Bell Is Puzzled by Sockers’ Recent Rash of Losses, Dwindling Home Attendance

Sockers owner Bob Bell had two pressing matters on his mind Friday.

One was the disappearing act his team has performed on the field lately. The other was dwindling home attendance--which is down nearly 2,000 fans per game from last season--and talk of bringing Julie Veee back to San Diego to help improve it.

Since winning 10 of their first 11 games this season, the Sockers have lost 5 of 9. Their latest loss was at home Thursday night against Baltimore, 6-3.

“That was our most embarrassing game ever indoors,” Bell said. “I felt we were run off the field. It looked like a large number of our players did not care. The ones that did care looked like they couldn’t do anything.”

But Bell wasn’t upset only at his players.

He was puzzled that the Sockers drew only 9,064 fans for a game matching Major Indoor Soccer League division leaders. The last time Baltimore had been in town, the Sockers drew a sellout crowd of 12,948 for the fifth and deciding game of the 1982-83 MISL championship, which the Sockers won, 3-1. Furthermore, 15 of the Sockers’ 16 regular season home games in 1983-84 drew more than Thursday’s Baltimore game.

The Sockers are averaging 9,432 fans through 10 home games, compared to 11,119 fans after 10 home games last season.

“We were a .500 team at this point last year,” Bell said. “We’re in first place now. The Clippers aren’t in town anymore. We’re the best team in the league and attendance is down 2,000. I don’t understand it.”

Of course, many of the faces have changed. Among those gone is Veee, who has expressed an interest in returning to San Diego.

If Veee does come back, it probably would boost home attendance. Veee was so popular among San Diego fans that the Sockers retired his number when Las Vegas was in town for a preseason tournament.

“I’d never make a move for a player to temporarily boost attendance if it didn’t help the team,” Bell said. “I don’t know if getting him would help the team. There are so many things to consider. Who would we trade? Who would we play? What impact would it have on other players?”

Bell also said he was not certain Veee would help increase attendance dramatically. But earlier this season Bell admitted some people canceled their season tickets after the Sockers sold several players to Las Vegas. The Sockers “alumni team” in Las Vegas includes Veee, Alan Mayer, Gert Wieczorkowski, Martin Donnelly and Gerry O’Kane. Bell was hoping to sell San Diego fans on new players such as Steve Zungul, a five-time indoor most valuable player.

“If a person follows indoor soccer and doesn’t know the name Steve Zungul, he must follow it in very strange ways,” Bell said. “Plus, we still have a lot of players from last year and the year before. I can’t believe that getting one player back could make that big of a difference in attendance. I wish it was that simple, but I don’t think so.”

Veee was in attendance at Thursday’s Sockers-Blast game. He was with his wife Alexandra, who had corrective eye surgery Friday morning at Harbor View Medical Center.

Bell and Veee talked at the game.

“Julie expressed an interest in coming back here, especially with his wife’s eye problem,” Bell said. “I wish we could have him, but I don’t know what could be done.”

Bell said he has yet to be contacted by Las Vegas about a possible trade. But Veee’s agent, Scott Simpson, said he has had informal discussions with Burrell Cohen, Las Vegas Americans executive vice-president, concerning a Veee trade.

Veee has a four-year, $700,000 contract with Las Vegas that includes a no-trade clause. But he has wanted out since Las Vegas hired Don Popovic as head coach and asked Mayer to strictly concentrate on playing. Simpson was asked if Veee gets along with Popovic.

“Does anybody? I haven’t known anybody to,” Simpson said. “We went up to Las Vegas knowing Alan Mayer would be the coach. If we had known Popovic would be the coach, it would have been an entirely different situation. Obviously, it was a shock for them to change coaches as abruptly as they did. Popovic is not an easy man to get along with.”

Before the Sockers can consider obtaining Veee, they must consider their own roster. Teams usually carry two forwards, and the Sockers already have Ade Coker and Zungul. Coker recently signed a three-year contract.

One possibility would be trading Zungul to Las Vegas, where he would be reunited with Popovic, his former coach. But Bell likes the fact Zungul is four years younger than the 34-year-old Veee.

Bell said he has not addressed the question of whether he could have three forwards on his roster.

“Julie can play the midfield, too,” Bell said. “But I haven’t thought about that, yet. I’m worried about the guys we now have playing to their potential.”

In the locker room Thursday, Zungul was doing the complaining. Zungul said that while he was setting teammates up to score, nobody was setting him up. Zungul was held scoreless against Baltimore.

“I’m disappointed in the whole team, not just Steve,” Bell said. “Part of the blame is on everybody. I don’t think anyone is playing to their potential or that any player can blame it on the others.

“Maybe they’ve been reading rave notices about themselves and believing them. Maybe they have been lulled into thinking that they can just show up and win.”