PORT ORCHARD, WA—Two old photos were recently sent to Port Orchard Football Club that reveal two eras of the sport of soccer in Port Orchard.
Gary Marcello shared two photos (from his father Paul’s collection) with POFC General Manager Tyler Brown that come from 1964 and 1967. They both surprise for different reasons.
Meet The Port Orchard Mariners
The 1964 photo of what Gary describes as the “Port Orchard Mariners” in a photo “taken at Givens Field” is a surprise in that it shows properly suited adult athletes. The Mariners look organized and ready to win. One wonders if they are traveling to play matches or if there was some sort of league right at home in Kitsap.
Tracking Back With SK
The 1967 photo from Gary was likely taken by his father Paul Marcello, who was a prominent soccer coach in the Port Orchard area during these times. He was also involved with the Port Orchard Mariners.
This photo surprises in that it reveals a time before soccer was a varsity sport around here. In this case it was a summer “club sport” and the guys did not even have soccer uniforms. Instead, we see the South Kitsap High School track shirts and shorts being worn by most of them. The photo was taken at the high school at what is now Kitsap Bank Stadium
Then And Now
Flash forward to 2025 and all Kitsap high schools have soccer as a varsity sport and many of those schools send teams to state annually. Soccer is successful.
Port Orchard Football Club not only wears soccer uniforms, but ones that are specially designed just for the team and unique in the entire world.
We value our local soccer history and one of the tenets of our club is to celebrate that history. Thank you to Gary and Tyler for sharing these photos.
If you have historical Kitsap area soccer photos to share, you can send them to: david@gopofc.com.