Elazığ

Before going to Elazığ, I wouldn’t have known that the 22th day of November would be a day going down into history of Turkey as well as the World…   But, I went and received my reward when witnessing such a historical event.

This was the first time I have ever gone to Elazığ. Elazığspor was founded in 1967. It has the same age with Trabzon but the fact that they have joined the Super League just this year is upsetting in terms of being an indication that none of the Anatolian teams have approached the level of Trabzon.  Since it was my first visit to Elazığ, I had done a preliminary investigation. I got to know that Elazığ has a higher rate of literacy, and the most developed medical infrastructure. It is even one of the places where an accent to Istanbulite accent is spoken. I could not test the school but I can say that the information about the accent is true; everybody was speaking fluently.

I have received a positive reference on health from one of my dear friends who took risk of having his sky squeezed here. Iggg? Oh yes, the health does not always mean diet, little lady! I have nothing to say to the gentlemen, you are welcome.

What was I saying? Since only at mornings there is flight to Elazığ from Atatürk Airport of İstanbul, I woke up at 5:30 a.m with sleepy eyes and got on the plane at 6:55 a.m. There were some fans in the plane but I preferred to sleep rather than have a chat with them during the flight which took one and a half hour. This did not suffice, I slept again after I get off the plane and went to the hotel since it was cloudy and then rainy. That’s why; I could not find time to visit Harput and Keban Dam and eat salmon trout since they were not close to the town. Instead, I ate the fish at the hotel. However, I have to confess that I was not satisfied with the delicacy of the meal. Nobody should have doubt about that I will effort to change this idea of mine.

I would like to share with you this sweety signboard in the shopping center I went after dinner at hotel where I pass through.

Whereas we begin with the photographs, let me share this photograph I tok at the main gate of the hotel so that the saying “Anatolian support Galatasaray” shapes in flesh and bones.

We went to the Elazığ Atatürk Stadium before the time of the match. Although the stadium with a capacity of 13,923 persons seems to be sufficient for a team recently join to the super league, they have many things to do.  The photograph below was taken from the place where I sit at the protocol. How is it? The landscape which I can view is wonderful, isn’t it?

Anyway, our team began playing with our ideal team except Selçuk, the suspended footballer but we continue to view the match, tearing our hair out.

We were thinking that the match is about to over, the referee Özgür Yankaya showed red card to our goalkeeper Muslera and gave penalty to the opposing team. I was far from the position and could not see, and did not see on Tv, therefore I cannot a healthy comment if it was penalty or not. The problem was not if the decision was right or wrong but what would be then. Since we had used our right to substitute 3 players, one of the players had to go in goal. We did not have a Pancu to transform into Elazığ panther in the end of the match. While we were asking each other “who can go in goal?”, Melo wore gloves and went in goal.

Ceyhun Gülselam and Hamit Altıntop who were not included in 18-players team were sitting just in front of me at the tribune. Ceyhun turned to me and said ‘Melo will save the penalty’. I found this as extremely optimistic but I was praying ‘I hope this become true and Göktuğ shoot out’. (I did not say Göktuğ that moment, I heard the player’s name later on). While we have our hearts in our boots, Melo was as if growing taller and saving the penalty. I can’t remember anything anymore, that’s what it was. I cannot remember how the match was over, if it was over, who won or what happened. We forgot that we were at the away game and turned the tribune into a fair ground. The fans of Elazığ kept their mouths shut against our crazy mood, because of a state of shock they were in, I guess. We won the match 1-0 but we were also exhausted.

There was a throng, that’s what it was. The fans were about to squeeze the players, technical team while trying to receive signature from or take a photo with the players.  They may be right; they were seeing the first time the players of the team they love, it was valuable to touch them just once but the they forgot that the players, who run about 10 km during 90 minutes and were very tired. Informal hugs, kisses, pull-offs without any asking… I request you to receive permission before taking photo, and do not smack. 

Having the ticket signed, which I started when returning from the match with Cluj, has been more significant upon including the owner of the signature into the frame. Don’t you think so?... J

Red and Black, Here is Ankara

Not every away match city is nice. Besides wonderful cities like Trabzon, Gaziantep and Samsun, there are grey and always sad cities like Ankara, where I compulsorily go. Although only Gençlerbirliği combats in the Super Toto Super Leage, three teams of this gloomy city were combating in the Super League back in the days. I wish the teams of beautiful cities including Izmir, Mardin, Antakya and Adana could combat in the 1^st League that we could see beautiful cities, eat delicious meals and write good articles for away matches… (Ughh ughh, everyone thinks oneself). I have found an easy way in my opinion; since there are flights to Ankara at every hour, I generally go to the matches by air at 15.00 - 16.00 and return immediately after the matches. As far as I remember, only once I went to there with the team, stayed one night and returned immediately after the match. Then, we went to a fish restaurant named Trilye. Do not say that it is out of question that there is a fish restaurant in Ankara; it was one of the best fish restaurants I have ever gone. http://www.trilye.com.tr/

As in the famous wording, “The best thing of Ankara is the time when you leave there”. It is wonderful especially if you return with three points. However, this time, it is safe to say that we were beaten 3-3, although we kicked three goals.

Oops, let’s go back to the beginning. After a long time, I went to Ankara in a Sunny day. My friend, the city is grey even in a sunny day. Top it all, its traffic is competing with the one of İstanbul. The city seems like begging “Do not like me, do not like me!” The ugly shanties on the road from the airport to the city have been brought down and ugly TOKI houses have been built there.  I am not sure if they were built by TOKI but they are so ugly that I thought only TOKI could build such bad.

Since the subject is Ankara, I aspire to Behzat Ç. and criticize both Ankara and TOKI, I  hope nothing is wrong with my future.  It is a matter of time that I talk to you behind the prison bars. I can write behind the bars and even be elected as member of the parliament but I do not what to do if I could not go to see the matches.

If we put up the jokes, Ankara is truly is not a place to love.

I can reach the city from the airport within about an hour. I got off the bus of Havaş exactly before the stadium, but there were 2,5 hours to the match. I decided to join the team at the hotel assuming that it was close. This took me 50 minutes. We drank a cup of tea at the hotel and got on the minibuses to return to the stadium (where I got on the taxi one hour before). This also took me 50 minutes. To crown it all, the driver could not find the entrance and took two tours around the stadium, I found myself thinking that that was a joke of Ankara.  

I talked about the protocol tribune entrances but Ankara is the pioneer in this issue. At the protocol where whoever you see is a minister or a member of the parliament or a bureaucrat, it was bursting at the seams. We barely sat down to our place where otherwise we cannot sit down if anyone already took our place. We began to watch the match.

The match was interesting and a lot of goals were kicked. It was bad to kick three goals and not to beat at an away match. As you know, I do not interpret the match in these articles but I would like to talk about the uniform exchange which is a ritual of a match I like the most. I was enchanted by the fact that whatever happens during the match, the footballers exchange their uniforms. Not misunderstand, I find it very sportsmanlike and friendly. I consider it very valuable that the footballers who get stuck in during the match give value to each other’s uniform as an indication that the match ends up and I hope this become a sample for the fans at the tribune who go at it hammer and tongs. As I always say, sport is initially a joy and amusement.

Speaking of uniform, I have finally received Melo’s jersey for my sport trainer, to whom I had promised. Actually, it was a jersey from the match with Ordu but I could take it only after this match because of the national match break.

For me, a jersey, particularly which is exuded in a match is holy. When I received the jersey, one of the jersey I like the most, in Ankara, I remember the jersey I had received after our match with Hacettepe on 1 May 2009.  Please look and tell me if it does not worth to give value... :))

It was actually a historical day on which I received this jersey. I received this jersey from Harry Kewell who had promised me a long time ago. Let me prove it that it is received from that match in order that nobody doubts about it. And this is also the match line up which I took before the match... 

(Since 2004 when I purchased my digital camera, I have taken the photographs of both the match line up and the score board. However, some of those images were lost in a computer break but most of them still exist.)

In that match, we were beaten by Hacettepe, 2-0, I did not enjoy the jersey since we were very sad. Top it all, the fans attack on Hasan Şaş, a fact that I have never appreciated. Hasan was our crazy, sprit and blood. He rejected many contracts request from other teams, just because of the fact that he loved Galatasaray. He put signature under many cups of Galatasaray; he just put his heart to his job. In this match, he played just in the last ten minutes as a saver, but he remained inefficient since he was at the end of his career and dispirited. He was thrown mobile phone and computer in İstanbul, can you believe that?

The jersey below is from the match between Gaziantep and Galatasaray on 6 April 2009.  That is, it is one of the valuables….

The article I commenced writing for Ankara for some reason ended to be an article incident to football jerseys however this was rather due to the reason that the ways of all of these stories crossed in Ankara.

The most beautiful things I recall from the Gençlerbirliği match were the beautiful songs I heard the first time in a stadium during the half-time period. Especially, Ais Ezhel's  Gençlerbirliği anthem was perfect...  The match was finished but I was still singing the anthem going "Red-Black, here is Ankara". You can listen to the anthem at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lL4u0JWjoJI