Soccer Bowl '77 was the championship final of the 1977 NASL season. The New York Cosmos (who had dropped "New York" from their name in the off-season to simply "Cosmos") took on the Seattle Sounders. The match was played on August 28, 1977 at Civic Stadium, in Portland, Oregon. The game was also noteworthy as the final competitive match for Pelé, the Brazilian star widely acknowledged as the sport's greatest player.Pele: The greatest of them all FIFA.comPele tops World Cup legends poll BBC News. Retrieved 12 June 2010 The Cosmos won the match, 2–1, to claim their second North American championship. The match was broadcast on TVS.
Venue
Civic Stadium (now called Providence Park) in Portland, Oregon, was selected as the host of Soccer Bowl '77 by the NASL on October 15, 1976. It was initially scheduled for August 27, but was moved a day later.
Road to the final
New York Cosmos
The Cosmos qualified for the playoffs by virtue of a second-place finish in the Eastern Division of the Atlantic Conference with 140 points. The Cosmos defeated the Tampa Bay Rowdies in a first round single-match, 3–0, on August 10, 1977, before a home crowd of 57,828 fans. They then faced the Eastern Division winner and number one seed, Ft. Lauderdale Strikers in a best-of three-series. The first game of the series was witnessed by an all-time record NASL crowd of 77,691 and saw the Cosmos win convincingly, 8–3, on August 14, 1977. The second leg, played in Fort Lauderdale on August 17, 1977, finished regulation as a 2–2 draw. After 15 minutes of scoreless golden goal extra time the teams moved on to an NASL shoot-out, which the Cosmos won, 3–0. The win advanced them to the Conference finals. In the Atlantic Conference finals series the Cosmos went up against the upset-minded Rochester Lancers, who had already dispatched two higher seeded opponents. Game 1 of the series was played on August 21, 1977 in Rochester, and saw the Cosmos win a close-fought contest, 2–1. The second leg was played before another large Meadowlands crowd of 73,669 on August 24, 1977. In that game, as with the two previous home playoff games, the Cosmos proved to be a decisive winner, 4–1. By winning the series two games to none, the Cosmos won the Atlantic Conference title and advanced to the Soccer Bowl.
Seattle Sounders
The Seattle Sounders qualified for the playoffs by virtue of a third-place finish in the Western Division of the Pacific Conference with 123 points. The Sounders defeated the Vancouver Whitecaps in a first round single-match, 2–0, on August 10, 1977. They then faced the Western Division winner, Minnesota Kicks in a best-of three-series. The first game of the series, which was played on August 14, 1977, saw the Sounders edge ahead, 2–1, on a sudden death goal in overtime. In the second leg, the Sounders hung on for a 1–0 win on August 17, 1977. The two victories advanced them to the conference finals. In the Pacific Conference finals series, the Sounders went up against the Los Angeles Aztecs, who themselves had just upset Dallas, the number one seed in the conference. Game 1 of the series was played on August 21, 1977 in Los Angeles, and the Sounders won, 3–1. The second leg was played before an impressive Kingdome crowd of 56,256 on August 25, 1977. In that game, the Sounders gutted out a 1–0 result. In doing so, they won the series two games to none, and the Pacific Conference title to advance to the Soccer Bowl.
Match details
GK 1 Shep MessingDF12 Bobby SmithDF 4 Werner Roth (c)DF 25 Carlos Alberto MF 14 Nelsi MoraisMF 8 Terry Garbett MF 6 Franz Beckenbauer FW 7 Tony FieldFW 10 PeléFW 9 Giorgio ChinagliaFW 11 Steve HuntSubstitutes:MF3 Vito Dimitrijević GK 19 Erol YasinManager: Eddie Firmani GK 1 Tony ChurskyDF 4 Mel MachinDF 3 Jim McAlisterDF 5 Mike EnglandDF 17 Dave GillettMF 16 Adrian Webster (c)MF 15 Steve ButtleMF 19 Jimmy Robertson MF 2 Jocky Scott FW 18 Tommy Ord FW12 Micky Cave Substitutes:MF 8 David Butler FW 6 Tommy Jenkins GK26 Mike IvanowManager: Jim Gabriel Soccer Bowl MVP: Steve Hunt (Cosmos) Assistant referees: John Davies Bob Morgan
Television: TVSAnnouncers: Jon Miller, Paul GardnerTouchline reporter: Walt Chyzowych Notes
Match statistics +First halfTVS Broadcast footageStatistic Cosmos SeattleGoals scored 1 1Total shots 16 13Shots on target 9 6Saves 5 8Corner kicks 8 2Fouls x xOffsides x xYellow cards 0 1Red cards 0 0+Second halfSubtracted final stats from TVS halftime statsStatistic Cosmos SeattleGoals scored 1 0Total shots 13 13Shots on target 1 6Saves 6 0Corner kicks 5 3Fouls x xOffsides x xYellow cards 3 0Red cards 0 0+OverallStatistic Cosmos SeattleGoals scored 2 1Total shots 29 26Shots on target 10 12Saves 11 8Corner kicks 13 6Fouls 11 14Offsides 1 2Yellow cards 3 1Red cards 0 0
See also 1977 North American Soccer League season
References
External links