MISL CHAMPIONSHIP : Sockers Bicker as Strikers Aim to End an Era

An era can end any day now. . . . Possibly even tonight.

The Sockers’ streak of four straight indoor titles is on the line as they trail the Minnesota Strikers 3-1 entering Game 5 of the best-of-seven Major Indoor Soccer League championship series at 7:35 tonight at the Sports Arena.

This three-game losing streak has come at the most inopportune time for the Sockers, who have not lost four in a row since the first four games of the 1981-82 North American Soccer League season.

“We have to win in a magical way this year,” said Socker Coach Ron Newman. “If we do, it will be the biggest thing since that first year.”

The Sockers are 26-1 in home playoff games, but their lone defeat came in their last home game. Minnesota crushed the Sockers 6-1 in Game 2.

That was when it began to appear that this dynasty may be over.

The skid continued in Minnesota, where 7-2 and 4-3 victories pushed the Strikers to the brink of their first championship. The Sockers blew a 3-0 lead Sunday.

With all these years as champions apparently near an end, the Sockers still are at their bickering best.

Some of the Sockers feel that veteran midfielder Juli Veee has not been giving his all in the championship series. Veee says he is a “phantom man” in the Sockers’ offense because he doesn’t fit in.

Newman is upset with the way his players are pointing fingers at one another. He is angry that players such as Veee, Jean Willrich and Kevin Crow are popping off about their teammates and Newman’s system.

A number of San Diego players are upset that midfielder Branko Segota is playing with the Canadian National team while the Sockers are one game away from elimination and struggling to score goals. Segota, the Sockers’ leading scorer and offensive threat, has not scored in two games since returning from a calf injury.

Segota has not missed any games because of his commitment to the Canadian World Cup team, but he has missed many practices while trying to be two places at once.

Newman, who supported Segota’s desire to play for Canada, apparently is not upset with the way things have worked out with Segota.

“No,” Newman said. “I still feel there is a lot of energy in him. I know he’s so eager to do well for us. He’s a strong boy. All he’s doing is getting fitter and fitter. Credit Minnesota for nullifying his ability to perform.”

A lot of the Sockers’ frustration can be attributed to their lack of scoring. After setting an MISL record with 308 goals scored during the regular season, they have scored just six goals in the last three games.

If Segota has been missing, so has Veee. He has taken four shots and scored no points in those three games.

“They can’t play the game I’m used to and I can’t play the game they are used to,” said Veee. “I fit in with the old horses like Kazee (Deyna). Now, I look in the mirror to see if I’m real. I’ve talked to Ron, but the problem is he doesn’t take notice of me. This year, he totally slighted me.”

In his previous stint with the Sockers, before being sold to Las Vegas two years ago, Veee would position himself in the penalty area, receive a pass and hit turnaround right-footers. Veee, now 36 and playing with different teammates, is playing more midfield than center-forward.

“We have no system now,” Veee said. “There are too many individuals. The machinery is not like it used to be. . . . It’s chaos out there. It worked for a while during the regular season, but now we’re not getting away with mistakes.”

The Sockers are not playing or acting like a team, and Newman does not like it.

“Last year was the best atmosphere,” Newman said. “This year everyone is starting to point fingers. I got rid of that two years ago. Now, it’s back again. But I really don’t want to talk about it.”

Does Newman feel that Veee is hurting the club?

“I don’t think he’s a destructive force,” Newman said. “If he thinks what’s right is different than what the team is doing, he tries to influence other people. I don’t think many of the players take much notice of him.”

Crow has.

On a club divided by strong cliques, the 24-year-old Crow opted to associate himself with the Veee-Willrich-Brian Quinn group.

“They convinced me their way is better,” Crow said. “They play from the shoulders up. The others guys play from the shoulders down.

“It killed me when they (Sockers) got rid of (Gert) Wieczorkowski and (Martin) Donnelly. I jumped from A to M when they were here. I’ve only gone from M to P in the last year and a half. With one sweep of the financial pen, they got rid of the most intelligent players. I no longer see players improving on a day to day basis.”

Wieczorkowski was suspended by the Sockers after his confrontation with Newman at the end of the 1983-84 season, and he never played with them again. Donnelly was sold to Las Vegas before the 1984-85 season.

The cliques were equally strong, if not stronger, when Wieczorkowski and Donnelly were on the Sockers, but Crow said that attitudes were different.

“We’ve always had cliques,” Crow said, “but at least the players used to fight for one another on the field.”

And they did not allow their squabbles to effect their play on the field.

An era can end any day now.

Socker Notes

Socker managing general partner Bob Bell has requested that the MISL review the tapes of Sunday’s game to see if the action of Striker goalkeeper Tino Lettieri’s striking Socker forward Ade Coker warrants a red card. No foul, penalty or yellow or red card was issued during the game. If Lettieri receives a red card, he will have to sit out tonight’s game because it will be his second red card of the playoffs. “I watched the tape, heard what the Prime Ticket announcers said and read his (Lettieri’s) remarks in the paper,” Bell said. “It deserves to be analyzed.” Bell said that MISL Director of Operations James Budish and new league Commissioner Bill Kentling, both of whom will be in San Diego today, will review the tapes. . . . Kim Roentved of the Wichita Wings was named MISL defender of the year. Roentved was the highest scoring defender with 26 goals and 38 assists for 64 points and finished fifth in the league in block shots with 80. Roentved received 16 votes. Bruce Savage of Baltimore had four votes and Fernando Clavijo of the Sockers had three.