Górnik Zabrze

Górnik Zabrze
Full name Klub Sportowy Górnik Zabrze
Nickname(s) Trójkolorowi (Tri-Colour),
Torcida
Founded 14 December 1948 (1948-12-14)
Ground Ernest Pohl Stadium,
Zabrze, Poland
Ground Capacity 24,563 (31,871 after completion)
Chairman Poland Marek Pałus
Manager Poland Jan Żurek
League Ekstraklasa
2014–15 7th

Górnik Zabrze (Polish pronunciation: [ˈɡurɲiɡ ˈzabʐɛ]) is a Polish football club from Zabrze. The club has won numerous championships, and was a dominant force in the 1960s and 1980s. At present Górnik has won the most titles in Polish football. The club plays in a white or dark blue-red kit, and is based at the Ernest Pohl Stadium. Their main local rival is Ruch Chorzów.

History

First years

The club was founded in 1948, three years after Polish borders had moved westward and the city of Zabrze (until then called Hindenburg) became part of the Polish Republic. Górnik was patterned after several smaller sports associations that had existed in Zabrze between 1945 and 1948 – KS Zjednoczenie, KS Pogon, KS Skra, KS Concordia. The clubs merged into a single organization, which took the name "Górnik", the Polish word for "Miner", reflecting the fact that Zabrze was an important coal-mining centre.

In 1950 Górnik joined the Opole Silesia regional league. In 1952 the club was promoted to the Polish Second Division. Their first game in the second tier was against Skra Częstochowa, and was witnessed by 20,000 fans, with Górnik winning 5–1. The whole season was very successful and Górnik finished second overall, behind Górnik Wałbrzych.

The club was promoted to the top division in 1955. In their first game in the top flight Górnik beat local rivals Ruch Chorzów 3–1, with 25,000 in attendance; the club finished the season in 6th place.

First successes

In 1957, just a year after promotion, Górnik won its first championship of Poland. The team, with star, Ernest Pohl, was third in 1958, to regain the crown in 1959 and 1961, together with such players as Stanislaw Oslizlo and Hubert Kostka. In 1961 Górnik for the first time appeared in European Cups, losing in the first round to Tottenham Hotspur.

Golden years

The next championship, won in 1963, marked the beginning of an unusual streak of five consecutive titles (1963, 64, 65, 66 and 67), which is a Polish record.

Górnik's biggest success in European football took place in 1970 (even though in Poland the team was second, after Legia Warsaw). In the UEFA Cup Winners Cup, Gornik beat all their opponents Olympiacos, Rangers, Levski Sofia and AS Roma, reaching the final, which took place in Vienna. There, Manchester City turned out to be the better team, winning 2–1. The following season Górnik would once again play Manchester City, with the 1970 final being repeated this time in the quarter-final.

Late 1970s and early 1980s

During the mid-1970s Górnik form deteriorated and in late spring of 1978, the team was relegated to the Second Division. However, it returned after one year and in games of 1979–80, Zabrze's side finished sixth. In 1984, after purchasing of a group of talented players (Ryszard Komornicki, Waldemar Matysik, Eugeniusz Cebrat, Andrzej Zgutczyński, Tadeusz Dolny, Andrzej Pałasz), Gornik finished fourth, which was a sign of better times.

Late 1980s until now

Between 1985 and 1988 Górnik again marked a magnificent streak, with four consecutive championships. Zabrze's side also played versus renowned European powerhouses, such as Bayern Munich, Anderlecht, Hamburger SV, Juventus and Real Madrid.

In 1994 Górnik competed again for the title and with players as Jerzy Brzęczek, Grzegorz Mielcarski, Tomasz Wałdoch, hopes were high. Before the last round of the league the standings at the top were: Legia 47 points and Górnik 45 points. Since the two teams were to face each other in Warsaw, Górnik still had a chance to win the title. However the game ended in a 1–1 tie which gave Legia the crown. Before Legia scored the goal which gave her the title (the score 0–1 would mean the title for Gornik), the referee of the match – Mr Redzinski – sent off one by one 3 players from Gornik's squad, and Gornik had to finished match with only 8 players against 11 players of Legia. It was the last match in Mr Redzinski's career.

In the same year Górnik played its last so far game in European Cups, losing to Admira Wacker Vienna.

In the spring of 2007 Górnik got a new sponsor – German insurance company Allianz. However, after finishing 16th in the Ekstraklasa in 2008–09, the club was relegated to the Polish First League, the 2nd level of Polish football, during the 2009–10 season. In June 2010, the club earned promotion back to the Ekstraklasa for the 2010–11 season.

Achievements

History of Górnik Zabrze classifications in the Ekstraklasa

Górnik in Europe

Season Competition Round Club Score
1961/62 European Cup Q England Tottenham Hotspur 4–2, 1–8
1963/64 European Cup Q Austria FK Austria Wien 1–0, 0–1, 2–1
1R Czechoslovakia Dukla Prague 2–0, 1–4
1964/65 European Cup Q Czechoslovakia Dukla Prague 1–4, 3–0, 0–0
1965/66 European Cup Q Austria LASK Linz 3–1, 2–1
1R Czechoslovakia Sparta Prague 0–3, 1–0
1966/67 European Cup 1R East Germany Vorwärts Berlin 2–1, 1–2, 3–1
2R Bulgaria CSKA Sofia 0–4, 3–0
1967/68 European Cup 1R Sweden Djurgårdens IF 3–0, 1–0
2R Soviet Union Dinamo Kiev 2–1, 1–1
1/4F England Manchester United 0–2, 1–0
1968/69 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1R Soviet Union FC Dynamo Moscow withdrawal
1969/70 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1R Greece Olympiakos CFP 2–2, 5–0
2R Scotland Rangers F.C. 3–1, 3–1
1/4F Bulgaria Levski-Spartak 2–3, 2–1
1/2F Italy AS Roma 1–1, 2–2
F England Manchester City FC 1–2
1970/71 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1R Denmark Aalborg BK 1–0, 8–1
2R Turkey Göztepe A.Ş. 1–0, 3–0
1/4F England Manchester City FC 2–0, 0–2, 1–3
1971/72 European Cup 1R France Olympique de Marseille 1–2, 1–1
1972/73 European Cup 1R Malta Sliema Wanderers 5–0, 5–0
2R Soviet Union Dinamo Kiev 0–2, 2–1
1974/75 UEFA Cup 1R Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia FK Partizan 2–2, 0–3
1977/78 UEFA Cup 1R Finland FC Haka 5–3, 0–0
2R England Aston Villa FC 0–2, 1–1
1985/86 European Cup 1R Germany Bayern Munich 1–2, 1–4
1986/87 European Cup 1R Belgium RSC Anderlecht 0–2, 1–1
1987/88 European Cup 1R Greece Olympiakos CFP 1–1, 2–1
2R Scotland Rangers F.C. 1–3, 1–1
1988/89 European Cup 1R Luxembourg Jeunesse Esch 3–0, 4–1
2R Spain Real Madrid 0–1, 2–3
1989/90 UEFA Cup 1R Italy Juventus Turin 0–1, 2–4
1991/92 UEFA Cup 1R Germany Hamburger SV 1–1, 0–3
1994/95 UEFA Cup Q Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers 7–0, 1–0
1R Austria VfB Admira Wacker Mödling 2–5, 1–1
1995 Intertoto Cup GR Denmark AGF Aarhus 1–4
Switzerland FC Basel 1–2
England Sheffield Wednesday 2–3
Germany Karlsruher SC 1–6

Current squad

As of 25 February 2016.[1]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
2 Poland DF Bartosz Kopacz
4 Poland DF Rafał Kosznik
5 Ukraine DF Oleksandr Shevelyukhin
6 Poland MF Rafał Kurzawa
7 Poland MF Radosław Sobolewski
8 Slovakia MF Erik Grendel
9 Poland MF Aleksander Kwiek
11 Slovakia MF Roman Gergel
14 Bosnia and Herzegovina MF Armin Ćerimagić
15 Estonia DF Ken Kallaste
16 Poland MF Michał Janota
17 Poland DF Dominik Sadzawicki
18 Poland MF Łukasz Madej
19 Poland MF Mariusz Przybylski
20 Poland FW Marcin Urynowicz
21 Poland DF Mariusz Magiera
No. Position Player
22 Poland MF Szymon Matuszek
23 Poland FW Szymon Skrzypczak
24 Poland FW Maciej Korzym
25 Latvia DF Mārcis Ošs
26 Poland DF Adam Danch (captain)
28 Poland MF Bartosz Pikul
29 Spain FW José Kanté
31 Bulgaria DF Pavel Vidanov
33 Poland GK Sebastian Przyrowski
35 Poland FW Bartłomiej Gajda
36 Poland MF Filip Żagiel
44 Poland DF Paweł Golański
71 Poland MF Sebastian Steblecki
84 Poland GK Radosław Janukiewicz
99 Poland GK Grzegorz Kasprzik

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
96 Poland GK Mateusz Kuchta (on loan at GKS Katowice)
Poland DF Maciej Mańka (on loan at GKS Tychy)
Poland MF Daniel Barbus (on loan at Puszcza Niepołomice)
Poland MF Kamil Cupriak (on loan at Radomiak Radom)
Poland MF Dawid Plizga (on loan at Termalica Bruk-Bet Nieciecza)
No. Position Player
Poland MF Konrad Nowak (on loan at Rozwój Katowice)
Poland MF Łukasz Wolsztyński (on loan at Legionovia Legionowo)
Poland MF Rafał Wolsztyński (on loan at Legionovia Legionowo)
Poland FW Jarosław Potoniec (on loan at Podhale Nowy Targ)

Notable former players

Managers

  • Poland Ginter Pawelczyk (1948–49)
  • Poland Teodor Meiser (1949)
  • Poland Karol Luks (1949–50)
  • Poland Gerard Wodarz (1950–54)
  • Poland Augustyn Dziwisz (1954–56)
  • Poland Paweł Mościński (1956)
  • Poland Hubert Skolik (1957)
  • Hungary Zoltán Opata (1957–58)
  • Poland Hubert Skolik (1958–59)
  • Hungary Janos Steiner (1959)
  • Poland Feliks Karolek (1960)
  • Czechoslovakia Vilém Lugr (1960)
  • Poland A. Dziwisz (1 July 1960–30 June 62)
  • Poland Feliks Karolek (1962)
  • Poland Ewald Cebula (1962–63)
  • Poland Feliks Karolek (1963)
  • Poland Hubert Skolik (1963)
  • Poland Feliks Karolek (1964)
  • Poland Hubert Skolik (1964)
  • Hungary Ferenc Farsang (1964–65)
  • Poland W. Giergiel (1 July 1965–30 June 66)
  • Hungary Géza Kalocsay (1 July 1966–30 June 69)
  • Poland Michał Matyas (1969–70)
  • Hungary Ferenc Szusza (1970–71)
  • Poland A. Brzeżańczyk (1 July 1971–30 April 72)
  • Poland Jan Kowalski (1972)
  • Hungary Gyula Szücs (1972)
  • Poland Jan Kowalski (1972–73)

  • Poland Henryk Apostel (1 Jan 1997–10 Nov 97)
  • Poland Jan Kowalski (1997)
  • Poland Jan Żurek (1 Dec 1997–15 March 00)
  • Poland J. Dankowski (int.) (16 Mar 2000–19 Mar 00)
  • Poland M. Bochynek (20 March 2000–9 April 00)
  • Poland M. Broniszewski (10 April 2000–16 Sept 00)
  • Poland J. Dankowski (17 Sept 2000–7 May 01)
  • Poland M. Piotrowicz (2001)
  • Poland W. Fornalik (10 May 2001–31 Oct 01)
  • Poland M. Piotrowicz (2 Nov 2001–31 Dec 01)
  • Poland W. Fornalik (12 Jan 2002–4 April 04)
  • Czech Republic Verner Lička (5 April 2004–13 Dec 04)
  • Poland Edward Lorens (13 Dec 2004–3 Feb 05)
  • Poland M. Wleciałowski (7 Feb 2005–31 Oct 05)
  • Poland Marek Motyka (4 Nov 2005–13 Jan 06)
  • Poland R. Komornicki (13 Jan 2006–19 April 06)
  • Poland P. Cecherz (int.) (19 April 2006–26 April 06)

References

  1. "Pierwsza drużyna" (in Polish). Górnik Zabrze. Retrieved 2 August 2015.

External links

Coordinates: 50°17′46.74″N 18°46′6.83″E / 50.2963167°N 18.7685639°E / 50.2963167; 18.7685639

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