Stadion Miejski w Gliwicah
July 05, 2020
When I watched Piast Gliwice from the stands, they were still champions of Poland. Last season, the title was closely contested among Lechia Gdansk and Legia and in the end it went to Piast completely unexpectedly for many who follow Polish football. Just think about it, the previous season they almost got relegated from Ekstraklasa, only to become champions the next season.
What makes the feat even more remarkable is that Piast never played the top level of Polish football until 2008, and even then it took a while for the team to become the staple of Ekstraklasa. With no pedigree to speak of, no wonder that Piast cannot boast of great fandom. In fact it is completely overshadowed by local Silesian neigbours - GKS Katowice, Ruch Chorzow and especially Gornik Zabrze. Zabrze is just minutes away from Gliwice and a lot of locals would consider Gornik their local club.
I planned to visit Piast games early this year, but due to the virus, I had to wait for the next opportunity. Finally, restrictions were lifted and it was possible to watch live football again. I got the ticket online from Piast website and started my travel. First I had to take a bus from Krakow to Katowice and then take a local inter-urban train that connects various parts the Silesian metropolis. A quick, cheap and very comfortable ride from Katowice to Gliwice is just about 30 minutes.
I have to say that these little Polish towns start to blend for me now. A lot of them were either German or Austrian for many years of their existence. It clearly shows in their design and architecture. With that said, I liked Gliwice. Despite its obvious grittiness, there was something charming about it. There is a picturesque main square and plenty of interesting architecture. Or maybe it was just excellent sunny weather, cheap cafes and generally good mood that made me enjoy Gliwice more than others.
I only had about an hour to explore the town and have a pre-game meal. Piast stadium was on the opposite site of the city centre but still close enough to the railway station. It is located in the small park in a residential area. The stadium was built by Germans and it is an exact replica of Paderborn’s home ground. In fact, it may be similar to many other stadiums and it indeed feels bland and generic. But at the same time, it’s perfect for such a small team, and I have not visited too many of such grounds yet to be bored by them. All the tickets cost the same but I still chose seats behind the goal opposite of the main ultras section.
Due to the current COVID situation, a lot of restrictions are in place. This is obviously not good for the atmosphere. The stadium looked eerily empty and few ultras behind the other goal could not do much. The food stalls were closed and I did not see club shop or any merchandise booths. But there were the ever-present groundhoppers. I think I recognized Dutch language behind me and those were a father and a son enjoying their football fix in a foreign land.
The game was a proverbial 6-pointer. No chances to catch Legia, but Piast could still hope for medals and another excellent season for them. So achieve that, they needed to get the result from this home fixture against Wroclaw.
I did not know any players on the pitch but one name sparked my curiosity. Tom Hateley from Piast turned out to be the son of Mark Hateley famous for joining AC Milan from the Second League’s Portsmouth. I remember him playing for Glasgow Rangers in the early 90s. Funny, that Piast is Tom’s second Polish team and he used to play for Wroclaw before. I guess you can call his move from Tranmere Rovers to Slask unorthodox, but it does not have the same ring as his father’s career move to Milan.
Slask started clearly better than the hosts but as the game progressed, it became obvious that Piast is a very tight and well-coached counter-attacking team. They followed their game plan and had excellent chances throughout the game. One goal proved to be enough to win to the delight of the players and few fans who decided to watch their team on this sweltering day. Let’s hope another European adventure for Gliwice will turn more successful than their last year’s fiasco when they lost in succession to Bate Borisov and FC Riga. They are a good side and should achieve more.
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