Month: September 2021

Second Division – SÖDRA. Similar to the other group championship – fairly equal.
Skövde AIK – last and relegated with 17 points.
Kalmar FF – 13th and relegated with 21 points. However, part of the curious and rare Cup final – this season was also one of their most successful.
Karlskrona AIF – 12th with 22 points.
IFK Hässleholm – 11th with 22 points.
Landskrona BoIS – 10th with 24 points.
BK Häcken (Göteborg) – 9th with 25 points.
Mjällby AIF – 8th with 25 points.
Ifö/Bromölla IF – 7th with 25 points.
Åtvidabergs FF – 6th with 25 points.
IK Oddevold – 5th with 26 points.
Myresjö IF – 4th with 28 points.
Kalmar AIK – 3rd with 33 points. One could be sorry they failed to win the championship – would have been complete fun and amusement in view of the strange season their city rivals had.
Trelleborgs FF – 2nd with 36 points.

GAIS (Göteborg) – won the championship with 37 points from 15 wins, 7 ties, 4 losses and 47-16 goal-difference. Well done – like the winners of the other group, they were returning to top flight.

Sweden – ranked 12th. International club success, strong generation of players, championship formula which permitted a wise team to win without having great season – all that, but also one of the most amazing – or amusing – Cup finals of all times. Two teams relegated from First Division and the winners of the 2 groups of Second Division – promoted.
Second Division – Norra. Rather competitive season.

Degerfors IF – last with 9 points and relegated to third level.
IFK Västerås – 13th with 17 points and relegated.
IFK Mora – 12th with 20 points.
Vasalunds IF – 11th with 20 points.
Skellefteå AIK – 10th with 24 points.
Luleå FF/IFK Luleå – 9th with 25 points.
Karlstads BK – 8th with 25 points.
IF Brommapojkarna – 7th with 25 points.
BK Forward (Örebro) – 6th with 30 points.
Västerås SK – 5th with 30 points.
Gefle IF – 4th with 33 points.
Örebro SK – 3rd with 33 points.
IFK Eskilstuna – 2nd with 35 points.
Djurgårdens IF (Stockholm) – group winner with 38 points from 16 wins, 6 ties, 4 losses, 60-26 goal-difference. Promoted back to First Division. Well done.

The Cup final opposed – as ever – the winners of the Czech and the Slovak Cups. Sparta (Prague) vs DAC Dunajska Streda – given Sparta’s domineering squad and from, it looked like the winner was practically known in advance… but the Slovaks did not think so.

They fought fiercely their more famous opponents,
even had scoring chances and the final ended 0-0 after extra time.
In the penalty shoot-out the underdog prevailed 3-2.
It was amazing victory – no wonder the team rushed to celebrate their coach Pecze.
And their quite anonymous captain Kristof got the Cup.

That was it – the moment for posterity.
Sparta was unable to win a double – quite strange, even disappointing, given the squad they had coached by no other but Vaclav Jezek. Even their assistant-coach Jozef Jarabinsky was big name… and they lost. But they were still the strongest team in the country and going to stay on top, so after all – no bog deal they lost the Cup final – it was bad luck, to a point, and the championship was much more important.
The winners. Sitting from left: Tibor Micinec, Dusan Abraham – assistant coach, Karol Kristof, Karol Pecze – coach, Juraj Majoros, Frantisek Urvaj – assistant coach, Gabriel Bertalan.
Middle row: Miroslav Gaspar – doctor, Jozef Horvath, Jan Hodur, Jozef Medgyes, Stanislav Vahala, Jan Vesely, Frantisek Toth, Petr Kaspar, Peter Bartos, Alexander Stadrucker – docotor.
Top row: Peter Soltes, Rudolf Pavlik, Tomas Kosnovsky, Dusan Liba, Lubos Sramek, Stefan Simoncic – masseur, Dusan Lesko, Peter Fieber, Vladimir Brodziansky, Jan Kapko, Peter Michalec.
DAC Dunajska Streda – or DAC 1904, or DAC Polnohospodar, or just Dunajska Streda – was old club, founded in 1904, in small town near the Hungarian border and traditionally supported by the Hungarian minority in Slovakia. But this was mostly local pride and ethnic loyalty – the club was hardly heard of otherwise and until 1985 never played top level football. In fact, they did not play even Second Division football until 1980-81 – but after that it was steady climb up: 2nd in the Slovak league of Second Division in 1982-83 and 1983-84, and then first and promoted in 1984-85. Finished 11th in their first ever season in First Division and right after that – 4th and winning the Czechoslovak Cup. It was amazing development, considering that the club depended on local players, so far unknown and some still more familiar with third level wilderness than rubbing shoulders with the stars of the time. It was not just good luck giving them victory over a team with world-famous coach and full of national team players – the underdog was tied and sturdy outfit. With success, individual qualities were suddenly recognized and some players made the Olympic team, if not the A national team. And it was not accidental success, one-time-wonder, either – DAC Dunajska Streda was going to stay among the strong Czechoslovak teams until the country dissolved into two separate states. An amazing story of small club from small town, which had not only ambition, but good organization and management too.
One more photo of the team at the moment of their greatest ever triumph is a must.