The Needham Soccer Club and Needham High School Soccer Alumni will host Don Brock Day on Saturday, a celebration of Needham’s legendary soccer coach and the town’s rich soccer history.
The day will start with a ceremony prior to Needham’s varsity boys’ soccer game against Newton South, which kicks off at 1 p.m. at DeFazio Field. A new scoreboard and set of bleachers will be dedicated to Brock, who retired in March.
Brock, who started the Needham varsity program in 1961 before founding the Needham Soccer Club in 1969, won 696 games and five state titles over 48 years. Many players he coached over the years went onto play soccer at the collegiate level, while one alumnus — Seattle Seahawks placekicker Steven Hauschka — went on to win a Super Bowl.
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Brock retired in March after suffering a stroke on the sidelines during a state tournament game in November 2014.
“His longevity is something we’ll never see again in our lifetime,” said Needham Soccer Club executive director Mark Miskin, who played for Brock. “We knew we’d have to put something together.”
Miskin, who played at Needham from 1974-76, credits Brock for building teams that played the right way, and inspiring young athletes in Needham to play soccer.
“He was able to blend a lot of us together to have that winning mentality to be able to walk on the field and know we were going to win,” said Miskin, “and he did it the right way.”
Bill Middleton, Stan Wilox, and Sandy Stuart, three Scottish immigrants who along with Brock were instrumental in growing the game in Needham, will be recognized at the event.
The game will be followed by a celebration dinner for Brock at the Needham Sheraton.