1977 Fort Lauderdale Strikers season

The 1977 Fort Lauderdale Strikers season was the first season of the new team, and the club's eleventh season in professional soccer. It is also the first ever incarnation of the club's new name. Previously they were known as the Miami Toros. The 1977 squad won the North American Soccer League's Eastern Division of the Atlantic Conference, and was the top team in regular season with 19 victories for 161 points.

Fort Lauderdale Strikers
1977 season
OwnerUnited States Elizabeth Robbie
General managerKrikor Yepremian[1]
ManagerEngland Ron Newman
StadiumLockhart Stadium
NASLEastern Division: First place
Regular season: Champions
Top goalscorerLeague:
United States George Nanchoff (8)

All:
England Maurice Whittle (9)
Average home league attendance8,148
← 1976 Toros
1978 Strikers →

Background

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First ever match

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The Strikers first-ever game was a preseason indoor match played on February 27, 1977 at the Bayfront Center in St. Petersburg, Florida, against the Tampa Bay Rowdies.[2] Though only an exhibition, this was the first meeting in what was to become one of the most enduring rivalries in North American soccer, the Florida Derby. It would also set the tone for many years of indoor frustration for the Strikers as they fell, 9–8, to the hosts.[3][4]

Match report

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February 27, 1977 1 Tampa Bay Rowdies 9–8 Fort Lauderdale Strikers St. Petersburg, Florida
8:00 p.m. (EST)
Report
Stadium: Bayfront Center
Attendance: 5,016
Referee: Sam Hornich

Review

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Competitions

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Friendlies

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Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers
February 27, 1977 Tampa Bay Rowdies Bayfront Center 9–8 5,016 (indoor) Sharp (3), Mulroy, Nanchoff, Ceballos, Chadwick, Hamlyn
March 5, 1977 Rollins College Tars Sandspur Bowl 1–6
March 12, 1977 Washington Diplomats Wilde Lake High School 3–2 1,093 Sergio Ceballos (2)
March 13, 1977 Washington Diplomats City Stadium 3–4 David Chadwick, Fred Pereira, Sergio Ceballos, Curtis Leeper
March 26, 1977 Miami Dade South MDC South Campus
March 27, 1977 FIU Sunblazers FIU Soccer Stadium 0–5 1,100
April 6, 1977 Rochester Lancers Lockhart Stadium 2–0 Bobby Bell, Tony Whelan
June 10, 1977   S.S. Lazio Lockhart Stadium 1–4 3,500 Norman Piper
October 2, 1977 Business Machines, Inc. Leonard High School 2–3 500 Tony Whelan, David Proctor, Mike Fazee

NASL regular season

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W = Wins, L = Losses, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, BP = Bonus Points, Pts= point system

6 points for a win, 0 points for a loss, 1 point for each regulation goal scored up to three per game.

Atlantic Conference

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Eastern Division W L GF GA BP Pts Home Road
Fort Lauderdale Strikers 19 7 49 29 47 161 11–2 8–5
Cosmos 15 11 60 39 50 140 10–3 5–8
Tampa Bay Rowdies 14 12 55 45 47 131 11–2 3–10
Washington Diplomats 10 16 32 49 32 92 6–7 4–9
Northern Division W L GF GA BP Pts Home Road
Toronto Metros-Croatia 13 13 42 38 37 115 8–5 5–8
St. Louis Stars 12 14 33 35 32 104 7–6 5–8
Rochester Lancers 11 15 34 41 33 99 10–3 1–12
Chicago Sting 10 16 31 43 28 88 4–9 6–7
Connecticut Bicentennials 7 19 34 65 30 72 4–9 3–10

Results summaries

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Results by round

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Match reports

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NASL Playoffs

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Divisional Championships

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Higher seed Lower seed Game 1 Game 2 (lower seed hosts Game 1)
Fort Lauderdale Strikers Cosmos 3–8 2–3 (SO, 0–3) August 14 • Giants Stadium • 77,691
August 17 • Lockhart Stadium 14,152

Bracket

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First Round Division Championships Conference Championships Soccer Bowl '77
            
E2 Cosmos 3
E3 Tampa Bay Rowdies 0
E1 Fort Lauderdale Strikers 0
E2 Cosmos 2
E2 Cosmos 2
N3 Rochester Lancers 0
N2 St. Louis Stars 0(2)
N3 Rochester Lancers 0(4)
N1 Toronto Metros-Croatia 0
N3 Rochester Lancers 2
E2 Cosmos 2
W3 Seattle Sounders 1
S2 Los Angeles Aztecs 2
S3 San Jose Earthquakes 1
S1 Dallas Tornado 0
S2 Los Angeles Aztecs 2
S2 Los Angeles Aztecs 0
W3 Seattle Sounders 2
W2 Vancouver Whitecaps 0
W3 Seattle Sounders 2
W1 Minnesota Kicks 0
W3 Seattle Sounders 2

Match reports

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Statistics

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Transfers

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See also

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1977 Fort Lauderdale Strikers

References

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  1. ^ "13 Jan 1977, Page 58 – Fort Lauderdale News at". Newspapers.com. January 13, 1977. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
  2. ^ "Rowdies Vs. Strikers In Exhibition Tonight". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. February 27, 1977. p. 3-D. Retrieved September 19, 2016.
  3. ^ Meyer, John (February 28, 1977). "Rowdies: Bombs Away!". Evening Independent. p. 1-C. Retrieved September 19, 2016.
  4. ^ Blankenship, Ken (February 28, 1977). "Smethurst-led Rowdies clip Strikers 9–8". St. Petersburg Times. p. 1C. Retrieved September 19, 2016.