Memphis Rogues
 | |||
| Full name | Memphis Rogues | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Rogues | ||
| Founded | 1978 | ||
| Dissolved | 1980 | ||
| Stadium | Liberty Bowl Mid-South Coliseum (indoor) | ||
| Capacity | 51,000 | ||
| Chairman | Beau Rogers Avron Fogelman | ||
| Coach | Malcolm Allison Eddie McCreadie Charlie Cooke | ||
| League | North American Soccer League | ||
|
| |||
The Memphis Rogues were a professional
1979–80 season
.
History
In the mid-1970s,
Nashville and Atlanta – before settling on Memphis, Tennessee.[1] Next, they decided to name the team the "Rogues" in part as an allusion to the Rowdies, as well as for a desire to have an elephant
mascot (a "Rogue" elephant).
The team hired
Galatasaray but his time in Memphis would be very short. Allison had achieved much controversy during his time in England, and when he had failed to sign a sufficient number of players for the inaugural season, he was dismissed without having coached a match and replaced by ex-Chelsea star Eddie McCreadie
. The club finished the 1978 season in third place in its division and did not make the playoffs. Attendance averaged 8,708 a match, 17th in the 24-team league.
The second season, 1979, was disrupted by a players' strike which forced McCreadie out of retirement for a time. The team did worse on the pitch, finishing last, and worse at the box office, with 7,137 a match, with three teams doing worse.
The poor gates resulted in Mangurian and Rogers selling the team to
Charlie Cooke
had taken over as coach.
The Rogues' last game ever came at
Tony Field scored the final goal in Memphis Rogues history. He beat the goalkeeper and walked the ball into the net. When he arrived at the goal line, he got down on his knees and headed the ball into the net. More skeptical fans and that the Rogues were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs and the Hurricane only need one goal to qualify, raised an eyebrow at the result. In the 1980 NASL goals of the year video,[2] the Hurricanes are standing still, allowing Field to give the fans one last show.[3]
In 1981, Fogelman cut his losses and sold the Rogues to
Calgary, Alberta. Skalbania renamed the team the Calgary Boomers
for the 1981, but the team lasted only one year in Calgary before folding.
Indoor success
The Rogues played the
Coaches
- Malcolm Allison 1978
- Eddie McCreadie 1978–1979
- Charlie Cooke1980
Year-by-year
| Year | League | W | L | Pts | Regular Season | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | NASL | 10 | 20 | 101 | 3rd, American Conference, Central Division | did not qualify |
| 1979 | NASL | 6 | 24 | 73 | 4th, American Conference, Central Division | did not qualify |
1979–80
|
NASL Indoor | 9 | 3 | — | 1st, Western Division | Won Semifinal ( Tampa Bay )
|
| 1980 | NASL | 14 | 18 | 126 | 4th, American Conference, Central Division | did not qualify |
Honors
Championships
- NASL indoor: 1979–80(finalists)
Regular Season/ Division Titles
- NASL indoor: 1979–80
Indoor Soccer Hall of Fame[6]
- Mike Stankovic: 2013
References
- ^ "Memphis Gets Pro Soccer Franchise". The Victoria Advocate. Associated Press. October 26, 1977. Retrieved June 26, 2014.
- ^ 1980 NASL Goals Of The Year, retrieved September 3, 2022
- ^ "1980 NASL Goals Of The Year". Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
- ^ Scheiber, Dave (March 1, 1980). "Rowdies fall 5–4, must win Sunday". St. Petersburg Times.
- ^ Scheiber, Dave (March 3, 1980). "Rowdies slam to No.1". St. Petersburg Times.
- ^ "Hall of Famers". Archived from the original on October 23, 2013. Retrieved January 11, 2014.