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Steve Pittman (July 18, 1967 in Wilson, North Carolina) is an American former soccer defender who spent most of his career in the Scottish leagues. He also played professionally in the United States with Major Indoor Soccer League, American Professional Soccer League and Major League Soccer. He earned three caps with the United States national soccer team and currently manages Broxburn Athletic.
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Stephen Lee Pittman[1] | |||||||||||||
| Date of birth | July 18, 1967 | |||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Wilson, North Carolina, USA | |||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | |||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Defender | |||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||
Current team | Broxburn Athletic (manager) | |||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||
| –1986 | Broxburn Athletic | |||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||
| 1986–1989 | East Fife | 83 | (10) | |||||||||||
| 1989–1990 | Shrewsbury Town | |||||||||||||
| 1990–1992 | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | (4) | ||||||||||||
| 1990–1992 | Wichita Wings (indoor) | 49 | (28) | |||||||||||
| 1992–1994 | Dundee | 59 | (5) | |||||||||||
| 1994–1996 | Partick Thistle | 72 | (4) | |||||||||||
| 1996 | Tampa Bay Mutiny | 29 | (1) | |||||||||||
| 1997 | Kansas City Wizards | 26 | (0) | |||||||||||
| Clydebank | ||||||||||||||
| 2000 | Stenhousemuir | 8 | (0) | |||||||||||
| 2000–2001 | Linlithgow Rose | |||||||||||||
| 2001–? | Pumpherston | |||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||
| 1990–1997 | United States | 3 | (0) | |||||||||||
| Managerial career | ||||||||||||||
| 2004–2009 | Pumpherston | |||||||||||||
| 2009–2015 | Broxburn Athletic | |||||||||||||
| 2017-2020 | Livingston FC U20 (joint with Derek McWilliams) | |||||||||||||
| 2023- | Broxburn Athletic | |||||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||
Player
editEarly life
editHe played for East Calder C.F.C. as a child before turning professional.[2]
Professional
editWhile born in the United States, Pittman moved with his mother to Scotland after his parents divorced when he was two years old. He is a Scottish-American dual-citizen. He played for Broxburn Athletic as a youth player. In 1986, he began his professional career with East Fife F.C. before moving to Shrewsbury Town F.C. on March 3, 1989.[3] In October 1987, Pittman had an unsuccessful trial with the Cleveland Force of Major Indoor Soccer League. On March 29, 1990, Pittman signed with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers of the American Professional Soccer League.[3] He was both a first team All Star and the 1990 Rookie of the Year.[4] On August 29, 1990, he signed with the Wichita Wings of the Major Indoor Soccer League.[5] In 1991, he returned to the Strikers.[6] The team released him in August 1991 after an accumulation of yellow and red cards kept him out of seven games during the season. After being ejected in a late season game, Pittman entered the stands to chase a spectator leading to league officials suspending him for the first two games of the playoffs.[7] He then rejoined the Wichita Wings for the upcoming MISL season. Despite being released by the Strikers in August 1991, the team re-signed Pittman at the end of April 1992. When the APSL season ended in August, the Strikers loaned Pittman Dundee F.C.[8] When Pittman's contract with the Strikers ran out, he then signed with Dundee as a free agent. In September 1994, he moved to Partick Thistle F.C. Whilst at Partick Thistle, where Pittman enjoyed arguably the most successful period of his career, he became somewhat of a cult hero after regularly performing his "Marine Drive" free-kick. After lining up a direct free-kick, Pittman would stand on one foot and offer up a military style salute to the Thistle fans, before unleashing a shot towards goal. He only managed to score once in this fashion, in a closed-door friendly match against Berwick Rangers. His career with Partick ended when he accumulated three red cards in quick succession after confronting referees following an end of season match. This led to an eight-game ban.[9] In 1996, he signed with the Tampa Bay Mutiny of Major League Soccer. In July 1996, he scored the winning goal for the East during the 1996 All-Star Game.[10] He also toured China as a guest player for San Jose Clash in 1996. On January 9, 1997, the Mutiny traded Pittman to the Kansas City Wizards in exchange for Alan Prampin and the Wizards' third round pick in the 1997 MLS Supplemental Draft.[11] The Wizards waived him on November 17, 1997, and he returned to Scotland where he joined Clydebank. At some point he transferred to Stenhousemuir F.C. where he played three games at the start of the 2000–2001 season. In November 2000, he transferred to Linlithgow Rose F.C. He finished his career at Pumpherston F.C.
National team
editHe earned his first cap for U.S. national team in a 3–0 victory over Trinidad and Tobago on September 15, 1990. Pittman started the game, then came off in the 65th minute for Troy Dayak.[12] His second game was a 1–0 loss to Sweden on August 16, 1995. He earned his last cap on January 29, 1997, when the U.S. lost to China. Pittman began the game, but came off for Ramiro Corrales in the 60th minute.[13]
Manager
editPumpherston
editPittman has managed Pumpherston F.C.
Broxburn
editOn June 19, 2009, Pittman was named new manager of Scottish Junior Club Broxburn Athletic.[14] Broxburn Athletic secured the league championship in his first season at the helm.
Livingston
editIn 2017, Pittman was appointed Co-Manager of Livingston U20 squad along with Derek McWilliams.[15] The pair left the position in 2020.[16]
Broxburn return
editPitman returned as manager of Broxburn Athletic in January 2023. Derek McWilliams and Billy McPhee was recruited as his coaching staff.[17] That summer Pittman added Steve McIlhone as a coach within the setup.
Personal life
editPittman is the father of Livingston player Scott Pittman.
Honors
editIndividual
References
edit- ^ "Stephen Lee Pittman Record Vs Heart of Midlothian". London Hearts Supporters Club. Retrieved 1 September 2012.
- ^ "East Calder CFC History". East Calder CFC.
- ^ a b STRIKERS SIGN STEVE PITTMAN Miami Herald, The (FL) - Friday, March 30, 1990
- ^ The Year in American Soccer - 1990
- ^ WINGS ADD THREE NEWCOMERS TO THEIR '90-91 ROSTER WICHITA NOW HAS 11 UNDER CONTRACT Wichita Eagle, The (KS) - Thursday, August 30, 1990
- ^ 1991 Fort Lauderdale Strikers
- ^ LEMON: PITTMAN WON'T BE BACK Miami Herald, The (FL) - Saturday, August 31, 1991
- ^ STRIKERS REVIVE YOUTH SOCCER CAMPS Miami Herald, The (FL) - Sunday, December 6, 1992
- ^ Partick Thistle Players of the 90s
- ^ 1996 MLS All-Star Game
- ^ Mutiny deals fullback Pittman to Kansas City
- ^ USA - Details of International Matches 1990–1994 Archived September 29, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ USA - Details of International Matches 1995–1999 Archived November 23, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Broxburn appoint Pittman
- ^ "New U20 management team installed". 10 October 2017.
- ^ "Pittman & McWilliams depart". 19 June 2020.
- ^ "NEW MANAGEMENT TEAM IN PLACE". Broxburn Athletic FC. 22 January 2023.
- ^ All-Star Game flashback, 1996 Archived December 28, 2014, at the Wayback Machine at MLSsoccer.com
External links
edit- Steve Pittman at Soccerbase
- MISL stats
- East Fife F.C. players at Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Transfer Database