1975 Tampa Bay Rowdies season

The 1975 Tampa Bay Rowdies season was the first season of the club's existence.

Tampa Bay Rowdies
1975 season
President George W. Strawbridge, Jr.
Manager Eddie Firmani
StadiumTampa Stadium
NASLDivision: 1st
Playoffs: Champions
U.S. Open CupDid not enter
Top goalscorerLeague:
Derek Smethurst (18 goals)
All:
Derek Smethurst (21 goals)
Highest home attendance22,710
(Aug. 16 vs. Miami)
Lowest home attendance5,281
(May 28 vs. Denver)
Average home league attendance12,064

Kit

During the outdoor campaign occasionally a random Rowdies player could be seen wearing the collarless jersey[1] used by all players during the 1975 indoor season earlier in the year, but by season's end the full-collar style that would become so familiar in all of Tampa Bay's later NASL campaigns eventually took over.[2] The striping sequence on the sleeves was also different. Tampa Bay would not wear a cuff-style collar again until the 1986–87 American Indoor Soccer Association season.[3]

Club

Roster
No. Position Player Nation
1 Goalkeeper Paul Hammond  England
1 Goalkeeper Mike Hewitt  Scotland
1 Goalkeeper Bob Stetler  United States
2 Defender Farrukh Quraishi  England
3 Defender Alex Pringle  Scotland
4 Midfielder John Boyle (capt.)  Scotland
5 Defender Malcolm Linton  England
6 Defender Mike Connell  South Africa
7 Midfielder Bernard Hartze  South Africa
8 Midfielder Randy Garber  United States
9 Forward Clyde Best  Bermuda
10 Forward Stewart Scullion  Scotland
11 Forward Doug Wark  Scotland
12 Forward Derek Smethurst  South Africa
13 Defender Stewart Jump  England
14 Forward John Sissons  England
15 Midfielder Mark Lindsay  England
16 Defender John Bluem  United States
17 Forward Eddie Austin  United States
18 Defender Arsène Auguste  Haiti
18 Midfielder Eddie Firmani  Italy

Management and technical staff
  • George Strawbridge, Jr., owner
  • Beau Rogers, general manager
  • Eddie Firmani, head coach
  • Chas Serednesky, business manager
  • Francisco Marcos, director of public relations
  • Alfredo Beronda, equipment manager

Honors

The Rowdies received eight individual honors following the 1975 NASL season.

Review

The 1975 North American Soccer League season was the Tampa Bay Rowdies first outdoors. The expansion Rowdies had only recently completed a successful debut in the 1975 indoor tournament, by finishing as runners-up. With Eddie Firmani as coach and John Boyle as team captain, they opened outdoor play by splitting a pair of preseason friendlies versus the San Antonio Thunder.

Tampa Bay's first regular season match was played at Tampa Stadium against the Rochester Lancers before 12,133 paying customers (and another 3,000-plus, who were there for free). Their first ever goal was scored by Derek Smethurst in the opening half. The first goal conceded by the Rowdies occurred at the 27:59 mark when Tommy Ord put one past Tampa Bay goalie Mike Hewitt. The game remained tied 1–1 at the end of 90 minutes. At 3:45 of golden goal overtime, second-half substitute, Alex Pringle, recorded the teams' first ever game-winning goal. The game also saw Firmani (age 41) insert himself into the lineup with about one minute remaining in regulation. This was because several players had been delayed in Europe, causing the Tampa Bay roster to be a bit thin for the match.[4]

The Rowdies success carried on as they went on to record winning streaks of six and seven games during the regular season. Tampa Bay finished the year tied with the Portland Timbers for the best record in the league with a mark of 16–6. The winning ways continued into the playoffs as they did not concede a single goal in any round. They defeated Toronto Metros-Croatia, 1–0, in the quarterfinals. That was followed by a 3–0 dismantling of 1974 league runners-up, and Florida Derby rival, Miami Toros in the semifinal, which sent them into the Soccer Bowl.

The Soccer Bowl '75 championship match featured the two teams with the best records in the NASL, the Rowdies and Portland. Coincidentally both squads were also expansion teams. Behind a stingy defense and a pair of second half goals by Arsène Auguste and Clyde Best, Tampa Bay came away the victors, 2–0. Defender Stewart Jump was named man of the match. This would be the Rowdies only outdoor NASL championship.

Competitions

Friendlies
February 8, 1975 1 South Florida Bulls 1–3 Tampa Bay Rowdies Tampa, Florida
12:00 P.M. Report Hartze , Stadium: USF Soccer Stadium
April 11, 1975 2 Tampa Bay Rowdies 2–1 San Antonio Thunder Tarpon Springs, Florida
7:30 P.M. Boyle  65'
Smethurst  75'		 Report p. 3-C Marotte  89:30' Stadium: Tarpon Springs High School
April 13, 1975 3 Tampa Bay Rowdies 1–3 San Antonio Thunder Winter Park, Florida
1:30 P.M. Forteis  40:32' (o.g.) Report p. 3-C Wolf  9:16' (pen.)
Hylkema  16:35'
Didi  76:10'		 Stadium: Sandspur Field
Attendance: 2,000
May 19, 1975 4 Hartwick/Oneonta All-Stars 1–2 Tampa Bay Rowdies Oneonta, New York
Napolitano Report Wark  (Lindsay)
Smethurst  (Lindsay)		 Stadium: Oneonta State Field
Attendance: 1,000 (est)
December 21, 1975 5 USSF All-Stars' Coaches 0–1 Tampa Bay Rowdies Orlando, Florida
Report Garber  (Mausser) Stadium: Tangerine Bowl
Attendance: 250 (est)

Division standings
Pos Eastern Division GP W L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Tampa Bay Rowdies 221664627+19135 NASL Playoffs
2 Miami Toros 221484730+17123
3 Washington Diplomats 2212104247−5112
4 Philadelphia Atoms 2210123342−990
5 Baltimore Comets 229133452−1887

Overall League Placing
Pos Club Pld W L GF GA GD Pts
1Portland Timbers 221664327+16138
2Tampa Bay Rowdies 221664627+19135
3Seattle Sounders 221574228+14129
4Miami Toros 221484730+17123
5Boston Minutemen 221394129+12116

Match reports
April 26, 1975 1 Tampa Bay Rowdies 2–1(OT) Rochester Lancers Tampa, Florida
Smethurst  13:51' (Sissons)
Pringle  93:45'  (Boyle)		 Report Ord  27:59' (Jijon) Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 12,133
May 3, 1975 2 Tampa Bay Rowdies 1–0 New York Cosmos Tampa, Florida
Scullion  7:46' Report Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 8,378
May 9, 1975 3 Washington Diplomats 3–0 Tampa Bay Rowdies Washington, D.C.
Ingram  6:17' (Pillinger)
Horton  16:17' (DeLeon)
Horton  18:52' (Barry)		 Report Stadium: Robert F. Kennedy Stadium
Attendance: 10,340
May 14, 1975 4 Tampa Bay Rowdies 3–1 Boston Minutemen Tampa, Florida
Smethurst  28:55' (Jump)
Best  71:49' (Sissons)
Best  74:44' (Scullion)		 Report Wooler  81:28' Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 6,117
Referee: Don DeSalvador
May 17, 1975 5 Connecticut Bicentennials 1–3 Tampa Bay Rowdies New Haven, Connecticut
Travljanin  78' (H. McCully) Report Smethurst  30'[5]
Boyle  53' (Smethurst)
Best  82' (Quraishi)		 Stadium: Yale Bowl
Attendance: 3,410
May 21, 1975 6 Baltimore Comets 1–2 Tampa Bay Rowdies Baltimore, Maryland
Henderson  5:36' (Aqui) Report Boyle  53:56' (Smethurst)
Smethurst  81:15' (Sissons)		 Stadium: Memorial Stadium
Attendance: 3,648
May 28, 1975 7 Tampa Bay Rowdies 3–2 Denver Dynamos Tampa, Florida
Scullion  3:35' (Sissons)
Ntsoelengoe[6]  42:32' (o.g.)
Scullion  60:21' (Best)		 Report Dawes  17:31' (Flater)
Flater  22:28' (Dawes)		 Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 5,281
Referee: Larry King
May 31, 1975 8 San Antonio Thunder 0–4 Tampa Bay Rowdies San Antonio, Texas
Report Smethurst  20:22' (Scullion)
Best  65:55' (Wark)
Garber  70:34'
Hartze  74:58' (Austin)		 Stadium: Alamo Stadium
Attendance: 4,619
Referee: Robert Evans
June 6, 1975 9 Miami Toros 0–1 Tampa Bay Rowdies Miami, Florida
Report Smethurst  56:14' (Boyle) Stadium: Miami Orange Bowl
Attendance: 14,259
June 11, 1975 10 Tampa Bay Rowdies 0–2 Miami Toros Tampa, Florida
Report David  49:11' (Archibald)
Jordan  79:36' (David)		 Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 18,654
Referee: Gino D'Ippolito
June 13, 1975 11 Philadelphia Atoms 1–2 Tampa Bay Rowdies Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
McLaughlin  74:45' (pen.) Report on p. 1-C Best  45:55' (Scullion)
Scullion  84:41'		 Stadium: Veterans Stadium
Attendance: 5,819
June 20, 1975 12 Dallas Tornado 0–0
(4–2 p)		 Tampa Bay Rowdies Irving, Texas
Report Stadium: Texas Stadium
Attendance: 4,179
Penalties
Ley
Gore
Moore
Chadwick 		Smethurst
Garber
Connell
Boyle
June 21, 1975 13 St. Louis Stars 1–1
(3–5 p)		 Tampa Bay Rowdies St. Louis, Missouri
Geimer  11:41' (Burnett) Report Smethurst  41:33' (Connell) Stadium: Francis Field
Attendance: 7,731
Penalties
Burnett
Hawley
Matteson
Trost 		Smethurst
Pringle
Jump
Connell
Scullion
June 28, 1975 14 Tampa Bay Rowdies 6–1 Baltimore Comets Tampa, Florida
Sissons  8:45' (Lindsay)
Scullion  13:25' (Sissons)
Sissons  34:40' (Scullion)
Smethurst  71:50' (Sissons)
Sissons  78:53' (Hartze)
Scullion  79:20' (Best)		 Report Henderson  26:59' Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 8,610
July 12, 1975 15 Tampa Bay Rowdies 4–0 Baltimore Comets Tampa, Florida
Sissons  (Scullion)
Smethurst  (Boyle)
Smethurst 84:38'
Lindsay  89:20' (Smethurst)		 Report Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 13,400
July 19, 1975 16 Tampa Bay Rowdies 2–1 Philadelphia Atoms Tampa, Florida
Smethurst  3:33' (Best)
Smethurst  17:26' (Scullion)		 Report Bahr  16:32' Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 10,103
July 23, 1975 17 Tampa Bay Rowdies 5–1 Miami Toros Tampa, Florida
Best  19:12' (Sissons)
Sissons  57:40' (Scullion)
Connell  66:50'
Smethurst  72:57'
Smethurst  87:35' (Lindsay)		 Report David  89:57' Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 11,415
July 26, 1975 18 Tampa Bay Rowdies 3–1 Washington Diplomats Tampa, Florida
Scullion  36:25'
Smethurst  72:51' (Best)
Boyle  85:45'		 Report Barry  56:36' (Ingram) Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 11,153
July 29, 1975 19 Philadelphia Atoms 0–1(OT) Tampa Bay Rowdies Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Report Smethurst  90:56' Stadium: Veterans Stadium
Attendance: 4,517
August 2, 1975 20 Washington Diplomats 3–1 Tampa Bay Rowdies Washington, D.C.
Horton  21:23' (Ingram)
Ingram  27:58' (Barry)
Horton  40:13' (Darrell)		 Report Smethurst  5:35' Stadium: RFK Stadium
Attendance: 2,415
August 6, 1975 21 Tampa Bay Rowdies 0–3 Chicago Sting Tampa, Florida
Report Hill  11:54' (Griffiths)
Hill  37:59'
Allen  88:00' (May)		 Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 12,761
August 9, 1975 22 Toronto Metros-Croatia 3–1 Tampa Bay Rowdies Toronto, Ontario
Vieri  10:30'
Ferreira  69:30' (Polak)
Polak  77:15' (Coyne)		 Report Smethurst  11:30' (Best) Stadium: Varsity Stadium
Attendance: 8,248

Bracket
Quarter-finals Semi-finals Soccer Bowl '75
         
W1 Portland Timbers 2
W2 Seattle Sounders 1
W1 Portland Timbers 1
C1 St. Louis Stars 0
C1 St. Louis Stars 1(5)
W3 Los Angeles Aztecs 1(4)
W1 Portland Timbers 0
E1 Tampa Bay Rowdies 2
E2 Miami Toros 2
N1 Boston Minutemen 1
E2 Miami Toros 0
E1 Tampa Bay Rowdies 3
N2 Toronto Metros-Croatia 0
E1 Tampa Bay Rowdies 1

Match reports
August 13, 1975 Quarterfinals Tampa Bay Rowdies 1–0 Toronto Metros-Croatia Tampa, Florida
Best  49:42' (Lindsay) Report Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 16,111
August 16, 1975 Semifinals Tampa Bay Rowdies 3–0 Miami Toros Tampa, Florida
Scullion  54:33' (Best)
Smethurst  66:58' (Sissons)
Boyle  88:40' (Sissons)		 Report Stadium: Tampa Stadium
Attendance: 22,710
August 24, 1975 Soccer Bowl '75 Tampa Bay Rowdies 2–0 Portland Timbers San Jose, California
Auguste  66:00' (Smethurst)
Best  87:40'		 Report Stadium: Spartan Stadium
Attendance: 17,009

References
  1. http://www.nasljerseys.com/images/Rowdies/Rowdies%2075%20Home%20Qarashi,%20Eddie%20Engerth,%20Dips.jpg
  2. http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_axffduAi2BA/SXeH69KY77I/AAAAAAAAB2A/G-nKzp_t5sI/s1600-h/Derek+Smethurst,+Doug+Wark+vs+Cosmos+1975.JPG
  3. http://www.nasljerseys.com/images/2015/Rowdies%2086-87%20Road%20Team.jpg
  4. Austin, Jim (April 28, 1975). "Fans Rally For Rowdies". Evening Independent. p. 1-C. Retrieved 2016-04-28.
  5. "Boyle Selected Rowdie of Week". St. Petersburg Times. May 20, 1975. p. 7-C. Retrieved 2016-04-27.
  6. Austin, Jim (May 29, 1975). "Tampa Rains On Denver". Evening Independent. p. 1-C. Retrieved 2016-04-27.
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