Colin Fowles
Encyclopedia
Colin Fowles was a Jamaican-American soccer player who died as a result of random gunfire while playing recreational soccer. He played professionally in the North American Soccer League
and United Soccer League
.
from 1972 to 1975 where he played forward
on the men’s soccer team. He scored 24 goals over his four season with the team.
. In 1977, the Fort Lauderdale Strikers signed Fowles for the team’s first season. He played with the team through 1983, its last season in Fort Lauderdale. Over his seven seasons with the Strikers, he played 140 games and scored six goals. After the Strikers moved to Minnesota in 1984, Fowles remained in Florida and played for the Fort Lauderdale Sun
of the United Soccer League
. In 1985, the Sun was renamed the South Florida Sun, but the team and the league folded after only six games into the season. Fowles was known as the fastest player in the NASL. He once raced a quarterhorse over 80 yards and won.
in a 2-1 victory over El Salvador on September 15, 1977. He played all eight u.s. games that year at forward, but never found the net. Beginning in 1978, the U.S. coaching staff moved Fowles to defense where he played all three games that year. He continued to play sporadically through 1979 and 1980 with his last cap coming in the last U.S. game of 1980. Fowled earned a total of 18 caps, between 1977 and 1980, but scored no goals.
park when an argument broke out some distance away. One of the men involved in the argument pulled a pistol and began shooting wildly both at the other people involved in the argument as well as other people in the park. Fowles was struck by the gunfire and died.
The Florida Sun posthumously inducted Fowles into its Hall of Fame in 1986.
North American Soccer League
North American Soccer League was a professional soccer league with teams in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984.-History:...
and United Soccer League
United Soccer League
The United Soccer League was a professional soccer league in the United States in the mid-1980s.After the demise of the second incarnation of the American Soccer League in 1983, four ASL teams founded the USL...
.
Youth
Fowles attended Long Island University-BrooklynLong Island University
Long Island University is a private, coeducational, nonsectarian institution of higher education in the U.S. state of New York.-History:...
from 1972 to 1975 where he played forward
Striker
Forwards, also known as strikers, are the players on a team in association football who play nearest to the opposing team's goal, and are therefore principally responsible for scoring goals...
on the men’s soccer team. He scored 24 goals over his four season with the team.
Professional
In 1975, he played for the Tampa Bay Rowdies of the North American Soccer LeagueNorth American Soccer League
North American Soccer League was a professional soccer league with teams in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984.-History:...
. In 1977, the Fort Lauderdale Strikers signed Fowles for the team’s first season. He played with the team through 1983, its last season in Fort Lauderdale. Over his seven seasons with the Strikers, he played 140 games and scored six goals. After the Strikers moved to Minnesota in 1984, Fowles remained in Florida and played for the Fort Lauderdale Sun
Fort Lauderdale Sun
Fort Lauderdale Sun was a U.S. soccer team which played two seasons in the United Soccer League. In 1983, the team was known as the Fort Lauderdale Sun, but in 1985, changed its name to the South Florida Sun.-Origins:...
of the United Soccer League
United Soccer League
The United Soccer League was a professional soccer league in the United States in the mid-1980s.After the demise of the second incarnation of the American Soccer League in 1983, four ASL teams founded the USL...
. In 1985, the Sun was renamed the South Florida Sun, but the team and the league folded after only six games into the season. Fowles was known as the fastest player in the NASL. He once raced a quarterhorse over 80 yards and won.
National team
Fowles earned his first cap when he came on for Gary EtheringtonGary Etherington
Gary Etherington is a retired English-American soccer player who began his professional career in the North American Soccer League before moving to the Major Indoor Soccer League. He earned seven caps with the U.S. national team...
in a 2-1 victory over El Salvador on September 15, 1977. He played all eight u.s. games that year at forward, but never found the net. Beginning in 1978, the U.S. coaching staff moved Fowles to defense where he played all three games that year. He continued to play sporadically through 1979 and 1980 with his last cap coming in the last U.S. game of 1980. Fowled earned a total of 18 caps, between 1977 and 1980, but scored no goals.
Death
Fowles continued to live in the Fort Lauderdale area where he played recreational soccer with the Lauderhill Men’s Soccer club. On September 1, 1985, he was playing a game of pick up soccer at a north Dade CountyMiami-Dade County, Florida
Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the state of Florida. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 2,496,435, making it the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States...
park when an argument broke out some distance away. One of the men involved in the argument pulled a pistol and began shooting wildly both at the other people involved in the argument as well as other people in the park. Fowles was struck by the gunfire and died.
The Florida Sun posthumously inducted Fowles into its Hall of Fame in 1986.