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Sidekicks salute legendary face of franchise: Team follows ceremony with Central Division title
BY J. David Barron, dbarron@starlocalnews.com
Saturday evening at the Allen Event Center, the Dallas Sidekicks rained the perfect storm on the Rockford Rampage with a 14-5 victory that clinched the division title while fans poured on adulation in a poignant halftime commemoration for the franchise's most-storied player.
Antonio Carlos Pecorari is universally acknowledged as indoor soccer's all-time greatest player.
But the most-prolific scorer in the history of the game was feted as the man who is simply known as "Tatu."
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Jago spied the young man, known as the "Little Armadillo" in Portuguese, when Tatu was playing a 3-on-3 pickup game at age 18 outside Brazil's largest city, Sao Paolo.
"I was down there scouting to sign three players for the Tampa Bay Rowdies when I was coach there," Jago recalled. "I was looking for outdoors players, but we also had an indoor team for the MISL. [Tatu] was exceptionally fast in 2- or 3-yard bursts and he was a smart player with a build that made him look like he could really excel in indoor soccer.
"You could see he was made for indoor soccer. And he was an instant star."
As former coach of the English Premier League side Queens Park Rangers, Jago capitalized on his keen eye and signed the prodigy immediately.
The rest has become both history and lore.
Tatu retired in March 2003, following 21 seasons of indoors soccer. He scored 857 goals in his career and recorded 728 assists while leading the Sidekicks to titles in 1987, 1993, 1998 and 2001. His run included 11 scoring titles and 12 all-star honors with six league MVP awards that counted three championship series MVP accolades. Tatu is the only person to earn Player of the Year and Coach of the Year honors in the same season, accomplishing the feat in 1998. He owns franchise records for seasons played, goals, assists, points, shots, power-play goals, game-winning goals and overtime goals.
With tears brimming and voice notably choking, Tatu began his acknowledgement by profusely thanking his three children, Sophia, Andre and Evan Davi. He followed by applauding notable former teammates Doc Lawson and David Doyle, among others, along with Jago, original Sidekicks owner Don Carter and current majority owner, Ronnie Davis.
The honoree closed with a salute to the fans, whom he thanked for four specific outpourings that included more than 5,000 fans receiving the team at Love Field in the early morning hours following the Sidekicks' first title win over the Tacoma Stars.
"You don't truly appreciate all the great people around you when you're in the middle of the fight until afterwards," Tatu reminisced a few days later at his favorite coffee shop, where he also praised long-time broadcaster Norm Hitzges. "But we had some really talented, exceptional people that made it all even more special."
Davis spearheaded a rebirth of the franchise last fall following eight years of dormancy.
He said his business decision hinged entirely on Tatu.
"It all depended on him. If he would've said 'No,' it wouldn't have happened. Period," Davis said. "Tatu is the heart and soul behind this team and organization. He was integral in putting this sport on the map in DFW during the '80s and '90s, and his is the name that fans remember most. The fans have embraced Tatu and the team back with open arms, and we are thrilled with how the season has gone so far."
They should be.
The team has dropped only three matches -- all on the road, while regularly drawing an average attendance of more than 5,000 at the AEC.
"Those fans are incredible," Davis said. "[Our] players really pick up on that."
The Sidekicks (12-3) close the regular season Feb. 23 when hosting the Texas Strikers at 7 p.m. They earned a Feb. 28 home playoff date against either the Chicago Mustangs or the Rio Grande Valley Flash.
"The question is can we raise it to the next level in the playoffs," Tatu said. "The unknown is how [the players] are going to react to the pressure of the playoffs, where it's win-or-go-home, you know? Overall I think our performance has been very good. We're organized, we're tactically good, we've done what we are supposed to do. It's great winning the division, but now it's the next step. We are in the big tent."
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