My uncles played on the first Sons Of Italy soccer team that Umberto Abronzino formed in 1959. In the mid 1990's, I got to meet Umberto and spend a lot of time with him while we were watching Serie A soccer games early Sunday mornings at Guido's Pizzeria in the Pruneyard. Really nice guy who would fall asleep at times and when you would ask him a question about the rules of the game or on a referee decision, even while sleeping would shake his hand and his head and say no no no, this is the rule. He did the same thing at USSF meetings and usually won all his arguments and never let the powers that be, win by even the slightest of margins. What a crack up he was but he had a soccer mind that was second to none. Having him pass away right during Italy's 2006 run to the World Cup Final in 2006 was kind of sad because I know he was watching every game. I know many people across the soccer community in San Jose who truly miss his presence in the game. I'm sure its an honor for his family members to name the Watson Bowl soccer field after him. Ciao Umberto!
Playing a game when Umberto was reffing was always a treat and a trial. You never knew what you were going to get but you never left the field without a smile.
You mean like making a call from one penality area when the play was on the other side of the field in the opposite penality area? It was more trial than treat. My favorite would be him charging to get into our Peninsula League games (at Watson), closing the ticket box, and coming onto the field to be the center "refree". This was in the early 90s. So, while we may have not been smiling much at the time, I have a big smile and great memories!
Yeah, that sounds about right, and when he was the center referee, he really was, parked in the center circle for 90 minutes.
He told me in Italian Neapolitan dialect "oho you are Italian?" , & I say yes and he said "ok keep playing"! The other team didn't care, you know it was the 90's....
Another story about Umberto when he was timekeeper at NASL Quakes games at Spartan Stadium..... The NASL Quakes from 1978 until 1981 had horrid seasons although they still drew well at the gate and continued to thrive year after year even though the rest of the NASL expanded and contracted. When the Quakes would be playing usually losing we would walk by and say "Umberto, how is it going?" He would then say in his Italian Neapolitan slang................ "fatevi onore perche la vergogna gia l'avete", I hope you're all proud and have honor (because your team) is full of shame"!
Ha- that brings back a memory. In a game at P.A.L. stadium back in the 80's or early 90's, he nullified a goal I had scored when he called me offside from his (stationary) position at midfield. We ended up winning anyway, but I was pissed off for awhile. I was desperate to keep up my average of a goal per game. I don't know how many games of ours he reffed in the 80's and 90's, but it had to be dozens. I feel like I played on hundreds of different fields (and rockpiles) around the valley over the years, but I don't recall ever playing at Watson. Weird. Anyway, Umberto was always an interesting character, and talk about devotion. I can still picture him bundled up for wintertime games, where his face was barely visible (and he was elderly at the time).
I guess everyone has an Umberto story. He ref'd a ton of my rec league games in the 80's and 90's. Toward the end his short bow-legged walk barely got him from one side of the center circle to the other. Early on I noticed that he never called offsides on the opposite side of the field (two ref system) - I guess he couldn't see that far... One time I asked a teammate how come they still let that old guy ref. He said, well he basically runs the league, no one can tell him he can't. Then a few weeks later at the '94 world cup game at Stanford he was honored at halftime. Only then did I realize what an institution he was to the south bay soccer scene, not just a likable old codger who loved to ref soccer. One thing for sure was as old and dodgy as he was, no one gave him crap. He quickly put players in their place if they tried, unlike a lot of the other refs. And that was even when people like me didn't have a clue how influential he was, they just knew he meant business by his demeanor. God forbid you got him so worked up he started in on you in Italian. I had a teammate, a little bit on the reckless side, named John, EVERY time Umberto called a foul on him, he'd just say 'Johnny, Johnny, Johnny' in a tsk tsk kinda voice. We laughed about that after every game. Over the years I came to really appreciate how he handled players. And I remember Watson bowl well. Got my leg broke on that field... And Watson park next door. You quickly learned not to slide tackle there as you'd likely get cut up from glass or bottle caps coming up thru the dirt (it was an old dump site, which was later declared a hazardous waste site!).
You might check out the two new fields at the former Watson (now Abronzino) Bowl sometime. Much nicer than the previous Watson Bowl and peripheral fields. The bowl was never contaminated with toxics (although the peripheral fields may have been), and several feet of clean dirt was excavated from the bowl area and used to cap ("remediate") the contaminated soil in other parts of Watson Park. The much lower in elevation Abronzino Bowl is now part of the flood plain for the adjacent Coyote Creek, and the place where the field house is to be built is on an unexcavated, and therefore elevated, plateau (I call it a hill) immediately west of the two fields. Also, those of you who have played soccer in the Valley or have children who have played, or are playing now, consider what photos or artifacts you may have reflecting your experience (not necessarily as related directly to Umberto). One of the purposes of the field house (aside from the more prosaic restrooms, concessions, storage and office space) is to contain built-in exhibit space comprising what I call the people's soccer museum, reflecting the amateur and recreational soccer experience here, curated by History San Jose with the assistance of volunteer Quakes fans. The people's history includes not only U.S. Soccer Hall of Famer Umberto, and the 1992 U.S. Open Cup champion San Jose Oaks who played home matches at Watson Bowl, but also ordinary people whose collective experience makes this place "Soccer City USA."
These are really great stories, guys. Having grown up with my dad creating from nothing pickup games, coaching, and ultimately helping to create a new adult league in our area, I really appreciate reading stories like this.
Chris Dangerfield (player coach) and Andy Hewitt (general manager) of the 1992 U.S. Open Cup champion San Jose Oaks (that's right, Seattle didn't invent Open Cup glory) recently donated some photos and newsclippings for the Soccer Legacy Collection at History San Jose. Some of the items will surely make their way into the Abronzino Field House exhibit cases. Here's a telegram from their shirt sponsor, Umbro: "DEAR ANDY [Hewitt]: WHAT AN ACHIEVEMENT!! OUR CONGRATULATIONS ON MAKING U.S. SOCCER HISTORY. . . . UMBRO -- THE CHOICE OF CHAMPIONS. WELCOME TO OUR ILLUSTRIOUS LIST OF CHAMPIONS IN '92 -- LEEDS UNITED, AJAX, AND THE SAN JOSE OAKS!" Oh, and to underscore what a sore sport Sigi Schmid is, here's a quote from the losing coach from the U.S. Open Cup championship match twenty years ago: "Joe Queiroz, Vasco daGama (CT) player/coach: 'They (Oaks) have a great team. That's all I can say. They have a great team and we were beaten by a better team. . . .'" (Soccer Magic, 8/25/92, at p.19).
In honor of the one-year anniversary of the re-opened Umberto Abronzino Bowl at Watson Park the same day, Soccer Silicon Valley Community Foundation is making available a pair of on-field seats near the center line to the Quakes v. Colorado match at Buck Shaw Stadium on Saturday, August 25, to benefit the Abronzino Field House Project. These are among the very best seats available, next to ownership's seats (no guarantee Lew Wolff will be in attendance), with a face-value of $300 for the pair. They can be yours for a $250 donation to the Abronzino Fund. First come, first served. Contact me at 408-836-9850, if interested.
Support the Abronzino Field House Project by purchasing a "Dia de los Terremotos" t-shirt! http://therethere.com/san-jose/terremotos.html?___SID=U http://therethere.com/san-jose.html Ten percent of proceeds benefit the project. Order online or look for them soon in Quakes souvenir stands in the stadium.
These make great holiday gifts and stocking stuffers, even for non-fans. The tees are available not only in men's sizes (as modeled by Beita) but also in women's, http://therethere.com/san-jose/terremotos-1.html?___SID=U toddler, http://therethere.com/san-jose/terremotos-toddler.html, youth, http://therethere.com/san-jose/terremotos-youth.html. and infant, http://therethere.com/san-jose/terremotos-infant.html They are also now available as hoodies: http://therethere.com/san-jose/terremotos-4017.html?___SID=U. And if you're making your end-of-year donations, consider an online contribution to the Abronzino Field House project: http://www.sanjoseparks.org/the_abronzino_fund. We are tracking the direct donations for a donor plaque inside the field house, once constructed. Thanks.