Jim Gabarra

Infobox Football biography
playername= Jim Gabarra
fullname = James Gabarra
nickname =


dateofbirth = birth date and age|1959|9|22
cityofbirth = Key West, Florida
countryofbirth = United States
height = height|ft=5|in=11
currentclub = Retired
clubnumber =
position = Forward
youthyears = 1978-1981
youthclubs = Connecticut College
years = 1982-1983
1984
1984-1985
1985
1985-1986
1986-1989
1989-1990
1989-1991
1991-1992
clubs = Detroit Express
New York Nationals
Louisville Thunder "(indoor)"
Dallas Sidekicks "(indoor)"
Louisville Thunder "(indoor)"
Los Angeles Lazers "(indoor)"
Los Angeles Heat
San Diego Sockers "(indoor)"
Tacoma Stars "(indoor)"
caps(goals) =
33 (44)
10 0(0)
nationalyears = 1988-1989
nationalteam = United States
nationalcaps(goals) = 14 0(0)
manageryears = 1982-1983
1985-1987
1992-1993
1994-1998
2001-
2004
managerclubs = Louisville Thunder
Milwaukee Wave
Washington Warthogs
Naval Academy "(assistant)"
Washington Freedom
San Diego Spirit
pcupdate =
ntupdate =

Jim Gabarra is a retired U.S. soccer forward and a current soccer coach.

Early career

A native of Key West, Florida, Gabarra attended Connecticut College where he played soccer from 1978 to 1981. After finishing college in the spring of 1982, Gabarra was signed by the Detroit Express of the American Soccer League (ASL). The Express won the ASL championship that season, defeating the Oklahoma City Slickers two games to one to take the title. However, both the Express and the ASL barely made it through the 1983 season before they both folded. Gabarra spent most of his time with the Express on the substitute’s bench. In 1984, the United Soccer League (USL) attempted to replace the ASL as the de-facto U.S. second division. Gabarra moved to the USL where he joined the New York Nationals. The USL fared little better than the ASL and the Nationals folded at the end of the season. The league itself collapsed during its second season, but by that time Gabarra was establishing himself as an indoor star.

Indoor Soccer

In 1984, the Louisville Thunder of the newly established American Indoor Soccer Association (AISA) signed Gabarra. With the move to indoor soccer, Gabarra found his niche. That year he led the Thunder in scoring as the team went to the AISA championship series, only to lose to the Canton Invaders. On September 18, 1985, during the AISA off season, Gabarra signed with the Dallas Sidekicks of Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) as a free agent. He played ten games with the team, assisting on one goal, before moving back to the Louisville Thunder. In 1986, Gabarra and the Thunder finally overcame the Invaders and took the 1985-1986 AISA title. The next season he moved to the Los Angeles Lazers of MISL. He stayed with the Lazers for three seasons. However, the team folded at the end of the 1988-1989 season. Gabarra then moved to the San Diego Sockers where he was a part of the 1990-1991 championship team. He moved once more, this time to the Tacoma Stars for the 1991-1992 season. By the 1991-1992 season, the MISL was on its last legs. At the end of the season, the league and the Stars folded. With the collapse of the MISL, Gabarra retired from playing professionally.

During that time, Gabarra also played two outdoor seasons with the Los Angeles Heat. In 1989, the Heat were members of the Western Soccer League (WSL). That year, they lost in penalty kicks to the San Francisco Bay Blackhawks in the semi-finals. At the end of the 1989 season, the WSL merged with the American Soccer League to form the American Professional Soccer League (APSL). The Heat continued its excellent play in 1990, making it to the Western Conference championship series where it fell again to the Blackhawks. ^{[http://a-leaguearchive.tripod.com/1990/resultswsa90.htm]}

Olympics, Futsal and National Team

In 1986, Gabarra began playing for the U.S. Olympic soccer team as it began the qualification process for the 1988 Summer Olympics to be held in Seoul, South Korea. The U.S. qualified and Gabarra was part of the team which went 1-1-1 and failed to reach the second round.

Gabarra used his extensive indoor soccer experience to contribute to the U.S. Futsal team. He was the captain of the team from 1986 to 1996, during which he earned 30 indoor caps and scored 17 goals, both U.S. records. In 1989, the U.S. Futsal FIFA Futsal World Championship. Three years later, Gabarra and his team mates took second at the Futsal championship, losing 4-1 to Brazil in the championship game. ^{[http://www.geocities.com/timsheldon.geo/milestones.html#Silver]}

Gabarra earned his first cap with the U.S. national team in a May 14, 1988 loss to Colombia. He went on to earn a total of 14 caps in 1988 and 1989, but never scored a goal. During 1989, he usually came on as a substitute. His last match with the national team came on November 5, 1989 in a scoreless tie with El Salvador.

Coaching

Gabarra began his transition from playing to coaching early in his career when he became the player/coach of the Louisville Thunder in 1985. He lasted two seasons as the head coach. After he retired from playing with the collapse of the Tacoma Stars and the MISL, he returned to coaching with the Milwaukee Wave. He lasted only the 1992-1993 season. In 1994, he became the head coach of the Washington Warthogs of the Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) and remained with the team through the 1996-1997 season

He also served as a volunteer assistant coach to his wife who is the women's soccer coach at the U.S. Naval Academy.

On August 11, 2000, the Washington Freedom of the Women's United Soccer Association announced it had hired Gabarra as its first head coach. The WUSA was a new league which did not begin competitive play until the 2001 season. That year the Freedom stumbled badly, finishing second to the bottom in the standings and placing no players on the All Star team. In 2002, the Freedom made a complete turn around and made it to the WUSA champsionship only to fall 3-1 to the Carolina Courage. The next year, Gabarra led the Freedom to a second consecutive WUSA championship game. This time it won, defeating the Atlanta Beat 2-1 in overtime. ^{[http://www.sportsnetwork.com/default.asp?c=nytimes&page=soc-wusa/news/ALN2754590.htm]} That was the last year for the WUSA as it folded due to financial difficulties. When the WUSA folded in 2003, the Freedom recreated itself as an independent soccer club, the Freedom Soccer Club. ^{[http://www.washingtonfreedom.com/coaches.asp]} Gabarra remained on as its head coach despite briefly coaching the San Diego Spirit during a tournament in 2004. In 2007, Gabarra coached the Freedom's W-League franchise to the W-League championship and was one of three finalists for W-League Coach of the Year.

In 1989, Connecticut College inducted Gabarra into its Athletic Hall of Fame.

External links

* [http://www.kicksfan.com/players/gabarra/index.htm Gabarra’s Sidekicks Bio]
* [http://soundercentral.com/gallery/OldTacomaStars/91stars 1991-1992 Tacoma Stars Team Photo]