Sockers Reach One Big Goal, Sign Hirmez
The San Diego Sockers on Friday halted an Iraqi pullout of sorts--they signed midfielder Waad Hirmez, a native of Baghdad, to a one-year contract and thereby kept him from defecting to another Major Soccer League team.
It is considered a major signing for three reasons:
--Hirmez, 28, led the team in goals last year with 29. He was also third in scoring with 40 points (goals plus 11 assists).
--The Sockers had already lost two key players--defenders George Fernandez to Cleveland and Ralph Black to Tacoma--through free agency when Hirmez said two weeks ago he may follow them out the door instead of accepting a pay cut.
--Already one of the team’s most potent goal-scorers because of a 70-m.p.h. shot that he unleashes from long distances, club officials expect Hirmez to be even more of a force this year because the size of the goal has been increased by 33%.
The final decision to stay was made, Hirmez said, because he simply did not want to leave San Diego.
“I sacrificed a lot to stay here,” Hirmez said. “It was a tough thing to do, but I looked at everything and I weighed everything carefully. I love the city and the fans and that made me change my mind.”
Hirmez has become a crowd favorite here not only because of his goal scoring, but also because of a trademark routine he goes into after beating goalies--jumping on the dasher boards and doing high fives with the crowd.
He was also one of the players who in 1988 helped the team out of bankruptcy by getting on the phones and soliciting season-ticket pledges.
The league is still having financial difficulties, and this year Hirmez wasn’t asked to man the phones. Instead, he was asked to take a reduced salary because of a new salary cap of $630,000 per team.
Last year Hirmez earned $54,000. That was down from $65,000 the year before. The Sockers’ initial offer to him this year was $42,000.
“If they stayed at 42,” Hirmez said. “I wouldn’t have accepted it.”
The team upped its offer, but Hirmez and Sockers Coach Ron Newman declined to say exactly how much more the club kicked in.
The Baltimore Blast actually offered Hirmez more money than he accepted from the Sockers. The Blast plays on the smallest field in the league, which would have been another advantage to Hirmez’s long-range shots.
“They were really excited about the possibility,” Hirmez said of Blast officials. “They really wanted me, but I told them the Sockers would be my first priority if we could work things out.”
They did, and now the Sockers are excited about Hirmez’s chances with the larger goals.
“For people who can fire the ball hard,” Newman said, “the new goal size will be a lot better for them. I think there will be a big improvement, especially on set kicks.”
Hirmez has played his entire career in San Diego, except for a half-season with the Los Angeles Lazers in 1988-89. He never found a groove in Los Angeles but as soon as he was traded back to the Sockers, he regained his shooting touch.
He scored 15 goals in 19 games for the Sockers that year, compared to 11 goals in 27 games while with the Lazers.
For that reason, Newman said he thought Hirmez would come around, as he did Friday.
“He plays better here than anywhere else,” the coach said. “He loves San Diego. It’s his home team. He has family here.”
Hirmez first played soccer in San Diego at Granite Hills High School after coming over to this country from Iraq. He was drafted by the Sockers when they were still playing outdoor right after he graduated from Point Loma High School in 1981.
“I still remember that,” Hirmez said. “I was 18 years old. They drafted me June 12 and I signed June 23.”
Socker Notes
The Sockers now have six players signed for the coming season: Waad Hirmez, forward Branko Segota, forward Rod Castro, defender Kevin Crow, defender Paul Wright and goalkeeper Victor Nogueira. . . . Coach Ron Newman also said he expects forward Wes Wade and defender Donald Cogsville to sign soon. . . . Hirmez will go back to his original number this year--11. “I lost it when I went to L.A.,” he said. Ralph Black joined the club in the interim and wore No. 11. Hirmez has been wearing No. 28 since his return. “And that was a mistake,” he said. “I got traded on a Wednesday and I was supposed to play with the Sockers against the Lazers on a Thursday and the only uniform they had available was No. 28. I scored three goals that night against L.A. wearing 28 so I said, ‘That’s it. I’m keeping it.”’ Until now.
