I was brimming with confidence as the club resumed training in the fall of 1985. All of our players from the previous year were returning but one (Chris Zadlo went away to college). His place on the roster was taken by Pio Nowobilski, who found enough time to squeeze some soccer into his busy graduate student's schedule at Purdue University. In Pio I had a solid defender whom I could count on. This set of players was now entering its third year of playing together. I felt that teamwork and communication was at an all-time high for the club. This level of unity is not something that can simply be taught; it takes players playing together for good amount of time. The guys really looked better in preseason practice than they ever had. I had a feeling that we were in for a good run.
The Byki also had a cosmetic change as we entered the 1985-86 campaign, decked out in new uniforms. Up until then, we had been using the original jerseys from the Big Game. We changed to blue shirts with white pinstripes and white numerals and trim, white shorts and socks with blue trim. As usual, the Byki were the best-dressed team in the league. Based on the way they outfitted themselves, we referred to many of our opponents as "vagabonds." I could understand that not every team wants to go all out for fancy duds, but I didn't think it was too much to ask that at least all the shirts matched. I recall a game against one such team, whose predominant color was four shades of blue. The referee decided to make them wear green training bibs so that the two teams could be distinguished. The opposing captain balked at this suggestion, demanding a coin flip, the usual way that this matter was resolved. I had to laugh aloud as the referee lectured this poor mope on the lunacy of his suggestion.
Our play, unfortunately, did not live up to the level suggested by our uniforms. We started out that first session by dropping our first three games and looking terribly inept in the process. Although we lost the second and third games by only 3-1 and 1-0, our offense was really stuck in gear. The players looked as though they had just met each other and were only learning how to play together.
We snapped out of the losing streak with a 3-0 win over the then-division-leading Mad Headers. I thought we might finally turn things around and start playing some good soccer. We didn't get a chance to savor the victory for very long, however. Things went from bad to worse as the Byki proceeded to lose the next four in a row to finish the session at an atrocious 1-7, and in last place.
The players were pretty demoralized by this time. Our aims had been set very high, but our awful play prevented us from realizing any of these goals. By the time we reached the end of the session, Greg Bujwid's confidence was totally shot. No amount of lineup juggling could seem to snap us out of it. We decided to plow ahead with another session starting right away in early 1986.
Just before the end of our disastrous session, the fortunes of the Byki changed dramatically. For practically the entire time that the team had been playing together, the operation was self- financed. The individual players pooled their money in order to pay the bills. Thanks to the open eyes of Stef Wiecek's brother Ysi, the Byki managed to find a sponsor. Ysi's volleyball team had an arrangement with an establishment called The World Famous Apple Pub, which sponsored a variety of athletic teams. We decided to check the place out after a game one night. What we found was the classic hole in the wall. To its credit, the joint had some endearing qualities, like a huge selection of imported beers and a really comfortable, unpretentious atmosphere. It seemed like the ideal place to unwind and have a few cold ones after the game. I chatted briefly with Leo, the owner of the bar, about our situation and he decided to take a chance on us by giving us two- thirds of the money needed to pay for the next session. The Apple turned out to be a great fit. Most everybody on the team agreed that drinking beer is an important activity related to playing soccer. As long as we were going to drink beer after the game, why not do it at a place that's going to give us money?
Our second bit of good fortune came in the signing of a new player to the ball club. One of our most bitter rivals in the Odeum's D League was the Duo-Fast Blast. They were perennially the team to beat and were loaded with a stash of talented players. The captain of their team was Sergio Bertoncello, certainly one of the top players in the entire league. You didn't have to watch a Blast game for very long to know who their scoring ace was. At the level of the D League, Sergio had the ability to dominate opponents at will. We got to know Sergio during meetings of our two clubs at the Odeum's bar after the games. Although Sergio was a very tough competitor, he left the game down on the field and had no problem interacting with his rivals once the final whistle had blown. One night Sergio told us that the Blast was not coming back for the next session because their sponsor (and Serge's employer), Duo-Fast, wasn't going to come up with any more money and the players were too cheap to dig into their own pockets to pay for a session. Someone from the Byki jokingly suggested that Sergio play with us in the next session. I was shocked when Sergio said he thought that that might not be a bad idea. I was obviously very excited about the prospect of giving the Byki an instant upgrade in their level of play, but I couldn't figure out why a player of Sergio's ability would want to play on our team. Sergio had made an unofficial commitment to play with another club, but said that playing with us would be more fun because of the post-game camaraderie. Mark Sokolowski, who along with the rest of us was drunk at the time, got Sergio to sign a makeshift contract on a bar napkin. The Byki had just obtained not only their first non-Polish player, but their first legitimate game-breaker.
The roster also showed some deletions. Chops Ciepiela left the team for academic reasons. Stark, who had been injured for a good portion of the previous session, was still recuperating and was also planning a vacation to Europe. Uncle George had also been hobbled by a bum knee while playing basketball and contemplated giving up soccer for good. Pio had to leave because of an increased workload at school.
The return of Andy Chudzinski offset some of these losses, but I was still a player short. I decided to activate Chuck Dzieciol and use him in spot situations when regular players needed an extra- long rest. In the end, I was left with a surplus of forwards and a shortage of defenders. The biggest change was moving myself into the backline to make room for Sergio.
Things started out on a positive note as we won in our first game, with a snazzy 4-1 victory. The boys played with tremendous confidence, as Sergio's mere presence made his teammates so much better. That Sergio scored two goals in the match didn't hurt either. The match went so well that Chuck even scored his first goal ever for the Byki. The team shed its losing image almost overnight, winning their first three games and looking dangerous.
Our success was clearly tied to Sergio's entry into the club. Although his South American style was radically different from our short-pass, quick-touch style, Sergio fit in perfectly because he was as adept at setting up a goal as he was at scoring one. One player who was grateful for Sergio's prowess was Rich Hass. Rich's inconsistency had been as frustrating for him as it had been for the rest of the team. One of his pet moves was to dribble the ball at great length and then drift off into the corner, only to be swallowed up by a defender. One of the guys commented that Rich was somehow magnetically attracted to the corners. All that changed, however, when I moved Rich over to Sergio's line. Rich went on a scoring binge, racking up nine goals during the eight-game session and playing the best soccer of his life.
How quickly everything had changed for the Byki. As infectious as was our losing streak the last session, our new hot streak was virtually intoxicating. It didn't take long, however, for the flies to find the ointment. Stark had designs on rejoining the team following his return from Europe and was surprised that I had no spot for him. Stark's resignation had been passed along by his friend Chops, even though Stark actually only needed time off to mend his wounds and had every intention of returning to full-time action. I knew Stark could help the team, but I was somewhat reluctant to add him to the roster, for fear of upsetting the finely-balanced lineup I had crafted. I told him I would give him a shot to work his way into the regular rotation but promised nothing. John had all the incentive he needed when I told him that he would be fighting Chuck for a spot on the roster.
It wasn't long before I got call from Chops, begging for a chance to jump on the bandwagon. His gall floored me. A month ago, when the Byki were in the cellar at 1-7, Chops apparently needed more time for school. Now, when the team was flying at 4-0, he wants back in. Realizing what Chops had to offer to the team in terms of soccer ability, it was easy to tell him that I had no intention of bollixing up my lineup by making changes just for him at midseason. His hypocrisy was stunning; Chops was one of the original complainers about keeping the Byki free from outsiders and that playing on a winning team wasn't as important as being able to play soccer with his buddies. I guess his buddies just looked a whole lot better when they were winning games.
Another problem surfaced within the squad during this time of new-found success. Sergio's prowess caused some petty jealousy for some players. Once Sergio signed on with the Byki, he got a first-hand look at the Polishness of the club. He had not been previously aware of how much our ethnicity permeated daily life for many of us. Sergio expressed concern over whether his new teammates would accept him, being "the only Dago among a bunch of Pollacks." I told him not to worry; his presence on the team was not to inflate the pride of Poland, but to improve the level of play of the Byki. When questions about whether Serge's ethnic background was right for the Byki finally made their way to me, I squelched the suggestion immediately. I emphasized for what seemed to be the thousandth time that one does not have to be best friends with all of one's teammates. The only thing that teammates have to have in common is the desire to play good soccer. Since the stated goal of Stare Byki FC is to play good soccer, any player who puts the team closer to that end is welcome to join. My counter-suggestion to the silliness of these misguided teammates was to spend less time looking at the statistical sheet and more time working at practice to improve their soccer skill.
The domination continued with every game. The Byki were playing extremely well on both sides of the ball. We were not only in first place, but we led the league in goals scored in addition to having the top defense. Our most lopsided victory came against a ragtag coed team called the FanAddicts. This collection of players was the most inept bunch I have ever come across. We slaughtered them 18-1 in one of the least satisfying victories in Byki history. It was in this match that Stark made his return to the lineup. I have to say that I have never seen a player more ready to play than John was that night. On his first shift, he scored two goals. This was after going a month without touching a ball. For the game, Stark scored four times and played the match of his life. It's true that our opponents were just awful, but this was a game to remember for Stark. After netting his final tally, he came back to the bench with an ear-to-ear grin that asked, "Well, what do you think of that, Coach?" We both knew that his spot in the lineup was secure. We cruised to a 6-0 record, which clinched a spot in the championship game. Our last regular season game would be against Arsenal, who sat in second place at 5-1. Arsenal had a very strong club and I felt that a match between the two teams would be very close. We came up flat in that game, as Arsenal, needing a win to get to the final, blasted us 5-2. It was the first time all season long that we had given up more than three goals in a match. The letdown against Arsenal was almost predictable; with our spot in the final secure, we really had nothing to play for in that match.
I thought it would be very difficult for Arsenal to beat us in back-to-back games and optimism ran high as we prepared for the title match. The game saw two teams playing at their very best, just the kind of matchup I had expected all along. Arsenal's lineup was as smart as it was skillful. Led by future Byk Tom Smerz on defense, Arsenal knew who they had to stop in order to win the game, and that was Sergio. They threw a defensive blanket over him, which caused our attack to sputter. Greg had one of his usually outstanding games in the nets, which at least kept us in the hunt. In the end, the Byki came up on the short end of a 3-2 score. It was disappointing to have to settle for second-best, but the team had nothing to be ashamed of. For the first time in our brief existence, we had a taste of what it was like to be in the thick of things and compete in playoff games that would mean something. It was only a glimpse of things to come.
We carried our second-place trophy with pride into the Apple that night and the celebration lasted long into the wee hours. In all, it had been a successful session. The players were finally starting to get a grasp for the style of the indoor game. As we gained more experience, I anticipated that playing in championship games would become a matter of course for Stare Byki FC.
We signed up for a brief six-game session in the spring of 1986. Unfortunately, we suffered from championship hangover. The guys started believing how good they were and figured that all they had to do was show up for the automatic victories. Injuries and absences resulted in a dismal 3-2- 1 record for the Byki. We added defender Bobby Kikos from Duo-Fast for this session when our defensive unit became depleted. In retrospect, we should have left well enough alone after getting to the championship game. The fire from the previous session was not burning as brightly this time around. We disbanded for the summer with the hope of great things for next fall.