Roberts Pakalns

Infobox Football biography
playername= Roberts Pakalns
dateofbirth = birth date|1911|11|7
cityofbirth = Riga
countryofbirth = Russian Empire
dateofdeath = death date and age|1986|5|17|1911|11|7
cityofdeath = Riga
countryofdeath = Latvian SSR
position = Forward
years = 1929-1940
1940
1941
1941
1942-1944
1945-1947
1948
clubs = ASK Riga
RDKA Riga
Spartaks Rīga
Spars Rīga
ASK Riga
FK Dinamo Riga
Daugava Rīga
caps(goals) =
manageryears = 1949-1956
managerclubs = VEF Rīga
nationalyears = 1935–1940
nationalteam = Latvia
nationalcaps(goals) = 08 (1)

Roberts Pakalns (November 7, 1911 - May 17, 1986) was a Latvian footballer and football manager, a three-time champion of Latvia.

Biography

Almost the entire his football career Roberts Pakalns spent with ASK Riga for which he started regularly appearing in the senior squad in 1929 and for which he played until the clubs dissolution in 1944. During these years Pakalns won one Latvian Higher League title (in 1932) [ [http://www.periodika.lv/Default/Skins/LatviaArchL/Client.asp?Skin=LatviaArchL&enter=true&AW=1221550613328&AppName=2 Spraigā cīņā karavīri izcīna meistarību] ] and won the Latvian Cup in 1943. In between 1935 and 1940 Pakalns played 8 international matches for Latvia scoring one goal.

When ASK Riga as a former Latvian army sports club was disbanded in 1940, Pakalns joined the newly founded RDKA Riga. During World War II he also played with Spartaks Rīga and Spars Riga. After the war Pakalns played with FK Dinamo Rīga first in the Latvian higher league, then - in the Soviet league, in 1948 he played with Daugava Rīga. From 1949 to 1956 Pakalns was the coach of VEF Rīga which he led to winning the Latvian Cup in 1956.

In addition to his performance as a footballer Pakalns also played ice hockey and bandy. In the former he was a five-time champion of Latvia as a member of the ASK Riga hockey squad, in the latter - a two-time champion of Latvia. Pakalns was also the first captain of the newly founded Dinamo Riga ice hockey team in 1946.

References