1981 American Soccer League
| Season | 1981 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Carolina Lightnin' |
| Premiers | New York United (5th title) |
| Top goalscorer | Billy Boljevic (25) |
← 1980 1982 → | |
Statistics of American Soccer League II in season 1981.
League standings[edit]
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York United | 28 | 19 | 4 | 5 | 53 | 28 | 51 | 154 |
| Pennsylvania Stoners | 28 | 17 | 7 | 4 | 51 | 28 | 47 | 146 |
| New York Eagles | 28 | 13 | 2 | 13 | 57 | 49 | 47 | 116 |
| New England Sharks | 28 | 4 | 0 | 24 | 16 | 41 | 15 | 35 |
Source: [citation needed]
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carolina Lightnin' | 28 | 16 | 3 | 9 | 46 | 31 | 41 | 127 |
| Detroit Express | 28 | 15 | 2 | 11 | 58 | 46 | 46 | 125 |
| Rochester Flash | 28 | 11 | 5 | 12 | 38 | 51 | 35 | 100 |
| Cleveland Cobras | 28 | 5 | 1 | 22 | 33 | 78 | 29 | 56 |
Source: [citation needed]
ASL All-Stars[edit]
| First Team[1] | Position | Second Team |
|---|---|---|
| George Taratsides, NY United | G | Scott Manning, Carolina |
| Chris Tyson, NY United | D | Curtis Leeper, Carolina |
| Jeff Tipping, Pennsylvania | D | Mack Garrigan, Cleveland |
| Billy Boljevic, Pennsylvania | D | Fernando Clavijo, NY United |
| Dennis Mepham, Rochester | D | Redmond Lane, NY United |
| Don Tobin, Carolina | M | Mike Barry, Cleveland |
| John Dolinsky, Rochester | M | Rich Reice, Pennsylvania |
| Steve Westbrook, Detroit | M | Mike Powers, Detroit |
| Tony Suarez, Carolina | F | Ricky Kren, NY Eagles |
| Andy Chapman, Detroit | F | Mike Laschev, Rochester |
| Billy Boljevic, NY Eagles | F | Mal Roche, Carolina |
Playoffs[edit]
Bracket[edit]
| First round (single match) | Division finals (2-match aggregate) | ASL Championship Final (single match) | |||||||||||
| New York United | 1 | 1(4) | 2 | ||||||||||
| Detroit Express | 4 | Detroit Express | 1 | 1(2) | 2 | ||||||||
| New York Eagles | 1 | New York United | 1 | ||||||||||
| Carolina Lightnin' | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Pennsylvania Stoners | 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||||||||
| Carolina Lightnin' | 2 | Carolina Lightnin' | 3 | 1 | 4 | ||||||||
| Rochester Flash | 0 | ||||||||||||
1st Round[edit]
| September 3 | Carolina Lightnin' | 2–0 | Rochester Flash | Memorial Stadium • Att. 5,312 |
| September 4 | Detroit Express | 4–1 | New York Eagles | Pontiac Silverdome • Att. 7,318 |
Semifinals[edit]
| Higher Seed | Aggregate | Lower Seed | First leg | Second leg | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carolina Lightnin' | 4–3 | Pennsylvania Stoners | 3–1 | 1–2 | September 5 • Memorial Stadium • 6,021[2] September 9 • ASD Stadium • 2,207[3] |
| New York United | 2–2 (4–2) | Detroit Express | 1–1 | 1–1 PK (4–2) | September 8 • Pontiac Silverdome • 3,414[4] September 10 • Hofstra Stadium • 1,274[5] |
Championship final[edit]
| Carolina Lightnin' (NC) | 2–1(OT) | New York United (NY) |
|---|---|---|
Don Tobin  69' Hugh O'Neill  115' |
Report | Soloman Hilton 64' |
Post season awards[edit]
- Most Valuable Player:
Billy Boljevic, NY Eagles[6] - Coach of the year:
Jimmy McGeough, NY United - Rookie of the year:
Tony Suarez, Carolina - Executive of the Year:
Robert Benson, Carolina
References[edit]
- ^ Upchurch, Gene (September 29, 1981). "Suarez, Tobin top five Lightnin' all-stars". Charlotte News. p. 2B. Retrieved August 5, 2021.
- ^ Scott, David (September 6, 1981). "Lightnin' Gets Leg Up, Turns Back Stoners 3-1". Charlotte Observer. p. 1D. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
- ^ Shope, Dan (September 10, 1981). "Stoners win 2-1 but fall short on total goals". The Morning Call (Allentown, PA). p. C1. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
- ^ Pepper, Jon (September 9, 1981). "Express tie United, hit the road". Detroit Free Press. p. 1F. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
- ^ Elliot, Helene (September 11, 1981). "United's kicks end Express season, 2-1". Detroit Free Press. p. 1F. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
- ^ "Soccer ASL". Arizona Republic. September 30, 1981. p. F6. Retrieved August 5, 2021.