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greatest wasted talent


snake

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what i mean is greatest players from canada never to realize their potential.my choice's would be

Branko Segota

John Catliff

Hector Marinaro

branko segota was a scoring star at 17 in the tail end of the NASL

john catliffs lack of fitness was a shame,but could always hit the net with ferocity.

hector marinaro was still playing at a high level in his 40s.

what did all these players have in common?

they all pursued opportunities with american INDOOR soccer,instead of hopping on a plane and plying their trade thru the european leagues.

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quote:Originally posted by Soju

Doyle, why was Marinaro black listed?

In late 1986, Marinaro accepted a bribe during a soccer tournament in Malaysia of which he decided to bet against his country. In fact, it appears that Marinaro and other Canadian players have accepted to lose games in order to collect cash$$$$$$$
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quote:Originally posted by Luis_Rancagua

In late 1986, Marinaro accepted a bribe during a soccer tournament in Malaysia of which he decided to bet against his country. In fact, it appears that Marinaro and other Canadian players have accepted to lose games in order to collect cash$$$$$$$

Wasn't this Igor Vrablic involved in this scandal as well?

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yes Igor was, as was David Norman and Chris Cheuden (sp?). Norman at the time was the highest profile of the 4 as he was coming off his exploits at the 86 World Cup where he was one of the best Canadians. Paul James was also involved as he was the one that blew it open by reporting it to the authorities. I believe the throwing of the match was in relation to a game that Canada didn't need to win to get to the next round so it was seen to be rather harmful by the players.

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First of all, what the heck are you doing in Pyongyang? Or is that Pyongyang,Ontario? ;)

Anyways, good picks for underperformers. I would also include Eddie Berdusco, who I think

was always a game-breaker (remember Brazil in '94?). Unfortunately his immigration problems

with the U.S. has limited his career progress.

As for the scandal in the Merlion Cup, Vrablic Norman, Marinaro, and Cheuden were involved in

fixing the game (a tie, I believe). RCMP were involved.

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quote:Originally posted by Luis_Rancagua

In late 1986, Marinaro accepted a bribe during a soccer tournament in Malaysia of which he decided to bet against his country. In fact, it appears that Marinaro and other Canadian players have accepted to lose games in order to collect cash$$$$$$$

I just lost the incredible respect that I had for Hector Marinaro. What kind of loser throws a game, especially when he is representing his country. And to think that I admired the guy.

Is there anywhere on the net that I can read more about this?

Thanks

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quote:Originally posted by yankiboy

[

Is there anywhere on the net that I can read more about this?

Thanks

Not much, as the net was not around (except in Al Gore's mind) at the time, and the sports journalists weren't that interested in soccer.

This is about all I have found, a thread here from about a year ago. As you can see, not much is known, even amongst the few Canadian diehard footie fans. Memories dim, especially when it's something you want to forget[xx(].

http://www.canadian-soccer.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=433&whichpage=1&SearchTerms=scandal,Marinaro

THE IMPORTANT THING TO REMEMBER IS THAT NOTHING WAS EVER PROVEN IN A COURT OF LAW, FOR WHATEVER REASONS

excerpts:

"Here's two articles that appeared in a Canadian paper which may shed some light on this topic.

Treppy

_________________________________________________

November 4, 1987

National soccer player wins immunity; agrees to testify in bribery case

A member of Canada's national soccer team has been granted immunity and will be called to testify against four former teammates charged with accepting bribes at an international tournament.

After a 10-month investigation, the RCMP's commercial crimes section Tuesday charged the four former team members with conspiracy to accept a bribe to fix the outcome of games at the Merlion Cup tournament in August and September 1986 in Singapore.

Three of the players were also charged with bringing into Canada money obtained outside the country through the commission of a crime.

Another member of the national squad, Paul James, won't be charged but will be called as a Crown witness, RCMP Insp. Claude Lemay told the Citizen Tuesday.

Lemay refused to say whether James's immunity from prosecution was granted in return for his testimony.

Ron Perrick, James's Vancouver lawyer, said today the player voluntarily gave the RCMP a statement earlier this year but has made no agreement with the Mounties in exchange for his testimony.

"Paul didn't know about the fact that he wasn't charged until the news broke yesterday," Perrick said. "The fact that there was no charge is not because there was a deal made. It can't be made to show that he has turned, as the American networks would say, state's evidence to get immunity."

Police won't say how much money is involved in the charges, although an earlier report said it was about $100,000.

Kevan Pipe, executive director of the Canadian Soccer Association, said James, 23, will stay with the team.

"Paul is a fine, outstanding young player and he will continue to be a member of the national team should his playing abilities continue to justify his selection," Pipe said.

None of those charged have played with the national team since the Merlion Cup event.

The team's coach, Bob Bearpark, said Tuesday he saw "nothing that was obvious" to indicate some of his players might have been trying to lose games in Singapore last summer.

But Bearpark, who has coached the national side for 41/2 years, said players were warned about the possibility of being offered a payoff.

"We were aware of the fact that some players at the tournament were offered bribes and we cautioned our players about it," he said. "It was very widespread."

Canada was the favorite in the six-team tournament.

After beating Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia, Canada tied North Korea and lost to China in the final round-robin game. That set up a rematch with North Korea in the semifinals.

Canada lost that game 2-0 and concluded the tournament with a 1-0 victory over Singapore in the consolation final.

Federal Sports Minister Otto Jelinek, who earlier said he hadn't ruled out lifetime bans from competitive soccer, refused comment Tuesday because the case is before the courts.

But he promised he would take "appropriate action" once the court proceedings are completed.

He also said he doubted the incident would tarnish Canada's reputation in the international sports community.

Pipe said he is "glad and relieved" charges have finally been laid.

"It's certainly not a great thing to happen but we've done everything possible to bring this to its proper conclusion," he said. "This is not going to affect our plans. Our national team program for the World Cup is more aggressive than ever."

Charged with conspiracy are:

- David Norman, 25, of Coquitlam, B.C. He played last season with the Winnipeg Fury of the Canadian Soccer League.

- Hector Marinaro, 23, of Mississauga. He plays with the Toronto Blizzard of the Canadian Soccer League.

- Igor Vrablic, 22, of Waterloo. He played last season with a professional team in Greece.

- Christopher Hoyer Chueden, 26, of Surrey, B.C. He plays with the Los Angeles Lasers of the Major Indoor Soccer League.

- Norman, Marinaro and Vrablic are also charged with bringing into Canada money obtained outside the country through a crime.

The men are to appear in Ottawa provincial court Dec. 16

_________________________________________________

November 28, 1989

CSA to decide fate of charged players

The Canadian Soccer Association is expected to decide in the next several weeks whether to hold a disciplinary hearing for four players charged with conspiracy to accept bribes after a 1986 tournament in Singapore.

Public relations director Hugh Mitchener said a ruling by the Supreme Court of Ontario last week left the option open to the board.

Lawyers for the CSA had asked the court to decide whether its bylaws allow a committee to discipline the players.

The court ruled a committee could not hold disciplinary hearings, but the association's directors do have that power.

"The board of directors acted in good faith in attempting to deal with this serious problem in a fair and unbiased manner and in a way that would satisfy all the requirements of natural justice," the court ruled.

The players, David Norman and Chris Chueden of B.C., Hector Marinaro of Mississauga and Igor Vrablic of Waterloo, had criminal charges against them quashed last year when an Ottawa judge ruled he did not have jurisdiction to hear the case.

Mitchener said the board, if it did discipline the players, would have the power to suspend them from playing soccer in Canada or internationally.

It would also have the power to fine them, he said.

Three of the four players are still playing professional soccer.

The CSA called the RCMP in to investigate after rumors began to spread about a conspiracy to fix games during a 1986 tournament in Singapore."

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