1981 National Soccer League (Canada) season
| Season | 1981 |
|---|---|
| Champions |
|
| League cup | Hamilton Steelers |
| Top goalscorer | Rennie Phillips (18)[1] |
← 1980 1982 → | |
The 1981 National Soccer League season was the fifty-eighth season under the
two-legged series final.[2][3] Hamilton would achieve a treble by also securing the regular-season title, and defeating Toronto Ukrainians for the NSL Cup.[4]
Overview
News of a potential Canadian national soccer league was confirmed when the Canadian Soccer Association (CSA) officially sanctioned a proposal from a group known as Sports Professionals International Inc.[5][6][7] Meanwhile, on the National Soccer League (NSL) front the office of the league commissioner was established with league secretary Job Jones serving as the inaugural officeholder.[8] A Canadianization policy was adopted by the league owners in an attempt to limit the ethnically associated clubs.[8] The membership in the league remained identical to the previous season with the Serbian White Eagles, and Sudbury Cyclones departing.[8] The league retained its American representative with Detroit Besa returning and replacing the Buffalo Blazers.[9][8]
The Hamilton Italo-Canadians returned under the name
Toronto Italia participated in the Toronto International Soccer Tournament against Barcelona S.C., S.L. Benfica, and Leeds United F.C.[10]
Teams
| Team | City | Stadium | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bradford Marshlanders | Bradford, Ontario | Bradford Community Centre[11] | Tommy Henderson[12] |
| Detroit Besa | Detroit, Michigan
|
Keyworth Stadium | Nino Berisic[9] |
| Hamilton Steelers | Hamilton, Ontario | Brian Timmis Stadium | Carlo Del Monte[13] |
| London City | London, Ontario | Cove Road Stadium
|
|
St. Catharines Roma
|
St. Catharines, Ontario | Club Roma Stadium | |
| Toronto Croatia | Etobicoke, Ontario | Centennial Park Stadium | |
Toronto Falcons
|
Toronto, Ontario
|
Lamport Stadium | |
| Toronto First Portuguese | Toronto, Ontario
|
Lamport Stadium | Bernardo da Velha[14] |
Toronto Italia
|
Etobicoke, Ontario | Centennial Park Stadium[15] | Fiorigi Pagliuso[16] |
| Toronto Panhellenic | Toronto, Ontario
|
Lamport Stadium | Germán Sánchez[17] |
| Toronto Ukrainians | Etobicoke, Ontario
|
Centennial Park Stadium |
Coaching changes
| Team | Outgoing coach | Manner of departure |
Date of vacancy |
Position in table | Incoming coach | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bradford Marshlanders | Dave Reid[18] | replaced | may 20, 1981 | preseason | Tommy Henderson[12] | May 20, 1981 |
| Toronto First Portuguese | Ralph Pisani[14] | replaced | July 18, 1981 | 10th in July |  Bernardo da Velha
|
July 18, 1981 |
  Bradford Detroit Hamilton London St. Catharines  TORONTO
|
 Ukraina Panhellenic Toronto Croatia Falcons First Portuguese Toronto Italia
|
Final standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hamilton Steelers (C, O) | 20 | 16 | 1 | 3 | 55 | 14 | +41 | 33 | Qualification for Playoffs |
| 2 | Toronto Panhellenic | 20 | 12 | 3 | 5 | 38 | 21 | +17 | 27 | |
| 3 | Toronto Italia
|
20 | 11 | 5 | 4 | 43 | 25 | +18 | 27 | |
| 4 | Toronto Falcons
|
20 | 7 | 10 | 3 | 32 | 28 | +4 | 24 | |
| 5 | Toronto Croatia | 20 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 30 | 22 | +8 | 23 | |
| 6 | St. Catharines Roma
|
20 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 30 | 27 | +3 | 22 | |
| 7 | London City
|
20 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 25 | 28 | −3 | 16 | |
| 8 | Detroit Besa | 20 | 7 | 2 | 11 | 25 | 39 | −14 | 16 | |
| 9 | Toronto First Portuguese | 20 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 22 | 28 | −6 | 15 | |
| 10 | Bradford Marshlanders | 20 | 1 | 7 | 12 | 20 | 49 | −29 | 9 | |
| 11 | Toronto Ukrainians | 20 | 2 | 4 | 14 | 15 | 30 | −15 | 8 |
Updated to match(es) played on September 30, 1981. Source: [4]
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners
References
- ^ a b "1981 Hamilton Steelers - Hamilton Soccer Hall of Fame". hshof.ca. Archived from the original on September 24, 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
- ^ Jose, Colin (2001). On-Side - 125 Years of Soccer in Ontario. Vaughan, Ontario: Ontario Soccer Association and Soccer Hall of Fame and Museum. p. 117.
- ^ "CSL Past Champions – Canadian Soccer League". canadiansoccerleague.ca. Archived from the original on 2020-10-30. Retrieved 2020-09-06.
- ^ a b "1981 NSL Season" (PDF). canadiansoccerleague.ca. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2014-06-28.
- ^ "New league for soccer sanctioned". The Globe and Mail. December 10, 1981. p. S6.
- ^ "Soccer group wants details from proposed new league". The Globe and Mail. December 4, 1981. p. S5.
- ^ Huntley, E.J. 73 Days - The Story of the Canadian Professional Soccer League 1983.
- ^ a b c d Labow, Jeffrey (May 6, 1981). "Canadian flavor for new look NSL". The Globe and Mail. p. S4.
- ^ a b Pepper, Jon (August 6, 1981). "They play soccer for honor". Newspapers.com. Detroit Free Press. p. 41. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
- ^ Labow, Jeffrey (August 13, 1981). "Toronto soccer takes on international flair". The Globe and Mail. p. 55.
- ^ "Soccer fence receives council approval". The Bradford Witness. 25 March 1981. p. 11.
- ^ a b "Tom Henderson back as player, and coach". The Bradford Witness. 20 May 1981. p. 15.
- ^ McGee, William (October 25, 1982). "New-look Steelers take soccer crown". The Globe and Mail. p. S8.
- ^ a b "Cosmos reinstate star Neeskens". The Globe and Mail. July 18, 1981. p. S8.
- ^ Welner, Chris (September 1, 1981). "Soccer rivalry declines but fans still love game". Toronto Star. p. G15.
- ^ "2018 Wall of Fame Induction". torontoazzurri.com. p. 17. Archived from the original on 2022-01-02. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
- ^ Koep, Bob (July 27, 1981). "Olympics prove Toronto has top soccer talent". Toronto Star. p. B4.
- ^ "Marsh coach unhappy". The Bradford Witness. 6 May 1981. p. 9.