Dale Mitchell (soccer)

Dale William Mitchell (born April 21, 1958) is a Canadian former professional soccer striker who played for several North American teams in the 1980s and 1990s.

Dale Mitchell
Personal information
Full name Dale William Mitchell
Date of birth (1958-04-21) April 21, 1958
Place of birth Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s) Striker
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1977–1978 Vancouver Whitecaps 5 (0)
1979–1982 Portland Timbers 101 (35)
1983 Montreal Manic 24 (8)
1984–1985 Tacoma Stars (indoor) 96 (96)
1986–1987 Kansas City Comets (indoor) 99 (99)
1988–1994 Vancouver 86ers 213 (211)
1990–1991 Baltimore Blast (indoor) 51 (42)
1992–1994 Tacoma Stars (indoor) 40 (45)
National team
1976 Canada U-20 3 (1)
1983–1987 Canada U-23 9 (4)
1980–1993 Canada 55 (19)
Teams managed
1995–1999 Vancouver 86ers reserves
2000–2001 Vancouver Whitecaps
2002–2007 Canada U-20
2007–2009 Canada
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

He made 55 appearances for the Canada national team and scored a then national record 19 goals.[1] He coached the Canada national team from May 2007 until March 27, 2009. In 2012 as part of the Canadian Soccer Association's centennial celebration, he was named to the all-time Canada XI men's team.[2] He was inducted into the Canadian Soccer Hall of Fame in 2002. In March 2014 it was announced that he would also be a 2014 inductee into the Indoor Soccer Hall of Fame.[3]

Club career

Mitchell played in the former North American Soccer League. He began his professional career with the Vancouver Whitecaps (1977, 1978), then played for the Portland Timbers (1979 to 1982)[4] and for the Montreal Manic (1983). He was an original player with the Vancouver 86ers of the Canadian Soccer League and American Professional Soccer League for whom he scored 37 goals during seasons from 1988 to 1990 and 1992 to 1994. He was with the Toronto Blizzard for the 1991 season.

Mitchell also played nine indoor soccer seasons in the old Major Indoor Soccer League with the Tacoma Stars, Kansas City Comets, and the Baltimore Blast. Mitchell finished as the league's third all-time goal scorer and fourth in total points with 406 goals and 280 assists for 686 points.

International career

Mitchell made his senior debut for Canada in a September 15, 1980 friendly match against New Zealand in Vancouver (in which he scored two goals) and played his final international in a August 15, 1993 World Cup qualifier against Australia in Sydney.[5] He represented Canada in 22 World Cup qualifiers[6] and also played in the 1986 FIFA World Cup finals in Canada's third group stage match against the Soviet Union.[7]

Mitchell also played every minute of Canada's matches at the 1984 Summer Olympics, scoring three goals including the equalizer when Canada took Brazil into extra time and eventually penalty kicks in the quarterfinals.[8]


International goals
Scores and results list Canada's goal tally first.
#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1September 15, 1980Empire Stadium, Vancouver, Canada New Zealand2–04–0Friendly
2September 15, 1980Empire Stadium, Vancouver, Canada New Zealand3–04–0Friendly
3November 11, 1980Estadio Mateo Flores, Guatemala City, Guatemala Guatemala1–01–0Friendly
4October 12, 1981Skinner Park, San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago1–04–2Friendly
5October 12, 1981Skinner Park, San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago4–14–2Friendly
6April 20, 1985Royal Athletic Park, Victoria, Canada Guatemala1–02–11986 FIFA World Cup qualification
7April 20, 1985Royal Athletic Park, Victoria, Canada Guatemala2–02–11986 FIFA World Cup qualification
8May 5, 1985Estadio Mateo Flores, Guatemala City, Guatemala Guatemala1–01–11986 FIFA World Cup qualification
9May 8, 1985Stade Sylvio Cator, Port-au-Prince, Haiti Haiti1–02–01986 FIFA World Cup qualification
10June 2, 1985Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea Ghana2–1President's Cup
11October 2, 1988Queen's Park Oval, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago2–12–1Friendly
12October 15, 1988Swangard Stadium, Burnaby, Canada Guatemala1–23–21990 FIFA World Cup qualification
13October 15, 1988Swangard Stadium, Burnaby, Canada Guatemala2–23–21990 FIFA World Cup qualification
14June 28, 1991Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, U.S. Honduras1–42–41991 CONCACAF Gold Cup
15June 28, 1991Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, U.S. Honduras2–42–41991 CONCACAF Gold Cup
16July 3, 1991Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, U.S. Jamaica1–03–21991 CONCACAF Gold Cup
17October 18, 1992National Stadium, Kingston, Jamaica Jamaica1–11–11994 FIFA World Cup qualification
18November 1, 1992Varsity Stadium, Toronto, Canada Jamaica1–01–01994 FIFA World Cup qualification
19November 8, 1992Swangard Stadium, Burnaby, Canada El Salvador2–22–31994 FIFA World Cup qualification

Managerial career

Following his retirement as a player, Mitchell coached the 86ers reserves squad and was first-team assistant coach from 1995 to 1999. He succeeded Carl Valentine as the club's head coach in 1999 when the club was renamed the Vancouver Whitecaps. From 2001 to 2007, Mitchell was Canada's Under-20 national team head coach. In 2004, he served as an assistant coach to Frank Yallop with the senior national team during FIFA World Cup Qualifiers. In May 2007, he was appointed head coach of the Canadian men's senior team. In 2008, Canada did not progress beyond CONCACAF Stage III of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, finishing in the so-called CONCACAF Group of Death behind the higher-ranked Mexican and Honduran teams. Mitchell was relieved of his duties on March 27, 2009.[9]

References
  1. Goalscoring for Canada National Team - RSSSF
  2. "Association announces All-Time Canada XI - men's team - Canada Soccer".
  3. "Home".
  4. "Timbers Flashback: Dale Mitchell | Portland Timbers".
  5. "Dale Mitchell". www.canadasoccer.com. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  6. Record at FIFA Tournaments - FIFA
  7. "1986 FIFA World Cup Mexico ™". FIFA.com. Archived from the original on December 30, 2013. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  8. "Previous Tournaments". FIFA.com. 2008. Archived from the original on September 14, 2008. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  9. "Mitchell given the boot", The Canadian Press, Friday, March 27, 2009.
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