|
Videolari izlemek için Flash Player yükleyin.
Goal from Sounders and Souness with the flag
The Flag Incident
It all happened in the 1995/96 season. Fenerbahçe were competing for the title with Trabzonspor while Galatasaray were struggling. When Galatasaray reached the cup final against Fenerbahce, everybody thought it would be an easy win for Fenerbahce. There were even some insults as if Galatasaray wasn’t a worthy opponent and the Fenerbahce chairman also made some comments about Souness as a coach. However Galatasaray beat Fenerbahce in 1st leg by a Dean Saunders penalty. The 2nd leg was played in the hell atmosphere of the Fenerbahce stadium. After 90 minutes Fenerbahce were leading 1-0, but in extra time Dean Saunders equalised, winning the cup for Galatasaray. Souness, with the great feeling of a great victory, took a giant Galatasaray flag and planted it in the centre of the pitch. This wasn’t appreciated by the Fenerbahce fans of course but he was the hero for all Galatasaray fans that day.
Let's Listen from Graeme Souness
"It was after I’d had heart surgery and, not long after I got there, one of the Fenerbahçe directors said in the papers, ‘What are they doing employing a cripple?’"
The slight was still festering when Dean Saunders scored a late winner in extra time of the 1996 Turkish Cup final second leg at Fenerbahçe’s ground.
"It wasn’t premeditated but I was handed a huge Galatasaray flag and as I was running along I happened to see that director in the stands," Souness said. "I thought, ‘I’ll show you who’s a cripple.’ "
The 10 best managerial celebrations
Sunday April 4, 2004 - The Observer
NO #4
Graeme Souness Galatasaray v Fenerbahce, 1996 Turkish Cup final
Even a veteran of Old Firm games would have been surprised by the intensity of the Istanbul derby. But that didn't stop the abrasive Scot from bringing the same sensitivity to the occasion as he did to opponents' shins as a player. After Dean Saunders had won his side the game, the exultant Souness grabbed a huge Galatasaray flag and provocatively embedded it on the Fenerbahce pitch. Only by planting a Union flag in the centre circle at Parkhead could he have surpassed himself.
Who is Ulubatlı?
Greame Souness often called by the nickname "Ulubatlı" which is a historic reference to the conquest of Istanbul in 1453.
Ulubatlı Hasan (1428 - May 29, 1453) was a janissary in the service of Sultan Mehmed II of the Ottoman Empire who achieved legendary status as a heroic Turkish martyr at the successful Siege of Constantinople (Istanbul).
He was born in a small village called Ulubat in the province of Bursa ("Ulubatlı Hasan" means "Hasan of Ulubat" in Turkish). At the age of 25 he was present at the Siege of Constantinople (6 April 1453 - 29 May 1453). The Turks had tried to take the grand city and last stronghold of the Byzantine Empire several times before, but this time, under the command of Sultan Mehmed II, who was in his early twenties at the time and already showing potential of being a great military leader, it looked like victory was at hand— especially because of a new innovation in warfare. The Siege of Constantinople was the first siege in history in which cannons were used. But despite several assaults and the severe hammering by the cannons the great double walls of Constantinople held for 53 days.
On the early morning of the last day of the siege, 29 May, after the morning prayers, the Ottoman military band started to play one of their songs and the siege resumed. Ulubatlı Hasan was among the first to climb the walls of Constantinople followed closely by thirty of his friends. He carried only a scimitar, a small shield and the Ottoman Flag. He climbed the wall while being peppered by enemy arrows and once he reached the top he placed the flag, which he defended until his 12 remaining friends arrived. After that he collapsed with 27 arrows still in his body. Seeing the Ottoman flag inspired the Turkish troops and kept their spirits up until they had conquered Constantinople.
|
It was April 5, 1996 when Galatasaray had just beaten deadly rivals Fenerbahce in the Turkish Cup Final. The match was being played at Fenerbahce's Sukru Saracoglu ground, and after clinching victory Souness marched into the centre circle and implanted a huge Galatasaray flag into the turf. This unusual celebration became legendary in Turkish football history, and unforgettable tragic memory for Fenerbahce fans.
