Ankaragucu set sights on new signings !

We know that Jim has lost his Optimism pills but thankfully i have found them and have been taking them instead. According to reports from various media outlets if Ankaragucu lift the transfer ban, then the club will bring a host of former players as well as foreign players to the club.

Just last night on his twitter page, Aydin Toscali claimed he wanted to return to the club that he misses if the transfer ban is lifted. The club will also make moves for Genclerbirligi winger Mehmet Cakir, former Fenerbahce midfielder Kemal Aslan and one of Jim's former heroes Giani kirita.

Former Ankaragucu legend Augustine Ahinful will also send some African players across from Ghana, Augustine sent over two players from Ghana in the summer but both were sent home after the club failed to lift the transfer ban.

More to follow...

Umit Kurt signs for Sivasspor !

Ankaragucu defender Umit Kurt tonight signed for Super Lig side Sivasspor worth 300,000 Turkish Lira. The towering defender has been a stand out in a struggling Ankaragucu side this season and his performances haven't went unnoticed. It is a huge blow for the club to lose a player of Umit's quality and if the management team dont remove the transfer ban then the club have no hope of survival.

Umit scored on his full debut nearly 3 years ago in a 4-1 win at Istanbul BBS. He has established himself as a first team regular under Hakan Kutlu, Yilmaz Ozlem and now Mustafa Kaplan. The Round Ball in Ankara would like to wish Umit all the best at your new club.

In other news Mert Erdogan and Kaan Kanak will be paid in instalments the outstanding payments they are owed by the club. Mustafa Kaplan has also confirmed tonight that the club will invite foreign players to the Antalya training camp incase the transfer ban is lifted.

Ankaragucu handed 5 match stadium ban !

In the last hour the Turkish FA have announced Ankaragucu will be handed a 5 match stadium ban and a 20,000 Turkish Lira fine for the crowd trouble at the weekends game with Konyaspor. That means the games against Kayseri Erciyesspor, Karsiyaka, Sanliurfaspor, 1461 Trabzon and Adana Demirspor will all be played behind closed doors. The first match back at the 19 Mayis Stadium in front of fans will be on 6th April against rivals Goztepe.

I suppose you cant argue with the punishment as some of us expected up to 10 matches. It will be a huge blow to the team though having to play their next five home games without the backing of the fans. In todays other news, according to Klasspor Melih Gokcek has dismissed Mehmet Yiginir's plea for help but saying he is finished with Ankaragucu and would not urge anyone to become a candidate. There are now 300 new members of the club with Mehmet Yiginir bringing in 100 of them.

Atilla Suslu also confirmed the club are still hoping to keep hold of Timur Ozgoz and Umit Kurt with clubs from the Super Lig interested in both players. It is believed Sivasspor want to sign Umit Kurt whilst Genclerbirligi are interested in Timur.

Ankaragucu half term report !

Before we look at the first half of the season, news just in this morning that Sinan Kurumus has agreed a 5 year deal with Besiktas. The move is expected to see Ankaragucu pocket 360,000 Turkish Lira for the 18 year old striker. Mehmet Yiginir will also make his decision by the 4th of January as to weather he will run for Presidency.

Anyway onto the main subject, The first half of the season is over and Ankaragucu are lying at the bottom of the table 9 points adrift of safety. The current players have given the club some hope and if the transfer ban is lifted allowing the club to bring in experienced players then there is no reason why Ankaragucu cant stay in this division.

The standard of the teams in the PTT Lig aren't that great when you look at the likes of Manisaspor, Kayseri Erciyesspor and 1461 Trabzon all at the top of the table. Apart from maybe the Konyaspor match and Bucaspor match, Ankaragucu haven't embarrassed themselves in this league. What has caused the club problems more than anything, is the uncertainty off field and also inexperience on the field.

We will now take a look at the players half term report cards as well as the key moments of the season so far.

Mustafa Kaplan - 9/10 - The former Genclerbirligi coach replaced Yilmaz Ozlem much to the surprise of the Ankaragucu support. But the team has shown great improvement since he has come in. Some excellent performances at Besiktas and at home to Caykur Rizespor which saw Kaplan improve the defence as well as changing the formation of the team to 4-4-2. He can also take a lot of credit for Sinan Kurumus winning a move to Besiktas after giving him a regular spot in the starting line up.

Bayram Olgun - 6/10 - Has struggled with injury this season which has saw him miss a lot of games in the first half of the season. Once fit Bayram is one of the most important players in the team. One of very few players who also has experience playing in the Turkish Super Lig.

Gokhan Akkan - 8/10 - Seventeen year old Goalkeeper who replaced Bayram in goal when injured. Has never let the team down and has made some important saves in games to win Ankaragucu points. An excellent shop stopper and if there is one part of his game that he needs to work on, it is coming for crosses into the box. Was recently called up to the Turkish U17 national team.

Cihan Bal - 0/10 - Third choice Goalkeeper who has yet to play this season.

Aytac Oden - 6/10 - Struggled when he first came into the side playing at right back. His distribution of the ball needs to improve, but since the arrival of Mustafa Kaplan he has looked more solid at right back. If the transfer ban is lifted, the right back position is one of the first the club need to address.

Orhan Evci - 4/10 - Struggled at right back as this is not his normal position, full of running and does offer something going forward. Really struggled at defending though and was at fault for a couple of penalties and goals due to rash decisions and been caught out of position. Just recently was dropped to the reserve team due to his attitude.

Umit Kurt - 9/10 - It is hard to imagine where Ankaragucu would be if Umit Kurt wasn't in the team. It showed on his absence at the weekend with the team conceding 3 goals in 40 minutes. The towering defender has been outstanding this season and deserves to be playing in the Turkish Super Lig. His leadership skills at the back also make him the perfect captain in Mert's absence. With Super Lig's showing an interest in the young defender, it is vital that Ankaragucu avoid relegation otherwise Umit will be off at the end of the season.

Volkan Geyik - 6/10 -  Has had an up and down season so far. Does a good job in partnering Umit Kurt, but really struggles in his absence. The youngster is in his first season of professional football and there is no doubt he will have learned more in this 6 months of football than he will for the rest of his career .

Mehmet Tasci - 6/10 - Ankaragucu missed the young defender at the weekend, Mehmet Tasci has improved as the season went on, but needs to work on his passing as that is what really lets him down. Big and strong and it would be interesting to see how he would get on playing as a centre back as he has all the attributes to play there.

Mehmet Cogum - 0/10 - Hasn't played at all this season due to injury

Gurkan Alver - 5/10 - Another one who hasn't featured much this season, but when he has played he has looked well out of his depth. In the one game he did play quite well against Rize he played an important role in the victory. Moved back to centre back at the weekend against Konya and was woeful.

Metin Aydin - 0/10 - Highly rated young defender who has represented Turkey at youth international level. Hasn't featured this season and according to reports its his physical size that is holding him back with him being to small.

Gokhan Erdogan - 7/10 - Inconsistency has been the problem with Gokhan, when he is in the mood he can be very difficult for opposing defenders to mark with his pace and directness. But there are to many matches where he doesn't get involved. His goal a couple of weeks back at home to Rize shows what he is capable of.

Mert Erdogan - 8/10 - Captain of the club who has improved as the weeks have went by. Mert holds the midfield together with his calming influence on the ball. Is capable of finding the pass to create chances for the forward line. The one criticism is maybe his lack of goals from midfield and that is something he can work on to improve his game. A good start to the season and one which Mert will want to improve on and help guide the club to safety.

Bilal Gulden - 6/10 - Started the season well but has struggled of late. Bilal has everything in his locker to make him a good player. He needs to work on his distribution of the ball and his decision making. When Mert is out of the team Bilal has the chance to stand up and be the one that controls the game, but to often goes missing.

Kaan Kanak - 7/10 - Over the last couple of months and since the arrival of Mustafa Kaplan, Kaan has been one of the teams best players. His confidence has grown and is now showing the skill and touches that make him one of the most creative players in the team. Has a lovely left foot and just needs to work on his decision making as sometimes the pass is better than the thirty yard shot.

Hasan Ayaroglu - 5/10 - Big things are expected of Hasan and he was been rewarded with a call up to the Turkish U17 national team. The seventeen year old winger has struggled this season and first team football may have come to early as he still has a lot to learn at youth level first. Needs to work on his strength but there is no doubting the youngster has a bright future ahead.

Enes Kubat - 3/10 - Has only made a handful of substitute appearances which are not enough to judge him. Has an excellent scoring record this season for the reserve team.

Bilal Gundogdu - 1/10 -  made his debut a few weeks ago at Boluspor, young midfielder was captain of the youth team and will be hoping for more playing time in the second half of the season.

Serkan Sirin - 6/10 - Has all the skill and talent to make a very good footballer, but unfortunately his work rate and attitude let him down. His attitude has led to him being dropped to the reserve team. If he can work on this then he can have a very bright future ahead of him.

Timur Ozgoz - 8/10 - Timur has had a fantastic debut season with Ankaragucu. He waited 2 years to make his debut with the club and hasn't disappointed. His work rate and goals have given Ankaragucu hope in the fight against relegation. Scoring at Besiktas and his performances in the PTT Lig have alerted the likes of Besiktas and Genclerbirligi who are both reported to be interested in the twenty five year old. Ankaragucu have offered him a new 1 year contract which the club will be hoping he signs.

Sinan Kurumus - 6/10 - Mustafa Kaplan made Sinan a regular started alongside Timur up front. His physical presence has complimented Timur and his hold up play also allows the midfield to get forward and support. His performances didn't go un noticed as Besiktas have agreed a 5 year deal with the striker.

Umit Nayir - 4/10 - The top scorer for the youth team and similar in style to Sinan. Tall and physical striker who has made a couple of performances but yet to score. With the sale of Sinan he may get more playing time in the second half of the season.

Teoman Sefa Erkan - 5/10 - Again the young striker hasn't featured much this season and will also be looking for more playing time in the second half of the season.

Oghuzan Bicer - 0/10 - Has only featured once as a substitute this season.

Artun Kutukcu - 0/10 The young striker will be looking to break into the first team after the winter break.



Goal of the season - There were a couple up for contention, The goals by Timur and Kaan at Besiktas but the winner is Gokhan Erdogan for his superb goal against Caykur Rizespor. The winger went past his man before cutting inside and blasting his shot from outside the box into the top corner.

Save of the season - Gokhan Akkan for his save against Kartalspor just before half time. It kept the sides at 0-0 at half time before Ankaragucu came out and won 1-0 in the second half.

Merry Christmas to everyone at the Round ball in Ankara.

Yet another draw for Genclerbirligi

Genclerbirligi close out the first half of the season with another boring 0-0 draw. Sums up the season really.

Genclerbirligi 0 - 0 Bursaspor

Christmas shopping put paid to any chances of me getting down to the pub to watch this one so instead I managed to get a tiny bit on the radio.

Seemed as though I didn't miss much though.

Just reading the minute-by-minute report by Milliyet gives you an idea of how exciting the match must have been... it doesn't bother with any entries at all after 69 minutes.

I guess the reporter fell asleep. Or perhaps he died a horrible death? There was after all a small fire in the press box caused by someone trying to liven things up a dropped cigarette.

Anyway it seems as if both teams had a couple of chances with Bursa probably the most annoyed at not winning. And er... that's it.

Happy Christmas everyone and see you after the winter break (which I think is four weeks).

ANKARAGUCU - MATCH ABANDONED UNDER A HAIL OF GOALS AND ..... PLASTIC MISSILES !

All images taken from NTV Spor

Greetings Kankas and Kankies.

Ankaragucu   0      Konyaspor    3   (Match Abandoned after 40 minutes).

Battle Damaged Kanka Damon and I arrived in the Stadium tonight to a serenade of all the popular songs from Gecekondu and the the others.   A good atmosphere and lots of smiley faces ........ at least for now !!

Gecekondu was almost full and in high voice volume, Sol Kapali was full and Maraton was half full and all were adding to the volume.

Ankaragucu began the match in attacking mode and could easily have scored 2 goals in the first 5 minutes but for some poor finishing and good defending.

15 minutes in and, having settled, Konya were looking the most likely team to unlock the stalemate.   Bayram was being called into action more and having to look lively to cover all the shots raining in on him.

The inevitable came in the 24th minute from a great sweeping move from Konya down the left wing.   The cross came in to the far post from No 11 and it was headed down to the Konya attacker lurking just outside the penalty box and he fired in a great shot to the corner with Bayram deceived and rooted to the spot.

Ankaragucu tried to respond but Konya in all honesty were having none of it.   The 2nd duly arrived after the half hour mark from a free kick just outside the box.   It was obviously a rehearsed move when the excellent No 11 (don't know his name, but he was defo my Man of the Match) received a tap kick and fired in a fantastic shot to the left corner giving Bayram no chance.

5 minutes later it was 3 when that No 11 (again) went flying down the left wing and into the penalty box he went to be confronted by two defenders scurrying back.   He was tackled, but went down and ............ surprise surprise ........ the referee blew for a penalty.   No way !!!    If you trip over your own feet does that mean it is a penalty ??!!    I've said it before, and I'll say it again .......... referees need to be 100% sure that it is a penalty before they bring the whistle to their mouth.   99% is not .... repeat ...... not .... enough !!!

We were staring into the abyss of defeat at this stage, and in all fairness, there was no complaint from us about the first two goals.   Konya was looking a pretty damn good team !

Then in the 40th minute all Hell broke loose ..................

Some provocative words were uttered from the Konya end (which had about 200 fans) and some sort of insulting banner was raised.   OK, there was never any love lost between the supporters of Konya and Ankaragucu, but at 3-0 the Konya boys should have shown a little bit of restraint and understanding - at least for their own safety !!

This action made one young lad from Gecekondu to scale the fence and run the whole length of the pitch towards the Konya fans (without being apprehended !) to take the Konya fans on by himself.   He almost made it !

It was just the spark that was needed to set Gecekondu off ........... the bangers and chairs came flying down, first in Gecekondu and then Maraton and Sol Kapali joined in.   Ooooops, here we go again we thought.   But, this was just the 'apperitif' !

Gecekondu forced open the gate to the pitch and there was a flood of Gecekondu boys onto the pitch in what was really an invasion.  Hundreds ....... not just a few ........ and ....... in the meantime ....... the chairs, and bits of them shaped like missiles were still raining down on all sides.    It was horrendous.

We looked at each other, and speechless, made our way up to the top of Maraton to avoid the missiles which were flying in all directions.

The Police were powerless to stop it, but at least they did manage to escort all the Konya supporters out of the stadium for their safety before they allowed the Ankaragucu gates to open.

The pitch and peri-track was littered with bits of plastic chairs and eventually after about 15 minutes or so  the pitch was cleared of fans, but the players had all retreated to their dressing rooms.

We decided that the match was abandoned and retreated to The Chopin !!!

What the outcome will be remains to be seen, but there will no doubt be a lengthy Stadium ban in the second half of the season at least.

Mmmmmm ....... supporting Ankaragucu is never dull !!!

Thank God we have a winter break to catch our breath !

All the best from Eski Kanka Jim

Ankaragucu vs Konyaspor match abandoned due to crowd trouble !

More news to come later on this when Jim and Damon put up the match report, well half match report that will be as the game was abandoned after 40 Minutes due to crowd trouble. It seemed to start when Konyaspor unveiled a banner which Ankaragucu fans didn't like.

More to follow ....

Besiktas close in on Sinan Kurumus transfer !

                                                          Picture taken from Hurriyet



Ankaragucu striker Sinan Kurumus is close to agreeing a move to Besiktas according to reports from the Gecekondu website. The 18 year old striker has stamped his place in the first team since the arrival of Mustafa Kaplan as head coach.

The move will come as a bit of a surprise for both the player and the club with players such as Timur, Umit and Mert all tipped for a move to the Super Lig before him. The club have managed to come to an  agreement with Umit which will see the big defender stay at the club for the time being.

In other news, as mentioned in the match preview thread, Ankaragucu have agreed to pay Calvin Sosibo his outstanding payments over 8 instalments starting in February. According to a source close to the Round Ball in Ankara there could be some good news in the near future in regards to the future of the club. We will keep you updated.

The transfer of Emre Tasdemir to Trabzonspor has fallen through, Ankaragucu should register him after the winter break as the talented youngster is more than capable of playing in the first team and would also give Mehmet Tasci a bit of competition for that left back spot.

Ankaragucu vs Konyaspor match preview !

Before we look ahead to this weekends match with Konyaspor, Klasspor broke some important news regarding the future of Ankaragucu and the upcoming congress. It has been revealed that Mehmet Yiginer will run for President of the club and will look to lift the current transfer ban and has also said he wont sell any of the current players.

We have heard this far to often with previous candidates, all the lies and broken promises. Mr Yiginer is also a very close friend of Melih Gokcek and held a meeting with the Mayor of Ankara before announcing that he will be running for president. On the other hand current President Atilla Suslu spoke positivly about the situation saying they can work together for the sake of Ankaragucu. The big question is the role in which Melih Gokcek will play in all this ?

Onto Sunday afternoons match at home to Konyaspor. A huge game again for Ankaragucu as this is the last game before the winter break. A home win and three points would give the club the lifeline which would keep them in with a chance of survival and allow the new president to bring in experienced players for the second half of the season.

The last time both sides met Ankaragucu won 2-0 in Konya thanks to a double by Drago Gabric. That same season Ankaragucu also won 4-1 at home thanks to goals from Ozgur Cek, Metin Akan, Jan Rajnoch and Stanislav Sestak after Konyaspor had taken the lead. Both sides are unrecognisable since then having gone through so many changes.

Konyaspor are sitting in the bottom half of the table nine points ahead of Ankaragucu who are rooted to the bottom. They are currently unbeaten in their last three games having won at Manisaspor whilst drawing at home to Sanliurfaspor last week. Ankaragucu on the other hand were unlucky to lose 2-1 at Denizlispor thanks to poor refereeing decisions that cost the club at least a point.

Ankaragucu will be without Umit Kurt through suspension which will be a huge blow as Umit has been the clubs best performer to date. Mehmet Tasci, Kaan Kanak and Mert Erdogan are all carrying knocks and will be hoping to be fit for the game. Another tough call this one, but if Ankaragucu can perform to the same level as they did at home to Rize a couple of weeks ago then there is no reason why we cant win.

Ticket prices are 5 Turkish Lira so get along to the 19 Mayis Stadium 1300 on Sunday afternoon to cheer the team on to victory.

Ankaragucu financial crisis continues !

Photo courtesy of Belicikhaber


President Atilla Suslu today held a press conference to discuss the financial crisis at the club. Thanks to Damon who translated the points raised by our President.

* Has asked for another 15 days to pay the bank money owed for the Roman Bednar loan deal from West Brom. Failing this the club will receive a 6 point penalty deduction.

* Has claimed that former staff like Hakan Kutlu and Nazmi Bonhoff aren't helping the club in their efforts to lift the transfer ban as they are asking to be paid the money they are owed.

* Hikmet Hancioglu is now owed money due to his dismissal from the club

* Will remove Cemal Aydin as honorary president of the club

* Wants Cemal Aydin to resign from club and allow Ahmet Gokcek to return if he wishes

* The club cant get sponsorship due to businessmen not wanting to be associated with a losing club

* Has opened up membership for everyone at 1050 Turkish Lira, but it will be closed at end of December so is urging everyone to join now

* Debts for players wages such as Umit Kurt, Bilal Gulden and Gokhan Akkan still to be paid

Some interesting points brought up, the biggest one for me is removing Cemal Aydin from the club. As Damon mentioned on facebook tonight, how can you trust these men with your money otherwise we would all become members ?

Thanks to Klasspor for the above news

I'll take that. Genclerbirligi draw with Besiktas

I don't really understand Genclerbirligi. Some matches we stand up, like last night, and others we just stay asleep. Weird.

Genclerbirligi 1 - 1 Besiktas

It's that time of year again. The time of goodwill, pretending to like everyone and of course, over indulgence. So for me it was Christmas drinks, then put on lots and lots of warm clothes and then Little Oz Kanka and myself jumped into a taxi and off to the stadium.

Anatolian Emre and @SpineSideburn got into the stadium just a few minutes after us and despite the fact that Maraton was packed we managed to get standing spots quite close to each other. One other attendee tonight was Little Oz Kanka's mate Tom. His older brother supports Besiktas and so his old man got them all tickets for the Besiktas Kapali section. Tom has vowed though that he will continue to support Gencler.

It happens time and time again but there were a whole heap of Besiktas supporters in our section. While I guess that quite a few of them were season ticket holders there were also quite a few who had bought tickets. I know because the bloke in front of me at the gate was one of them. As soon as they got into the stadium they hung around near the locked gate between Maraton and Saatli demanding to be let into the Besiktas section. The cops weren't going to do it and during the match itself they even made a small charge at Gencler supporters. That's right, the cops charged our guys not the people who shouldn't have been there in the first place.

If they had even half a brain the cops would have simply rounded up the Besiktas supporters and kicked them out. But no, that would be too logical.

Onto the football and Gencler came out in an attacking mood. Petkovic, Jimmy and Lekic had a good start and if Azo had been a bit more precise with some of his passes I reckon Lekic could have had a couple. All the attacks in the first few minutes were ours and, unlike during so many other matches against "lesser" teams, we were forcing the Besiktas keeper into making saves.

The pressure paid off and we scored yet another goal from a set piece. Azo took a free kick from the left about half way into their half. He sent it into the box and seemingly over everyone except for Ante Kulusic who came flying in and booted it in.

The stadium roared and the Istanbul Cocuklari were quiet for the first time.

We kept up the attack but it was Besiktas who scored after a very unlucky deflection off one of our players. Ouch.

And then we had what I thought was a very decent penalty appeal turned down when Hursut was pushed over in the box. Then another one turned down when they handballed in the box. The refereeing has been absolutely awful in the last few months or so and this was yet another example.

Half-time 1-1.

Second half and er.... it was Besiktas all the way. Between minute 45 and 70 I doubt we even had the ball. This wasn't because we were playing badly just that Besiktas were brilliant. Some wonderful passing and if it wasn't for some good saves by Ramazan as well as some god awful shots from point blank, I reckon we could have lost it 3-1. Still, it was fun singing out in unison "Gerizekalı" at the unlucky player who had missed.

Last few minutes though we came back in and their keeper saved 'em. All the front guys were playing brilliantly but somehow or other the ball didn't go into the net. After three minutes of extra time the referee blew it up with us having the ball on the edge of the box. I know that the laws state that the game should end at the end of time, no matter where the ball is, but that is a law that is broken every single match! Once again the decisions just weren't going our way.

A draw against Besiktas is a good result and despite the cold it was a great game.
 

Denizlispor-Ankaragucu

Photo courtesy of Berkay Demirdamar

Denizlispor: İsmail, Erhan Kartal, Mailkov, Berkay, Oğuzhan, Hüseyin, Haluk, İsmail Haktan, Veli Acar, Can Erdem, Bajram Fetai

Ankaragücü: Bayram, Ümit, Volkan, Aytaç, Mehmet Taşçı, Gürkan, Mert Erdoğan, Timur Bayram, Gökhan Erdoğan, Kaan, Sinan

Watching the match on TRT's WebTV. The first half hour has come and gone without much of note happening. The teams are looking more or less equally capable--at times incapable--but neither one has really come alive yet.

Well, I take that back. Veli just scored for Denizli off a corner from Bajram.

Denizlispor 1--Ankaragucu 0

And now Timur almost equalized. My how things have changed.

Unfortunately, TRT doesn't post the time, so I have no idea how far into the match we are unless the commentat...

Timur scores after a goal mouth melee!!!

Denizlispor 1--Ankaragucu 1

And we go into halftime with that score. 

Anyway, as I was saying it is too bad that TRT doesn't let us know the time. We'll just have to rely on the commentators mentioning it from time to time.

Second Half

Volkan shoots from pretty far out and almost scores. Nice save by the Denizli keeper.

AG is bombarding the Denizli goal now. Beautiful kick on the turn by Timur. Some nice saves by keeper Ismail.

Denizli now on the attack. Dangerous but we emerge unscathed.

Our fans were just shown with their scarves held high. Commentators mentioned that four buses made it out to Denizli, but it looks like more than that.

We are back on the attack. Spending a lot of time inside of their goal box, but so far no results.

Now it is time for our defense to shine. Saving us from a renewed Denizli attack. I'm involuntarily holding my breath at moments now. We need to score again, so I can relax a bit.

They keep attacking us from the left. We're safe for the moment, but something has to be done about that or it will catch up with us.

Bellshill kanka sends me this message:

denizli coming back into the game now, kaan is a machine

 I agree with him on both counts.

And now Denizli is attacking again on the left.

Ok we're on the attack now. Sinan is fouled. Ball back in play, but Denizli wrestle it away from us.

Ok, we got it back. Now Denizli. Now us. Kaan shot on goal blocked. This is all a bit dizzying.

Our defense back to warding off threats. What a difference in the quality of the defense in recent weeks.

Look at our fans. What the hell are they doing? Looks like AG line dancing or something.

Timur on the attack again. Denizli defender tackles it away. Corner. Ball in the air. No one can get high enough. Cleared.

Last 14 minutes of the match according to TRT.

Can Erdem scores for Denizli.

Denizlispor 2--Ankaragucu 1

Kaan off. Hasan comes on in his place.

One of the Denizli players rolling around on the ground to kill time now.

Bellshill Kanka suggests that the goal may have been off side. Need a replay.

Yellow card Denizli 77 for brutal sliding tackle on Hasan.

Umut on for captain Mert. Ümit takes over captaining duties.Caner

We are running out of time, guys. C'mon...No, Caner and Denizli on the attack again shoots from the top of the box but misses.

Denizli number 9 Haluk elbows Mehmet in the face, but there is no card. Belllshill Kanka a wee bit outraged, as well he should be.

Only two minutes of regular play left.

71 Orhan comes in for Mehmet with three minutes of injury tme.

Denizli bring new player on. M.Bulut comes on for Bajram.

Denizli almost score on the corner when Bayram fumbles a bit, but Vokan is able to clear it.

We score but the ref. disallows it!!! Our fans breaking chairs now apparently. Was there a foul. That appears to be the decision.

I can hear the Gecekondu chant from the tribunes. We may have lost but we did not lose quietly. Nor did we go down easily. Decent performance. I would really like to see replays of Caner's goal, and of our disallowed goal. But whether we like it or not the match ends. I am gutted as are all Gucu fans, I'm sure. 

Denizlispor 2--Ankaragucu 1Bellshill Kanka, who probably had a bigger screen and knows the laws of the game better than I, has this to say, "the challenge on hasan should have saw denizli down to 10 men, if not that the elbow on mehmet should have. and then the goal at the end, the goalkeeper didnt have the ball off the ground and that is the rule. it was a clear goal

Our fans are pulling seats out and throwing them onto the field. The announcer is denouncing this type of behaviour. Some things never seem to change.

Ankaragucu vs Denizlispor match preview !

Before we preview this weekends match against Denizlispor, a bit of an update on the Emre Tasdemir transfer to Bursaspor. The youngster is at the centre of a transfer tug of war between Bursa, Trabzonspor and Galatasaray. Earlier this week it looked like he was on his way to Bursaspor in a 500,000 TL move. But according to Klasspor it is believed that both Trabzonspor and Galatasaray have offered him a more attractive package. More to follow.

Back to the match between Ankaragucu and Denizlispor. Two seasons ago both clubs were in the Turkish Super Lig, that year Denizlispor were relegated with Ankaragucu following them into the PTT League the season after. In the two times they met in the Super Lig that season, Ankaragucu won 1-0 at home thanks to a Baki Mercimek goal, while the return game in Denizli finished 0-0.

Times have changed with both teams coming into financial difficulty. Both teams have a strong following and are clubs who really should be in the Super Lig. The game will be played in Denizli on Saturday afternoon 1600 Turkish Time, 1400 UK Time. You can see the full game on TRT Web TV.

Like Ankaragucu, the visitors are on a 4 match unbeaten run as they look to stay clear of the relegation zone. In the last couple of weeks the teams at the bottom have started to pick up points putting pressure on the clubs above them. Former Ankaragucu Goalkeeper Zafer Ozgultekin is part of the Denizli squad whose star players include Ismail Odabasi, former Inverness Caley Thistle Striker Eric Odhiambo, and finally former Rangers striker Bajram Fetai who used to come into my shop in Glasgow.

Since his arrival Mustafa Kaplan has took 6 points from a possible 12 which is good going for a club sitting bottom of the league. Added to that a fantastic performance against Besiktas in the cup, he really has Ankaragucu playing some good football whilst adding steel to the defence. Again Ankaragucu will look for big performances from the likes of Umit Kurt, Timur Ozgoz and the Erdogan brothers. As Damon said in his report last week, Kaan Kanak has been very impressive of late and hopefully he can continue.

Like every match Ankaragucu play this season, it will be a tough 90 minutes, if they can show the same discipline and determination they showed last week in the 2-1 win over Rize then there is no reason why we cant bring 3 points back to Ankara. This is Ankaragucu we are talking about though and you never know what to expect.

Gencler bow out of the cup

Gencler lost this evening. I guess I won't have to bother with the Cup anymore.

Genclerbirligi 2 - 3 Mersin Idmanyurduspor

The end.

Emre Tasdemir signs for Bursaspor !

Ankaragucu youngster Emre Tasdemir tonight signed for Bursaspor in a deal worth 500 thousand Turkish Lira. The 17 year old left back has had glowing reviews since breaking into the Turkey under 17 National team. It was only a matter of time before Tasdemir broke into the first team, but a move to Super Lig side Bursaspor was to much to turn down.

With the January transfer set to open in a couple of weeks, talks of Ankaragucu players such as Umit Kurt, Timur Ozgoz, Mert Erdogan and Gokhan Akkan moving to Super Lig sides have all been discussed, it is a bit of a surprise that the first player to go is a player who hasn't even played a single minute of first team action for the club.

The money raised from the sale will come in handy and hopefully that money will go to the first team players wages after all their hard work which see the club still in with a chance of survival.

News taken from Ankaragucu facebook page.

Umit Kurt and Timur Ozgoz latest !

Ankaragucu president Atilla Suslu spoke last night about the future of the club, its players and the upcoming congress. According to Klasspor, Suslu confirmed that the congress has been moved to January as they continue to search for a strong management. Suslu said Ankaragucu have had many problems in the past and it is important they find the right management otherwise he will stay on.

In regards to the current squad, Ankaragucu are hoping to keep all their players, but Umit Kurt has serious offers from 3 Super Lig sides. Umit has been a stand out player this season and a move to the Super Lig would be well deserved. If Ankaragucu do lose Umit it would be a huge blow in the battle against relegation.

Timur Ozgoz has been offered a new 1 year contract as his current contract finishes in May, Suslu claimed talks were positive and he is hoping the German striker will sign the deal on the table. Ankaragucu have also come to an agreement with Bochum which will see the club pay back the Stanislav Sestak transfer fee in instalments, the German side in return have agreed to wave 1 Million Euros from the 2.6 Million Euro fee.

Lets hope Ankaragucu can hang on to both Timur and Umit until the end of the season as both have been big performers for the club this season.

An away point but still not brilliant from Gencler

A last minute goal against your team is always going to hurt. In Saturday's match Kasimpasa scored in the last minute of extra time. A kick in the trousers? Yep. Ultimately though I have to admit that a draw was probably a good result for Gencler.

Kasimpasa 2 - 2 Genclerbirligi

Up nice and early with plenty of time before the match to find @SpineSideburn having a fag outside our place. Jumped in his car and with Little Oz Kanka in the back we headed off to the stadium.  

What a location! The RTE with the Golden Horn in the background.

Listened in to the cricket (via Test Match Sofa) from India and five hours later we made it to Cihangir and said hello to our hosts for the evening. A few minutes later we said goodbye to our hosts and we walked off to the Recep Tayyip Erdogan Stadium for the 2pm kick-off.

Absolutely wonderful weather in Istanbul and what a lovely little stadium the RTE is. It is nestled just over the road from the Pera Palace and the British Consulate in Beyoglu but I doubt that any tourists would have a clue that it exists. I'd guess it would hold maybe 10,000 people and, except for the area where they placed us away fans, almost all the seating is right on the touchline. No running track stupidity.

Our mule Little Oz Kanka Matthew had our coins taken off him by the over zealous private security guards but the police at least realised that we were unlikely to riot. That decision may have had something to do with the fact that there were only 19 of us Gencler fans (and I'm pretty sure that one of them was a police undercover agent).

Certainly no animosity from the rather small Kasimpasa crowd either. Before the match had started one group of them started chanting at us "Hosgeldiniz" - "Welcome". During the match itself they rarely whistled and most of the time merely called out "yonetim istifa". I hadn't heard that one from our Gencler supporters for quite a while, so it made us all feel quite nostalgic.

40 bloody lira!

Onto the football and well, we couldn't see all that much as we were behind the goals and the view was not brilliant. And how much did we pay for what were the worst seats in the stadium? Forty-bloody lira! At least we managed to smuggle Little Oz Kanka in for free.

It was quite difficult to tell exactly what was going on but we took the game to the opposition and probably dominated play. We couldn't get many shots on though and actually we were very lucky not to concede on the couple of occassions that Kasimpasa ventured near our goal. Ramazan for some reason wasn't keeping and Ozkan made a good replacement, although I can't be sure of his positioning for the two goals that were to come later on.

0-0 at half-time and er... the sun was nice and warm.

Second half and all was change.

We scored off a corner I think with Jimmy heading home. All looking good but the goal waking Kasimpasa up. They scored and then we broke back again just a minute later. A good 25 minutes to go and Kasimpasa attacked and attacked and were extremely unlucky not to score. I have no idea what happened but our defence just seemed pathetic for such a long time. Being ahead, perhaps we allowed them to attack and sat back too much.

Little Oz and Big Oz.

Deep into extra time and Jimmy on the attack passed it to his left to Lekic (this was Lekic's best game so far by the way). Jimmy went down for some reason, and Lekic found himself in a bloody good position with no one to pass it to. Kasimpasa get the ball and the referee blows it up in order for Jimmy to be treated. Jimmy wasn't injured. he was wasting time. If he had stayed on his feet he could have helped out Lekic and could well have scored another goal. Instead, he limped about and Kasimpasa were rightly pissed off with what some people call gamesmanship, others call it cheating.

By the way, besides this I thought Jimmy had an excellent game. He seemed to be sending so many good crosses into the box. The hassle for a few too many of them was that there was no one at the receiving end. At the end of the match I mentioned to @SpineSideburn that perhaps we missed Herve Tum whose big bald head last year met so many of those sort of crosses.

Play resumes, Kasimpasa get the ball and score. 2-2 and quite frankly I think we were lucky to get the point.

The away crowd. Photo by @kirmizikara

No surprise when the police held us in for a bit and the wonderful Kasimpasa fans started chanting "Gençler". We chanted back "Paşa" and we all left in love and warmth. A great weekend away.

Ankaragucu turn over a new (tea) leaf. Ankaragucu 2 Caykur Rizespor 1

I had just had lunch with my wife and in-laws, and it was now time to head to the stadium for what was hopefully not going to be another loss. I hailed a cab, and all was going well until we hit Ataturk Blvd. where the traffic was backed up.

Fortunately my Ankara born and bred cabby was a good conversationalist and I listened to his ideas about people in Ankara supporting Istanbul teams, about the differences between Gencler and Ankaragucu fans, and about the differences between the Inner-Anatolian dialect of Turkish versus other dialects.

By the time we reached the stadium I realized I was going to miss the beginning of the match. So I hurried to the ticket both where upon arriving some middle-aged, bearded fan in a panic pushed ahead of me in line and then scampered off with his ticket in one hand and his piece of cardboard (to cover the dirty seats) in the other.

I got my ticket and sprinted for the gate, passing my bearded friend along the way. As I went through the turnstile, I worried about two things: one, that the police doing the pat down would take my pen off me, and the other was that when I emerged from the short tunnel that I would look up and see that Rize had already scored.

Both of my worries were unfounded, and when I looked up and read the scoreboard a huge smile spread across my face. Not only were we not down, but we had actually scored in the first five minutes of the match. I quickly learned from one of my fellow fans that our midfielder Bilal had scored the goal off one hell of a throw in from 25 Gurkan.

Hakemler: Kuddusi Müftüoğlu, Ömer Faruk Yeşil, Baki Yiğit

Ankaragücü: Bayram , Aytaç , Volkan , Ümit , Mehmet Taşçı , Gürkan , Bilal , Kaan  (Dk. 86 Hasan ), Timur, Gökhan Erdoğan  (Dk. 88 Enes ), Sinan (Dk. 66 Mehmet Nayir )

Çaykur Rizespor: Loriya , Orhan  (Dk. 72 Fahri ), Serhat , Sezer , Onur , Abdullah , Cumali , Caner  (Dk. 46 Mehmet ), Kenan , Ahmet, Erhan  (Dk. 65 Çağrı)

Goller: Dk. 3 Bilal, Dk. 58 Gökhan Erdoğan (Ankaragücü), Dk. 90+2 Fahri (Çaykur Rizespor)

Sarı kartlar:Bilal, 89 Ümit (Ankaragücü)

As soon as I found my seat, I messaged Eski Kanka Jim (who was stuck at work) with the good news. His response was "make it two."

Easier said than done. Not that Rize were really threatening in any way. Weakened by the absence of their two dangermen Kalu and Jallow, every shot they took was off target, and our defense was as thirsty as Eski Kanka Jim with a bottle of Efes in front of him. Our captain Ümit Kurt in particular was soaking up everything that came his way. With his imposing frame he seemed to win every ball in the air and  was consistently able to muscle the ball away  from Rize on the ground. My vote for man of the match.

A hard decision though because a number of our other players were also superb. 07 Kaan Kanak caught my attention when he somehow managed to insert himself between the ball and the attacking player to which it was seemingly attached. He then proceeded to wrestle it away and clear it from our half all without even the hint of a foul. He sustained this level of play for all ninety minutes.

And then there was 10 Timur who appeared to be everywhere. His speed and endurence are impressive even if nothing concrete came of it in the first half which ended with the same 1-0 score that I had seen when entering.

During halftime, some of the young fans in one of the groups sitting in Marathon climbed behind the uppermost seats and mocked the Rize (which is lies on the Black Sea Coast) fans with their imitations of Black Sea dancing and hollering.

Apparently, some of the slightly less juvenile AG fans in their group took offense at this antagonizing of our opponents' fan groups Rotasızlar and Mekansızlar, though, and told them to come down and rejoin the group. When they didn't respond immediately and showed a bit of a rebellious streak, their slightly older mates lost their patience and came up after them. The kids quickly dispersed and then rejoined their group.

Not sure who this guy but he is a fantastic tribune leader.

The second half nearly began with an AG goal the way the first half had. 09 Sinan received a cross right in front of the goal but fumbled it. Then there was a great run by Timur who passed to 14 Erdogan whose shot was taken down by Rize keeper David Loria, formerly of the Kazak national team.

And then finally it happened. Ankaragucu made Eski Kanka Jim's words so. Gokhan Erdogan received a pass in the AG half and then proceeded to make a gorgeous run up the left side of the pitch. When Rize's 12 Hassan finally came to block his way at the top of the box, Erdogan cut right ala David Villa and launched a rocket into the upper right hand corner of the goal well beyond Loria's reach.

Rize were now desperate to make something happen, but AG managed to diffuse their attack until Rize were granted a free kick in extra time. 04 Fahri managed to place it in the upper-left-hand-corner just beyond Bayram's reach, and the score was now 2-1. Rize had a minute or so to equalize. Ankaragucu were not about to let that happen though, and a minute later there was great rejoicing both on the pitch, in the stands,

and in the Chopin bar where Eski Kanka Jim was waiting to celebrate.

Ankaragucu vs Caykur Rizespor match preview !

Ankaragucu host Rize on Saturday afternoon at 2pm Turkish Time, 12 Pm UK Time. As usual all the talk of Ankaragucu this week has been about the going ons off field as opposed to on field. After a 1-1 draw at Boluspor last week Ankaragucu will be looking for that all important win to kick start their season in this battle against the drop.

This weeks opponents Caykur Rizespor are as tough as it gets in the PTT Lig, the front pair of Ousmane Jallow and Uche Kalu are the leagues strongest front line although it looks like Kalu is struggling to make the game through injury. After a fantastic start to the season Rize have went 5 games without a win, but still sit in 5th position in the league table.

Under Mustafa Kaplan Ankaragucu have drawn their 3 games in the PTT Lig, their have been signs of improvement but the team needs to start finishing teams off having took the lead in all of those game only to share the points. Mert Erdogan should return from suspension but the team will be without Orhan Evci and Serkan Sirin who have been demoted to the reserve team due to disciplinary problems.

Yet again Timur Ozgoz and Umit Kurt will have important roles to play in the team, Timur will need to take any chances that come his way and Umit will need to lead from the back. In the picture above Ankaragucu won 2-0 at home against Rize with one of Jim's favourite players Gustav Bebbe scoring both goals, lets hope for a similar result on Saturday.

Im not going to predict this one as it usually brings bad luck, lets get to the stadium and get behind the players and roar them onto victory.

Antalyaspor eye up move for Ankaragucu duo !

According to the Hurriyet newspaper, High flying Super Lig side Antalyaspor have made offers for Ankaragucu forwards Timur Ozgoz and Hasan Ayaroglu. It is believed that both players will see out the season with Ankaragucu before moving at the end of the season. Genclerbirligi are also interested in Timur who is believed to prefer to stay in Ankara.

Hasan Ayaroglu broke onto the seen last season at the age of 17, a string of impressive performances has saw him stay in the squad this season. Like any young player he has struggled with consistency this season and needs to work on the physical side of the game. He was rewarded with a call up to the Turkish International youth side last month.

Timur has along with Umit kurt been the clubs best player this season and is the clubs leading goalscorer. It took Timur just over 2 years to break into the first team since his move from Tennis Berlin. A couple of loan spells at Bugsas Spor and BFC Viktoria came before Timur broke into the Ankaragucu side this season. As the weeks have went past, Timur has improved every week and its no wonder that teams from the Turkish Super Lig are keeping tabs on him and Hasan.

Hopefully Ankaragucu can hold onto both players until the end of the season. The best scenario would be that both help the club stay in PTT League before moving on to further their career. It would be great to keep both players but that all depends on who comes in as the new management at the end of the season and if we can afford to keep them.

Serkan Sirin and Orhan Evci dropped to A2 team !

According to Sporyolu Mustafa Kaplan has tonight dropped both Orhan Evci and Serkan Sirin to the reserve team due to behaviour and discipline problems. Both players have been out of favour of late and its unclear as to what has led to this decision.

Orhan who played at right back at the start of the season before being replaced with Aytac Oden, has struggled to get back in the squad after a string of disappointing performances. Serkan Sirin is a player with a lot of ability but has become lazy and inconsistent of late.

Both players were amongst the players mentioned to be leaving the club due to unpaid wages, and it remains to be seen if their behaviour issues are connected. One thing is for sure, Ankaragucu cant afford any disruptions off field at the moment and if these two want to get back in the squad they need to get their heads down and fight for their place.

Mustafa Kaplan - players are going no where !

Ankaragucu manager Mustafa Kaplan claimed tonight that none of his players would be leaving after a meeting with the board. Over the last couple of days there have been question marks over the futures of 8 of the Ankaragucu squad.

According to Spor Yolu Kaplan said " if the transfer ban is lifted we will continue, if not we will sign three players from the youth team and continue the fight." Players such as Timur Ozgoz, Hasan Ayaroglu and Gokhan Akkan have been linked with Turkish Premier Lig sides Antalyaspor and Genclerbirlig. While the likes of Umut Kurt, Serkan Sirin, Bilal Gulden, Orhan Evci and Kaan Kanak have been rumoured to be free agents if their wages are not paid by Christmas.

Im sure every Ankaragucu fan would agree that the biggest Christmas present we could ask for, is Ankaragucu getting back to the good old days.

Referee ruins another match for Gencler

The referees certainly haven't helped Genclerbirligi in the last few weeks and last night was no exception. At the same time though Gencler have also not been playing very good football and as a result of a combination of both factors we see ourselves slipping down the table.

Genclerbirligi 0 – 4 Trabzonspor

Met up in the Beer Bus with @pritchdan and later on @spinesideburn. Weather was a little cold but not too bad and whilst hopes weren't high we were looking forward to a good match. We didn't get it.

The match was ruined as a spectacle when Petkovic got sent off in the 17^th.

We had a free kick which Hursut was preparing to take. Players were jostling at the edge of the box as they always do. One of the Trabzon players sort-of headbutts Petkovic into the shoulder/chest. Petkovic pushes the Trabzon player back and the referee hands Petkovic a straight red.

Game was over at that point.  

Ankaragucu woes continue !

Ankaragucu were tonight rocked by the news that they have 17 days to pay the wages of Umit Kurt and Serkan Sirin or the players contracts will be canceled. Umit Kurt is owed 110,000 Turkish Lira and Serkan Sirin is owed 130,000.

Umit has been a rock at the heart of the Ankaragucu defence and looks to have a big future ahead of him. There is no doubting he is good enough to play in the Turkish Super Lig and to loose him for nothing would be a huge blow to the club.

Serkan has become an important member of the team, a flair player who can change a game with a touch of skill, just needs to find consistency. Again like his team mate Umit it would be a huge blow to loose him for nothing.

Ankaragucu are asking where the 900,000 the club is owed from the sale of Turgut Dogan Sahin to Gaziantepspor is ? And also the money for Ishak Dogan who went to Karabukspor. The club have been asking the same questions for a year now and the Turkish FA have still not investigated.

In the last couple of minutes Klasspor has reported that Orhan Evci, Bilal Gulden, Gokhan Akkan, and Kaan Kanak would all be free to go if the wages owed to the players arent paid before Christmas.

Boluspor 1-1 Ankaragucu match report !

Picture taken from TRT Spor

Ankaragucu have now taken the lead in their last three league games only for the score to finish 1-1 in each of the games. Another spirited performance today with yet another big refereeing decision that went against Ankaragucu.

Before the match started i spoke to Timur Ozgoz, the 25 year old German striker who has arguably been the stand out player this season for Ankaragucu. He spoke of his disappointment of loosing Wednesday nights match at Besiktas but the team were now focussed on winning at Boluspor.

There were a few changes in the Ankaragucu team, with Bayram injured he was replaced with Gokhan Akkan. Captain Mert was suspended so his place was taken by Gurkan Alver, and finally Teoman replaced Gokhan Erdogan who was dropped to the bench.

Team - Gokhan, Aytac, Mehmet, Umit, Volkan, Teoman, Bilal, Gurkan, Kaan, Sinan, Timur

Subs - Cihan, Gundogdu, Hasan, Gokhan Erdogan, Enes, Umut


Boluspor started the match the stronger, they passed the ball well while Ankaragucu struggled to get a hold of the match in the first 10 Minutes. The first chance of the game came for Bolu when a shot from just outside the box came back off the crossbar with Gokhan beaten. Then came the first goal of the game, Ankaragucu won a free kick which was taken by Kaan Kanak, the midfielder floated an excellent cross into the box for Sinan who rose to head the ball into the top corner. 1-0

The Ankaragucu fans who turned up in their numbers were delighted and were even praised by the commentators on TRT for their incredible support. 21 Minutes into the match a lovely cross by Ergin met the head of the giant Serge Dijehoua but it was straight at Gokhan Akkan. Two minutes later another excellent corner from Kaan which Sinan got on the end of, but his header went inches above the crossbar when he should have scored.

That miss would come back to haunt Sinan, as a few minutes later Bolu equalised. Ali Guzeldal shot from 25 yards into the back of the net, maybe Gokhan should have done better but an excellent strike from Ali none the less. Gokhan redeemed himself 36 mins into the game, Guzeldal found Aziz in the Ankaragucu area who turned and blasted his shot, but a fantastic save from young Gokhan Akkan kept the scores level. Bolu had another half chance before half time after a mistake from Gokhan but the Ankaragucu defence managed to help their goalkeeper out.

Half Time 1-1

Ankaragucu made a change at the break with Enes replacing Teoman. The TRT stream was very poor in the second half but i still managed to keep up with the game. Ali Guzeldal and Kaan both had half chances within the first few minutes of the half. Kaan should have maybe passed the ball to Timur who was in a better position. 64 Minutes in and Bolu hit the woodwork again, another excellent shot which came back off the post. Playing in the midfield today for Boluspor was former Ankaragucu player Barbaros Barut, a player that was linked with a return to the club in the summer.

Gokhan Erdogan came on to replace Bilal and making his debut was Bilal Gundogdu who replaced Gurkan. Gundogdu is another player who has come through the Ankaragucu youth academy. Gokhan Akkan made another good save this time from Dijehoua and looked to have injured himself in the process.

Then came the talking point of the match with minutes remaining, a Gokhan Akkan goal kick found its way to Timur Ozgoz, the striker showed his pace before rounding the goalkeeper and placing the ball into the back of the net, one of the Bolu defenders in the process tried to clear it off the line which the referee thought he had. Replays showed that the full ball crossed the line.

How many games this season have we come away from when referee decisions have went against us ? Ankaragucu should be sitting comfortably at the moment instead they find themselves rooted to the bottom of the league. New manager Mustafa Kaplan now makes it 3 draws from his 3 games in charge. Next up is a home match against high flying Caykur Rizespor next Saturday afternoon. There is no doubting Mustafa Kaplan has made a difference since taking charge. Lets hope he gets his first win next week.