Dave Gillett, a Scot, was a pretty good defender for the NASL Sounders, but, then broke is leg the first game of the 1978 season, and sadly never played another game for the team. He played alongside former Spurs and Wales defender, Mike England.
Yeah per the NASL page, Gillet was on the Quakes 80-81 indoor season but I don’t think he really recovered from that broken leg as he never played after that year.
And he was another one of those players who stayed local (seattle area) and coached youth and amatuer teams after he retired.
George Best, Gerd Mueller coach Ron Newman and Teofilio Cubillas Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1979).....
I traveled along with the Quakes in '79 on a road trip that included games in Tampa and Ft. Lauderdale. Actually, on that particular journey, I first visited my family who live in the Tampa area, then met up with the team in Ft. Lauderdale. I took the family to the game in Tampa. The Rowdies, in those days, played at the old Tampa Stadium, nicknamed by many as the "Sombrero", due to it's physical shape. It was a fun trip all around, but I considered the highlight of the soccer to be the Ft. Lauderdale game and seeing these guys play (they won easily, 3-1 as I recall).
That's class, thanks for the share. Although better known for his time with Leeds, another Man Utd connection was Johnny Giles, who was managing Vancouver at the time too. Apparently himself and Best didn't get on (Giles booted him once and asked him why couldn't be more like Bobby Charlton!).
I remember when he chose Liverpool when leaving Newcastle he cited he liked Dalglish's pitch more (they were a vastly better team at the time to be fair), and he didn't have a great experience when he was United first time around (they did send him back to Canada after playing him zero times after all). If I'm recalling correctly, Ferguson offered more money too. Ultimately, he made the right decision. Beardsley, Barnes, and Aldridge were class for Liverpool back in the day while United struggled.
Cool picture and look at how many people are there. Nothing to do with this Aztecs picture but I get the feeling soccer in the Bay Area used to be a lot better than it is now. What would be the modern day equivalent of George Best if we could get a player like him on the Quakes?
My favourite George Best story was from watching a really old documentary about him, and he was in a bar insisting he the outside influences like his fashion shop and partying in general does not get in the way of his game. On the way out the door the bouncer advises him 'best of luck in the match tomorrow'.
When George lived here, he would hang out at Carry Nations in Los Gatos and drank the night away. He would then walk home from there as he lived in LG. One night his wife Angie saw him walking home during the rainy season of either 80 or 81 and she didn't know who this drunk guy staggering down the middle of the street was. I believe that was when she decided to leave him.
Did he play well for the Quakes? I’ve seen that one goal where he dribbled through everybody, but other than that was he good for the Quakes?
At the time, many fans really didn’t appreciate him that much as the game was still fairly new and also , the Quakes had a dismal record. Maybe he was older (34/35 years of age) and not as fast as he once was but he was the greatest player that I saw playing for the Quakes in every era. He scored 21 goals and 21 assists in 56 games outdoors and 33 goals and 42 assists playing indoors in 21 matches. These pics never getg old....