1999 USL A-League
| Season | 1999 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Minnesota Thunder (1st Title) |
| Premiers | Rochester Raging Rhinos (2nd Title) |
| Matches played | 420 |
| Goals scored | 1,427 (3.4 per match) |
| Best Player | |
| Top goalscorer | (20 goals) |
| Best goalkeeper | |
← 1998 2000 → | |
The 1999 USL A-League was an American Division II league run by the United Soccer League during the summer of 1999.
Regular season
Eastern Conference
Northeast Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | PKW | PKL | L | GF | GA | GD | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rochester Rhinos | 28 | 20 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 47 | 20 | +27 | 7 | 92 |
| 2 | Staten Island Vipers | 28 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 53 | 31 | +22 | 9 | 82 |
| 3 | Long Island Rough Riders | 28 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 57 | 44 | +13 | 8 | 74 |
| 4 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds | 28 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 63 | 43 | +20 | 9 | 72 |
| 5 | Lehigh Valley Steam | 28 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 42 | 44 | −2 | 6 | 63 |
| 6 | Boston Bulldogs | 28 | 12 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 49 | 36 | +13 | 8 | 61 |
| 7 | Toronto Lynx | 28 | 11 | 1 | 3 | 13 | 49 | 36 | +13 | 2 | 51 |
| 8 | Connecticut Wolves | 28 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 32 | 68 | −36 | 5 | 34 |
Source:
Atlantic Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | PKW | PKL | L | GF | GA | GD | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hershey Wildcats | 28 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 54 | 33 | +21 | 10 | 75 |
| 2 | Richmond Kickers | 28 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 51 | 44 | +7 | 6 | 69 |
| 3 | Charleston Battery | 28 | 14 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 43 | 39 | +4 | 6 | 68 |
| 4 | Atlanta Silverbacks | 28 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 11 | 51 | 61 | −10 | 6 | 62 |
| 5 | Jacksonville Cyclones | 28 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 51 | 61 | −10 | 9 | 60 |
| 6 | Hampton Roads Mariners | 28 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 11 | 45 | 41 | +4 | 5 | 57 |
| 7 | Raleigh Express | 28 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 15 | 32 | 50 | −18 | 5 | 47 |
| 8 | Maryland Mania | 28 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 24 | 16 | 85 | −69 | 2 | 13 |
Source:
Western Conference
Central Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | PKW | PKL | L | GF | GA | GD | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minnesota Thunder | 28 | 18 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 57 | 17 | +40 | 6 | 90 |
| 2 | MLS Project 40 | 28 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 44 | 46 | −2 | 4 | 68 |
| 3 | New Orleans Storm | 28 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 56 | 61 | −5 | 11 | 67 |
| 4 | Indiana Blast | 28 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 13 | 43 | 51 | −8 | 5 | 55 |
| 5 | Milwaukee Rampage | 28 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 14 | 44 | 49 | −5 | 5 | 54 |
| 6 | Tennessee Rhythm | 28 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 14 | 44 | 52 | −8 | 6 | 49 |
| 7 | Cincinnati Riverhawks | 28 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 18 | 45 | 71 | −26 | 7 | 34 |
Source:
Pacific Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | PKW | PKL | L | GF | GA | GD | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Diego Flash | 28 | 18 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 65 | 30 | +35 | 11 | 90 |
| 2 | Vancouver 86ers | 28 | 17 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 77 | 31 | +46 | 10 | 84 |
| 3 | Seattle Sounders | 28 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 56 | 36 | +20 | 10 | 81 |
| 4 | Orange County Zodiac | 28 | 13 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 59 | 49 | +10 | 10 | 73 |
| 5 | El Paso Patriots | 28 | 12 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 49 | 59 | −10 | 6 | 56 |
| 6 | San Francisco Bay Seals | 28 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 15 | 37 | 54 | −17 | 4 | 40 |
| 7 | Sacramento Geckos | 28 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 27 | 16 | 91 | −75 | 0 | 1 |
Source:
Conference Quarterfinals
Eastern Conference
| Rochester Rhinos (NY) | 2–1 | Lehigh Valley Steam (PA) |
|---|---|---|
| Carlos Zavala Mauro Biello |
Attendance: 8,437
| Staten Island Vipers (NY) | 3–2 (OT) | Richmond Kickers (VA) |
|---|---|---|
| Ernest Inneh Martin Dugas |
Attendance: 1,452
| Long Island Rough Riders (NY) | 3–4 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds (PA) |
|---|---|---|
| Cordt Weinstein Darko Kolic John Wolyniec |
Attendance: 1,452
| Hershey Wildcats (PA) | 3–2 | Charleston Battery (SC) |
|---|---|---|
| Gino DiFlorio Greg Simmonds Chris Penny John Smith |
Attendance: 2,299
Western Conference
| San Diego Flash (CA) | 3–1 | El Paso Patriots (TX) |
|---|---|---|
| Kevin Legg |
Attendance: 2,984
| Vancouver 86ers (BC) | 1–3 | MLS Project 40 |
|---|---|---|
| Chris Dailly |
Attendance: 5,050
| Minnesota Thunder (MN) | 4–0 | New Orleans Storm (LA) |
|---|---|---|
| Craig Gaunt Stoian Mladenov Gerard Lagos |
Attendance: 1,560
| Seattle Sounders (WA) | 6–3 | Orange County Zodiac (CA) |
|---|---|---|
| Sean Henderson Mark Baena Jose Vasquez Kieran Barton Ian Russell | Report |
Conference semifinals
Eastern Conference Semifinal 1
| Hershey Wildcats (PA) | 2–0 | Staten Island Vipers (NY) |
|---|---|---|
| Jamel Mitchell Matthew Ford |
Referee: Rob Sheker
| Staten Island Vipers (NY) | 0–2 | Hershey Wildcats (PA) |
|---|---|---|
Attendance: 1,085
The Hershey Wildcats advanced to the Eastern Conference finals.
Eastern Conference Semifinal 2
| Rochester Rhinos (NY) | 6–2 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds (PA) |
|---|---|---|
| Doug Miller Darren Tilley Yari Allnutt Mauro Biello | Report |
Attendance: 9,127
| Pittsburgh Riverhounds (PA) | 1–0 | Rochester Rhinos (NY) |
|---|---|---|
| Mike Apple | Report |
Attendance: 4,115
| Rochester Rhinos (NY) | 2–0 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds (PA) |
|---|---|---|
| Doug Miller Tim Hardy Nate Daligcon Mali Walton | https://www.newspapers.com/image/136563379/?terms=Rhinos Report |
Attendance: 6,541
The Rochester Rhinos advanced to the Eastern Conference finals.
Western Conference Semifinal 1
| Minnesota Thunder (MN) | 1–0 (OT) | MLS Project 40 |
|---|---|---|
| Paul Schneider |
Attendance: 1,578
| Minnesota Thunder (MN) | 2–0 | MLS Project 40 |
|---|---|---|
| Gerard Lagos Stoian Mladenov |
Attendance: 946
The Minnesota Thunder advanced to the Western Conference final.
Western Conference Semifinal 2
| San Diego Flash (CA) | 6–0 | Seattle Sounders (WA) |
|---|---|---|
| Chugger Adair Antonio Robles Carlos Farias Mauricio Alegre | Report |
| Seattle Sounders (WA) | 0–1 | San Diego Flash (CA) |
|---|---|---|
| Jason Annicchero | Report |
The San Diego Flash advanced to the Western Conference final.
Conference finals
Eastern Conference
| Hershey Wildcats (PA) | 2–1 | Rochester Rhinos (NY) |
|---|---|---|
| Greg Simmonds Jamel Mitchell |
Attendance: 6,541
| Rochester Rhinos (NY) | 1–0 | Hershey Wildcats (PA) |
|---|---|---|
| Doug Miller |
Attendance: 9,024
| Rochester Rhinos (NY) | 3–1 | Hershey Wildcats (PA) |
|---|---|---|
| Mauro Biello Doug Miller Yari Allnutt |
Attendance: 7,753
The Rochester Rhinos advanced to the final.
Western Conference
| Minnesota Thunder (MN) | 4–1 | San Diego Flash (CA) |
|---|---|---|
| Paweł Nowak Stoian Mladenov Amos Magee |
Attendance: 2,072
| San Diego Flash (CA) | 1–2 | Minnesota Thunder (MN) |
|---|---|---|
| Nate Hetherington | Report |
Attendance: 2,983
The Minnesota Thunder advanced to the final.
Final
| Minnesota Thunder (MN) | 2–1 | Rochester Rhinos (NY) |
|---|---|---|
| Gerard Lagos Paweł Nowak |
Attendance: 9,987
MVP: Amos Magee, Minnesota Thunder
Points leaders
| Rank | Scorer | Club | Goals | Assists | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Niall Thompson | Vancouver 86ers | 20 | 7 | 47 |
| 2 | Mark Baena | Seattle Sounders | 20 | 6 | 46 |
| Eduardo Sebrango | Vancouver 86ers | 18 | 10 | 46 | |
| 4 | Darko Kolic | Long Island Rough Riders | 17 | 9 | 43 |
| 5 | Steve Patterson | Orange County Zodiac | 19 | 4 | 42 |
| 6 | Jamel Mitchell | Hershey Wildcats | 15 | 9 | 39 |
| Ernest Inneh | Staten Island Vipers | 18 | 3 | 39 | |
| 8 | Greg Simmonds | Hershey Wildcats | 16 | 6 | 38 |
| 9 | Onandi Lowe | Richmond Kickers | 15 | 7 | 37 |
| John Wolyniec | Long Island Rough Riders | 15 | 7 | 37 | |
| John Sulentic | Vancouver 86ers | 9 | 19 | 37 | |
| 12 | Carlos Farias | San Diego Flash | 15 | 6 | 36 |
| Ian Russell | Seattle Sounders | 14 | 8 | 36 | |
| 14 | Gary Glasgow | Richmond Kickers | 14 | 7 | 35 |
| 15 | Patrick Beech | New Orleans Storm | 16 | 2 | 34 |
| 16 | Paul Conway | Charleston Battery | 14 | 5 | 33 |
| 17 | Dan Stebbins | Milwaukee Rampage | 10 | 12 | 32 |
| 18 | Mac Cozier | Jacksonville Cyclones | 13 | 4 | 30 |
| Gustavo Leal | Orange County Zodiac | 13 | 4 | 30 | |
| Mugurel Dumitru | San Diego Flash | 9 | 12 | 30 |
Honors
- MVP: John Swallen
- Leading goal scorer: Niall Thompson
- Leading goalkeeper: John Swallen
- Defender of the Year: Scott Schweitzer
- Rookie of the Year: Greg Simmonds
- Coach of the Year: Paul Riley
- Referee of the Year: Glenn Prechac
- First Team All League
- Goalkeeper: John Swallen
- Defenders: Craig Demmin, Scott Schweitzer, Tenywa Bonseu, Kalin Bankov
- Midfielders: Carlos Farias, Mauro Biello, Mac Cozier
- Forwards: Mark Baena, Ernest Inneh, Niall Thompson
- Second Team All League[1]
- Goalkeeper: Pat Onstad
- Defenders: Jose Vasquez, John Coughlin, Gilbert Jean-Baptiste
- Midfielders: Ian Russell, John Sulentic, Marvin Oliver
- Forwards: Jamel Mitchell, Paul Conway, Darko Kolic, Onandi Lowe
References
- ^ 1999 League Awards Archived March 19, 2012, at the Wayback Machine