the other football

Whitecaps

I cannot let a reference to Vancouver go without mentioning the great Vancouver Whitecaps of 1979.

Here’s the team photo.  Just look at those perms! 

The great Brucie Grobbelaar in goal.  And Alan Ball, Ray Lewington, Willie Johnston, Roger Kenyon, Trevor Whymark, Kevin Hector and Carl Valentine making a few Loonies too.

The Whitecaps would beat the famed two time defending champion, the New York Cosmos in the NASL Semi Final and the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the final at Giants Stadium.  This was post Pele and the most thrilling and entertaining of all playoff seasons in the North American Soccer League.  It was in retrospect the high watermark of professional Association Football in North America since the war.  (I know there have been lots of wars.)

Over 100,000 people crowded the streets of Vancouver to greet the ‘79 team on their return with the Championship.  I wonder how many folks from Vancouver will stump up to see Los Angeles Galaxy take on Vancouver in May?

New Turkish Away Kit

The Turks in their new all white away strips about to invade Kurdistan. 

(If they had thought to bring along some white guns and goggles the Kurds defending Kurdistan may have mistaken them for some happy go lucky Dutch anarchists or a gang of crazy Finns practicing  for the Biathlon in Vancouver.)

Lancaster Gate

I paused from posting when I took on some other responsibilities and risks recently.  Suffice to say it was an experience befitting of the English FA.  I'll say no more.