Portland Timbers (1975–1982)

Portland Timbers
Full name Portland Timbers
Nickname(s) Timbers
Founded 1975
Dissolved 1982 (1982)
Ground Civic Stadium
Portland, Oregon
Memorial Coliseum (indoor)
Capacity 35,000
10,407 (indoor)
Manager Vic Crowe (1975–1977, 1980–1982)
League NASL

The Portland Timbers were an American professional soccer club based in Portland, Oregon, that competed in the original North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1975 to 1982. The name has been used by three other soccer franchises: the Timbers of the WSA/APSL, Portland Timbers of the USL and the current team which began play as part of Major League Soccer in 2011.

History

In January 1975, the NASL awarded an expansion franchise to Portland, Oregon. The name was selected on March 8, 1975 from more than 3,000 entries in an open contest.[1] They began play in the 1975 season and finished the year with the league's best record. They marched through the playoffs all the way to the championship game, Soccer Bowl '75. There, they lost to another expansion team, the Tampa Bay Rowdies 2–0. It was during this season that the Timbers endeared themselves to the City and Portland became known as "Soccer City USA". While the Timbers boasted some of the league's best fan support, they sometimes struggled on the field. After such a strong start, they missed the playoffs in 1976 and 1977. In 1978, they went to the Conference Finals before falling to the eventual champion Cosmos. The team folded at the end of the 1982 season as player salaries outpaced team revenue. These Timbers established soccer as a sport in the greater Portland area. Their legacy lives on in the current Timbers following and the many thousands who continue to play and follow the game. Many of these Timbers continued to live in the area after their playing careers and helped establish the soccer as a vital local sport.

Year by Year

Year League W L T Pts Reg. season Playoffs Avg. Attendance
1975 NASL 16 6 — 138 1st, Western Division Won Quarterfinal (Seattle)
Won Semifinal (St. Louis)
Lost Soccer Bowl '75 (Tampa Bay)		 14,503
1976 NASL 8 16 — 71 4th, Pacific Conference, Western Division Did not qualify 17,429
1977 NASL 10 16 — 98 4th, Pacific Conference, Western Division Did not qualify 13,216
1978 NASL 20 10 — 167 2nd, National Conference, Western Division Won 1st Round (Washington)
Won Conference Semifinal (Vancouver)
Lost Conference Championship (Cosmos)		 11,803
1979 NASL 11 19 — 122 4th, National Conference, Western Division Did not qualify 11,172
1979–80 NASL Indoor Did not enter
1980 NASL 15 17 — 133 4th, National Conference, Western Division Did not qualify 10,210
1980–81 NASL Indoor 10 8 — — 2nd, Western Division Lost 1st Round (Chicago) 5,229
1981 NASL 17 15 — 141 3rd, Northwest Lost 1st Round (San Diego) 10,516
1981–82 NASL Indoor 7 11 — — 2nd, National Conference, West Division Did not qualify 5,073
1982 NASL 14 18 — 122 4th, Western Division Did not qualify 8,786

Coaches

Honors

References

  1. ↑ "New soccer team to be 'Timbers'". Eugene Register-Guard. 1975-03-10. p. 3C.
  2. ↑ "Kasey Keller, Sigi Schmid and Glenn "Mooch" Myernick Elected to National Soccer Hall of Fame".
  3. ↑ "Home - Indoor Soccer Hall of Fame". www.indoorsoccerhall.com.

Further reading

  • Orr, Michael; Young, Morgen (2011). "Soccer in the Seventies: Chris Dangerfield and the Original Portland Timbers" (PDF). Oregon Historical Quarterly. 112 (No. 2).


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