Having fun the Trabzon way
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Hürriyet Daily News
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Şubat 06, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - It may be hard to tell who will win the Turkcell Super League at the end of the season, but right now it is easy to pick the most cheerful one. Trabzonspor proves to have the highest spirits celebrating every win with the traditional dance of the city
It is either solid performances in back-to-back games, or the Kolbastı sessions after matches, but Trabzonspor is obviously geared up for a title win. In a division where the top six are lined up in a range of only six points it is would be unfair to say Trabzonspor is the hot favorite to win the Turkcell Super League, but the Black Sea Storm makes it look like the trophy is within a reach.
Actually, the Trabzon players celebrate every win like a season-end triumph. They gather in the center of the pitch after the final whistle and perform the traditional Kolbastı dance. As in a regular Black Sea wedding ceremony, one player goes into the middle while the others are clapping their hands to the rhythm, showing a picture-perfect sign of a group of footballers that like to play next to each other.
Solid displays
But chemistry alone will not win championships. What convinces Trabzonspor fans that the Black Sea side can actually end its 25-year drought is the team’s displays after the start of the second period of the league.
Trabzon started 2009 with a goal-less draw at Fenerbahçe. After failing to beat other contenders Galatasaray, Beşiktaş and Sivasspor, another draw would hardly look promising, but the way Trabzon dictated the play and just missed many scoring chances showed the team’s potential. If a team is playing against Fenerbahçe at the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium and dominates the play so much so that the opposition can only settle for one point with a great display by goalkeeper Volkan Demirel, that team can easily be labeled as a title contender.
Playing bravely in front of Fenerbahçe meant a lot for Trabzonspor. At the end of the day, it was Fenerbahçe who denied Trabzon a win in the Turkish championship in its best two chances in the last two decades.
In the 2003 to 2004 campaign, Trabzon ended the season as runner-up and four points behind Fenerbahçe. With basic mathematics, the Black Sea Storm could have won the title if it had not lost both games against Fenerbahçe.
More famously in the 1995 to 1996 season, Trabzonspor blew a perfect chance when it hosted Fenerbahçe with three weeks left. As the then-top-spot-holder, Trabzon would continue its lead even with a draw, but Fener won the game 2-1 with a late goal, causing the end of what was hailed "a second gold generation" for Trabzonspor, reminiscing about the club’s heyday during the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Now, Trabzon is as highly motivated as its heydays. Coach Ersun Yanal’s words confirm this as well. "My players are living in a really happy atmosphere and enjoying doing their jobs," said Yanal in a statement released on the club’s Web site earlier this week. "Their positive attitude translates into good performances. I hope that situation will continue in the future."
That upbeat mood can be read in recent comments made by the club’s new signing, Alanzinho. Despite only playing for 23 minutes in last weekend’s 2-0 victory against Ankaraspor, the Brazilian is quick to adapt "the Trabzon way."
"I loved kolbastı," said Alanzinho. "Dances like that are always seen when Africans and Brazilians are in the same team."
Upbeat mood
The midfielder agreed that those celebrations show that the spirits are high within the club.
"That shows that we are a team and enjoy playing together," he said. "I liked that when I saw it before coming to Turkey. I felt Trabzon is similar to Brazil culturally, which helps me adapt here easily."
If Trabzon can keep the spirits at this level and maintain its good performances, it should have little trouble beating lowly Ankaragücü in tonight’s game. The match at the Avni Aker Stadium will be the first time Trabzonspor will play a home league game this year and it will want to cap the return with a win.
Actually, the Trabzon players celebrate every win like a season-end triumph. They gather in the center of the pitch after the final whistle and perform the traditional Kolbastı dance. As in a regular Black Sea wedding ceremony, one player goes into the middle while the others are clapping their hands to the rhythm, showing a picture-perfect sign of a group of footballers that like to play next to each other.
Solid displays
But chemistry alone will not win championships. What convinces Trabzonspor fans that the Black Sea side can actually end its 25-year drought is the team’s displays after the start of the second period of the league.
Trabzon started 2009 with a goal-less draw at Fenerbahçe. After failing to beat other contenders Galatasaray, Beşiktaş and Sivasspor, another draw would hardly look promising, but the way Trabzon dictated the play and just missed many scoring chances showed the team’s potential. If a team is playing against Fenerbahçe at the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium and dominates the play so much so that the opposition can only settle for one point with a great display by goalkeeper Volkan Demirel, that team can easily be labeled as a title contender.
Playing bravely in front of Fenerbahçe meant a lot for Trabzonspor. At the end of the day, it was Fenerbahçe who denied Trabzon a win in the Turkish championship in its best two chances in the last two decades.
In the 2003 to 2004 campaign, Trabzon ended the season as runner-up and four points behind Fenerbahçe. With basic mathematics, the Black Sea Storm could have won the title if it had not lost both games against Fenerbahçe.
More famously in the 1995 to 1996 season, Trabzonspor blew a perfect chance when it hosted Fenerbahçe with three weeks left. As the then-top-spot-holder, Trabzon would continue its lead even with a draw, but Fener won the game 2-1 with a late goal, causing the end of what was hailed "a second gold generation" for Trabzonspor, reminiscing about the club’s heyday during the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Now, Trabzon is as highly motivated as its heydays. Coach Ersun Yanal’s words confirm this as well. "My players are living in a really happy atmosphere and enjoying doing their jobs," said Yanal in a statement released on the club’s Web site earlier this week. "Their positive attitude translates into good performances. I hope that situation will continue in the future."
That upbeat mood can be read in recent comments made by the club’s new signing, Alanzinho. Despite only playing for 23 minutes in last weekend’s 2-0 victory against Ankaraspor, the Brazilian is quick to adapt "the Trabzon way."
"I loved kolbastı," said Alanzinho. "Dances like that are always seen when Africans and Brazilians are in the same team."
Upbeat mood
The midfielder agreed that those celebrations show that the spirits are high within the club.
"That shows that we are a team and enjoy playing together," he said. "I liked that when I saw it before coming to Turkey. I felt Trabzon is similar to Brazil culturally, which helps me adapt here easily."
If Trabzon can keep the spirits at this level and maintain its good performances, it should have little trouble beating lowly Ankaragücü in tonight’s game. The match at the Avni Aker Stadium will be the first time Trabzonspor will play a home league game this year and it will want to cap the return with a win.