Hapoel Ramat Gan F.C.

Found in: Israeli football clubs

Hapoel Ramat Gan F.C. are an Israeli football club from the central Israeli city of Ramat Gan. They play in an all-red strip, and are currently in Liga Artzit, the third level of Israeli football. Home matches are played at HaMakhtesh Stadium (literally 'the crater'), which has a capacity of around 5,500.

History

Hapoel were founded during the Mandate era by Jewish settlers in Ramat Gan. After independence, the club became founder members of the Israeli top division, then known as the Israeli League.

After a series of mid-table finishes, the club was relegated to the second division in 1959-60 after finishing bottom. In 1962-3, the club returned to the top flight as second division champions, and followed it up by becoming the first team to win the championship in the first season after promotion. The championship-winning match against Hapoel Petah Tikva was watched by Hapoel's record crowd of 9,000. However, this success proved to be their zenith, as they were overtaken by city rivals Hakoah who were champions in the following season. Hapoel were relegated at the end of the 1968-9 season.

The early 1980s was a yo-yo era, as the club were promoted and immediately relegated twice in succession from 1979-80 to 1982-3. In 1988-9 they won promotion again, but were again immediately relegated, this being their last period of time in the top flight.

By the end of the 1990s, the club had sunk into Liga Artzit, the third division, though they did pick up some silverware by winning the Toto Cup for third division teams in 1999-2000. In the same season, they were promoted back to the second division.

In 2002-3, the club returned to the national conscience by becoming the first team from outside the top division to win the State Cup, when they beat Hapoel Be'er Sheva 5-4 on penalties after a 1-1 draw. The win also meant the club qualified for the UEFA Cup.

Hapoel were drawn against Levski Sofia of Bulgaria in the first round. However, because of a UEFA ban on matches in Israel at the time (due to the security situation), the club had to play their home match in Dunajska Streda, Slovakia. The "home" match attracted a crowd of just 300, and Hapoel lost the tie 5-0 on aggregate .

The following season, the costs of playing in Europe and the loss of many of the best players resulted in relegation back to the third level. A 9 point deduction for financial issues at the start of the 2005-6 season resulted in another season of struggle, with the club finishing one place above a potentially embarrassing relegation to Liga Alef.

In May 2007, Hapoel Ramat Gan continued their tradition of success in the Israeli State Cup by defeating Maccabi Haifa of the Israeli 1st Division 1-0 in extra time. This victory brought Hapoel Ramat Gan into the Israeli semi-finals and effectively disqualified Maccabi Haifa from European competition in 2008.

Players

Current squad

As of July 4, 2008

Honours

Championship

*1963-4

State Cup

*Winners 2003

Liga Artzit

*Champions 2006-07

Toto Cup (Liga Artzit)

*Winners 2000, 2006, 2007

Records

Attendance: 9,000 vs Hapoel Petah Tikva (28 March 1964)

Win: 10-0 vs Beitar Netanya (18 May 1940)

Goalscorer: Reuven Cohen, 85 goals (1955-1968)

Notable Former Players

Ya'akov Hodorov

Shlomo Levi

Moshe Perl

Tsvika Heyman

Reuven Cohen

Roni Kaldaron

Avi Buksenboim

Avraham Lev

Igal Kohavi

Shooli Gilardi

Avi Barshatzki

Yuval Naim

Ronen Harazi

Ilan Bahar

Michael Zandberg

Ofir Halwani

Miki Maman

Tomar Brazilai

Shahar Kaduri

Omer Buchsenbaum

Trivia

"Hapoel" is translated as "The Worker"

External links

Official Site

Fansite

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Hapoel Ramat Gan F.C.

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