Oakland Clippers
The Oakland Clippers were a soccer team based out of Oakland, California that played in the non-FIFA sanctioned National Professional Soccer League (NPSL). Their home field was Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum.
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| Full name | Oakland Clippers | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1966 | ||
| Dissolved | June 4, 1969[1] | ||
| Ground | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California | ||
| Capacity | 47,416 | ||
| Chairman | Joseph O'Neill & H.T. Hilliard | ||
| League | NPSL (1967) NASL (1968) | ||
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Overview
The Clippers brought the first-ever national professional championship in any sport to the City of Oakland. In 1967 they won the Western Division and overall regular season titles. They went on to win the NPSL Final over the Baltimore Bays and the Commission's Cup over the St. Louis Stars.[2] Following the 1967 season, the team joined the newly formed North American Soccer League (NASL), the result of the merger between the NPSL and the United Soccer Association (USA).
In 1968 the Clippers had an identical record to the Western Division Champion San Diego Toros and a higher goal-differential, but the Toros had more league points. Oakland finished in second place in the division and therefore failed to qualify for the playoffs. The unique points system denied them the chance to defend their post-season title in the merged league.
From September 1968 to June 1969 the Oakland Clippers, now playing as the California Clippers, played an independent schedule against top foreign club teams while waiting for the North American Soccer League to become reconstituted. The club folded following the 1968 NASL season.
Year-by-year
| Year | League | W | L | T | Pts | Reg. Season | Playoffs | Cup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | NPSL | 19 | 8 | 5 | 185 | 1st, Western Division | Won Championship | Won Commissioners Cup |
| 1968 | NASL | 18 | 8 | 6 | 185 | 2nd, Pacific Division | Did not qualify | Did not enter |
Honors
|
National Professional Soccer League 1967 First Team All-Stars
|
North American Soccer League
1968 First Team All-Stars
1968 Second Team All-Stars
|
Team Roster
1967 Roster[3]
| Player | Position | Birth Date | Height | Weight | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baesso, Mario | D | September 5, 1945 | 5'7 | -- | São Paulo, Brazil |
| Bena, Stevan | D | August 23, 1935 | 5'11" | 170 | Serbia |
| Conde, Leonel | G | 1937 | 6'2" | 174 | Uruguay |
| Constancia, Jose | F | March 19, 1945 | -- | -- | Willemstad, Curaçao |
| Čop, Milan | M, D | October 5, 1941 | 5'10" | 168 | Slavonski Brod, Croatia |
| Crawford, Roel | M | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Davidović, Dimitri | D, M | May 21, 1944 | 5'10" | 160 | Aleksandrovac, Serbia |
| Djukic, Dragan | M | March 29, 1939 | 6'1" | 160 | Belgrade, Serbia |
| Gavrić, Momčilo | D | August 4, 1938 | 5'10" | 170 | Sinj, Croatia |
| Hoftvedt, Trond | M | May 30, 1941 | 5'10" | 166 | Oslo, Norway |
| Lievano, George | F | -- | -- | -- | San Salvador, El Salvador |
| Lukić, Ilija | F | December 12, 1942 | 5'9" | 150 | Serbia |
| Lunnis, Roy | D | November 4, 1939 | -- | -- | London, England |
| Marin, Edgar | F, M | March 22, 1943 | 5'5" | 135 | San Jose, Costa Rica |
| Milosevic, Sele | F | April 4, 1940 | 6'0" | 167 | Šabac, Serbia |
| Mitić, Ilija | M, F | July 19, 1940 | 5'10" | 160 | Belgrade, Serbia |
| Quiros, William | F, M | October 10, 1941 | 5'5" | 143 | Alajuela, Costa Rica |
| Rowan, Barry | F | April 24, 1942 | 5'9" | 163 | Willesden, England |
| Saccone, Ademar | F, M | October 11, 1934 | 5'10" | 160 | Montevideo, Uruguay |
| Scott, Melvyn | M | September 26, 1939 | -- | -- | Claygate, England |
| Stojanović, Mirko | G | July 11, 1939 | 6'0" | 190 | Zagreb, Croatia |
| Wiestal, Kay-Arne | F | -- | 5'10" | 165 | Sweden |
| Zuniga, Jose | F | -- | -- | -- | Costa Rica |
References
- "Oakland Clippers Friendlies". NASLJerseys.com.
- Meyers, Jeff (September 19, 1967). "Clippers Down Stars, Win Cup". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 5C. Retrieved October 16, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
- "1967 Oakland Clippers Roster". JustSportsStats.com. Retrieved August 25, 2018.