Fri Nov 17, 2017 6:12 pm
It’s almost a year since the Brazilian side, Chapecoense FC, had one of the most disastrous modern day football moments of the last 60 years.
Echoes of the Manchester United 60s side, the Busby Babes, written into the tragic events that would ripple through a mountainous region in Medellin Columbia.
The team was en route to the Medellin where they were to play the first leg in the Sudamerica champions league final against the Uruguayans Atletico Nacional.
77 passengers boarded the flight that evening 28/11/2016, made up of coaching and management staff, reporters and almost the entire first team squad. Only 6 ever survived.
Nine players who didn’t go simply due to they weren’t selected Alejandro Martinuccio, Nenem, Demerson, Marcelo Boeck, Andrei, Hyoran, Nivaldo, Moises and Rafael Lima. Goalkeeper Marcelo Boeck didn’t travel to they game purely due to that day was his birthday. Nivaldo soon announced his retirement from Football after the disaster.
The only three players to survive were defenders Alan Ruschel (who has recently returned to playing), Neto (who continues his comeback) and back up goalkeeper Jakson Follman who had to have his leg amputated. One statemwnt was made of Neto telling reporters that he dreamt of the crash the night before and when it actually came all he could do was pray for the survival of his friends, but deep down knew that it couldn’t be stopped.
The final was never played, it was awarded by CONMEBOL in retrospect of the disaster to the Chapecoense FC side. The side was obliterated, but the mercy of footballing family came to life with all clubs begging the league to make Chape immune from relegation for 3 seasons, and pledging to loan players to the club...
The offer was refused by the president who wanted the team to be remembered the correct way by leaning on youth structures and signings to steady their ship.
This season on 71 minutes the Chape fans have applauded for the 71 lost cheering “vamos Vamos Chape!” In a dreary season as expected the fans nearly rued their presidents choice to refuse immunity, but last weekend the club narrowly avoided relegation!
It’s perhaps a reminder to us that football isn’t just a game, it’s a community and a life, an understanding that no matter what happens you will always back your club and the clubs around you because with out us there is not football spirit.
Would be nice if on 71 minutes our home crowd could maybe reflect on that, not for Chape, Brazilian football, etc but for the memory of 19 players who boarded a plane to play a game of football on a field, and never came home...