Real Yozgat!

Denizli beats Fener, Yozgat outplays Galatasaray, Okan Yilmaz joins Jardel at the goalscoring summit - Anatolia lives, OK?

Michael Severn

Antalya - Turkish Daily News

Oh, what a weekend it was for those of us who hold to the curious belief that soccer is played in parts of Turkey other than Istanbul! Leader Fenerbahce slumped to defeat in Denizli and had all the Galatasaray fans laughing for 24 hours -- until their own team sank almost without trace away to Yimpas Yozgatspor.

And what a remarkable match that was. The number two will return to haunt Galatasaray coach Mircea Lucescu -- two minutes of the game, two attacks, two Yozgat goals, courtesy of Ghanaians Kwame Ayew and Yaw Preko. Ayew's opener was timed at 32 seconds. Then there were the two penalties. Umit Davala missed a chance to score from the spot for Galatasaray midway through the first half. That would have made the score 2-1 and left it all to play for. When Ayew stepped up to take a penalty deep in the second half after he himself had been hauled down by Fatih Akyel, he made no such mistake and put the final result beyond doubt.

There is a strong Istanbul connection at Yozgat. Captain Cihat Aslan and playmaker Cengizhan Hincal are both Galatasaray rejects. So is "Papin" Mustafa Kocabey who came on as a late substitute. Preko was thrown out by Fenerbahce at the end of last season after moving there from Gaziantep along with his compatriot Samuel Johnson. Johnson scored on Saturday, Fener lost. Preko scored twice on Sunday, Yozgat won. Is there a moral in this somewhere?

Whether there is or not, the real hero was Ayew, who is playing for Yozgatspor on loan from Sporting Lisbon. It is a little-known fact in Turkey that he is the kid brother of the most famous Ghanaian player of all time, Abedi Pele. He also played alongside his close friend Preko when both were juniors and the rapport shows. Nominally Ayew is a midfielder, but canny coach Huseyin Kalpar has given him the freedom to roam wherever he wants so long as he spends most of his time roaming forward.

Pele Junior helped Yozgat do what Real Madrid had failed to do the previous Tuesday -- hold a two-goal lead against Galatasaray and even extend it. Yozgat may not be Madrid class yet, but, despite the dislike of certain circles for its main sponsor, this club is an asset to the first division. Without paying enormous transfer fees, it has bought wisely and has become the pride of a Central Anatolian city in dire need of something to be proud of. It has a level of local support which is the envy of many other teams in the top flight.

An ineffective Mario Jardel was taken off on Sunday and replaced by Marcio Dos Santos. At the same time, Okan Yilmaz was scoring twice for Bursaspor against Jetpaspor, goals which leave him level with Jardel at the top of the first division scoring chart. Both have netted 21 to date. As we have mentioned before, Okan is not an expensive import but a genuine Anatolian, a product of the Bursa youth team.

Tomorrow Fenerbahce will play Genclerbirligi in the Turkish Cup final. The match will be played in Kayseri as part of the Soccer Federation's policy of bringing top level soccer to parts of Anatolia it does not normally reach. Hey, federation, it has already reached Yozgat. And Denizli. And Bursa. And a few other places besides.

m-severn@apexmail.com

No change at top of Turkish League

Cim Bom bites the dust in Yozgat, joining Antep and Fener as weekend losers; biggest beneficiary is Besiktas

Ankara - Turkish Daily News

"April is the cruelest month," wrote the late British poet T.S. Eliot. No doubt about that. But had he been a modern-day Turkish writer, he would have added a stanza or two on the fate of the top-three Turkish League teams over the weekend.

First, third-placed Gaziantepsor lost in Rize on Friday, then leader Fenerbahce followed suit, bowing to Denizlispor the following day.

On Sunday, it was second-placed Galatasaray's turn, and the defending champion tumbled like "Humpty Dumpty" at struggling Yozgat.

"Do not mock thy neighbor's misfortunes, it may happen to you also," is a Turkish proverb that really suits this situation.

Barely five days after its stunning comeback victory over European champ Real Madrid in the Champions League, the Galatasaray "Lions" were expected to devour little Yimpas Yozgatspor for dinner. But it was not to be, because the overfed, battle-weary and unpaid "Lions" just lacked the enthusiasm to play soccer.

Two goals in three two minutes

As referee Mustafa Culcu blew the starting whistle, the writing was already on the wall for Galatasaray (Cim Bom). A goal in the first minute by Ghanaian Kwame Ayew and another by his compatriot Yaw Preko in the second, left Galatasaray and its fans totally dumbfounded.

In the 15th minute, Galatasaray missed a chance to reduce the tally when Umit Davala missed a penalty kick, or to be more exact, shot into the safe hands of Yozgat keeper Diallo.

Against Real, the Lions roared from 2-0 down in the first half to win 3-2. That was the same picture in Yogzat and the same performance was expected of Galatasaray. But the Yimpas boys aren't Real Madrid and so taught the Turkish champion a lesson it won't soon forget.

Maybe in their dressing room at halftime, Galatasaray coach Mireca Lucescu had urged his players to attack as they did against Real. But in so doing they left gaping holes in their defense. Hence, Galatasaray was stunned again in the 56th when Preko made 3-0 for Yozgat. Fatih Akyel reduced the tally for Galatasaray in the 68th, but Akew made it 4-1 in the 75th for Yimpas, from the penalty spot. Has Sas' goal in the 88th saved Galatasaray from a complete rout as the score at full-time was: Yimpas Yozgatspor 4, Galatasaray 2. Unbelievable.

A Galatasaray victory would have reduced Fener's lead to three points and a win over Istanbulspor in their make-up match tomorrow would have put the defending champion equal on points with its eternal enemy.

After barely beating Real last Tuesday, Galatasaray has not yet banished its defensive nightmares. Discontent over pay continues to swirl around the team as the complaining players and coaches still have not been paid their wages for several months. This undoubtedly has affected Galatasaray's play in a negative way.

Next week, Galatasaray plays Real in Madrid in the decisive second leg of their Champions League quarterfinals. Galatasaray needs to do its home work very well.

Violence

The Galatasaray players were attacked by irate fans on their way the Ankara Esenboga Airport to board their flight to Istanbul. Victory after victory is what the fans are acclimatized to. Failure is a new experience they can hardly tolerate.

Besiktas wins

The biggest beneficiary over the weekend was Besiktas which beat third-from bottom Erzurumspor 2-0, with first-half goals from Ahmet Dursun and Bayram Uzulmez. Pilloried from all sides after its derby loss to Galatasaray, the victory has given the team and controversial coach Christoph Daum some breathing space.

In other matches on Sunday, Bursaspor bashed cellar-dweller Siirt Jet-paspor 5-2 away, while Istanbulspor and Kocaelispor shared the booty after a 1-1 draw.

Big day for Botas women

Adana women bid for Ronchetti triumph; Efes Pilsen downs Dacka; easy win for Ulkerspor

Ankara - Turkish Daily News

The big day has dawned for Botas. This afternoon at the Menderes Sports Hall, Adana, Turkey's top women's side of the moment plays the first leg of the Liliana Ronchetti Cup final against Famila Schio of Italy.

Botas was the first Turkish side to reach even the semifinal of this competition and is aiming to go all the way. It will not be easy. Famila, from the foothills of the Dolomites, is a team composed of tough, battle-hardened European competitors. It starts a comfortable favorite.

But with the passionate Adana crowd roaring them on, anything is possible for the Botas women as they proved by overturning a 12-point first leg deficit against Israel's YES Ramat Hasharon in the semi. This time the boot is on the other foot. The target is to establish a lead which can be defended in the second leg in Schio.

There are no injury headaches. Captain Aylin Karabiyik and her team are fit and raring to go. They are also in high morale after beating Besiktas to reach the Turkish playoff finals last Friday. Their opponent may be known today as Fenerbahce tackles Galatasaray at Istanbul's Ahmet Comert Sports Hall leading 2-1 in their semifinal series and needing only one more victory to go through.

Men's League

Three matches were played in the Turkish men's league on Sunday. Efes Pilsen avenged an earlier loss and handed Darussuafaka its first defeat of the season at the Ayhan Sahenk Sports Hall, winning by a comfortable 73-58. Center Predrag Drobnjak was the main destroyer on this occasion with 22 of the points, backed by Kerem Tunceri with 14. On the losing side, only Alex Jensen, 17, offered much resistance as Efes beat Dacka at its own defensive game.

Leader Ulkerspor slammed Besiktas 89-76. This was a vital boost to Ulker spirits after the orange-and-greens crashed out of the SuproLeague last week. They were in control all the way and even though Besiktas will still be in the playoffs, the Black Eagles' recent form argues that they will achieve little there. Barring major upsets in the final round robin matches, the top four teams and playoff seeds will be Ulker, Efes, Dacka and Turk Telekom in that order.

Sunday's formality match in Izmir between the two relegated teams went the way of Muratpasa which squeaked past Egepen Altay 93-91.

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