Post by chrish on Mar 9, 2011 21:34:25 GMT
I have Ospelgull to thank for this one. He made me aware of a wonderful Belgian website called Groundhopping (www.groundhopping.be) a few months ago and after having spent a while having a look through it I decided that Belgian football might be the way forward. Cheap, decent support and stadiums that haven't yet been brutally modernised.
So on Sunday on the way back to Dunkirk from Utrecht I made a quick detour from the Antwerp ringroad and went to see a Belgian 4th division game between Berchem Sport and SK Londerzeel at the fabulous Ludo Coeck Stadion named in honour of Ex-Belgian International Ludo Coeck who was born and started his career at Berchem before moving on to greater things at Anderlecht before tragically dying at the age of 30 when he crashed his BMW on his way to sign for near neighbours Lierse. Current coach of Russia, Dick Advocaat also played for them for a couple of seasons.
Berchem Sport have played in the Belgian first division and they were runners up in 1949,1950 and 1951. Now they find themselves in the 4th division and have to compete for support with two big clubs in Antwerp (Royal Antwerp and Germinal Beerschot) with another biggish club in Lierse just down the road.
But, what a stadium. It's a throwback to a bygone era where the working classes alone went to football, smoking was good for you and five-a-day meant something else than recommended fruit and veg portions.
In the end the match finished 0-2 to SK Londerzeel who had this fantastic little player up front called Jiresse Makengo. Small and very quick.
Some photos.
So on Sunday on the way back to Dunkirk from Utrecht I made a quick detour from the Antwerp ringroad and went to see a Belgian 4th division game between Berchem Sport and SK Londerzeel at the fabulous Ludo Coeck Stadion named in honour of Ex-Belgian International Ludo Coeck who was born and started his career at Berchem before moving on to greater things at Anderlecht before tragically dying at the age of 30 when he crashed his BMW on his way to sign for near neighbours Lierse. Current coach of Russia, Dick Advocaat also played for them for a couple of seasons.
Berchem Sport have played in the Belgian first division and they were runners up in 1949,1950 and 1951. Now they find themselves in the 4th division and have to compete for support with two big clubs in Antwerp (Royal Antwerp and Germinal Beerschot) with another biggish club in Lierse just down the road.
But, what a stadium. It's a throwback to a bygone era where the working classes alone went to football, smoking was good for you and five-a-day meant something else than recommended fruit and veg portions.
In the end the match finished 0-2 to SK Londerzeel who had this fantastic little player up front called Jiresse Makengo. Small and very quick.
Some photos.
