1975 Tampa Bay Rowdies indoor season

Last updated
Tampa Bay Rowdies
1975 indoor season
Owner Flag of the United States.svg George W. Strawbridge, Jr.
General manager Flag of the United States.svg Beau Rodgers
Manager Flag of Italy.svg Eddie Firmani
Stadium Bayfront Center
NASL Regional: Champion
League: Runners-up
Top goalscorer
Flag of the United States.svg Doug Wark
(10 goals)
Highest home attendance4,437
(Feb. 14 vs. Diplomats)
Lowest home attendance4,032
(Feb. 16 vs. Comets)
Average home league attendance4,235
← first season
1976  →

The 1975 Tampa Bay Rowdies indoor season was the first indoor season of the club's existence. It also marked the first time the expansion Rowdies participated in any North American Soccer League sanctioned competition.

Contents

Original kit

The Rowdies' jersey used during the 1975 indoor season was different than later indoor and outdoor years in that the neckline was merely a cuff rather than the full collar style that became so familiar in all of Tampa Bay's later NASL campaigns. [1] [2] [3] Photographic evidence also indicates that the cuff-style jersey saw limited use during the 1975 outdoor season, but by season's end it disappeared altogether. [4] [5]

Club

Roster

No.PositionPlayerNation
1 GK Mike Hewitt Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland
1 GK Bob Stetler* Flag of the United States.svg  United States
2 DF Farrukh Quraishi Flag of England.svg  England
3 DF Alex Pringle Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland
4 MF John Boyle (capt.) Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland
5 MF Ringo Cantillo Flag of Costa Rica.svg  Costa Rica
6 DF Mike Connell Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa
7 MF Bernard Hartze Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa
8 MF Randy Garber Flag of the United States.svg  United States
9 DF Lima Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil
9 MF Nick Papadakis Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada
10 FW Eddie Engerth Flag of the United States.svg  United States
11 FW Doug Wark Flag of the United States.svg  United States
12 FW Bob Isaacson Flag of the United States.svg  United States
12 FW Javier Alvarez Flag of Mexico.svg  Mexico
13 MF Zygmunt Lezak Flag of Poland.svg  Poland
13 DF John Bluem Flag of the United States.svg  United States
15 FW Eddie Firmani Flag of Italy.svg  Italy

*amateur player

Management and technical staff

Honors

Individual honors

Review

In part because of the success of the spring 1974 indoor tour by the Red Army team the NASL decided to hold an indoor tournament of its own. [6] Of the 20 franchises in the league, sixteen participated. Teams were separated into four regional groups of four. The Bayfront Center in St. Petersburg, Florida, was chosen as one of the Regional venues, with the Rowdies as hosts for Region 3. The San Jose Earthquakes were given the honor of hosting the championship semifinals and finals at the Cow Palace. [7]

Region 3 tournament

The winner of the Region 3 would gain an automatic place in the Championship tournament four weeks later in California. In their first tournament game the Rowdies had no trouble with the Washington Diplomats, winning by a score of 7–2. [8] Two nights later Tampa Bay had a tougher task in coming from behind to defeat the Baltimore Comets, 8–6. Those two victories left the Rowdies tied with the Miami Toros in the standings, however the tie-breaker was goal differential. Tampa Bay's plus-7 goal margin narrowly edged out the Toros’ plus-6, and the Rowdies advanced. Ringo Cantillo was named MVP of the Region, edging out Miami's Nico Bodonczy by one vote. [9]

Regional standings

PosTeamGWLGFGAGDPTS
1Tampa Bay Rowdies220158+74
2 Miami Toros 2201812+64
3 Baltimore Comets 2021419-50
4 Washington Diplomats 202614-80

Championship tournament

Tampa Bay was paired up with the New York Cosmos in the semifinals, while the other semifinal had San Jose clashing with the Dallas Tornado. Led by Doug Wark’s record six-goal performance, the Rowdies jumped out to an early 3–0 lead, and never looked back, as they dispatched the Cosmos, 13–5, to advance to the final on Sunday. [10]

On March 16, 1975, the Tampa Bay faced a heavily favored San Jose Earthquakes team in the Rowdies first of what would be many championship finals, against. With the score 6–1 at the end of the first period, and 8,618 fans behind them, San Jose showed exactly why they were tabbed to win the tournament. From there the home team cruised to an 8–5 victory. In addition to the Rowdies’ runner-up performance, Doug Wark was named to the All-Tournament squad and was the second leading scorer in the tournament. [11]

Bracket

SemifinalsChampionship Final
      
R4 San Jose Earthquakes 8
R1 Dallas Tornado 5
R4 San Jose Earthquakes8
R3 Tampa Bay Rowdies 5
R3 Tampa Bay Rowdies13
R2 New York Cosmos 5

Championship standings

PosTeamGWLGFGAGD
1 San Jose Earthquakes 4403717+20
2Tampa Bay Rowdies4313321+11
3 Dallas Tornado 4221412+2
4 New York Cosmos 4131827-9
5 Miami Toros 2201812+6

Match reports

February 14, 1975Regional #1 Tampa Bay Rowdies 7–2 Washington Diplomats St. Petersburg, Florida
8:30 PM EST Engerth Soccerball shade.svg10:38'
Engerth Soccerball shade.svg14:55'
Wark Soccerball shade.svg23:30'
Wark Soccerball shade.svg29:33'
Cantillo Soccerball shade.svg36:17'
Cantillo Soccerball shade.svg39:15'
Connell Soccerball shade.svg43:15' (Garber)		 Report on p. 5-C DeLeon Soccerball shade.svg23:45'
Diane Soccerball shade.svg35:25'		Stadium: Bayfront Center
Attendance: 4,437
February 16, 1975Regional #2 Tampa Bay Rowdies 8–6 Baltimore Comets St. Petersburg, Florida
8:30 PM EST Quraishi Soccerball shade.svg12:17', 26:38', 39:12'
Papadakis Soccerball shade.svg14:51', 24:49'
Cantillo Soccerball shade.svg40:43', 40:46'
Wark Soccerball shade.svg41:59'		 Report Scurti Soccerball shade.svg1:24'
Kazmierski Soccerball shade.svg6:12', Soccerball shade.svg31:29'
Wit Soccerball shade.svg12:54', 14:28', 25:28'		Stadium: Bayfront Center
Attendance: 4,032
March 14, 1975Semifinal Tampa Bay Rowdies 13–5 New York Cosmos Daly City, California
7:00 PM PDT Cantillo Soccerball shade.svg2:31' (Boyle)
Wark Soccerball shade.svg4:13' (Pringle)
Wark Soccerball shade.svg6:34' (Quraishi)
Wark Soccerball shade.svg13:50'
Wark Soccerball shade.svg14:34' (Hartze)
Lezak Soccerball shade.svg17:22'
Hartze Soccerball shade.svg22:03'
Hartze Soccerball shade.svg22:42' (Cantillo)
Wark Soccerball shade.svg33:03' (Lima)
Hartze Soccerball shade.svg35:34'
Lezak Soccerball shade.svg35:55' (Cantillo)
Lezak Soccerball shade.svg39:35' (Hartze)
Wark Soccerball shade.svg59:35' (Connell)		 Report A
Report B 		Lamas Soccerball shade.svg10:46' (Mărdărescu)
Mărdărescu Soccerball shade.svg12:07'
Lamas Soccerball shade.svg27:08' (Parades)
Lamas Soccerball shade.svg44:06' (Roth)
Correa Soccerball shade.svg49:36'		Stadium: Cow Palace
Attendance: 9,113
Referee: John Davies
March 16, 1975Final San Jose Earthquakes 8–5 Tampa Bay Rowdies Daly City, California
9:00 PM PDT Roboostoff Soccerball shade.svg7:10'
Child Soccerball shade.svg9:25' (Gavric)
Roboostoff Soccerball shade.svg14:36' (Child)
Child Soccerball shade.svg16:22' (Welch)
Roboostoff Soccerball shade.svg18:38' (Moore)
Welch Soccerball shade.svg19:38' (Child)
Zaczynski Soccerball shade.svg50:50' (Child)
Child Soccerball shade.svg52:56'		 Report A (p. 2C)
Report B 		Engerth Soccerball shade.svg9:36' (Lima)
Hartze Soccerball shade.svg25:14' (Quraishi)
Lezak Soccerball shade.svg33:35'
Wark Soccerball shade.svg50:55' (Hartze)
Quraishi Soccerball shade.svg54:56' (Boyle)		Stadium: Cow Palace
Attendance: 8,618
Referee: Henry Landuer

Statistics

Scoring

GP = Games Played, G = Goals (worth 2 points), A = Assists (worth 1 point), Pts = Points

PlayerGPGAPts
Doug Wark 410020
Ringo Cantillo 45212
Bernard Hartze 34311
Farrukh Quraishi 44210
Zygmunt Lezak 2408
Eddie Engerth 3306
Nick Papadakis 3204
Mike Connell 3113
John Boyle 4022
Lima 2022
Alex Pringle 4011
Randy Garber 1011
Javier Alvarez -000
Bob Isaacson -000

Goalkeeping

Note: GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; W = Wins; L = Losses

PlayerGPMinGAGAAWL
Mike Hewitt 4210215.2531
Bob Stetler 000000

Player movement

Since Tampa Bay was a newly formed club, the entire roster was new.

In

No.Pos.PlayerTransferred fromFee/notesDateSource
3DF Flag of Scotland.svg Alex Pringle Flag of Scotland.svg Clyde F.C. No details availableDecember 1974 [12] [13]
1GK Flag of Scotland.svg Mike Hewitt Flag of Scotland.svg Dundee F.C. Contract purchased from DundeeDecember 1974 [12] [13]
7MF Flag of South Africa (1928-1994).svg Bernard Hartze Flag of South Africa (1928-1994).svg Cape Town Spurs No details availableDecember 17, 1974 [13] [14]
2DF Flag of England.svg Farrukh Quraishi Flag of the United States.svg Oneonta State 1st overall pick of NASL college draftJanuary 18, 1975 [15]
10FW Flag of the United States.svg Eddie Engerth Flag of the United States.svg Philadelphia amateur teamFormer Hartwick College playerJanuary 20, 1975 [16]
6DF Flag of South Africa (1928-1994).svg Mike Connell Flag of South Africa (1928-1994).svg Rangers Johannesburg No details availableJanuary 20, 1975 [16]
11DF Flag of the United States.svg Doug Wark Flag of the United States.svg Rochester Lancers Purchased from RochesterJanuary 27, 1975 [17]
4DF Flag of Scotland.svg John Boyle Flag of England.svg Orient Obtained release after 5-month pursuitFebruary 6, 1975 [18]
9MF Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Nick Papadakis noneFree agentFebruary 9, 1975 [19]
8MF Flag of the United States.svg Randy Garber Flag of the United States.svg Penn State 2nd round of college draftFebruary 9, 1975 [19]
12FW Flag of the United States.svg Bob Isaacson Flag of the United States.svg Hartwick College 3rd round of college draftFebruary 9, 1975 [19]
13DF Flag of the United States.svg John Bluem Flag of the United States.svg Hartwick College 4th round of college draftFebruary 9, 1975 [19]
12FW Flag of Mexico.svg Javier Alvarez Flag of the United States.svg St. Petersburg Kickers Free transferMarch 11, 1975 [20]
15FW Flag of Italy.svg Eddie Firmani noneAdded as an emergency playerMarch 11, 1975 [20]
1GK Flag of the United States.svg Bob Stetler Flag of the United States.svg East Stroudsburg State No contract, to keep amateur statusJanuary 1975 [21]

Out

none

Loan in

No.Pos.PlayerLoaned fromDetailsStartSource
5MF Flag of Costa Rica.svg Ringo Cantillo Flag of the United States.svg Cincinnati Comets Indoor season loanFebruary 9, 1975 [19]
9MF Flag of Brazil.svg Lima Flag of Mexico.svg Club Deportivo Oro Indoor loan with option for transferMarch 11, 1975 [20]
13MF Flag of Poland.svg Zygmunt Lezak Flag of the United States.svg Polonia NYIndoor loan with option for transferMarch 11, 1975 [20]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ Rowdies image
  2. ↑ Inoor Home Team image
  3. ↑ "Nick Papadakis vs Comets 1975 (Image)".
  4. ↑ "Stetler.JPG (Image)".
  5. ↑ "Derek Smethurst, Doug Wark vs Cosmos 1975 (Image)".
  6. ↑ "History of Indoor Soccer in the USA".
  7. ↑ Zier, Patrick (November 6, 1974). "Preview Of Soccer Set For Bayfront". Lakeland Ledger. p. 2A. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  8. ↑ Martz, Ron (February 15, 1975). "Rousing Rowdie debut: 7–2 victory all". St. Petersburg Times. p. 1-C. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
  9. ↑ Martz, Ron (February 17, 1975). "Rowdies do it all". St. Petersburg Times. p. 1-C. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  10. ↑ Spander, Art (March 15, 1975). "Rowdies triumph". St. Petersburg Times. p. 1-C. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  11. ↑ Gurney, Jack (March 17, 1975). "Rowdies Shaken By Earthquake". Evening Independent. p. 1-C. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  12. 1 2 "Pringle named Tampa coach". St. Petersburg Times. September 24, 1975. p. 2-C. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  13. 1 2 3 Martz, Ron (December 18, 1974). "Striking addition for the Rowdies". St. Petersburg Times. p. 2-C. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  14. ↑ "NORTH AMERICAN SOCCER LEAGUE: Bernard Hartze". Archived from the original on 2016-10-14. Retrieved 2016-10-03.
  15. ↑ Martz, Ron (January 17, 1975). "Quraishi year-round Rowdy?". St. Petersburg Times. p. 1-C. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  16. 1 2 "Rowdies sign pair, have six in fold". St. Petersburg Times. January 21, 1975. p. 3-C. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  17. ↑ Austin, Jim (January 28, 1975). "Rowdies Star-Struck". Evening Independent. p. 1-C. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  18. ↑ Blankenship, Ken (February 7, 1975). "Rowdies sign a captain: Boyle". St. Petersburg Times. p. 8-C. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  19. 1 2 3 4 5 Blankenship, Ken (February 10, 1975). "Rowdies sign four, want more". St. Petersburg Times. p. 20-C. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  20. 1 2 3 4 Blankenship, Ken (March 12, 1975). "Rowdies brace for title try". St. Petersburg Times. p. 6-C. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  21. ↑ Bubil, Harold (March 15, 1976). "Goalie Stetler Makes The Most Of First Pro Chance". Sarasota Journal. p. 3-C. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
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