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After 1976, the North American Soccer League placed the once-proud Philadelphia Atoms franchise into receivership. However, NASL Commissioner Phil Woosnam was still acutely aware of the Philadelphia's potential as a soccer city, and was keen to expand back into the City of Brotherly Love.

With the demise of the Atoms, Philadelphia was without professional soccer in 1977, Pelé's final year with the New York Cosmos. The great player's farewell tour had generated tremendous interest in the circuit, however, and crowds of over 40,000 could be found in New York and Minnesota with some regularity. After the 1977 season, Woosnam decided the time was right to undertake a massive expansion, and announced that six new teams would be added for the 1978 season.

On November 15, 1977, the Philadelphia Fury became the NASL's 22nd franchise. Initially, however, the team was news not for the fact that it was bringing professional soccer back to Philadelphia, but because of its ownership group.

Yellow-shirted Philadelphia Fury defenders John
Dempsey (5) and Fran O'Brien close down on
Houston's Kai Haaskivi. Dempsey was named the
1979 NASL Defender of the Year.

The Fury's owners listed like the roster at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Among the team's investors were Rick Wakeman, influential keyboardist with the hugely successful rock group, Yes; Peter Frampton, at that time the biggest solo rock star in the world by virtue of his mega-platinum album, Frampton Comes Alive; and Paul Simon, the well-known New York songwriter. (Although early reports included Mick Jagger as part of the ownership group, he in fact backed out of the deal on the advice of his advisors.) Other music industry big-wigs investing in the team were Frank Barsalona, manager of both Wakeman and Frampton; Dee Anthony, manager of Frampton and major-league acts like Humble Pie; Peter Rudge, the Rolling Stones tour manager; Terry Ellis and Chris Wright, owners of Chrysalis Records; and Jerry Moss, co-owner of A&M Records.

In keeping with this rock and roll background, the Fury proceeded to unveil one of the most attractive logos in all of sports history: a distinctive soccer ball-reentering-atmosphere logo was introduced, and the maroon and yellow fireball was sure to be a licensing hit, long before anyone realized the potential for such things. Even today, in spite of the team's brief history, the Fury's jersey is one of the more popular selling retro items in the TOFFS catalog.

Ultimately, what the Fury did as a soccer team was going to make or break its chances of success. As it turned out, the Fury evolved into what was basically a continuation of the Atoms franchise, as several former players wound up returning to Philadelphia and contributing to the new club.

The first major Atoms connection could be found in the front office. Bob Ehlinger, the general manager during the Atoms 1973 championship season, returned to Philadelphia after serving three years as the NASL Deputy Commissioner. One of Ehlinger's first signings was Derek Trevis, who was available after an unsuccessful two-year stint as player-coach with the San Diego Jaws and Las Vegas Quicksilvers.

Ehlinger's goal was to build a team primarily American, if not all American, within three to five years, and to build it with mostly Philadelphia area players. As the Atoms had proved, this was a workable goal. In keeping with that aim, the Fury drafted Levittown, PA native and Penn State graduate Rich Reice with its first pick in the 1978 NASL Draft. The Fury also drafted Rancocas Valley High School and Mercer County College star Pat Fidelia in the supplemental draft. Finally, the Fury acquired several free agents with local ties, including Florian Kempf and goalkeeper Dave Bragg.

Of course, several ex-Atoms found their way home, as well. Along with Trevis, Bill Straub returned to help anchor the new team's backline. Also joining the defensive corps was Brooks Cryder, the Atoms' first-round draft pick in 1976 who had eschewed the Atoms for a season in the minor American Soccer League. Finally, goalkeeper Jim Miller, a native of Roxborough, returned to professional soccer with the Fury.

Along with the wild logo, the Fury introduced another first: designer uniforms. Sal J. Cesarani, a two-time Coty Award winner in the field of clothes design, was commissioned to design the Philadelphia kit. "I wanted to give the uniforms a collegiate, All-American air," said Cesarani. Instead of the "usual V-necked shirt thing," the Fury shirt featured a deep three-button placket, a ribbed collar and capped sleeves. Of a stretchy polyester and cotton blend, the shirt was designed as "trim fitting so it will stay down inside the shorts," said Cesarani. The shorts themselves were tapered and two inches shorter than the usual shorts in use at the time, with the side vents five inches deep instead of the more typical two inches. Finally, the designer felt that, since the socks "were so apparent during the game, I wanted to do something with them." What he did was sew a fishtail-like trim down the side of the high, sturdy cotton socks so that they appeared to be an extension of the trim on the shorts.

There was a purpose to this: surveys at the time had shown that, unlike in Europe, where soccer was almost exclusively a spectator sport for males only, 45% of the American soccer audience was female. Thus, the Fury was engaging in a pretty blatant case of pandering. This concern with non-soccer related issued was an ominous sign.

On paper, the Fury looked to be a formidable lot, particularly playing in the NASL's American Soccer Conference, a conference made up primarily of expansion teams and also-rans. Unfortunately for Philadelphia, its Eastern Division included both the Tampa Bay Rowdies and the Ft. Lauderdale Strikers, two of the better teams in the league.

Off the field, the Fury tried to generate the same excitement that had greeted the Atoms five years earlier. An ambitious advertising campaign included a clever commercial featuring Peter Osgood juggling a soccer ball across the Walt Whitman Bridge while being followed by herd of young kids, all to the tune of Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells." The catchy Fury logo could be seen everywhere, and local stores actually carried Fury merchandise.

Against this backdrop, the Fury began the 1978 season on April 1, playing against Washington in Veterans Stadium before 18,191. Unfortunately, the team was thrashed, 3-0. Still, many familiar faces could be seen on the field, including Miller, Straub, and, as a substitute, Trevis. Including Cryder (who was drafted by the Atoms, but never played for them), the team had four ex-Atoms.

Unfortunately, fans were somewhat confused by the product on the field. For months, Philly fans had been told of the abilities of Alan Ball, Johnny Giles, and Keith MacRae. However, all three were delayed in reporting to Philadelphia, as they were finishing their English seasons. As a result, fans first impression of the new team was one of being somewhat cheated.

Another problem for the Fury was the fact that Peter Osgood, for all of the hype, turned out to be a complete bust. Hyped as a goalscorer, Osgood did not register a tally until the team's seventh match, and that remained his only goal through 22 games.

Still, some of the old magic returned in the Fury's second match, which saw Derek Trevis score a "golden goal" in a 3-2 win over Memphis.

As the season progressed, Philadelphia's big name players started to trickle in. Ball and MacRae debuted in the team's fifth match, with Ball scoring two goals. By the time Giles arrived in late May, however, the team was an unimpressive 5-5, and mired in the Eastern Division basement.

By June, Dinnis had been fired as coach, and was replaced by Ball. The change did not help much; like their predecessors, the Fury could not put the ball in the back of the net. One player who did generate some excitement was Pat Fidelia, who led the team in goals with eight, seven of which came as a substitute. Fans also embraced the scrappy play of Fran O'Brien and John Dempsey, two players who would have fit right in with the "No Goal Patrol" of five seasons earlier.

Thanks to the NASL's insane point system, the Fury advanced to the playoffs in spite of finishing in last place in the American Soccer Conference Eastern Division with a 12-18 record. Philadelphia made a quick exit, however, losing to Detroit 1-0 thanks to a Trevor Francis goal.

Although never capturing the hearts of Philadelphians the way the Atoms had, the Fury averaged a respectable 8,279 per match. However, given the league's growth in the last few years, this placed the team a dismal 18th out of 24 teams.

Entering 1979, the Fury hoped to correct the mistakes of the previous season. To that end, all of the big name stars, except Alan Ball, were released. Ball, however, had no desire to return as a player-coach. Such an arrangement would have been impracticable in any event, since English soccer commitments would again prevent Ball from appearing in a Fury uniform until eight games into the season.

Needing a coach, the club initially attempted to go top shelf by signing Jacek Gmoch, coach of Poland's 1978 World Cup team. Gmoch had plenty of local ties--he went to the University of Pennsylvania, and coached the Polish Eagles in the local United Soccer League--and would have been an intriguing choice. In fact, he accepted the job in November 1978, and spent time studying videos of the club's matches from the previous season. However, Poland's Minister of sport refused to release Gmoch from his national team responsibilities until June 1979. At first, the Fury were going to go along with this arrangement, since the recently retired Derek Trevis would have been a more than capable interim coach. Ultimately, the club deemed that option unacceptable. Since a compromise could not be reached with the Polish soccer federation, the Fury were forced to scramble for a new coach.

Only two months before the start of the season, the Fury finally acquired a coach. Marko Valok, former Yugoslavian National Team and Olympic coach, was hired on February 16, 1979. While an excellent coach, the announcement was somewhat underwhelming in the wake of the Gmoch disappointment.

While trying to find a coach, the team set about upgrading their roster. The young core of the team, including Brooks Cryder, Fran O'Brien, Rich Reice, Tony Glavin and super-sub Pat Fidelia, were all returning, as were veteran stalwarts Ball and John Dempsey. Bill Straub retired, however, and Trevis became a full-time assistant coach. Although attempts to acquire attacking midfielder Bruce Rioch from Derby County and defender Chris Catlin from Brighton fell through, the Fury had better luck within the league, picking up solid goalkeeper Keith Van Eron from Houston and goal scoring maven David Robb from Tampa Bay.

With less than two months to prepare, it was not surprising to find that Valok had difficulty getting his team ready for the 1979 season. The club dropped its season opener in Memphis, but opened its home slate with a 3-0 thrashing of Rochester. Fury fans were treated to a Robb hat-trick, and the fiery Scotsman quickly became as popular as fellow countryman and former Atoms star Andy Provan. Unfortunately, only 6,152 attended the opener.

Although much improved, the Fury remained an inconsistent side. Through April, the team was 2-4. However, help was on the way with the arrival of Ball and the acquisition of another goal scorer, Frank Worthington, on loan from Bolton. Worthington almost never arrived--Dallas also claimed a loan arrangement with the striker. The Fury ultimately prevailed, however, and Worthington scored a goal to compliment two by Robb in his Philadelphia debut.

Ball, on the other hand, proved to be relatively ineffective. As a result, he was traded to Vancouver, where he proceeded to lead the Whitecaps to the 1979 NASL Championship, being named MVP of the Soccer Bowl that year.

The Fury had better luck in a trade to shore up their defense. Just before the trade deadline, Philadelphia acquired Bob Rigby from Tulsa, who had only just acquired the goalkeeper from Los Angeles a day earlier. The popular ex-Atom immediately re-established himself as a fan favorite.

Robb ultimately finished among the league scoring leaders with 16 goals, with Worthington adding 10 and Fidelia, continuing his phenomenal super-sub role, netting 9 goals. Unfortunately, almost no one noticed--the team averaged an anemic 5,624 per match, dead last in the league.

However, the team suddenly captured the city's imagination in the playoffs. After once again squeaking in with a 10-20 record, the team shocked the league by sweeping the Houston Hurricane, the American Soccer Conference's top team, in a two game playoff.

As a result of this unexpected turn of events, the Fury were without a place to play their home match in the ASC quarterfinals; the Phillies were booked for a long homestand, so Veterans Stadium was unavailable. With nowhere else to go, the Fury moved their match to Franklin Field.

This turned out to be a blessing. Veterans Stadium, like most facilities built to accommodate both baseball and football, was an abysmal place to watch a soccer game, totally devoid of charm or atmosphere. Franklin Field, on the other hand, was a traditional oval stadium, providing excellent sight lines.

A combination of the superior facility and excitement over the Fury's playoff run led 10,395 fans to Franklin Field. The fans saw Fidelia and Worthington score goals, but the Fury lost the match to Tampa Bay in a shootout after the teams were tied at regulation and after overtime.

The fury were bounced out of the playoffs two days later, losing to the Rowdies 1-0 before a national television audience courtesy of ABC.

Still, enthusiasm ran high at the conclusion of the 1979 season. They reached a fever pitch with the announcement that Eddie Firmani, the greatest coach the NASL had seen at that point and the holder of three NASL championships with two different teams, had been hired to coach the club. Ironically, Firmani's arrival would ultimately doom any chance the team had of succeeding in Philadelphia.

In the winter of 1979-80, a number of Fury players suited up for the Philadelphia Fever of the Major Indoor Soccer League. When the MISL started a year before, two teams dominated play by virtue of the fact they were essentially indoor versions of NASL clubs. The regular season champion, the Houston Summit, were the outdoor Houston Hurricane in indoor clothing. Similarly, the league's playoff champion, the New York Arrows, were made up almost exclusively of players from the NASL's Rochester Lancers. The runner up in the playoffs that year had been the Philadelphia Fever, a team made up almost exclusively of local amateur players, along with two seasoned pros, Joe Fink and Fred Grgurev.

Apparently deciding that it could not compete with this roster, the Fever took the logical step of "affiliating" with the Fury. As a result, the Fever were able to add Bob Rigby, Brooks Cryder, and several other Fury players to the roster. Unfortunately, this came at the expense of many of the local players who had been so popular the year before, such as ex-Atoms Bobby Ludwig, Skip Roderick, and Lew Meehl. As it turned out, the arrangement yielded few results, as the Fever missed the playoffs. It also kept fans away; although the Fever had led the league in attendance in 1978-79, it finished near the bottom of the pack in 1979-80. Like the Atoms before them, the Fever had underestimated the value of a local identity in trying to accumulate talent for a championship run. The fans never again regained interest, and the team would fold after the 1981-82 season.

As a result of the arrangement, the Fury were able to acquire another ex-Atom, all-pro defender Bobby Smith. Also, Fever coach George O'Neill served as the Fury's assistant coach, replacing ex-teammate Derek Trevis.

The first year of the new decade was a make-or-break one for the Fury. However, the club entered the year with much optimism. Along with the hiring of Firmani, the team could look forward to a nucleus that included Bob Rigby, Bobby Smith, John Dempsey, Fran O'Brien, and Tony Glavin. The Fury also acquired Kensington native Dave McWilliams from the Tampa Bay Rowdies, adding another local connection. In addition, the team could look forward to another year of Pat Fidelia's exploits.

And, of course, the fans could look forward to another year of David Robb's goal scoring exploits. However, the new coach would soon reveal himself to be a raging egotist. One of his first moves was to summarily dispatch Robb to Vancouver for cash. Thus, in one fell swoop, any chance of maintaining the fan interest generated by the 1979 playoff run disappeared.

Firmani assured all who would listen that Robb would barely be missed, since two of his "discoveries," Bob Vosmaer from Holland and Ossama Khalil from Egypt, would develop into major goal scorers. The fact that Philadelphia fans were not thrilled that their hero had been replaced by two players whose names could not be pronounced was apparently lost on the club's rock-and-roll ownership, as well as on new general manager Tom Fleck. Another fact lost on the Fury was that Frank Worthington was loaned out to Tampa Bay for 1980, leaving the club without both of its top goalscorers.

Also, the team ignored the fact that Franklin Field provided a really good atmosphere for soccer, and again played in cavernous Veterans Stadium.

The Fury were dead on arrival in 1980. Starting the season 1-7, and drawing only 9,574 fans to the home opener, the team finished 10-22, missing the playoffs for the first time in their brief history. An embarrassing average of 4,778 fans attended each match.

After the season, the team was sold to Molson Breweries, who moved the team to Montreal. Playing with essentially the same roster as in 1980, the Montreal Manic averaged 23,704 fans a game in 1981, and drew over 50,000 fans to its playoff matches.

Depending on your view, the Fury were either snakebit or the most poorly run franchise in the league. Either way, the team was a dismal failure, and professional Division One soccer has not returned to the city since its demise.

Still, the club presented a curious example of what might have happened had the Atoms survived. Indeed, with only a year separating the two, the Fury were essentially the "Philadelphia Atoms II": from general manager Bob Ehlinger through players Derek Trevis, Bill Straub, Brooks Cryder, Bob Rigby, Jim Miller, and Bobby Smith, through assistant coach George O'Neill, to trainer Bruce Haynes, the club always maintained a thorough Atoms presence. However, horrible mismanagement--particularly with the giving-away of David Robb--ensured that the team would not survive.