By Michael Lewis

FrontRowSoccer.com Editor

Press Pass Share, Day 4:

My very first pro soccer press pass. It was for the Rochester Lancers’ 1975 North American Soccer League season.

It was a simple press pass, with the team name, year and the owner’s name – John Petrossi. It fit in a wallet or a pocket, so you would have to go out of your way to lose it. Obviously, I never did because I took a picture of it earlier today.

Notice that it says Mike Lewis, not Michael Lewis.

If you are a regular reader of FrontRowSoccer.com, you probably have read more than you ever wanted to know about the Lancers.

Given that they were the first soccer team I covered, I will always have a place in my heart for them. I wrote about them for the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle from 1975 through 1980.

They were an intriguing team and bunch to write about. I learned much about current events and even world history from interviewing the players and coaches.

They also could drive you crazy with some of the crazy things that happened around them. Still, the people I got to know — from the players to coaches to front office personnel and to the owners — were pretty good people.

There are two versions of the Lancers, the original team from 1967 to 1980 and the modern indoor version. The latter has competed from 2011 to 2015 and then 2018 to the present.

As some of you probably know, I am writing a book about the team’s history and it is something I hope to complete in the not too distant future.

Front Row Soccer editor Michael Lewis has covered 13 World Cups (eight men, five women), seven Olympics and 25 MLS Cups. He has written about New York City FC, New York Cosmos, the New York Red Bulls and both U.S. national teams for Newsday and has penned a soccer history column for the Guardian.com. Lewis, who has been honored by the Press Club of Long Island and National Soccer Coaches Association of America, is the former editor of BigAppleSoccer.com. He has written seven books about the beautiful game and has published ALIVE AND KICKING The incredible but true story of the Rochester Lancers. It is available at Amazon.com.