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1977 North American Soccer League season
Soccer league season
Soccer league season
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| competition | North American Soccer League 1977 season |
| season | 1977 |
| num_teams | 18 |
| winners | Cosmos |
| (2nd Title) | |
| premiers | Ft. Lauderdale Strikers |
| matches | 234 |
| league topscorer | Steve David (26) |
| total goals | 752 |
| highest attendance | 77,691 |
| (Ft Lauderdale @ Cosmos) | |
| lowest attendance | 1,100 |
| (Washington @ Connecticut) | |
| average attendance | 13,558 |
| prevseason | [1976](1976-north-american-soccer-league-season) |
| nextseason | [1978](1978-north-american-soccer-league-season) |
(2nd Title) (Ft Lauderdale @ Cosmos) (Washington @ Connecticut) Statistics of North American Soccer League in season 1977. This was the 10th season of the NASL.
Overview
The league was made up of 18 teams. The schedule was expanded to 26 games and the playoffs to 12 teams. Team rosters consisted of 17 players, 6 of which had to be U.S. or Canadian citizens. The NASL began using its own variation of the penalty shoot-out procedure for tied matches. Matches tied at the end of regulation would now go to a golden goal overtime period and, if still tied, on to a shoot-out. Instead of penalty kicks however, the shoot-out attempt started 35 yards from the goal and allowed the player 5 seconds to attempt a shot. The player could make as many moves as he wanted in a breakaway situation within the time frame. NASL procedure also called for the box score or score-line to show an additional "goal" given to the winning side of a shoot-out. This "victory goal" however was not credited in the "Goals For" column of the league table. The Cosmos defeated the Seattle Sounders in the final on August 28 to win the championship.
Changes from the previous season
New teams
- None
Teams folding
- Boston Minutemen
- Philadelphia Atoms
Teams moving
- Miami Toros - Fort Lauderdale Strikers
- San Antonio Thunder - Team Hawaii
- San Diego Jaws - Las Vegas Quicksilvers
Name changes
- Hartford Bicentennials to Connecticut Bicentennials
- Cosmos drop "New York" from name
Map of clubs
silvers](las-vegas-quicksilvers)**}}
quakes](san-jose-earthquakes-1974-1988)**}}
Regular season
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. :-Premiers (most points). -Other playoff teams.
Atlantic Conference
| 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 |
Pacific Conference
| Southern Division | W | L | GF | GA | BP | Pts | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas Tornado | 18 | 8 | 56 | 37 | 53 | **161** | 11-2 | 7-6 |
| Los Angeles Aztecs | 15 | 11 | 65 | 54 | 57 | **147** | 8-5 | 7-6 |
| San Jose Earthquakes | 14 | 12 | 37 | 44 | 35 | **119** | 9-4 | 5-8 |
| Team Hawaii | 11 | 15 | 45 | 59 | 40 | 106 | 7-6 | 4-9 |
| Las Vegas Quicksilvers | 11 | 15 | 38 | 44 | 37 | 103 | 8-5 | 3-10 |
| Western Division | W | L | GF | GA | BP | Pts | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota Kicks | 16 | 10 | 44 | 36 | 41 | **137** | 11-2 | 5-8 |
| Vancouver Whitecaps | 14 | 12 | 43 | 36 | 40 | **124** | 10-3 | 4-9 |
| Seattle Sounders | 14 | 12 | 43 | 34 | 39 | **123** | 9-4 | 5-8 |
| [Portland Timbers](1977-portland-timbers-season) | 10 | 16 | 39 | 42 | 38 | 98 | 7-6 | 3-10 |
NASL All-Stars
| First Team | Position | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ov1RAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iTQNAAAAIBAJ&pg=3998,3891044&dq=1977+nasl+all-stars&hl=en | title=Mid Cities Daily News - Google News Archive Search | access-date=2014-01-23}} | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=888&dat=19770812&id=emxQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=IFoDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6634,2324371 | title=St. Petersburg Times - Google News Archive Search | access-date=2014-01-23}} |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gordon Banks, Ft. Lauderdale | G | Alan Mayer, Las Vegas | Tony Chursky, Seattle | ||||
| Franz Beckenbauer, Cosmos | D | Ray Evans, St. Louis | Steve Litt, Minnesota | ||||
| Mike England, Seattle | D | Steve Pecher, Dallas | Jim McAlister, Seattle | ||||
| Bruce Wilson, Vancouver | D | Humberto Coelho, Las Vegas | Alan Merrick, Minnesota | ||||
| Mel Machin, Seattle | D | George Ley, Dallas • Arsène Auguste Tampa Bay | Graham Day, Portland | ||||
| George Best, Los Angeles | M | Charlie Cooke, Los Angeles | Tony Simões, San Jose | ||||
| Wolfgang Sühnholz, Las Vegas | M | Vito Dimitrijević, Cosmos | Ace Ntsoelengoe, Minnesota | ||||
| Alan West, Minnesota | M | Rodney Marsh, Tampa Bay | Al Trost, St. Louis | ||||
| Steve David, Los Angeles | F | Mike Stojanović, Rochester | Willie Morgan, Chicago | ||||
| Pelé, Cosmos | F | Steve Wegerle, Tampa Bay | Giorgio Chinaglia, Cosmos | ||||
| Derek Smethurst, Tampa Bay | F | Buzz Parsons, Vancouver | Jimmy Robertson, Seattle |
Playoffs
Main article: 1977 North American Soccer League playoffs
The first round and the Soccer Bowl were single game match ups, while the conference semifinals and championships were all two-game series.
Bracket
First round
Division Championships
| Higher seed | Lower seed | Game 1 | Game 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| *(lower seed hosts Game 1)* | |||
| Fort Lauderdale Strikers | - | **Cosmos** | 3–8 |
| Dallas Tornado | - | **Los Angeles Aztecs** | 1–3 |
| Minnesota Kicks | - | **Seattle Sounders** | *1–2 *(OT)* |
| Toronto Metros-Croatia | - | **Rochester Lancers** | 0–1 *(SO, 2–3)* |
Conference Championships
| Higher seed | Lower seed | Game 1 | Game 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| *(lower seed hosts Game 1)* | |||
| Los Angeles Aztecs | - | **Seattle Sounders** | 1–3 |
| **Cosmos** | - | Rochester Lancers | 2–1 |
Soccer Bowl '77
Main article: Soccer Bowl '77
Chinaglia
1977 NASL Champions: Cosmos
Post season awards
- Most Valuable Player: Franz Beckenbauer, Cosmos
- Coach of the year: Ron Newman, Fort Lauderdale
- Rookie of the year: Jim McAlister, Seattle
Average home attendance
| Team | Average |
|---|---|
| New York Cosmos | 34,150 |
| Minnesota Kicks | 32,771 |
| Seattle Sounders | 24,226 |
| Tampa Bay Rowdies | 19,491 |
| San Jose Earthquakes | 17,739 |
| Dallas Tornado | 16,510 |
| Portland Timbers | 13,208 |
| Washington Diplomats | 13,037 |
| Vancouver Whitecaps | 11,897 |
| Los Angeles Aztecs | 9,638 |
| St. Louis Stars | 9,126 |
| Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 8,140 |
| Toronto Metros | 7,321 |
| Las Vegas Quicksilvers | 7,079 |
| Rochester Lancers | 6,065 |
| Chicago Sting | 5,204 |
| Team Hawaii | 4,543 |
| Connecticut Bicentennials | 3,902 |
References
General references
References
- "Gadsden Times - Google News Archive Search".
- "This Day In 1981 : Soccer Bowl Edition | Chicago Fire Confidential".
- "The Year in American Soccer - 1977".
- "Mid Cities Daily News - Google News Archive Search".
- "St. Petersburg Times - Google News Archive Search".
- (August 12, 1977). "Banks, Pele, Smethurst on star team". [[St. Petersburg Times]].
- (1979). "1979 Official North American Soccer League Guide".
- "kenn.com".
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