Samsunspor is a professional Turkish football club located in the city of Samsun. The club was formed through a merger of five clubs: 19 Mayıs, Akınspor, Fener Gençlik, Samsunspor, and Samsunspor Galatasaray.[1] The club colours are red and white, and they play their home matches at Samsun 19 Mayıs Stadium.[2]
| Samsunspor Kulübü | ||||
| Full name | Samsunspor Kulübü | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Kırmızı Şimşekler (The Red Lightning) | |||
| Founded | June 30, 1965 (48 years ago) | |||
| Ground | 19 Mayıs, Samsun | |||
| Capacity | 16.480 | |||
| President | Emin Kar | |||
| Head Coach | Erhan Altın | |||
| League | TFF First League | |||
| 2013–14 | TFF First League, 5th | |||
| Website | http://samsunspor.org.tr | |||
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Domestically, the club finished runners-up for the 2.Lig crown in 1968–69. The club yo-yoed between the top two divisions until 1993. After winning promotion to the 1.Lig for the sixth time, the club competed in Europe three times over a thirteen-year span, their longest in the top-flight. In continental competition, the club won a Balkans Cup in 1993–94.
They also competed in the UEFA Intertoto Cup twice, but haven't won the competition. The club have competed in the second division, now known as the 1.Lig, from 2006 until the promotion to Süper Lig in 2011 .
History
Samsunspor began their history in the 2.Lig, the second division of football in Turkey. The club finished fifth in their first season, missing out on the promotion group by two points.[3] The club also competed in the Turkish Cup that year. They reached round two after defeating Güneşspor in the first round, but would go on to lose 2–1 to Petrolspor.[4] The following season was more successful, as the club placed second in the 2.Lig, six points behind champion Bursaspor.[5] In the Turkish Cup, the club reached the semi-finals, defeating Konyaspor, Adanaspor, Manisaspor, Galatasaray, and Fenerbahçe along the way. They met Göztepe in the semi-finals, eventually losing 5–2 on aggregate. Samsunspor finished second in the 2.Lig and were knocked out in the first round of the Turkish Cup in 1967–68.[6][7]
The club earned their first promotion to the 1.Lig (Süper Lig) in 1969. They finished first in the Beyaz Grup (White Group) of the 2.Lig, six points ahead of runners-up Boluspor. Because there were two groups, the winners of each group played each other in a final game to decide the champion and the runner-up. Ankaragücü beat Samsunspor 1–0 in the final.[8] Samsunspor finished fifth in their first season in the 1.Lig, five points away from securing a spot in the Balkans Cup. The club finished with a record of eleven wins, nine draws, and ten losses, while scoring 24 goals and allowing 28.[9] Samsunspor finished tenth the following season and were knocked out of the first round of the Turkish Cup for the second year in a row.[10][11]
On 20 January 1989, while traveling to Malatya to face Malatyaspor, Samsunspor were involved in a bus accident. The accident killed five players and coaches, and seriously injured seven other team members. Among the players killed were Mete Adanır and Muzaffer Badaloğlu. Zoran Tomić, fell into a coma for six months before passing away in his native Yugoslavia. Manager Nuri Asan and the bus driver were also killed. Of the players who were injured, two continued playing. Emin Kar, captain of Samsunspor, was left paralyzed after the event. Fatih Uraz, then starting goalkeeper of Samsunspor and the Turkey national football team, broke a vertebrae in his back. He did make a return to football, but was unable to regain a starting place at either national or club level.[1][12]
Samsunspor competed in European competition for the first time in 1993. The club took part in the last edition of the Balkans Cup, defeating PFC Pirin Blagoevgrad before facing PAS Giannina in the final. The first leg took place in Greece, which Samsunspor winning 3–0. The second leg took place in Turkey, where Samsunspor sealed the championship with a 2–0 win.[13] The club competed in the 1997 UEFA Intertoto Cup after finishing in ninth place.[14] They were drawn into Group 6 alongside Hamburger SV, FBK Kaunas, Leiftur Ólafsfjörður, Odense Boldklub. Samsunspor finished second with nine points and were unable to advance.[15] The club qualified for the Intertoto Cup again the following season. Drawn against Danish club Lyngby Boldklub, Samsunspor took a 3–0 lead in the first leg. The club faced a scare in the second leg, advancing by one goal on aggregate after losing the match 1–3. They faced English club Crystal Palace F.C. in the second round, beating the club four to nil on aggregate. Samsunspor were knocked out of the cup in the semi-finals after losing 6–0 at the hands of Werder Bremen.[16]
In February 2012, the club members narrowly, and thankfully, averted tragedy after a train collided with their team bus. The team was apparently on their way home from an away match against Kardemir Karabükspor when the bus was side-swiped by a slow-moving train. Miraculously, not only were no players killed in the shocking crash, but only defender Hakan Arslan and midfielder Serdar Özkan suffered significant but not life-threatening injuries.[17]
Supporters
Samsunspor's main ultra group who go by the name, Şirinler (Smurfs) are well known for their ‘flare march’. Hundreds and sometimes thousands of Şirinler meet up at Çiftlik Avenue and walk to the 19 Mayis stadium with flares, turning the city red and creating an intense atmosphere.[18]
Current squad
As of 9 February, 2014. Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Honours
- TFF First League
- Runners-up (2): 1968–69, 2010–11
- Balkans Cup
- Winners (1): 1993–94
European Participations
| Season | Round | Country | Club | Home | Away | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | GS | 
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Odense | 2–0 | 2nd place | |
| GS | 
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Kaunas | 1–0 | |||
| GS | 
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Leiftur | 3–0 | |||
| GS | 
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Hamburg | 1–3 | |||
| 1998 | 2R |
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Lyngby | 3–0 | 1–3 | 4–3 |
| 3R | 
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Crystal Palace | 2–0 | 2–0 | 4–0 | |
| SF |
|
Werder Bremen | 0–3 | 0–3 | 0–6 |
Managers
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References
- ^ a b Samsunspor Tarihçe samsunspor.org.tr Template:Tr icon, accessed 19 July 2010
- ^ SAMSUN 19 MAYIS tff.org Template:Tr icon
- ^ Sivritepe, Erdinç 1965-1966 1. Lig turkish-soccer.com, accessed 19 July 2010
- ^ Pekin, Cem 1965-1966 - 4. Türkiye Kupası turkish-soccer.com, accessed 19 July 2010
- ^ Sivritepe, Erdinç 1966-1967 1. Lig turkish-soccer.com, accessed 19 July 2010
- ^ Sivritepe, Erdinç 1967-1968 1. Lig turkish-soccer.com, accessed 19 July 2010
- ^ Pekin, Cem 1967-1968 - 6. Türkiye Kupası turkish-soccer.com, accessed 19 July 2010
- ^ Pekin, Cem 1968-1969 Türkiye 2. Ligi turkish-soccer.com, accessed 20 July 2010
- ^ Sivritepe, Erdinç 1969-1970 1. Lig turkish-soccer.com, accessed 20 July 2010
- ^ Sivritepe, Erdinç 1970-1971 1. Lig turkish-soccer.com, accessed 20 July 2010
- ^ Pekin, Cem 1970-1971 - 9. Türkiye Kupası turkish-soccer.com, accessed 20 July 2010
- ^ Samsunspor Eski Futbol Şube Sorumlusu Mustafa Mutlu'dan Fatih Uraz'a Cevap spor.haberler.com Template:Tr icon, accessed 19 July 2010
- ^ Balkans Cup 1980-94 rsssf.com, accessed 20 July 2010
- ^ Sivritepe, Erdinç 1996-1997 1. Lig turkish-soccer.com, accessed 20 July 2010
- ^ UEFA Intertoto Cup 1997 rsssf.com, accessed 20 July 2010
- ^ UEFA Intertoto Cup 1998 rsssf.com, accessed 20 July 2010
- ^ "Turkish club Samsunspor survive after train crashes into bus". inside World Soccer. 11 February 2012.
- ^ SAMSUNSPOR turkish-football.com (English) accessed 29 May 2010
External links
