18 | 13 |
| David Brcic | New York Cosmos | 26 | 1570 | 155 | 5.92 | 18 | 8 |
| Jürgen Stars | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 26 | 1506 | 171 | 6.81 | 8 | 18 |
| Winston DuBose | Tulsa Roughnecks | 22 | 1416 | 161 | 6.82 | 7 | 15 |
1984 NASL All-Star Game
On February 8, the city of Chicago hosted what turned out to be the only All-Star game in NASL history. The Chicago Sting battled a team of All-Stars from the other six teams for the benefit of Chicago Tribune Charities. The starters were voted on by the players, while San Diego coach Ron Newman selected the reserves.[13] The All-Stars outdueled the Sting 9–8 before 14,328 fans at Chicago Stadium, despite an MVP performance by Chicago's Karl-Heinz Granitza. Granitza scored four goals on the night.[14][15]
| All-Star Game Starters | Position | All-Star Game Reserves |
|---|---|---|
| *Alan Mayer, San Diego | G | David Brcic, New York • Tino Lettieri Vancouver[16] |
| Barry Wallace, Tulsa | D | Angelo DiBernardo, New York • Frantz Mathieu, Tampa Bay |
| Fernando Clavijo, Golden Bay | D | Mike Connell, Tampa Bay • Gert Wieczorkowski, San Diego |
| Steve Zungul, Golden Bay | F | Carl Valentine, Vancouver • ^Stan Terlecki, New York |
| Kaz Deyna, San Diego | F | Jean Willrich, San Diego • Zequinha, Tulsa[17] |
| Juli Veee, San Diego | F | Peter Ward, Vancouver |
*Alan Mayer of San Diego was originally selected as a starter but due to a broken finger was unable to play. Tino Lettieri of Vancouver was named as his replacement.[18]^Stan Terlecki of New York was originally selected as a reserve but due to injury was unable to play. Zequinha of Tulsa was named as his replacement.[19]
Match report
| February 8, 1984 All-Star Game | Chicago Sting | 8–9 | NASL All-Stars | Chicago, Illinois |
| 8:00 PM (CST) | Margetic  00:48' (Fajkus)Granitza 3:23' (Fajkus)Weiner 7:00' (Simanton)Granitza 23:27' (Fajkus)Granitza 27:32' (pen.)Granitza 29:19' (Margetic)Margetic 45:32' (Fajkus)Margetic 56:33' (Fajkus) |
Report | Zungul 00:48' (Clavijo) Zequinha 3:23' (Ward)Ward 7:00' (Valentine)Ward 23:27' (Willrich)Valentine 27:32' (Mathieu)Zungul 29:19' (Wieczorkowski)Veee 37:50' (Zungul)Deyna 54:08' (Zungul)Wieczorkowski 57:16' (Willrich) |
Stadium: Chicago Stadium Attendance: 14,328 Referee: Feliks Fuksman & Julio Salas |
NASL All-Stars
During the finals the NASL announced the traditional All-NASL team of All-Stars, as voted on by the players at the end of the regular season.[20]
| First Team | Position | Second Team |
|---|---|---|
| Victor Nogueira, Chicago | G | David Brcic, New York |
| Fernando Clavijo, Golden Bay | D | Dan Canter, New York |
| Gert Wieczorkowski, San Diego | D | Martin Donnelly, San Diego |
| Kaz Deyna, San Diego | M | Juli Veee, San Diego |
| Steve Zungul, Golden Bay | F | Carl Valentine, Vancouver |
| Karl-Heinz Granitza, Chicago | F | Pato Margetic, Chicago • Stan Terlecki, New York |
Playoffs
Bracket
| Semifinals Best-of-3 | Championship series Best-of-5 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | San Diego Sockers | 5 | 7 | – | |||||||||
| 4 | Golden Bay Earthquakes | 2 | 2 | – | |||||||||
| 1 | San Diego Sockers | 5 | 10 | 7 | |||||||||
| 2 | New York Cosmos | 2 | 4 | 3 | |||||||||
| 2 | New York Cosmos | 4 | 3 | 8 | |||||||||
| 3 | Chicago Sting | 3 | 7 | 7 | |||||||||
Semifinals
Best of three series
| Higher seed | Lower seed | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego Sockers | – | Golden Bay Earthquakes | 5–2 | 7–2 | x | March 29 • San Diego Sports Arena • 10,870 April 1 • Oakland Coliseum Arena • 4,413 |
| New York Cosmos | – | Chicago Sting | 4–3 | 3–7 | 8–7 | March 28 • Brendan Byrne Arena • 2,842 March 30 • Chicago Stadium • 15,462 April 1 • Brendan Byrne Arena • 5,420 |
Championship Series
Best of five series
| Higher seed | Lower seed | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4 | Game 5 | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego Sockers | – | New York Cosmos | 5–2 | 10–4 | 7–3 | x | x | April 5 • San Diego Sports Arena • 12,006 April 8 • San Diego Sports Arena • 12,696 April 11 • Brendan Byrne Arena • 4,717 |
Championship match reports
| April 5, 1984 Game 1 | San Diego Sockers | 5–2 | New York Cosmos | San Diego, California |
| 8:00 P.M. (PST) | Willrich 12:17' (Crow) Donnelly 17:12' (Quinn)Willrich 25:17' (Veee)Deyna 26' (Veee)Deyna 44:17' (Donnelly) |
Report A Report B |
Borja 4:06' (Kozić) Parkinson 56' |
Stadium: San Diego Sports Arena Attendance: 12,006 |
| April 8, 1984 Game 2 | San Diego Sockers | 10–4 | New York Cosmos | San Diego, California |
| 6:30 P.M. (PST) | Deyna 6:52' (Veee) Pérez 14:01'Coker 19:02'O'Kane 20:29'Quinn 21:36' (Newman)Willrich 3rd Qtr' (Hilkes)Coker 3rd Qtr' (Hilkes)Pérez 4th Qtr' (Coker)Pérez 4th Qtr'Skouras 4th Qtr' |
Report A Report B |
Moyers 11:46' Moyers 4th Qtr'De Matthaeis 4th Qtr'De Matthaeis 4th Qtr' |
Stadium: San Diego Sports Arena Attendance: 12,696 |
| April 11, 1984 Game 3 | New York Cosmos | 3–7 | San Diego Sockers | East Rutherford, New Jersey |
| 8:00 P.M. (EST) | DiBernardo 3:15' Parkinson 6:47' (Borja)Borja 29:29' (Gray) |
Report A Report B |
Namdar 17:37' (Willrich) Willrich 20:16' (Gorsek)Crow 21:25' (Pérez)Crow 33:23' (Pérez)Deyna 43:04' (Veee)Veee 44:32' (Quinn)Pérez 52:37' (Willrich) |
Stadium: Brendan Byrne Arena Attendance: 4,717 Referee: Gordon Arrowsmith (Canada) and Peter Johnson |
1983–84 NASL Indoor Champions: San Diego Sockers
Post-season awards
- Most Valuable Player: Steve Zungul, Golden Bay[21]
- Coach of the Year: Eddie Firmani, New York
- Finals MVP: Jean Willrich, San Diego[22]
Team attendance totals
| Club[23] | Games | Total | Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago Sting | 16 | 189,228 | 11,827 |
| San Diego Sockers | 16 | 182,633 | 11,415 |
| New York Cosmos | 16 | 78,391 | 4,899 |
| Golden Bay Earthquakes | 16 | 72,190 | 4,512 |
| Tulsa Roughnecks | 16 | 59,304 | 3,707 |
| Vancouver Whitecaps | 16 | 46,336 | 2,896 |
| Tampa Bay Rowdies | 16 | 43,065 | 2,692 |
| OVERALL | 112 | 671,147 | 5,992 |
References
- Marmor, Jon (December 1, 1983). "Strikers' Departure Is Official". Palm Beach Post. p. D1. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
- Beard, Randy (November 1, 1983). "Rowdies scrub the indoor season". The Evening Independent. p. 1-C. Retrieved June 2, 2012 – via Google News Archive Search.
- Beard, Randy (November 5, 1983). "Don't hold your breath as Rowdies unveil schedule". The Evening Independent. p. 4-C. Retrieved June 2, 2012 – via Google News Archive Search.
- "NASL results: 1 team lost, 1 team saved". Milwaukee Journal. November 5, 1983. p. 12. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved June 2, 2012 – via Google News Archive Search.
- "Hey Now, You're An All-Star". Kenn Tomasch. Retrieved May 3, 2013.
- Beard, Randy (March 1, 1984). "Frustration continues for Rowdies: Sockers' spurt means season winding down". The Evening Independent. p. 6-C. Retrieved June 2, 2012 – via Google News Archive Search.
- "San Diego soccer champs". Ottawa Citizen. April 12, 1984. p. 54. Retrieved June 2, 2012 – via Google News Archive Search.
- "Must Play in '84, Sting Is Told". New York Times. February 10, 1984. Retrieved June 2, 2012 – via nytimes.com.
- "NASL down to two teams, won't play this season". Eugene Register-Guard. March 29, 1985. p. 2D. Retrieved June 2, 2012 – via Google News Archive Search.
- "MISL takes four NASL teams". Boca Raton News. August 31, 1984. p. 2C. Retrieved June 2, 2012 – via Google News Archive Search.
- "Cosmos pull out of MISL, NASL". Ellensburg Daily Record. February 23, 1985. p. 11. Retrieved June 2, 2012 – via Google News Archive Search.
- Yannis, Pat (March 8, 1984). "Hartford Shift Seen For Indoor Cosmos". New York Times. Retrieved December 22, 2016 – via newyorktimes.com.
- Beard, Randy (February 3, 1984). "All-star picks baffle Rowdies Connell, Mathieu". The Evening Independent. p. 6-C. Retrieved May 3, 2013 – via Google News Archive Search.
- "Hey Now, You're An All-Star". Kenn Tomasch. Retrieved May 3, 2013.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on April 8, 2016. Retrieved June 16, 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - "Hey Now, You're An All-Star". Kenn Tomasch. Retrieved May 3, 2013.
- "Hey Now, You're An All-Star". Kenn Tomasch. Retrieved May 3, 2013.
- Miranda, Randy (February 2, 1984). "Coach Marsh should know verdict soon". Lakeland Ledger. p. 5D. Retrieved October 24, 2016 – via Google News Archive Search.
- "stat sheet; Moves; SOCCER". The Spokesman-Review. February 8, 1984. p. 20. Retrieved October 24, 2016 – via Google News Archive Search.
- "NASL all-stars". Chicago Tribune. April 10, 1984. p. 4; sec 4. Retrieved January 12, 2017.
- "NASL: Cosmos get serious". Record-Journal. April 5, 1984. p. 20. Retrieved October 24, 2016 – via Google News Archive Search.
- Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "San Diego Sockers vs New York Cosmos, 1984 NASL Indoor Finals, Game 3". YouTube.
- "Attendance Project: NASL Indoor". Kenn Tomasch. Retrieved July 13, 2013.