One of those teams—Oakland Clippers, who were 1967 NPSL champions and were one of the top teams in the 1968 NASL—opted to play an independent schedule against top foreign clubs. The Clippers boosted their offense for 1969 by signing Fernandez, as well as 1968 leading scorer John Kowalik. Renaming themselves "California Clippers," the team only played a handful of games before folding.
Fernandez then moved to the Kansas City Spurs in the middle of the 1969 season. He was once again a first team All Star as well as the NASL MVP. According to one source, Fernandez spent five seasons in the Netherlands at Go Ahead Eagles and HFC Haarlem.[2] He did not return to the NASL until 1974 when he signed with the expansion Seattle Sounders. He started the first three games of the season, but a vicious slide tackle by David Kemp broke his leg during the Sounders home debut putting him out for the season. Fernandez played only twelve games in 1975, then began the 1976 season when he was released after two games. He then signed with the expansion Tacoma Tides of the American Soccer League. The Tides went to the ASL playoff semifinals but folded soon after. Fernandez then played HFC Haarlem before returning to the Sounders for the 1981-1982 NASL indoor season.