Sunday, November 29, 2009

ANKARAGUCU - BETTER LATE THAN NEVER !

Greetings Kankas and Kankies.

As Oz Kanka reported in the previous post ........

ANKARAGUCU 1 Denizlispor 0

Having laid siege to the Denizli goal for most of the 2nd half it took until the last few minutes of the match to make the break through.

Our giant defender, Mercimek, (built like a brick shit house) came up for a free kick and rose above everyone in the crowded penalty box to power it in, much to the relief of an almost full house.

More details tomorrow afternoon (had a late night at The Knight and Flight after the match !!).

All the best from Eski Kanka Jim


MONDAY 30 NOVEMBER

Greetings Again Kankas and Kankies.

The 'fantastic four' (Kaleci Kanka Tansu, Yankee Kanka, Huso Kanka and Eski) met up in the Chopin on a cloudy Ankara autumn day with rain threatening. Later the clouds didn't disappoint us and the rain poured out of them !

Because of the local Kurban Bayram holiday the streets were unusually quiet and I was the only customer in the Chopin until the others arrived.

However, when we arrived at the Stadium it was just like deja vu, ie, teaming with Ankaragucu punters ! The Stadium was almost full and the 5 tribunes were in full voice in expectation of a vicoreeee. btw, as I've said many times, being an optimist is a pre-requisite for supporting Ankaragucu !!

New Captain, Hurriyet, led the team out -

Senecky
El-Yasa, Ediz, Baki Mercimek and Broggi
Hurriyet, Adem Koc, Mehmet Cakir and Aydin
Vassell and Meye

2nd half substitutes used were Konate (who showed some great touches when he came on), Emre and Barbaros.

The first half was a bore, and with Ankaragucu attacking the Gecikondu End we expected more.

Mehmet Cakir had a good oppotunity but he shot over. Aydin, attacking from the left midfield position also had a couple of chances but he tried to do too much on his own when an early ball into the centre was the best option. However, having said that, he had a good match and could well have cemented his place in the team.

The 2nd half was a different story with Ankaragucu on all out attack and Denizli restricted to sporadic breakaways. However, the Ankaragucu defence was solid, and with Senecky also looking and playing confidently, there was never any danger of Denizli causing an upset.

I lost count of the number of corners which Ankaragucu forced, and as the clock showed 10 minutes to go we were beginning to despair. But, I remember telling Kaleci Kanka that a goal was inevitable (there's that optimism again !!).

Then with 5 minutes to go from a free kick on the left, expertly taken by Broggi, the ball was floated into the crowded penalty area and Baki the Giant rose above everyone to fire in a bullet of a header. Goaaaaaaal and relief and celebrations all round !!

A great 2nd half team performance. However, on the downside it has to be said that Vassell and Meye both had quiet matches and rarely threatened. Most of the goal attempts came from Broggi, El-Yasa and midfield, and of course, the goal scorer Baki. OK, evey player has an off-day but we will need more penetration up front from our 2 strikers next weekend in Trabzon.

Final whistle and cue for all the players to do an Ankara Misket Dance in the centre circle. Fantastic !

So, the MUST WIN match was won and thank God for that !

Back to The Knight and Flight for Kaleci and Eski to have lottsa celebrations drinkies !

Looking forward to next week then and Ankaragucu travel to Trabzon. As far as I'm aware at the moment, this match will take place on Sunday KO 4pm. So, we will probably watch it in The Chopin. See you all there.

All the best from Eski Kanka Jim

15 comments:

  1. Don't forget that when he was playing for Gencler we always referred to Baki Mercimek as Mr. Lentil. Hoping you continue the tradition. Well done on the win.

    ReplyDelete
  2. agreed jim , vassell and meye didn't grant confidence to us for a brilliant victory at trabzon and fenerbahçe match.

    the bench should look for other alternatives such as assigning emre as the only striker and putting an attacking midlefielder infront of hürriyet and adem.otherwise we will be unable to even appear in the halfcourt of trabzon.

    emergency bells ring but i am suspicious about whether fikret bey notice the insufficient condition for attacking portion and take some precaution.

    ReplyDelete
  3. OK Oz. For the uninitiated to the Turkish language, Mercimek is Lentil. So, to adhere to Oz Kanka's request we will henceforth refer to him at Baki Lentil !!!

    Fair comment from Celine, but ..... I'm sorry, I can't agree. We know Vassell and Meye's potential and we have to trust them that they will jell together.

    After all, this was only the 2nd time they played together.

    We should persist with them for a reasonable period of time before we start reaching for the axe !

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thrilled to hear of our victory. Thanks Eski for your report, the next best thing to being there.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous8:41 pm

    least we got the three points. Its going to be tough away at Trabzon and Fener. Is there any news on who our new manager will be ?

    nadeem

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous9:57 pm

    Well done on the win lads,very welcome.Two tough games ahead now,if gucu can get a result next weekend in Trabzon who knows what could happen in Istanbul?!

    Dublin Neil.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Well, Trabzon has been playing like absolute crap, so, away or not, there is no reason why we can't collect another three points.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous9:35 am

    It is clear that our team was ambitious and struggled throughout the match yesterday.
    But It is also clear that they have no game plan or strategy to ease the win or create the opportunities to win.
    This is basicly because of the lack of high quality midfielder who will orginise the team.
    In addition to a midfielder the coach is also not qualified enough to train a super league team and to take the confidence and the trust of the players.
    And it is a must to reinforce the midfield soonest if you target the top 5 and I hope Yıldıray will join us in the second term.
    And as far as I understand Jim is so optimistic about the forward line( Vassell end Meye )but unfortunately Iam not.
    Volkan

    ReplyDelete
  9. Jamie2:36 pm

    who is our coach?

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anonymous6:28 pm

    Fikret Yılmaz - Arif Peçenek

    Volkan

    ReplyDelete
  11. According to The Hurriyet today (5 December) Fikret Yilmaz and Nazmi Erdenerin will take charge of Ankaragucu's coaching for tomorrow's match in Trabzon. However, the long term plan is not clear.

    Perhaps some of our Turkish Kankas can shed some light on their past. If not, I'll try and find more information about them tomorrow and give details next week.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous7:34 pm

    Nazmi was one of the famous player of A.Gücü in 1980s.
    The fans were calling him as '' Bonhof Nazmi '' as he was significantly good in kicking the ball from long distances.
    Finally he was working as a coach in the youth system of A.Gücü.
    Volkan

    ReplyDelete
  13. so will they stay to coach or are will still looking for someone?

    ReplyDelete
  14. The buzz this morning is that Nazmi Erdenerin has been installed as Chief Coach.

    If he can manufacture some points from Trabzon and Fener he will be a hero, but ......

    Let's wait and see which way the wind blows !

    ReplyDelete