Soccer Bowl '83 was the 17th edition of the Soccer Bowl, the championship match of North American Soccer League (NASL), which took place on October 1, 1983. It was the final match of the 1983 North American Soccer League playoffs and was contested by the Tulsa Roughnecks and the Toronto Blizzard at the Stadium at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia.[1][2]

Soccer Bowl '83
EventSoccer Bowl
DateOctober 1, 1983 (1983-10-01)
VenueBC Place Stadium, Vancouver, British Columbia
MVPNjego Pesa (Tulsa Roughnecks)
RefereeEd Bellion (United States)
Attendance53,326
1982
1984

Background

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BC Place was the venue for Soccer Bowl '83

Tulsa Roughnecks

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The Tulsa Roughnecks won the Southern Division with a 17–13 record and a total of 145 points. They dispatched the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in the quarterfinals with a two-game sweep. By virtue of their two games to one victory In the semifinals against the Montreal Manic, the Roughnecks advanced to the Soccer Bowl for the first time in franchise history.

Toronto Blizzard

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The Toronto Blizzard qualified for the playoffs as a wild card by finishing third in the Eastern Division with a 16–14 record and a total of 135 points. In the quarterfinals they were the upset-winner over the Western Division champion Vancouver Whitecaps by two games to one. Vancouver had only lost 6 matches all season. The Blizzard pulled off a second upset in their semifinal match-up by sweeping the Golden Bay Earthquakes in two games, and earning their second ever trip to the Soccer Bowl.

Pre-match controversy

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During game three of their semifinal series with Montreal, Tulsa forward Ron Futcher picked up his third yellow card of the playoffs. By rule this earned him a one-match suspension, and league director of operations Ted Howard was poised to enforce it. For his part, Futcher was not only the team's leading scorer, but also a leader in the Roughnecks' locker room. Tulsa's owners appealed the yellow card and even alluded to the press, the possibility of boycotting the final if Futcher was not allowed to play. Toronto team president Clive Toye felt that bending the rules for a star player might set a bad precedent, but was nevertheless prepared to face whatever lineup Tulsa put on the pitch. Ultimately, NASL president Howard J. Samuels overruled Ted Howard and decided to allow Futcher to play, because he felt that the fans in attendance would be the ones made to suffer by Futcher's absence.[3][4]

Match details

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Tulsa Roughnecks2–0Toronto Blizzard
Pesa   56'
Futcher   62'
Report
Attendance: 53,326 [7]
Referee: Ed Bellion[8] (United States)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Tulsa Roughnecks
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Toronto Blizzard
GK 0   Winston DuBose
DF 5   Val Fernandes
DF 2   Terry Moore
DF 18   Victor Moreland (c)
DF 3   Barry Wallace
MF 17   Adam Krupa   56'
MF 9   Iraj Danaifard
MF 20   Ivan Belfiore   56'
FW 6   Njego Pesa
FW 14   Laurie Abrahams
FW 9   Ron Futcher
Substitutes:[9]
GK 22   Paul Coffee
MF 11   Thompson Usiyan   56'
MF 4   Pasquale Fuccillo   56'
FW 7   Zequinha
MF 10   Gerry Reardon
MF 13   Todd Saldana
Manager:
  Terry Hennessey
GK 1   Jan Moller
DF 3   Bruce Wilson (c)   52'
DF 4   Conny Karlsson
DF 17   Derek Spalding   2'
DF 10   Cliff Calvert
MF 16   Randy Ragan
MF 8   Patrick Ntsoelengoe
MF 5   Jimmy Nicholl
FW 19   David Byrne
FW 11   Roberto Bettega
FW 6   Neill Roberts   81'
Substitutes:[10]
GK 22   Sven Habermann
MF 14   Geoff Wegerle   81'
DF 7   Victor Kodelja
DF 24   Collin Miller
MF 12   Pasquale de Luca
Manager:
  Bob Houghton

1983 NASL Champions: Tulsa Roughnecks

Soccer Bowl MVP:
Njego Pesa

Assistant referees:
  Howard Krollfeifer
  Gary Shugarts
Fourth official:
  Dave Roach
Reserve referee:
  Bill Maxwell

Television: Budwieser Network (syndicated)
Announcers: Bob Carpenter, Gordon Bradley
Touchline reporter: Al Miller

Match statistics

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Statistic[11] Tulsa Toronto
Goals scored 2 0
Total shots 11 14
Shots on target 4 3
Saves 3 2
Corner kicks 2 5
Fouls 19 19
Offsides 4 9
Yellow cards 0 2
Red cards 0 0

See also

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References

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  1. ^ NASL. "NASLSoccerBowl - History - Past Winner". North American Soccer League.
  2. ^ NASL. "NASL 1968-1984 - Yearly Result". North American Soccer League.
  3. ^ Stinson, Dan (October 1, 1983). "Samuels allows Futcher to play". Vancouver Sun. p. B1. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
  4. ^ "Soccer". Chicago Tribune. October 1, 1983. p. Sec.2; 5. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
  5. ^ "Lakeland Ledger - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com.
  6. ^ "Goaltenders in spotlight in NASL Championship". Red Deer Advocate. October 1, 1983. p. 9B. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  7. ^ "Tulsa won Soccer Bowl '83 with a little assist from the - 10.10.83 - SI Vault". Archived from the original on October 14, 2013. Retrieved October 27, 2013.
  8. ^ "Past Winners | North American Soccer League". November 5, 2013. Archived from the original on November 5, 2013.
  9. ^ Jose, Colin (1989). NASL: A Complete Record of the North American Soccer League. Derby, England: Breedon Books. pp. 311, 312.
  10. ^ Jose, Colin (2003). North American Soccer League Encyclopedia. Haworth, NJ: St. Johann Press. p. 382.
  11. ^ Phillips, Randy (October 3, 1983). "Tulsa captures Soccer Bowl with dull victory over Blizzard". Montreal Gazette. p. D-5, D-8. Retrieved March 17, 2015.