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So. 24.10.10 - 12:36:43 august m. d. zipfelmütze   Registriert seit: Oktober 2002 Posts: 585 Fan von: Rittner Buam |
Eine interessanter Artikel von einem Land, aus dem man quasi nie etwas von Eishockey hört.
Interessant die Erzählungen der fünf Schweden, denen gesagt wurde, sie wären zu schwach für die Liga, als sie in Anakara ankamen um für die University of Ankara zu spielen. Einer spielte immerhin sogar in der Allsvenskan, einer in der 2. dänischen Liga, einer in der Division 1 die anderen immerhin in der 4. schwedischen Liga. Finde es aber schön von der IIHF, auch mal einem Eishockey-Underdog wie der Türkei Eishockey-Aufmerksamkeit zu schenken. Turkish delight Swedish players got to play in an unusual place 23-10-10 In February earlier this year, five Swedish hockey players crowned an eventful, season-long odyssey at Ankara University SK by winning the Turkish championship. When the opportunity arose for a brief return to the club at the beginning of this season, three of them jumped at the chance to rekindle old memories in the Continental Cup. ”Playing in Turkey was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I met so many great people. Then you get the chance to meet them again,” said 23-year-old forward Andreas Gustafsson on his decision to once again wear the green-black-white jersey of Ankara University for two games in the Preliminary Round of the Continental Cup played in Jaca, Spain. Gustafsson`s adventure in Turkish hockey started around a year ago. He had then finished a season in the Swedish fourth tier with Hammarö HC and was seeking a new challenge. Through a Swedish player agent, Gustafsson together with his friend Joachim Wallin soon found themselves in the outskirts of Copenhagen trying out for a Danish team when the agent called them up with an offer they couldn`t refuse. ”He asked us whether we were interested in playing in Turkey,” Gustafsson said. ”We accepted the offer on the spot and then quickly had to get across to Sweden to sign the paperwork. When I got back home to pack my bags my friends were quite surprised when I told them I was leaving for Turkey to play ice hockey.” Gustafsson and Wallin packed their bags and left work, friends, family and the safe confines of smalltown Sweden behind to end up in the bustling metropolis of Ankara. When touching down in the Turkish capital city, they were greeted by their teammates that already included two Swedes, Mattias Svensson and Staffan Lundblad, who had arrived at the club a couple of months earlier in time for pre-season training. Four Swedes soon became five after Adam Horster signed up, but the team`s strong Swedish flavour was met by skepticism to begin with from both supporters and team mates. "‚You are not good enough‘ and ‚We are not going to have a chance’ was what we were told when we first came down," Gustafsson remembers. Brought up in the Swedish school of hockey, where the emphasis is on teamwork and solid defensive work rather than individuality and all-out attack, the Turks weren`t impressed by the Swedes` unselfish style of play. But as the season went on and one win followed another for Ankara University, newcomers in the Turkish top division, the Scandinavian quintet soon won over their doubters. Turkey - a young hockey nation who became IIHF member in 1991 - had six teams playing in last year‘s Super League. It was a season that began in November and finished in February with the play-offs in Istanbul. Ankara University`s season was a success pretty much from start to finish as they ended up winning their first Turkish championship beating local rivals Baskent Yildizları 7-3 in the final. The five Swedes were later selected to play in the Super League All-Star Game, held in Ankara and broadcasted on Turkish television. Not bad for a bunch of guys who were said not to be good enough on their arrival. "It was an adventure, both on as well as off the ice. But maybe even more so off the ice, with living in a different culture," said Gustafsson. "We got the opportunity to experience football matches in Istanbul such as Besiktas versus Fenerbahce, go on ski trips and once the season was over, we got a holiday at a five-star hotel in Antalya paid for by the club as a thank you for winning the championship." With the championship being won and the last celebrations having subdued, the five Swedes returned back home to an uncertain future. Most of them had hoped to be back playing in Turkey for this season. But with Turkey hosting the 25th Winter World University Games in Erzurum January 27 to February 6, 2011, the domestic ice hockey season has been moved forward and is now expected to start only after the Universiade. Two of the players from last season, Mattias Svensson and Staffan Lundblad have since found employment elsewhere. But when Ankara University came calling for a second time ahead of last month`s first round of the Continental Cup, Gustafsson, Wallin and Horster once again jumped at the chance to play for the club. This time they were joined by yet another Swede, Alexander Eriksson, a former HV71 junior. From left to right: Adam Horster, Alexander Eriksson, Joachim Wallin and Andreas Gustafsson during camp time in Izmit before the Continental Cup. A week before the Continental Cup tournament, the four Swedes arrived in Izmit for a week-long training camp before flying over to the north-eastern Spanish town of Jaca where hosts CH Jaca and Israeli team Bat Yam HC awaited. The Turkish team easily disposed the Israeli 8-3 with Andreas Gustafsson going 1+3, before the decider against home side CH Jaca became a game remembered for all the wrong reasons. "We were leading the shots on goal in the first period and we were 2-1 down when I hit the post," remembered Gustafsson. "Then came the penalty calls. At one stage we had nine men in the penalty box and the people came down from the stands to take photos of it." With 102 penalty minutes for Ankara University, and a game disrupted by continuous box play, Jaca overpowered the reigning Turkish champion 7-1 to advance to the next round played this weekend and sent the Turks back to Ankara – and the Swedes back to Scandinavia. Currently the four Swedes play for their respective clubs back home, but Gustafsson is still not ruling out a third coming when the Turkish season will get underway. ”Since I have a girlfriend back home, coming down to play a full season in Turkey is not an option anymore, but right now I would be very tempted to go back and play the shorter version after the University Games,” said Gustafsson. HENRIK MANNINEN Quelle: IIHF Dieser Beitrag wurde am 24.10.10 - 12:42:11 von august m. d. zipfelmütze editiert! |
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Eishockey Forum - 5 Schweden in der 1. türkischen Liga
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