By Charles Cuttone TOP 10 COSMOS GIANTS STADIUM MOMENTS Pele, Chinaglia and Maradona
Pele said farewell, playing the first half for the Cosmos and the second for Santos.
Giants Stadium and the Cosmos were the flashpoint for America’s soccer boom. No Cosmos, Giants Stadium and those large crowds of the late 70s and 80s, likely no World Cup in 1994, and no generation of American players that grew up with the game and went on to fuel the success of MLS.
The Cosmos and their opponents produced many great moments at Giants Stadium. These are the ten best.
1) August 14, 1977
Cosmos draw 77,691
There had been big crowds for soccer before. The Cosmos themselves had drawn 62,000 earlier in the season, but that was on a beautiful Sunday afternoon with a two-for-one ticket promotion and frisbee giveaway. The August 14 date, however, was both was special and unexpected, as more than 20,000 fans walked up and bought tickets at the box office. The Cosmos delivered too, defeating the Fort Lauderdale Strikers 8-3 on the strength of Giorgio Chinaglia’s hat trick and a pair of goals by Steve Hunt.
2) October 1, 1977
Pele’s Farewell
There could have been no better tribute to the greatest player and greatest ambassador the sport has known. Celebrities, politicians and sports stars all came to pay tribute to Pele, as did a sellout crowd, and his former team Santos. Pele went out in style, scoring his last goal with the Cosmos before switching jerseys at halftime and finishing his career with Santos. Fittingly, players from both teams joined in carrying him around the field for an honor lap as the rain fell.
3) August 28, 1978
Cosmos win second straight Soccer Bowl
The Cosmos became the only team in North American Soccer League history to win back-to-back titles. This title win, 3-1 over the Tampa Bay Rowdies was not as emotional as the previous year’s game in Portland, where the team was on a mission to send Pele out a winner, but nevertheless, it came at home in front of 74,901. Dennis Tueart scored two goals and was named the game’s MVP.
4)August 16, 1978
Cosmos beat Kicks in a Shootout
After losing the opening game of the playoff series to the Minnesota Kicks 9-2, the Cosmos needed to win the second game of the series -- which they did, 4-0 -- then play a deciding minigame. The minigame went a scoreless 30 minutes, sending the game to a shootout. After the first four Cosmos shooters missed, Carlos Alberto coolly lifted a ball over Kicks goalkeeper Tino Lettieri to tie the shootout. Cosmos goalkeeper Jack Brand thwarted the Kicks with five straight saves, leaving it for Franz Beckenbauer to provide the dramatic game-winner.
5) June 19, 1977
Pele scores hat trick, record crowd
He called it his gift. Pele, playing in his last professional season, put on an unforgettable show on Father’s Day in front of a then-record crowd of 62,394, scoring three goals, his only hat trick with the Cosmos, in 3-1 victory over the archrival Tampa Bay Rowdies.
6) June 6, 1979
Cosmos lose to Argentina 1-0
Argentina was the defending World Cup champion, and featured such stars as Daniel Passarella, who had captained the team to the title just a year earlier, and goalkeeper Ubaldo Fillol, as well as a youngster named Diego Maradona . A highly entertaining and attack-minded match, the game ended in a 1-0 win for the Argentines when a goal by Giorgio Chinaglia late in the game was called back for offside.
7) September 1, 1979
Cosmos lose to Whitecaps in Shootout
The Cosmos failed to advance to third straight Soccer Bowl when they lost to the eventual champion Vancouver Whitecaps in a dramatic shootout.
Vancouver had won the series opener and the two sides played to a 2-2 tie in the regulation game. The Cosmos won that shootout for a 3-2 Game 2 win, forcing a mini-game, which was scoreless. With the final shootout tilted 3-2 toward Vancouver, Nelsi Morais dribbled around Whitecaps goalkeeper Phil Parkes and put the ball in the net, but the goal was ruled invalid because Morais took longer than the allotted five seconds to get off his shot.
8) July 12, 1978
Cosmos’ 23-game home winning streak ends
The Cosmos had been unbeatable at home for the better part of two seasons before the New England Tea Men ended their run with a 3-1 win.
9) August 31, 1980
Chinaglia scores seven goals
Putting on perhaps the single greatest performance in the history of the North American Soccer League, Giorgio Chinaglia scored seven goals in an 8-1 rout of the Tulsa Roughnecks in the first round of the league playoffs. In all, the Cosmos broke 11 different records in the game.
10) May 24, 1980
Chinaglia scores three against Roma
Playing against his former Italian rival, Giorgio Chinaglia scored three goals to lead the Cosmos to a 5-3 win in the Trans Atlantic Challenge Cup.
