FC Kolkheti-1913 is a Georgian football club based in Poti, which currently takes part in Liga 3, the third division of Erovnuli Liga.
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| Founded | 1913 | ||
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| Ground | Fazisi Stadium Poti, Georgia | ||
| Capacity | 6,000 | ||
| Chairman | Zaza Inashvili | ||
| Manager | Davit Kvirkvelia | ||
| League | Erovnuli Liga 3 | ||
| 2021 | 2nd of 14 | ||
| Website | Club website | ||
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Being registered in 1913, Kolkheti is considered one of the oldest clubs in the South Caucasus.[1] They were a long-time participant of the first tier of Georgian national league.
HistoryEdit
Domestic leaguesEdit
The Soviet periodEdit
The football club from Poti under the name Kolkhida for many years was a member of the Georgian Soviet championship until early 1960s. From 1962 to 1990, they spent 24 seasons in fourth and third divisions of the Soviet football system, including last consecutive 11 years in zone 9 of the Second league, with the 2nd place in 1989 being the best result.[2]
Earning league trophiesEdit
When GFF formed the national league in early 1990, Kolkheti-1913 took part in an opening game against Iberia Tbilisi. The historic match held at Boris Paichadze stadium ended 1–0 in favour of the guest team.[3] Therefore, Kolkheti became the first club to win a game in the history of Georgian national leagues.
Throughout the first decade, the Kolkhs were considered one of the strongest rivals. Apart from 1992/93, when they finished in 9th place, the club completed each season among top five teams with twice, in 1993-94 and 1996–97, coming second.[4] In this period the team also earned the bronze medals three times.
This success of the club was largely contributed to their sponsors from mid-1990s, the naval port of Poti.
Crisis beginsEdit
In 2006, after a foreign business company took over the port administration, the football club abruptly lost a significant income.[5] Despite being 10th among 16 clubs in 2005/06, due to the severe financial crisis Kolkheti had to quit the league.[6]
The club climbed back to Umaglesi Liga following the 2009/10 season, but returned to the second league three years later.[7] In 2011, a sponsorship deal with the naval port resumed to a less extent, which lasted for four years.[8]
Battle for survivalEdit
Kolkheti were back in the top division in 2014-15, although further financial difficulties hit the club in 2018, which pushed them to the verge of bankruptcy. As Kolkheti amassed a large amount of debts, they were deducted six points. Eventually, the team was relegated.[9]
While in Liga 2, Kolkheti still could not afford to pay off debts. In an emergency statement, the club appealed for urgent help.[10] Meanwhile, they were slapped with another 6 points deduction.[11] The overall situation badly affected the team. Three managers were sacked for unsatisfactory results within initial five months of the season.[12] The tide remained unchanged, though. Only in the last matchday did Kolkheti manage to avoid automatic relegation, but after being thrashed by Samgurali Tskaltubo in play-offs they slumped to the third division.[13]
In tier 3Edit
In the initial two seasons Kolkheti were among primary promotion-chasers, although in both cases they suffered a setback in pursuit for an automatic promotion slot. The play-off results proved also unsuccessful despite the team's unbeaten aggregate score in the regular time. First they failed to beat WIT Georgia on penalties,[14] and a year later lost in extra time to Rustavi on away goals.[15]
European competitionsEdit
Based on successful performance in Umaglesi Liga, Kolkheti-1913 represented Georgia on UEFA Cup for four consecutive seasons from 1996 until 2000.
The only victory achieved in this competition against Dinamo Minsk was insufficient for qualifying for the next round. Having lost the first leg 0-1, Kolkheti conceded an early goal at home and scored twice afterwards, but the away goals rule gave a final advantage to their opponents.[16]
| Season | Competition | Round | Club | Home | Away | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | UEFA Intertoto Cup | GS |  Zemun
|
2–3 | - | 5th |
 FF Jaro
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- | 0–2 | ||||
 Guingamp
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1–3 | - | ||||
 Dinamo București
|
- | 0–2 | ||||
| 1997–98 | UEFA Cup | 1Q |  Dinamo Minsk
|
2–1 | 0–1 | 2–2 |
| 1998–99 | UEFA Cup | 1Q | Red Star Belgrade
|
0–4 | 0–7 | 0–11 |
| 1999 | UEFA Intertoto Cup | 1R |  Cementarnica 55
|
0–4 | 2–4 | 2–8 |
SeasonsEdit
| Year | Div. | Pos | P | W | D | L | GF–GA | Pts | Cup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 1st | 5/18 | 34 | 19 | 5 | 10 | 53-31 | 62 | Quarterfinals |
| 1991 | 1st | 4/20 | 19 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 30-19 | 33 | — |
| 1991/92 | 1st | 5/20 | 38 | 15 | 11 | 12 | 49-45 | 56 | Round of 32 |
| 1992/93 | 1st | 9/17 | 32 | 12 | 6 | 14 | 47-45 | 42 | Round of 16 |
| 1993/1994 | 1st, Group West | 1/8 | 14 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 36-21 | 29 | Semifinals |
| 1-10 Places | 2/10 | 18 | 14 | 2 | 2 | 51-20 | 44 | ||
| 1994/95 | 1st | 3/16 | 30 | 20 | 3 | 7 | 72-28 | 63 | Round of 32 |
| 1995/96 | 1st | 3/16 | 30 | 22 | 2 | 6 | 69-38 | 68 | Quarterfinals |
| 1996/97 | 1st | 2/16 | 30 | 20 | 4 | 6 | 75-28 | 64 | Quarterfinals |
| 1997-98 | 1st | 3/16 | 30 | 17 | 6 | 7 | 56-27 | 57 | Quarterfinals |
| 1998/99 | 1st | 4/16 | 30 | 15 | 7 | 8 | 57-36 | 52 | Round of 16 |
| 1999/2000 | 1st, Group B | 2/8 | 14 | 8 | 1 | 5 | 19-15 | 25 | Quarterfinals |
| 1-8 Places | 5/8 | 14 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 18-10 | 37 | ||
| 2000/01 | 1st | 6/12 | 22 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 22-18 | 31 | Quarterfinals |
| 1-6 Places | 5/6 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 10-19 | 24 | ||
| 2001/02 | 1st | 5/12 | 22 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 32-29 | 35 | Round of 16 |
| 1-6 Places | 4/6 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 9-16 | 26 | ||
| 2002/03 | 1st | 6/12 | 22 | 9 | 3 | 10 | 28-33 | 30 | Round of 16 |
| 1-6 Places | 6/6 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 5-23 | 20 | ||
| 2003/04 | 1st | 9/12 | 22 | 7 | 3 | 12 | 18-35 | 24 | Round of 16 |
| 7-12 Places | 8/12 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 14-6 | 33 | ||
| 2004/05 | 1st | 9/10 | 36 | 9 | 5 | 22 | 32-63 | 32 | Quarterfinals |
| 2005/06 | 1st | 10/16 [a] |
30 | 9 | 5 | 16 | 26-35 | 32 | Quarterfinals |
| 2006/07 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2007/08 | 2nd | 5/10 | 27 | 11 | 7 | 9 | 36-33 | 40 | 1st Round |
| 2008/09 | 2nd | 5/11 | 30 | 13 | 6 | 11 | 45-40 | 45 | Round of 16 |
| 2009/10 | 2nd, Group A | 2/15 |
28 | 19 | 4 | 5 | 63-21 | 61 | Quarterfinals |
| 2010/11 | 1st | 7/10 | 36 | 10 | 10 | 16 | 25-47 | 40 | Round of 16 |
| 2011/12 | 1st | 8/12 | 22 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 19-24 | 26 | Round of 16 |
| 2012/13 | 1st | 10/10 | 22 | 0 | 4 | 18 | 11-43 | 4 | Round of 16 |
| Relegation round | 6/6 |
32 | 3 | 8 | 21 | 22-56 | 17 | ||
| 2013/14 | 2nd, Group A | 2/13 |
24 | 17 | 4 | 3 | 51-13 | 55 | 2nd Round |
| 2014/15 | 1st | 10/16 | 30 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 31-31 | 37 | 2nd Round |
| 2015/16 | 1st | 12/16 | 30 | 7 | 6 | 17 | 21-41 | 27 | 2nd Round |
| 2016 | 1st, Group Red | 4/7 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 10-18 | 18 | Quarterfinals |
| 2017 | 1st | 9/10 | 36 | 6 | 8 | 22 | 31-73 | 26 | 5th Round |
| 2018 | 1st | 10/10 |
36 | 4 | 8 | 24 | 26-76 | 14[b] | 3rd Round |
| 2019 | 2nd | 9/10 |
36 | 10 | 4 | 22 | 31-80 | 28[c] | 3rd Round |
| 2020 | 3rd | 2/10 | 18 | 12 | 2 | 4 | 47-18 | 38 | 2nd Round |
| 2021 | 3rd | 2/10 | 26 | 14 | 7 | 5 | 54-28 | 49 | 2nd Round |
NotesEdit
OverallEdit
Seasons spent in Georgian leagues since 1990:
• Umaglesi Liga / Erovnuli Liga (1st tier): 24
• Pirveli Liga / Erovnuli Liga 2 (2nd tier): 5
• Meore Liga / Liga 3 (3rd tier): 2
Correct up to 2021 season
Current squadEdit
As of April 2022
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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ManagersEdit
Gela Sanaia (March - August 2017)
Oleksandr Shtelin (September - December 2017)
Konstantin Galkin (February - March 2018)- Nugzar Tvaradze (March - September 2018)
- Viktor Demidov (September - December 2018)
- Paata Metreveli (February - April 2019)
- Soso Pilia (April - June 2019)
- Giorgi Krasovski (June - August 2019)
- Nugzar Tvaradze (August - October 2019)
- Vladimer Chkonia (October - December 2019)
- Davit Makharadze (February - October 2020)
- Nugzar Tvaradze (October - December 2020)
- Giorgi Krasovski (February - June 2021)
- Gia Gigatadze (June 2021 – May 2022)
- Davit Kvirkvelia (since June 2022)
The current manager has started his professional career both as a player and a coach at this club. Being initially appointed as assistant head coach in February 2022,[17] he took charge of the team on 2 June.
HonoursEdit
Georgian Soviet Championship
Winners (2): 1978, 1988[18]
Runners-up (2): 1993-94 and 1996-97
Third place (3): 1994-95, 1995-96, 1997-98
Runners-up (2): 2009-2010, 2013-2014 (A Group)
Soviet Second League Zone IX (Caucasus)
Runner-up (1): 1989
StadiumEdit
Fazisi was built in 1961. Its reconstruction got under way in 2013, but it took seven years before the works were completed. Meanwhile, Kolkheti-1913 held their home games on Rugby Arena in Poti or in some neighbouring cities. Football returned to Fazisi in October 2019.[19]
ReferencesEdit
- ^ Georgia - List of Foundation Dates.
- ^ "Kolkheti in USSR II league". wildstat.com.
- ^ "ასე იწყებოდა: ეროვნული ჩემპიონატის პირველი მატჩი 30 წლის წინ გაიმართა". popsport.com (in Georgian). 30 March 2020.
- ^ "Kolkheti - overall stats". wildstat.com.
- ^ "კოლხეთის განცხადება:ისტორიული კლუბი მავანთა გამო კრიზისში ყოფნას არ იმსახურებს". crystalbet.com (in Georgian). 22 October 2019.
- ^ "2005/06 season". soccerway.com.
- ^ "Umaglesi Liga 2012/13". soccerway.com.
- ^ "ფოთის "კოლხეთი" - მილიონერთა ქალაქის გაჭირვებული გუნდი". sportall.ge (in Georgian), 29 December 2014.
- ^ "Final table in 2018". eliga.ge.
- ^ "შესაძლებელია ქართული საფეხბურთო რუკიდან გავქრეთ". popsport.com (in Georgian). 29 June 2019.
- ^ "ფოთის კოლხეთმა ფეხბურთელებთან შეთანხმებას მიაღწია". livepress.com (in Georgian). 20 August 2019.
- ^ "ფოთის საფეხბურთო კლუბი მეოთხე მწვრთნელის მოლოდინშია". 1tv.ge (in Georgian). 27 August 2019.
- ^ "Samgurali vs Kolkheti-1913". flashscore.com.
- ^ "2020 play-offs". soccerway.com.
- ^ "„ვიტ ჯორჯია" და „რუსთავი" ეროვნულ ლიგა 2-ში დარჩნენ". 1tv.ge (in Georgian). 11 December 2021.
- ^ "Kolkheti vs Dinamo Minsk". uefa.com.
- ^ "„კოლხეთი 1913" გაძლიერდა - ფოთელთა სამწვრთნელო შტაბში ნაკრების ყოფილი მცველი იმუშავებს". 1tv.ge (in Georgian), 3 February 2022.
- ^ Georgia - List of Champions - rsssf.com
- ^ "ფოთის ცენტრალურ სტადიონზე შვიდი წლის შემდეგ პირველი მატჩი მიმდინარეობს". Georgian Public TV (in Georgian). 6 October 2019.