"Maccabi Tel Aviv respected the rivalry between us, Maccabi Haifa did not"

The derby, the Clasico between Haifa and Tel Aviv, and the political hatred between Hapoel and Betar.

Yaniv Tuchman

23/05/2022

Monday, May 23, 2022, 1:30 p.m.

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Summary: Maccabi Haifa - Maccabi Netanya 0: 4, including lifting the championship plate (Sport 1)

The last blow was by David Keltins.

Kesher Hapoel Beer Sheva is known for its grace, but also for its uncompromising language.

"Maccabi Haifa is known as a pretty provocative team," he shot at the end of the last game between the two teams at Turner.

It was another very charged game between the two teams that ran head to head in the league for the championship and tomorrow (Tuesday, 20:30) will fight for the state cup.

Hapoel Beer Sheva won the fourth league meeting between the two and balanced the meetings (two wins each in the league).

After Maccabi Haifa won the Toto Cup final at the expense of the Southerners in September, Keltins sat at the press conference at Turner Stadium next to his coach Aliniv Barda and tried to explain the rivalry that developed between the two teams this season.

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"When we and Maccabi Haifa fought for the championship, the rivalry became so great."

Abu Abid vs. Planich (Photo: Liron Moldovan)

Breda may have moved a little uncomfortably in his chair at the sound of his player talking unfiltered about the opposing team, but inside he agreed.

Maccabi Haifa and Hapoel Beer Sheva, which were not known for their sporting hostility towards each other, have developed an abysmal rivalry this season.

As a source associated with Hapoel Beer Sheva said today: "When Maccabi Haifa was not in the championship picture for ten years, it and especially its fans even made a kind of alliance with Hapoel Beer Sheva, only that Maccabi Tel Aviv will not win more championships and increase its championship gap from Maccabi Haifa. This season, when we and Maccabi Haifa fought for the championship, the rivalry became so great, even more than it was between us and Maccabi Tel Aviv in all the three years we won the championships. "

There are many layers to the sporting hatred that developed between the teams this season, but perhaps the seeds were planted at all last season with the statement of Maccabi Haifa president Yaakov Shachar who was interviewed on one issue and asked near Joshua's spit on Avi Rikan how he would react if it was his player.

"Give him a strong slap and send him home on a plane," Shahar said at the time, angering the people of Hapoel Beer Sheva and also Alona Barkat, who claimed in private conversations at the time that she would not interfere in issues unrelated to her team.

Last season did not give rise to a struggle for hegemony between the two clubs because Hapoel Beer Sheva was not in the picture, but this season Roni Levy was there as the team coach from the first round and when the two met Sami Ofer for the first time, a few weeks after the Toto Cup final.

Roi Gordana was sent off in the first half, Maccabi Haifa felt it would win easily, but then came two dismissals by Omar Atzili and Ofri Arad and two very successful penalties by Iyad Abu Abid and a lot of red joy in the visitors' stand on the head of Maccabi Haifa.

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The things he said at the end of last season following Joshua's spitting affair about Avi Rikan angered the people of Be'er Sheva.

Yaakov Shachar (Photo: Berni Ardov)

Hapoel Beer Sheva won 1: 2 and the next day Dor Micha's wedding took place.

It was a wedding that brought together the country's top footballers.

There were also those from Maccabi Haifa, of course from Maccabi Tel Aviv and all the people of Hapoel Beer Sheva.

During the evening, many talked about the game the night before in Sami Ofer.

"The feeling is that Maccabi Tel Aviv has respected the rivalry between Hapoel Beer Sheva and them in the last ten and Maccabi Haifa, on the other hand, is proud of us," said sources in the Hapoel Beer Sheva area at the time.

That game in October in Haifa was, as mentioned, the first meeting between the two clubs.

In the second meeting held at Turner, Maccabi Haifa showed enormous superiority on the field.

"They came to that game to prove that they are better," recalled a player at Hapoel Beer Sheva.

"You saw they came into the game to say that maybe we led the table most of the time until then, but that they are a much more offensive and good team."

Even in that game, the teams did not finish with 11 players, each.

During the break, there was a commotion in the hallway of the locker rooms with assistant coach Eric Bendo in the middle.

The refereeing team decided to keep Raz Meir away from Maccabi Haifa and in the second half, Maccabi Haifa coach Barak Bachar returned very charged.

In general, the entire transfer of Barak Bachar and his team from Hapoel Beer Sheva to Maccabi Haifa is also a significant addition to the fire.

Hapoel Beer Sheva really liked Bachar.

They even feel that they have a part in making him the best coach in the league.

But more than once, after a meeting between the two teams, one could hear people from Hapoel Beer Sheva say that Bachar, his assistant Guy Sarfati and the rest of the team, were much calmer and more relaxed on the benches.

"This is Barak Bachar, a little different," say Hapoel Beer Sheva.

"With us he was much more peaceful and calm."

The move of Bachar and his team from Be'er Sheva to Haifa also added to the burning (Photo: Official website, Maccabi Haifa)

That game in Turner with the dismissal of Meir, Maccabi Haifa finished with a victory.

Although Hapoel Beer Sheva was much better in the second half, Maccabi Haifa still knew how to take advantage of its excellent first half and win.

Maccabi Haifa had to sail to the championship after that game.

Many estimated that from round to round the gap would increase and that the playoffs would be difficult to record, but then Maccabi Haifa lost some of its quality in several games and created bad results for itself.

Hapoel Beer Sheva on the other hand fired Roni Levy and brought a new spirit into the locker room with the transfer of the keys to Aliniv Barda.

Some good results of the team led to the opening of a playoff where everything was open.

The first game between the two that really deserved the title of the game of the season was held in Sami Ofer and also in which a player was sent off.

Uriel Greenfeld then made a mistake with a red card to Danilo Aspria.

Be'er Sheva was left with ten players and lost 0: 2.

Maccabi Haifa opened a gap of 7 points in the opening of the playoffs and the story seemed complete.

But then again Barak Bachar's players lost points in a very respectable playoff of all 6 teams, but still Hapoel Beer Sheva did not know how to do the job for them and could not close the gap.

When the two teams reached the fourth game between them this season in the league at Turner, Maccabi Haifa could have won an official championship.

"We were in no way ready to let them celebrate on our heads," said a player from Hapoel Beer Sheva at the end of the game.

During the game red was raised again, the sixth of the season in meetings between the two.

Muhammad Abu Fani left Maccabi Haifa with ten players and Omar Atzili could also get a red card after being substituted and observed spitting at Hapoel Beer Sheva fans sitting behind his team bench.

Hapoel Beer Sheva's victory in that game postponed Maccabi Haifa's championship celebrations to the delight of Hapoel Beer Sheva fans.

Maccabi Haifa said at the time that they would keep the joy of a victory over Hapoel Beer Sheva until the cup final.

David Keltins from the quote at the beginning of this article, represented what many of his friends thought that evening.

"We were not willing to let them celebrate on our heads."

Micha vs. Planich at the end of the last game between Beer Sheva and Haifa (Photo: Liron Moldovan)

"We have to tell the truth, Maccabi Haifa was more afraid of Maccabi Tel Aviv this season than of Hapoel Beer Sheva," said some of Hapoel Beer Sheva's well-known fans who will lead the Mizrahi stand tomorrow.

"Even when we led the table, in the radio programs of Maccabi Haifa, they talked about Maccabi Tel Aviv. They did not really tell us this season and that is what angered us most. We did not get the respect we deserved. Today we hear everything and there is radio in Haifa like in Be'er Sheva. "Some of them underestimated us all season and only feared a comeback from Maccabi Tel Aviv."

Tomorrow's cup final will drain him of all the emotions from the four meetings between the two teams this season.

Daniel Bar Natan in his retirement game will surely want to finish with 22 players on the pitch, but the tension and rivalry, may again produce red cards and a lot of mess.

"This is really a relatively fresh rivalry between two clubs that did not know for many years sports hatred," say Hapoel Beer Sheva.

"There are enough fire games in Israeli football, the Tel Aviv derby, the Clasico between Maccabi Haifa and Maccabi Tel Aviv, the political rivalry between Betar Jerusalem and Hapoel Tel Aviv and also Maccabi Haifa and Betar Jerusalem were bitter rivals in certain years.

What happened this season in meetings between Maccabi Haifa "Hapoel Beer Sheva is quite unusual because it's like a tsunami that no one expected to come. The most important thing is that it ends on the grass in a sporty way and we do not see the madness that was in the previous four games."

• sport

• Israeli soccer

• State cup

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• Maccabi Haifa

• Hapoel Beer Sheva