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The 1972 NASL Final was the championship match of the 1972 season, between the
New York Cosmos New York Cosmos may refer to * New York Cosmos (1970–1985), a team in the North American Soccer League (then the top-tier soccer league in the United States and Canada) * New York Cosmos (2010), a team playing since 2020 in the National Independ ...
and the St. Louis Stars. The match was played on August 26, 1972 at
Hofstra Stadium Hofstra University is a private university in Hempstead, New York. It is Long Island's largest private university. Hofstra originated in 1935 as an extension of New York University (NYU) under the name Nassau College – Hofstra Memorial of New ...
, in
Hempstead, New York The Town of Hempstead (also known historically as South Hempstead) is the largest of the three towns in Nassau County (alongside North Hempstead and Oyster Bay) in the U.S. state of New York. It occupies the southwestern part of the county, o ...
. The New York Cosmos won the match, 2–1, and were crowned the 1972 NASL champions.


Background


St. Louis Stars

The St. Louis Stars qualified for the playoffs by winning the Southern Division with 69 points. This guaranteed them at least one home playoff game. They defeated the 1970 champions, the Rochester Lancers, 2–0, in a semifinal game played on August 15, 1972 to advance to the final.


New York Cosmos

The New York Cosmos qualified for the playoffs by winning the Northern Division with 77 points. They also had the highest point-total in the NASL, and therefore were guaranteed home field throughout the playoffs. They defeated the defending champion
Dallas Tornado The Dallas Tornado was a soccer team based in Dallas, Texas that played in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1967 to 1981. Of the twelve teams that comprised the U.S. in 1967, the Tornado franchise played the longest–15 seasons. T ...
, 1–0, in a semifinal game played on August 19, 1972 to advance to the final.


Game summary

The Cosmos took an early lead after league MVP
Randy Horton The Honourable Kenneth Howard Randolph "Randy" Horton, JP, MP is a former soccer and cricket player from Bermuda who is currently Speaker of the House of Assembly of Bermuda. He was named North American Soccer League Most Valuable Player in ...
headed winger
Roby Young Reuven "Roby" Young ( he, רובי יאנג; born 15 May 1942) is a former Israeli international footballer, and captain of Hapoel Haifa. Biography Born on 15 May 1942 in Haifa, Israel, Roby Young was raised (alongside his older brother) by hi ...
's corner kick off the crossbar and in at 4:23. The lead would be last through the intermission, until Casey Frankiewicz, the Stars' player/coach, tied the game seven minutes after the restart. Frankiewicz's goal was the source of some controversy as referee Roger Schott initially ruled the play offside. Multiple Stars players appealed to linesman Bill Maxwell who ruled the play good. Schott subsequently reversed his decision and allowed the goal to stand. Late in the rain-soaked gameCosmos
on NASL jersey with New York applying pressure, Cosmos' midfielder John Kerr was fouled in the penalty area by St. Louis defender Gary Rensing. Schott promptly awarded New York a penalty, which Josef Jelínek buried at 4:19 from time. Two minutes later with tempers flaring, as St. Louis pressed for the equalizer, Cosmos defender Werner Roth was sent off, leaving New York a man short for the final two minutes of the match. In a furious push at the end, forward
Willy Roy Willy or Willie is a masculine, male given name, often a diminutive form of William or Wilhelm, and occasionally a nickname. It may refer to: People Given name or nickname * Willie Aames (born 1960), American actor, television director, and scr ...
found the net for St. Louis with only thirteen second remaining. Like before, Roger Schott again ruled the Stars offside. But unlike the previous occasion, the Stars' appeals to both the referee and linesman fell on deaf ears this time, giving New York the title.


Championship results

1972 NASL Champions:
New York Cosmos New York Cosmos may refer to * New York Cosmos (1970–1985), a team in the North American Soccer League (then the top-tier soccer league in the United States and Canada) * New York Cosmos (2010), a team playing since 2020 in the National Independ ...


Statistics


See also

* 1972 North American Soccer League season


References


External links


1972 NASL Soccer Bowl
(archived, 30 Sep 2013) {{1972 in American soccer
1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...
1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...
August 1972 sports events in the United States 1972 in sports in New York (state) Soccer in New York (state)