John Best (soccer)
![]() Best in 1967 | |||
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Date of birth | 11 July 1940 | ||
Place of birth | Liverpool, England | ||
Date of death | 5 October 2014 | (aged 74)||
Place of death | Ireland | ||
Position(s) | Defender | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1958–1960 | Liverpool | 0 | (0) |
1960–1961 | Tranmere Rovers | 7 | (0) |
1961–1962 | Stockport County | 0 | (0) |
1962–1967 | Philadelphia Ukrainians | ||
1967 | Philadelphia Spartans | 12 | (1) |
1968 | Cleveland Stokers | 32 | (0) |
1968 |
Fleetwood | 18 | (2) |
1968–1969 | California Jaguars | ||
1969–1973 | Dallas Tornado | 93 | (0) |
1971 | Dallas Tornado (indoor) | 2 | (1) |
1974 | Seattle Sounders | 0 | (0) |
International career | |||
1973 | United States | 1 | (0) |
Managerial career | |||
1974–1976 | Seattle Sounders | ||
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
John Best (11 July 1940 – 5 October 2014) was a professional
Playing career
Best began his career in England. He played for
United States national team
Best earned his one
Coaching and managerial career
In 1974, the NASL expansion team Seattle Sounders began assembling its staff and roster. The owners hired Cliff McCrath, the head coach of the local Seattle Pacific University to fill in the team's roster spots. He hired Best as the team's first head coach.[2] Over his three years as coach, Best compiled a 43–26 record.[3]
After leaving the Sounders, Best moved north to become the general manager of the Vancouver Whitecaps. One of his most successful personnel moves was hiring Tony Waiters as head coach. This move and several others led to the Whitecaps winning the 1979 NASL championship. In 1982, the Sounders opened their season 2–7. The team ownership turned to Best who became the Sounders' general manager on 14 June 1982.[4] The Sounders turned their season around and went to the championship game, only to lose to the New York Cosmos. Despite this success, the team was losing money after its sale to new ownership in January 1983, Best left the team.
Later years
Best remained in the Seattle area, founding Tacoma Indoor Soccer, Inc, which became the ownership group for the Tacoma Stars of the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL). He was later inducted into the Tacoma-Pierce County Sports Hall of Fame.[5]
In 1990, Best was diagnosed with kidney disease and in 2002 received a kidney transplant from his wife, Claudia.[6]
Death
On 5 October 2014, Best died from a lung infection at the age of 74 while visiting family in Ireland.[7]
Honors
Dallas Tornado
- NASL Championships: 1971, 1971 indoor; runner-up 1973[8]
Individual
References
- ^ "TOP INTERNATIONAL STARS IN THE NASL, 1967-1984". Archived from the original on 4 May 2009. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
- ^ "Seattle Sounders - 3-Time Champions, 1995, 1996, 2005". Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 4 August 2008.
- ^ "Seattle Sounders (1974-1983)". Archived from the original on 21 February 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
- ^ "Soundercentral.com". www.soundercentral.com. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
- ^ "High School Sports - Prep notebook: Pasco track meet attracts returning state champions - Seattle Times Newspaper". Retrieved 11 October 2014.
- ^ "Soundercentral.com". www.soundercentral.com. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
- ^ Pentz, Matt (6 October 2014). "John Best, first coach of the Sounders, dies at 74". SeattleTimes.com. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
- ^ Flachsbart, Harold (20 March 1971). "Fans Get A Kick Out Of Hoc-Soc". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 6. Retrieved 14 August 2016.