Mike Renshaw
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| Mike Renshaw | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Michael Renshaw | |
| Date of birth | April 28, 1948 | |
| Place of birth | Manchester, England | |
| Playing position | Left Wing | |
| Youth clubs | ||
| Blackpool | ||
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| -1968 1968 1968-1969 1968-1976 |
Blackpool Margate Rhyl Dallas Tornado |
0 (0) 0 (0) 127 (20) |
| National team | ||
| 1973 | United States | 2 (0) |
| Teams managed | ||
| 1978-1981 1981 |
Dallas Tornado (assistant) Dallas Tornado |
|
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
||
Michael "Mike" Renshaw (born April 28, 1948 in Manchester, England) is a former U.S.-English soccer left winger. He began as a youth player with Blackpool F.C. before moving to the United States to join the Dallas Tornado of the North American Soccer League in 1968. He also spent time with Margate F.C. and Rhyl F.C. He earned two caps with the U.S. national team in 1973 despite not being a U.S. citizen at the time. Finally, he coached the Dallas Tornado in 1981.
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[edit] Playing career
Renshaw grew up in Manchester before signing with Blackpool F.C.. He never cracked the first team line up. In 1968, he answered a newspaper advertisement looking for young players interested in moving to the United States. He sufficiently impressed the scouts at the trial to be offered a position with the Dallas Tornado of the newly established North American Soccer League. He gained a starting position with the Tornado during the 1968 season. At the end of the season, the league was in danger of collapsing and Renshaw returned to England where he gained a trial with Margate F.C.. He played one game, a Southern Football League Cup tie with Ashford F.C. on December 23, 1968, but was released the next day after a miserable performance. He then moved to League of Wales club Rhyl F.C. for the remainder of the 1968-1969 season. He returned to the Tornado in the summer of 1969 and remained with it until he retired in 1976. In 1971, the Tornado won the NASL championship over the Atlanta Chiefs. Renshaw scored the winning goal in the third, and decided, game of the series.[1] On a personal level, he was a second team All Star in 1970 and an honorable mention in 1971 and 1972.[2] Renshaw was plagued with bad knees for several years and in 1976, doctors advised him that he could no longer play without risking life long damage. He took their advice and stopped playing.
In addition to his outdoor career, Renshaw also played indoor soccer with the Tornado. He was named to the All Tournament team during the 1975 NASL indoor tournament.
[edit] National team
In 1973, Renshaw earned two caps with the U.S. national team when he was called up for a tour of Europe. His first game was a 4-0 loss to Bermuda on March 17, 1973. He came on for Dave Coskunian. His second was a 4-0 loss to Poland three days later.[3] In addition to these two games, he also played four games against junior national and club teams. The U.S. Soccer Federation had failed to check Renshaw’s citizenship before the tour, assuming that he had gained it since he had been in the U.S. for five years. They discovered that he was neither a U.S. citizen and was in the country with an expired work visa when the team went through the immigration check returning from Europe. Years later when asked if he knew he was ineligible to play for the U.S. Renshaw stated, “Of course I knew, I just figures ‘what the hell, I guess they know what they’re doing’. I LOVED playing for the USA.”[4]
[edit] Coaching
In 1977, Tornado coach Al Miller brought Renshaw in as his assistant. In 1980, Miller quit the team and Renshaw was promoted to head coach. He lasted half the season but was fired on July 4, 1980 after he took the team on a sixteen game losing streak. In 1994, he became a youth soccer coach.
[edit] Post soccer career
After leaving the Tornado for good in 1980, Renshaw entered the import/export business in Dallas.
