 Club logotype showing a map of Minnesota and a soccer ball | |||
| Full name | Minnesota Strikers | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | Strikers | ||
| Founded | 1984 (PreviouslyFort Lauderdale Strikers) | ||
| Dissolved | 1988 (rebranded toFort Lauderdale Strikers) | ||
| Stadium | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Met Center | ||
| Capacity | 62,000 15,000 | ||
| Coach | David Chadwick 1984 NASL Alan Merrick1984–88 MISL | ||
| League | North American Soccer League Major Indoor Soccer League | ||
TheMinnesota Strikers were an Americansoccer team that competed in theNorth American Soccer League (NASL) for the1984 season and in theMajor Indoor Soccer League from 1984 through 1988. The team was based inMinneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area and played their outdoor home games at theMet Center and theHubert H. Humphrey Metrodome for indoor games. Founded in 1967 as theWashington Darts and playing in Miami as theGatos and theToros before playing seven season as theFort Lauderdale Strikers the team leftFlorida following the1983 North American Soccer League season. After the 1987–88 season and playing four seasons in the MISL the team ceased operations.
Founded in 1963 as the amateur club Washington Britannica and eventually rebranding as theWashington Darts, the team joined theNorth American Soccer League in 1970 after playing three seasons in theAmerican Soccer League and winning two consecutive ASL championships.[1][2] After the 1970 season, the team was sold toJohn Bilotta, former part owner of theRochester Lancers, andArthur Bant a hotel owner, who relocated and rebranded as the team as theMiami Gatos.[3][4] After one season, the team was sold to a group of 25 local business leaders[5] includingMiami Dolphins ownerJoe Robbie and his wife Elizabeth and renamed theToros.[6] In December 1976 and after five seasons in Miami, the team announced it was moving toFort Lauderdale.[7] Following the conclusion of the1983 outdoor season season long rumors that the team was looking to move were confirmed when General Manager Tim Robbie met with officials inMinneapolis[8] On November 30, 1983, team owner Elizabeth Robbie,Minnesota GovernorRudy Perpich, and NASL presidentHoward Samuels officially announced the team was moving and indicated the team had lost around $1 million in the last year.[9]
The Strikers played their first game on the road against theTampa Bay Rowdies, their former cross-state rivals in theFlorida Derby, winning a game decided by a shootout.[10] The team played its first home game atMetrodome on May 12, 1984, defeating theChicago Sting 3-2.[11] The Strikers ended the season with a record of fourteen wins and ten losses, tied for best record in the league. However, NASL rules awarded six points for a win, four for a shootout win, and one point for each goal scored during regulation up to three per game. This resulted in four other teams earning more than the 115 points the Strikers had for the season. This put the Strikers in third place of the Western Division and missing the playoffs.[12][13] Prior toSoccer Bowl '84, the team announced head coachDavid Chadwick, who had moved with the team fromFort Lauderdale, would not return and hiredAlan Merrick as his replacement.[14]
On August 28, 1984, along with three otherNASL team, the Strikers joined theMajor Indoor Soccer League for the1984–85 season.[15] Finishing the season with a record of twenty-four wins and twenty-four losses, the Strikers qualified for the playoffs as awildcard.[16] After defeating theWichita Wings two games to one in the Wildcard Series, the Strikers beat theLas Vegas Americans in the Quarterfinals three games to one. The May 12, 1984, game four of the Semifinals against theSan Diego Sockers ended in a tie and was won by the Sockers in a shootout, resulting in a three game to one series victory for San Diego. However, the Strikers protested that Sockers playerJacques LaDouceur who scored a goal during the shootout was ineligible. The next day, MISL CommissionerFrancis Dale ruled in the Strikers favor and awarded the game to Minnesota, resulting in a two games all series tie.[17] In the fifth game of the series, San Diego defeated the Strikers seven goals to none.[18] The Strikers finished the1985–86 Major Indoor Soccer League season with a record of twenty-six wins and twenty-two losses and second place in the Eastern Division.[16] Minnesota defeated theDallas Sidekicks in the first round of the playoffs three games to one[19] and theCleveland Force in the Division Finals, also three game to one, to earn a spot in the Championship Series.[20] After trailing the best of seven series against the Sockers three games to one, the Strikers were able to tie the series at three games a piece. However, San Diego was able to capture their fifth straight indoor title with a 5-3 victory over Minnesota on May 27, 1986.[21] The Strikers finished the1986–87 season with a record of twenty six wins and twenty six losses, in fourth place of the Eastern Division and qualifying for the playoffs.[16] Meeting Cleveland in the first round of the playoffs, the Force defeated the Strikers three games to two.[22]
The team's final season was the1987–88 Major Indoor Soccer League season. The Strikers finished in first place of the Eastern Division with a record of thirty-one wins and twenty-five losses.[16] A fight broke out with less than two minutes remaining in the second game of the Division Semifinals against theBaltimore Blast which resulted in players from both teams being ejected.[23] The Strikers went on to defeat the Blast three games to one in the series.[24] Facing the Cleveland Force in the Division Finals, the Strikers lost the series four games to one.[25] On June 22, 1988, Executive Vice President Tim Robbie announced that his family had been looking to sell the team for two years but had not been able to find a buyer and therefore, ownersJoe and Elizabeth Robbie had decided to terminate the franchise rather than post a $400,000 letter of credit with the league.[26]
| Year | Division | League | Reg. season | Playoffs | Open Cup | Avg. Attend. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | 1 | NASL | 3rd, Western | did not qualify | did not enter | 14,262 |
| 1984–85 | N/A | MISL | 4th, Eastern | Semifinals | N/A | 4,809 |
| 1985–86 | N/A | MISL | 2nd, Eastern | Runners-up | N/A | 6,503 |
| 1986–87 | N/A | MISL | 4th, Eastern | Division Semifinals | N/A | 6,977 |
| 1987–88 | N/A | MISL | 1st, Eastern | Division Finals | N/A | 5,930 |
| Date | Visitor | Score | Host | Venue | Location | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 23, 1984 |  AFC Ajax | 4–2 |  Minnesota Strikers | Metrodome | Minneapolis, Minnesota | 6,079[27] |
| June 13, 1984 |  Glasgow Rangers | 2–5 | Minnesota Strikers | Metrodome | Minneapolis, Minnesota | 6,866[28] |
Championships
Division titles
U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame Canadian Soccer Hall of Fame
Indoor Soccer Hall of Fame MISL All-Star Game participants | Newcomer of the Year
League Leading Goal Scorer
League Leading Goaltender
All-League First Team Selections
All-League Second Team Selections
All-League Honorable Mentions
|
Ricardo Alonso
,John Bain,Bob Bolitho
,Ben Collins,Bill Crook,Peter Daniel
,Gary Etherington,Ken Fogarty,Jan Goossens,Ray Hudson,Godfrey Ingram,Mike Jeffries,Brian Kidd,Tino Lettieri, Terry Leiendecker,Dwight Lodeweges,John McGrane,Robert Meschbach,Bruce Miller,Paul Price,Thomas Rongen,Craig Scarpelli,Carl Strong,Barry Wallace,Alan Willey
Ricardo Alonso, John Bain, Ben Collins, Bill Crook,Chris Dangerfield, Drago Dumbović
, Gary Etherington, Ken Fogarty, Jan Goossens, Ray Hudson, Mike Jeffries,Matt Kennedy, Tino Lettieri,Steve Litt, Dwight Lodeweges, John McGrane, Bruce Miller, Thomas Rongen, Craig Scarpelli,Gregg Thompson,Thompson Usiyan
, Barry Wallace, Alan Willey
Tony Bono,David Byrne,Dan Canter,Stan Cummins, Chris Dangerfield,Drago Dumbović, Gary Etherington, Ken Fogarty, Jan Goossens, Ray Hudson,Bill Irwin
, Mike Jeffries, Matt Kennedy,Tasso Koutsoukos, Tino Lettieri, Dwight Lodeweges, Bruce Miller,Kazbek Tambi, Gregg Thompson, Thompson Usiyan, Alan Willey
Tony Bono, David Byrne, Dan Canter, Stan Cummins, Chris Dangerfield,Enzo Di Pede,Helmut Dudek
, Gary Etherington, Ken Fogarty, Ray Hudson,Greg Ion, Mike Jeffries, Matt Kennedy,Steve Kinsey, Tasso Koutsoukos, Tino Lettieri, Dwight Lodeweges,Hector Marinaro,John O'Hara, Gregg Thompson, Thompson Usiyan, Alan Willey; Elizabeth Robbie, President; Chris Wright, General Manager, Tim Robbie, Executive Vice President; Alan Merrick, Head Coach; Bruce Miller, Assistant Coach.
Jerry Adzic, Tony Bono,Alex Bunbury, David Byrne, Stan Cummins, Chris Dangerfield, Gary Etherington,George Gelnovatch, Tom Gleason,Tim Harris, Ray Hudson, Steve Kinsey, Tino Lettieri, Dwight Lodeweges, Hector Marinaro, John O'Hara,Neill Roberts
,Troy Snyder,Mike Sweeney, Gregg Thompson, Alan Willey; Elizabeth Robbie, President; Chris Wright, General Manager, Tim Robbie, Executive Vice President; Alan Merrick, Head Coach; Bruce Miller, Assistant Coach.
1984
| Round | Player | School |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Greg Kennedy | Indiana |
| 2 | Ronil Dufrene | Florida International |
| 3 | David McDaniel | Duke |
1985
| Round | Player | School |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paul DiBernardo | Indiana University |
| 2 | Peter Sawkins | Yale University |
| 3 | Tony Bono | Drexel University |
| 4 | Bruce Bellinger | Southern Illinois-Edwardsville |
1986
| Round | Player | School |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Peter Smith | University of Tampa |
| 3 | Paul Schojan | Rochester Institute of Technology |
| 4 | Andy Pantason | University of Connecticut |
| 4 | Tony Scheuerman | Stillwater High School |
1987
| Round | Player | School |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brent Goulet | Warner Pacific University |
| 3 | George Gelnovatch | University of Virginia |
| 4 | Troy Snyder | Penn State University |
