Palestinian men’s soccer team plays first match ever on home turf

by Yuliya Talmazan | October 27, 2008 at 04:11 pm

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Athletes say playing at home gives extra jitters but empowers to do well. Palestinian men’s soccer team was never allowed the luxury to play on home soil until yesterday’s match with Jordan at West Bank stadium on the edge of Jerusalem, in which it drew 1-1. In the past, Palestinian soccer team ranked 180th in the world, had to play home games in Jordan and train in Egypt because the stadiums in Palestine did not pass FIFA’s standards. The team finally got to live their dream of playing home for real yesterday, albeit without their captain, Saeb Jundiya, who was not allowed to leave Gaza Strip to come play at West Bank over “security concerns” raised by Israeli authorities.

"When you are playing here, in front of your own people, in your land it makes a huge difference," the stand-in captain Ayman Hindi said before kick-off. "We will play better."

For a nation whose statehood drive is stalling amid apparently fruitless peace negotiations with Israel and a devastating internal split between its two main political groups -- Fatah and Hamas – hosting the match was something to cheer about.

"Our national team, in our stadium, means we exist no less than any other nation in the world," said Mohammed Suhsa, a 45-year old mechanic who was in the 6,500-strong crowd, with his 11-year-old son, Mustafa.

"Filastin [Palestine], Filastin, Filastin", roared the crowd to drumbeats after Ahmed Kashkash's 10th-minute goal edged the home side in front. "God willing, another one," they chanted. It was not to be – the team is ranked 180 out of 207 by Fifa, after all – and Jordan equalised for a 1-1 draw.

The much-anticipated fixture marked the end of years of athletic homelessness. The Palestinian national team's matches had until now been played in Jordan or the Gulf because there was no home stadium that met Fifa standards. And training was in Egypt because the team was split between the West Bank and Gaza, and Israeli travel restrictions made it difficult to gather in either part of their fragmented homeland.

And although Israeli authorities allowed 11 players to travel from the Gaza Strip to the West Bank, the Palestinian captain, Saeb Jundiya, was barred from leaving the Strip, with the Israeli authorities citing "security concerns".

He said: "I've waited all my life for this. Imagine what it's like. The whole world is coming. The head of Fifa is coming; it is the first match on Palestinian land. I'm the captain and I can't play." He said he would watch the match on TV with family and friends. He denied he was a security threat. "All of my life has been devoted to sports." The West Bank government affiliated to President Mahmoud Abbas, and the chairman of the Palestinian Football Association, Jibril Rajoub, had worked hard to bring football home for the Palestinians fans. And at a pre-match press conference, the Prime Minister Salam Fayyad urged more foreign teams to come and play. "This is a sign of solidarity, it's a message of solidarity with the Palestinian people during a time of hardship," he said.