Ruch Chorzów

The club was founded on 20 April 1920 in Bismarkhuta (German Bismarckhütte, historically Hajduki), one of the many heavily industrialised municipalities in the eastern part of Upper Silesia, a disputed province between Poland and Germany. The main incentive was an appeal of the Polish Plebiscite Committee a few months earlier that led to creation of around one hundred sport associations. It took place in between the first and second Silesian Uprisings, to which the name Ruch is a supposed cover reference.[2] The Polish word ruch is however also a common noun for movement, not as strongly associated with Polishness as names of many other clubs established after the appeal (like Polonia, Powstaniec etc.). On the other hand, the club's first match, a 3:1 win against Orzeł Józefowiec, was played on 3 May 1920, the day of the first Polish Constitution. After the Upper Silesia plebiscite and the third Silesian Uprising in 1921 Bismarkhuta became part of Poland and the Silesian Voivodeship. The municipality was renamed to Wielkie Hajduki on 1 January 1923,[3] hence the club was known as Ruch Wielkie Hajduki until another merger into the town Chorzów (created in 1934 from amalgamation of Królewska Huta, Chorzów and Hajduki Nowe) in the early 1939, with a short period in 1923 after the fusion with the older local German club Bismarckhütter Ballspiel Club, when it was known as Ruch BBC Wielkie Hajduki. After the merger the team played its games on the former BBC's pitch known as na Kalinie.[4] The popular nickname of the club Niebiescy (The Blues) clung to the team already in the 1920s.[5]

Ruch Wielkie Hajduki, Silesian Vice-Champions in 1924

In autumn of 1920 Ruch won the promotion to the nascent Silesian Klasa A (see also: Lower Level Football Leagues in Interwar Poland). The Blues were third out of fourteen teams in its first season, unfinished due to the third Silesian Uprising. The next year Ruch won the championship of the Silesian Klasa A and represented the region in the 1922 Polish Football Championship. In 1924 the club finished second in the regional top league, behind AKS Królewska Huta, before 1924 considered German and known as Verein für Rasenspiele Königshütte, the first team Ruch had developed a local rivalry with. In 1925 the Silesian Klasa A did not play, instead Stanisław Flieger's Cup took place, ultimately won by Ruch, which gave the side a start in the only interwar Polish Cup competition in 1926. On 4 July 1926 Józef Sobota, before 1920 a BBC's player, became the first Ruch's player (and the fourth from Upper Silesia) of the Polish National Team, who also scored a goal (against Estonia). In the same year, two weeks after the national Cup Ruch won for the second time the regional Klasa A, firmly establishing itself as one of the strongest football clubs in this densely populated region and as such it was among the founding clubs of the Polish national league in 1927. In 1933 Ruch won its first Championship as the first side from Silesia, with all the players who were born not further as a few kilometers from the na Kalinie pitch.[6] Thus the first truly golden era began. The local steel mill (since 1934 known as Huta Batory) began to financially support the side. In the winter of 1933 the most noteworthy players such as Edmund Giemsa, Teodor Peterek and Gerard Wodarz were joined by legendary Ernst Wilimowski, bought from 1. FC Kattowitz, who with Peterek and Wodarz were collectively nicknamed the three kings and helped to win another 4 championships (1934, 1935, 1936, 1938). On 1 November 1934 the club, as the last in the league, employed its first coach, Gustav Wieser.[7] The side was also a leader in the unfinished season 1939. The successes rendered the club the most popular in the voivodeship and accelerated building of the new stadium in the years 1934-1935, the current Stadion Miejski.

Ruch in 1938

After the German occupation of Poland in 1939, the club was officially discontinued but unofficially was simply renamed Bismarckhütter SV 99 and joined the Gauliga Oberschlesien in 1941.[8] The club was officially re-established after the war. In 1947 Ruch won the regional championships. In 1948, under communist pressure (Stalinisation), the club was renamed Unia Chorzów, in 1955 it became Unia-Ruch, and finally in 1956 returned to the name Ruch. As Unia the club finished third in the first season of the reactivated national league in 1948 and in 1950 as the second team. In 1951 the club won the reactivated Polish Cup edition and were rewarded with the title of the National Champions (even though they were only sixth in the league). The next two years the club also won the title, first in 1952 after final against Polonia Bytom, another local bitter rival, and in 1953 after finishing the league on the top position. The most renowned player of that era was Gerard Cieślik, who dedicated his whole life to the club and became its icon.

Ruch in 1968

The years 1957-1966 are considered a lost decade, completely overshadowed by the successes of the new biggest regional rival, Górnik Zabrze, even though the club won the championships in 1960. A record of its kind in the national football history as the team consisted of only 14 players, 11 of whom originated in the town of Chorzów. The turn of the tide came in the season 1967/68 when Ruch won the 10th championship title breaking Górnik Zabrze's streak of five consecutive titles. Another golden era for the Blues arrived in the early 1970s with Michal Vičan as a coach. In 1972/73 the club finished second, in 1973/73 they won the only double in the history (the championship and the cup) and advanced up to the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup. In 1974/75 they again won the league and qualified to the quarter-finals of the European Cup. The most praised players of that times were Bronisław Bula, Zygmunt Maszczyk and Joachim Marx.

These successes were followed by a bad financial plight and mediocre results until 1978/79, when the club won its 13th Championship title. In the 1980s the club was one of the poorest in the national league. The worst came in the season 1986/87, when the club, the only one in the country which so far played all the seasons of the official national top league, was relegated to the second tier. Especially shifty were the circumstances of the relegation decider, against Lechia Gdańsk, when Ruch's goalkeeper Janusz Jojko scored an infamous and bizarre own goal and the club lost the game 1:2.[9] After one year Ruch returned to the top flight as winners of the seconed league and won the 14th Championship title, as the second freshly-promoted club in the national history (the first was Cracovia in 1937), a feat, especially as it was still one of the poorest clubs in the top tier and over half of the players were home-grown,[10] including e.g. Dariusz Gęsior and the most renowned Krzysztof Warzycha, who was also, with 24 goals, the top scorer of the season.

After the political turnover in Poland in 1989 Ruch did not fare well for the first two seasons. The money from the transfer of Krzysztof Warzycha to Panathinaikos A.O. finished quickly. The team began to compete with the top teams first in 1991/92 finishing in the fifth spot, fourth the next year, furthermore the second team (Ruch II) reached the Polish cup final. Ruch was demoted for the second time in the history in the season 1994/95. As before the stay in the second tier lasted one season. While playing in the second league Ruch won its third Polish Cup trophy. In 1998 Ruch reached the final of the UEFA Intertoto Cup and in the season 1999/2000 finished third in the league. The crisis came in 2002/2003 when the club was relegated from the top tier for the third time and in the next season was for the first time in history in danger of being demoted to the third tier, however the club won the relegation play-offs against Stal Rzeszów (1:1, 2:0). In 2005 the club was restructured as spółka akcyjna. The Blues won the promotion to the top flight in the season 2006/2007. In 2009 the side reached Polish Cup final, the next year The Blues finished third in the league. The best season in the recent history was 2011/2012 when Ruch was vice-champion (only 1 point behind the champions, Śląsk Wrocław) and reached the final of the national cup (lost 0:3 against Legia Warsaw).

• Polish championship
  • Winners (14): 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1938, 1951,[n 1] 1952, 1953, 1960, 1968, 1974, 1975, 1979, 1989
    1. (In 1951 Wisła Kraków was league champion, however, the Polish Championship title was awarded to the Cup winners, Ruch Chorzów.)
  • Runners-up (6): 1950, 1956, 1963, 1970, 1973, 2012
  • Third place (9): 1937, 1948, 1954, 1955, 1967, 1983, 2000, 2010, 2014
• Polish Cup:
  • Winners (3): 1951, 1974, 1996
  • Runners-up (6): 1963, 1968, 1970, 1993, 2009, 2012
• Polish SuperCup:
  • Runners-up (2): 1989, 1996
• European Cup
  • Quarter-finals (1): 1975
• UEFA Cup
  • Quarter-finals (1): 1974
• UEFA Intertoto Cup
  • Finalist (1): 1998
• Youth teams:
  • Polish U-19 champions: 1965, 1984

As of 3 October 2018.[11]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  POL Adam Wilk (on loan from KS Cracovia) 2 DF  POL Gracjan Komarnicki 4 DF  POL Mateusz Machala 5 DF  POL Dominik Małkowski 7 MF  POL Bartłomiej Wdowik 8 MF  POL Patryk Sikora 9 FW  POL Mateusz Majewski 10 MF  POL Mateusz Bogusz 11 FW  POL Tomasz Podgórski 14 DF  POL Mateusz Bartolewski 16 MF  POL Michał Walski 17 MF  POL Maciej Urbańczyk 18 MF  SVK Lukáš Ďuriška (on loan from Raków Częstochowa)

No. Pos. Nation Player 24 FW  POL Wojciech Kędziora 27 FW  POL Bartosz Nowakowski 31 GK  POL Dominik Byszewski 32 MF  POL Robert Obst 33 FW  POL Piotr Giel (on loan from GKS Tychy) 34 FW  POL Artur Balicki 71 DF  POL Lukasz Jaworek 73 DF  POL Bartłomiej Kulejewski 82 GK  POL Jakub Bielecki 87 FW  POL Kewin Paszek 94 GK  POL Kamil Lech — MF  UKR Pavlo Myahkov — FW  POL Paweł Mandrysz

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player — DF  POL Paweł Starzyński (at Gwarek Tarnowskie Góry until 30 June 2019) — DF  POL Michał Rutkowski (at Sola Oswiecim until 30 June 2019)

No. Pos. Nation Player — FW  POL Karol Wiszynski (at Szombierki Bytom until 30 June 2019) — GK  POL Kewin Paszek (at Stal Brzeg until 30 June 2019)

[12]

Name From To Gustav Wieser Oct 1934 July 1935 Gunther Ringer Aug 1936 Nov 1937 Ferenc Fogl June 1938 Jan 1939 Péter Szabó Jan 1939 July 1939 František Dembický Jan 1948 Dec 1948 Gerard Wodarz July 1949 Dec 1949 Ryszard Koncewicz Jan 1950 June 1952 Ewald Cebula July 1952 June 1954 Adam Niemiec July 1954 Dec 1956 Mikołaj Beljung Feb 1957 Oct 1957 Czesław Suszczyk Oct 1957 Dec 1957 Janos Steiner Jan 1958 Dec 1958 Ewald Cebula Jan 1959 Dec 1959 Janos Steiner Jan 1960 May 1960 Ewald Cebula May 1960 June 1960 Lajos Szolár June 1960 Dec 1960 Gerard Wodarz Jan 1961 April 1961 Gerard Cieślik April 1961 July 1961 Sándor Tátrai July 1961 Oct 1963 Franciszek Tim Oct 1963 Nov 1963 Augustyn Dziwisz Dec 1963 Sept 1964 Artur Woźniak Sept 1964 June 1966 Teodor Wieczorek July 1966 April 1969 Eugeniusz Pohl Hubert Pala May 1969 June 1969 Jerzy Nikiel July 1969 Nov 1969 Tadeusz Foryś Dec 1969 June 1971 Hubert Pala June 1971 June 1971 Michal Vičan July 1971 April 1976 Rudolf Kapera April 1976 June 1976 Frantisek Havranek July 1976 Oct 1977 Teodor Wieczorek Oct 1977 June 1978 Leszek Jezierski June 1978 Nov 1980

Name From To Antoni Piechniczek Nov 1980 Jan 1981 Józef Zwierzyna Jan 1981 Sept 1981 Piotr Czaja Sept 1981 May 1982 Orest Lenczyk 1 July 1982 1 Feb 1984 Alojzy Łysko Feb 1984 Dec 1984 Władysław Jan Żmuda 1 Jan 1985 1 May 1987 Jacek Góralczyk April 1987 May 1987 Jacek Machciński May 1987 July 1987 Jerzy Wyrobek 1 July 1987 1 July 1990 Zdzisław Podedworny July 1990 March 1991 Edward Lorens 1 April 1991 1 May 1994 Albin Wira 3 May 1994 4 May 1995 Jerzy Wyrobek 5 May 1995 23 Sept 1996 Orest Lenczyk 24 Sept 1996 23 March 1999 Edward Lorens 23 March 1999 30 June 2000 Jan Żurek 1 July 2000 21 Aug 2000 Jan Rudnow Aug 2000 Dec 2000 Bogusław Pietrzak 1 Dec 2000 11 April 2002 Orest Lenczyk 11 April 2002 9 Oct 2002 Piotr Mandrysz 10 Oct 2002 30 June 2003 Jerzy Wyrobek 1 July 2003 5 May 2005 Dariusz Fornalak 5 May 2005 22 Nov 2005 Edward Lorens 22 Nov 2005 27 Nov 2005 Marek Wleciałowski 28 Nov 2005 15 June 2007 Dusan Radolsky 15 June 2007 10 Sept 2008 Bogusław Pietrzak 10 Sept 2008 27 April 2009 Waldemar Fornalik 27 April 2009 10 July 2012 Tomasz Fornalik 12 July 2012 5 Sept 2012 Jacek Zielinski 5 Sept 2012 16 Sept 2013 Dariusz Fornalak (int.) 16 Sept 2013 18 Sept 2013 Ján Kocian 18 Sept 2013 6 Oct 2014 Waldemar Fornalik 7 Oct 2014 22 Apr 2017 Krzysztof Warzycha 24 Apr 2017 10 Sep 2017 Juan Ramón Rocha 10 Sep 2017 5 Apr 2018 Dariusz Fornalak 5 Apr 2018 1 Nov 2018 Marek Wleciałowski 1 Nov 2018

Ruch in Europe

Season	Competition	Round		Club	Score
1972–73	UEFA Cup	1R		Fenerbahçe SK	3–0, 0–1
		2R		Dynamo Dresden	0–1, 0–3
1973–74	UEFA Cup	1R		Wuppertaler SV	4–1, 4–5
		2R		FC Carl Zeiss Jena	3–0, 0–1
		3R		Budapest Honvéd FC	0–2, 5–0
		1/4F		Feyenoord Rotterdam	1–1, 1–3
1974–75	European Cup	1R		Hvidovre IF	0–0, 2–1
		2R		Fenerbahçe SK	2–1, 2–0
		1/4F		AS Saint-Étienne	3–2, 0–2
1975–76	European Cup	1R		KuPS	5–0, 2–2
		2R		PSV Eindhoven	1–3, 0–4
1979–80	European Cup	1R		Dynamo Berlin	1–4, 0–0
1989–90	European Cup	1R		CSKA Sofia	1–1, 1–5
1996–97	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	Q		Llansantffraid	1–1, 5–0
		1R		S.L. Benfica	1–5, 0–0
1998	Intertoto Cup	1R		FK Austria Wien	1–0, 2–2
		2R		Örgryte IS	1–2, 1–0
		3R		C.F. Estrela da Amadora	1–1, 1–1
		4R		Debreceni VSC	1–0, 3–0
		5R		Bologna F.C. 1909	0–1, 0–2
2000–01	UEFA Cup	Q		FK Žalgiris Vilnius	1–2, 6–0
		1R		Internazionale Milano F.C.	0–3, 1–4
2010–11	UEFA Europa League	1Q		FC Shakhter Karagandy	2–1, 1–0
		2Q		Valletta F.C.	1–1, 0–0
		3Q		FK Austria Wien	1–3, 0–3
2012–13	UEFA Europa League	2Q		Metalurg Skopje	3–1, 3–0
		3Q		Viktoria Plzeň	0–2, 0–5
2014–15	UEFA Europa League	2Q		FC Vaduz	3–2, 0–0
		3Q		Esbjerg	0–0, 2–2
		PO		Metalist Kharkiv	0–0, 0–1 (a.e.t)

Supporters and rivalries

Derby against Górnik Zabrze (2008)

Ruch's popularity exploded in the 1930s and remained strong up to this date, especially in Upper Silesia. A specific subculture of szalikowcy (the name derived from szalik - scarf) developed in the 1970s, as elsewhere in the country, but in the region only after it first appeared among the fans of Polonia Bytom.[13] There are also hooligans (Psycho Fans, formed in the mid 1990s) and ultras („Nucleo Ultra '03" from 2003, replaced by „Ultras Niebiescy", formed in 2008).

Expressions of Upper Silesian identity are often displayed with golden-blue flagues, on banners (like controversial "Oberschlesien",[14][15] now banned, or „To my Naród Śląski"[16] - It's us - Silesian Nation) or in chants.

Ruch's supporters maintain friendships with fans of Widzew Łódź (since 2005), Elana Toruń, Atlético Madrid.[17] The biggest animosity is held against followers Górnik Zabrze (The Great Silesian Derby), GKS Katowice, Polonia Bytom (the oldest Silesian derby[18][19]), Zagłębie Sosnowiec, Legia Warszawa, Lech Poznań.[13]

Notable individual supporters of Ruch are, among others:

• Jerzy Bralczyk – professor at Warsaw University[20]
• Jerzy Buzek[21] – professor of technical science and politician who was the ninth post-Cold War Prime Minister of Poland from 1997 to 2001[22]
• Gustaw Holoubek – actor, director, member of the Polish Sejm, and a senator.[23]
• Bogdan Kalus – actor[24]
• Wojciech Kilar – classical and film music composer[25]
• Wojciech Kuczok – novelist, poet, and screenwriter[26]
• Kazimierz Kutz – film director, author, journalist and politician[27]
• Jan Miodek – linguist, professor of Wrocław University[25]
• Jerzy Szymik – poet, professor of KUL[28]
• Ingmar Villqist (Jarosław Świerszcz) – writer[29]

Notable former players

Ernst Wilimowski Teodor Peterek Gerard Wodarz Gerard Cieślik Zygmunt Maszczyk

Krzysztof Warzycha Waldemar Fornalik Dariusz Gęsior Roman Dąbrowski Krzysztof Bizacki

Michał Probierz Mariusz Śrutwa Piotr Lech Artur Sobiech Tomasz Brzyski

Gražvydas Mikulėnas Michal Peškovič Eduards Višņakovs Martin Konczkowski Łukasz Surma Jarosław Paśnik

Notes

1. Stadion Miejski (Chorzów) at ruchchorzow.com.pl
2. Andrzej Gowarzewski, 1995, p. 15
3. Jacek Kurek, Historia Wielkich Hajduk, Chorzów Batory-Wielkie Hajduki 2001, p. 11.
4. O powstaniu KS Ruch i boisku na Kalinie, Chorzowianin nr 22 (398) z 28.05.2008, p. 19-20. See also Jacek Kurek, Historia Wielkich Hajduk, Chorzów Batory-Wielkie Hajduki 2001, p. 105, 119; Encyklopedia piłkarska FUJI, kolekcja klubów, tom I: Ruch Chorzów, Andrzej Gowarzewski, Katowice 1995; p. 19.
5. Encyklopedia piłkarska FUJI, kolekcja klubów, tom I: Ruch Chorzów, Andrzej Gowarzewski, Katowice 1995; p. 12.
6. Analiza miejsc urodzenia piłkarzy na podstawie biogramów zamieszczonych w Encyklopedii piłkarskiej FUJI, kolekcja klubów, tom I: Ruch Chorzów, Andrzej Gowarzewski, Katowice 1995.
7. Encyklopedia piłkarska FUJI, kolekcja klubów, tom I: Ruch Chorzów, Andrzej Gowarzewski, Katowice 1995; p. 43.
8. Ruch Chorzów profile Albion Road, accessed: 15 April 2009
9. Murray, Scott (23 October 2007). "The Joy of Six: own goals". Guardian.co.uk.
10. O tytuł mistrza, p. 146
11. "Pierwsza drużyna" (in Polish). Ruch Chorzów. Retrieved 2 August 2015.
12. Encyklopedia piłkarska FUJI, kolekcja klubów, tom I: Ruch Chorzów, Andrzej Gowarzewski, Katowice 1995; s. 66
13. "Historia kibiców" (in Polish).
14. "Oberschlesien. Ta flaga powinna wisieć czy nie?" (in Polish). 14 September 2009. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
15. "Kontrowersje wokół flagi z napisem "Oberschlesien"" (in Polish). 11 September 2009. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
16. "Flaga To My Naród Śląski na meczu w Warszawie. PZPN odpowiada" (in Polish). Retrieved 26 November 2016.
17. "Przyjaciele [Friends]" (in Polish).
18. "Informacje z woj. śląskiego". tvs.pl. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
19. "Polonia Bytom - Ruch Chorzów: Najstarsze derby Śląska zdecydują kto będzie wiceliderem Ekstraklasy - Zapowiedzi meczów". PrzegladSportowy.pl. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
20. Dlaczego pseudokibice wyzywają się od „Żydów”?
21. https://slaskie.naszemiasto.pl/wywiad-z-jerzym-buzkiem-kopanie-pilki-na-podworku-w/ar/c2-808616
22. Ruch Chorzów.
23. Mistrz Holoubek trzymał z Ruchem Chorzów – e-teatr.pl.
24. Świr Roku to zapalony kibic Ruchu Chorzów.
25. Kibice Ruchu Wojciech Kilar i Jan Miodek o spadku?niebieskich?
26. Ta trudna sztuka piłki nożnej > ESEJE 2.0.
27. Fenomen Wielkich Derbów Śląska.
28. Powstaje film o kibicach Ruchu, bo to dobra rodzina.
29. Wprost 24 – Wencel gordyjski – Schizofrenia kibica

References

• Gowarzewski Andrzej; Głyk Wioletta (2000). O tytuł mistrza Polski 1920–2000 (in Polish). GiA, Katowice. ISBN 83-88232-02-9.
• Gowarzewski Andrzej; Waloszek Joachim (1995). Ruch Chorzów: 75 lat "Niebieskich" (in Polish). GiA, Katowice. ISBN 83-902751-3-9.
• Bagier Tadeusz; Dutkowski Zbigniew; Kraszkiewicz Mirosław (1970). Pięćdziesiąt lat Klubu Sportowego "Ruch" Chorzów (in Polish). Wydawnictwo Artystyczno-Graficzne Chorzów.
• Gorzelany Franciszek; Miklica Bogusław; et al. (1960). 40-lecie Klubu Sportowego "Ruch" Chorzów (in Polish). Wydawnictwo "Prasa" Katowice.
• Collective work under Henryk Rechowicz editorial (1994). Z najnowszych dziejów kultury fizycznej i turystyki (in Polish). Wydawnictwo AWF Katowice.
• Collective work (2000). 80 lat OZPN [Okręgowego Związku Piłki Nożnej] Katowice: 1920–2000 (in Polish). GiA, Katowice. ISBN 83-88232-03-7.
• Kurek Jacek (2001). Historia Wielkich Hajduk (in Polish). Związek Górnośląski. Koło "Wielkie Hajduki", Rococo Chorzów-Batory. ISBN 83-86293-29-2.
• Gowarzewski Andrzej (2001). Biało-czerwoni : piłkarska reprezentacja Polski 1921–2001 : ludzie mecze fakty daty (in Polish). GiA, Katowice. ISBN 83-88232-08-8.
• Gowarzewski Andrzej; Waloszek Joachim (1996). 75 lat OZPN [Okręgowego Związku Piłki Nożnej] Katowice: 1920–1995, ludzie, historia, fakty (in Polish). GiA, Katowice. ISBN 83-902751-7-1.
• Czapliński Marek (red.) (2002). Historia Śląska (in Polish). Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego, Wrocław. ISBN 83-229-2213-2.

External links

• Official website (in Polish)
• Fansite (in Polish)
• Ruch Chorzów at 90minut.pl (in Polish)

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