Syria Army Football Team Loses to Local Club

In front of a crowd of nearly 2,000 at Damascus' Tishrin Stadium, Al-Wahda football club defeated the Syrian army team in extra time, to win the Syria Cup. For some in the stands, the match was simply a chance to get out and relax, while US President Barack Obama and his allies mull military strikes against President Bashar al-Assad's regime for alleged chemical attacks.

Published

6 months ago

Categories

World, Sports

Topics

Middle East & North Africa, Sports

Places

Syria, Damascus

Transcript

SHOTLIST DAMASCUS, SYRIA, SEPTEMBER 10, 2013. SOURCE: AFPTV SOUNDBITE 1 - Ghassan, (man), Syrian football supporter, (Arabic 12 sec) "I used to write songs for my team Wahdeh, but this year due to the country's circumstances, I'm writing songs against Obama and NATO to condemn them." SOUNDBITE 2 - Ibrahim, (man), Syrian student, (Arabic 16 sec) "I haven���t come to only encourage the army team, but to share happiness with the Syrian people, even if this happiness is incomplete. I am happy that I am here in this stadium after a two-year gap beause of the Syrian crisis." SOUNDBITE 3 - Rawan Tinawi, (woman), Syrian spectator, (Arabic 13 sec) "We came here because we are tired of staying at home and watching the news. We came here to lighten up and take a break out of the house and away from the news." SOUNDBITE 4 - Ghiath Dabbas, (man), Wahda team coach, (Arabic 14 sec) "After two years of absence, today for the first time, fans turned out in huge numbers to support us. It's the first match they come out for. They were our twelth player and with their support we won this match." /// ------------------------------------------------------ Syria army battles on all fronts but loses on the football pitch / Damascus (Syria) - 11 September 2013 13:48 - (Sammy Ketz) / Syria's army has been waging a bitter war against rebels across the country for more than two years, but they suffered a setback on a Damascus football pitch against local team al-Wahda on Tuesday. In front of a crowd of nearly 2,000 at Damascus' Tishrin Stadium, Al-Wahda's Hamoud Hamoudi scored against the army's team in the last minutes of extra time, clenching the Syria Cup. Supporters of the military club cheered their team on with chants of "God, Syria, the army and nothing else". The orange-clad Al-Wahda fans responded with their own chant of "God, Syria, Bashar (al-Assad, Syria's pressident) and nothing else," singing along to the beat of a drum. But all fans came together with a scurrilous chant about US President Barack Obama and NATO. Obama and his allies had been mulling military strikes against Assad's regime for alleged chemical attacks in the suburbs of the capital on August 21, in which hundreds are said to have died. While the threat of action has been put on hold with a Russian proposition for Damascus to hand over its chemical arsenal to the international community for eventual destruction, Assad's supporters still loathe the United States, France and NATO. Artillery rumbles in the distance, but the crowds still turned out in relatively good number for a city that is usually deserted at night. For some in the stands, the match was simply a chance to get out and to relax. "I did not come to support the army or Al-Wahda, I came to share the Syrians' joy, even if it is not complete," says Brahim, 23, who came to the match with a Syrian flag draped around his shoulders. A few seats along from him, his friend Mustafa, a 35-year-old steelworker, leads the army fans' chanting with a loudspeaker. "It's not because of the war that I support the army, but I have to say that because of the events I like them even more because they are fighting every day. It's normal to support them," he said, referring to the bloody civil war that has been ravaging the country for more than two years. In the opposing stand, Rawan Tinawi came from Douma, the suburb to the northeast of Damascus with her sister. "We have had enough of hearing the news, we came for a bit of fun. We're sick of being stuck at home," she says. On the pitch, as the game drags into extra time, the players are growing tired and the cramps start to kick in. But Hamoudi's goal electrifies the Al-Wahda fans and drains the army supporters. Ashraf Eitouni, however, is philosophical about the defeat. "Today Al-Wahda wanted to win more than us," he concedes. "We won the championship ten days ago, and that's much more important. The army always wins, even in sports. With 12 championships, we are the most titled team," he says, consoling himself. Less than two weeks ago, in the same stadium, the army team beat the police squad in the championship finals 1-0. But Al-Wahda's coach is savouring his team's victory. "This year we played with the best team that didn't lose any of their games in the championship or the cup. It's their first defeat," says Ghiyath Dabbas, 33. "But, even if we're on opposite teams, we're all in the same trench" facing the rebellion, he adds. General Muwafaq Jamaa, head of the Syrian Sporting Federation who awarded the cup trophy to Al-Wahda, was backing the army, in whose ranks he spent 40 years. But he was happy to see the number of spectators who turned out for the game. "We are not scared of America, or of its Tomahawks," he says in a nod to the cruise missiles Washington had said it could use in any strikes. "You can see that here. All these people came even though it's late and we are playing at night. Syrians like a challenge". sk-yk/mh/sw/tl