In the 1985–86 Liga Leumit season

Hapoel Tel Aviv Hapoel Tel Aviv () is a sports club in Israel, founded in the 1920s, and part of the Hapoel association. It runs several sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv which have competed in a variety of sports over the years, such as football, basketball, w ...

won the title.

Hapoel Haifa Hapoel Haifa Football Club (, ''Moadon HaKaduregel Hapoel Haifa'') is an Israeli professional football club located in the city of Haifa. The club won one championship (1998–99) and 4 Israeli cups (1962–63, 1965–66 and 1973–74, 2 ...

Hapoel Jerusalem Hapoel Jerusalem is a sport organization in Jerusalem as a local branch of the Hapoel movement. The branch was established in the 1920s and represents the city in more sports than any other sport organization in Jerusalem. Today, the club's lead ...

and Maccabi Sha'arayim were all relegated to

Liga Artzit Liga Artzit (, lit. ''Country League'') is the defunct third division of Israeli Football League, beneath its highest division Premier League and the second division Liga Leumit. Before being cancelled in 2009, it was run by the Israel Football A ...

Uri Malmilian Uri Malmilian (; born April 24, 1957) is an Israeli former football player and current manager. Early life and playing career Born in the neighbourhood of Mamilla in West Jerusalem, Malmilian had a memorable playing career in the Liga Leumit at ...

Beitar Jerusalem Beitar Jerusalem Football Club (), commonly known as Beitar Jerusalem () or simply Beitar (), is an Israeli professional football club based in the city of Jerusalem, that plays in the Israeli Premier League, the top tier in Israeli football ...

and Doron Rabinzon of Maccabi Petah Tikva were the league's joint top scorers with 14 goals. The league championship was decided on the final day, with a match between the two title chasers,

Maccabi Haifa Maccabi Haifa () is one of the biggest sports clubs in Israel and a part of the Maccabi association. It runs several sports clubs and teams in Haifa which have competed in a variety of sports over the years, such as Football, Basketball, Weightl ...

and

. Hapoel Tel Aviv, who needed a win to secure the championship, scored a controversial goal in the 86th minute to win 1–0 and the title.

Final table

Results

Final match

On 24 May 1986,

came face-to-face with

in a

Liga Leumit The Israeli Liga Leumit (, HaLiga HaLeumit, ) is the second division of the professional Israeli association football (soccer) league system. This second-tier league is placed directly below the Israeli Premier League. Structure There are 16 ...

fixture at

Bloomfield Stadium Bloomfield Stadium () is a football stadium in Tel Aviv, Israel, with a capacity of 29,400. It is the home stadium of Hapoel Tel Aviv and Maccabi Tel Aviv. The stadium also serves the Israel national football team for some select home matches ...

, during the final rounds of the 1985–86 season. That match was the season's deciding match. Maccabi Haifa led by one point prior to the match. Hapoel Tel Aviv won with one goal scored at the 86th minute by striker, Gili Landau, winning the match and the championship.

Background

At the beginning of the 1985–86 season, 16 football (soccer) clubs competed in the

, which was the top division at that time in Israel. Maccabi Haifa, which won the two previous league championships took early charge of the league, leading by five points at the 9th round. However, a rather poor string of results saw Hapoel Tel Aviv overtake Maccabi Haifa, taking a five-point lead at the top at the 19th round. At the 24th round, Maccabi Haifa was back on top, with 46 points and a two-point lead over Hapoel Tel Aviv, with Maccabi Tel Aviv also in the running, just points away. After the 29th round, with one match left to play, Maccabi Haifa led the table with 57 points. Hapoel Tel Aviv was second with 56 points. The two teams were to meet in the last round for a match that would decide the championship.

Pre-match

As Maccabi Haifa was leading by a point, a draw would be enough towards claiming their third straight championship, while Hapoel Tel Aviv needed to win their tenth championship. Due to the importance of the match, the IBA decided to broadcast the match live, the first ever live broadcast of a league match in Israel.

Match

With 20,000 fans in the stands, Maccabi Haifa sought to stall the match to force a 0–0 draw, which would allow them to win the championship. The first shot on goal was made by Zahi Armeli of Maccabi Haifa at the 24th minute, while Moris Zano of Hapoel registered their first shot at the 32nd minute. Early in the second half, Hapoel manager David Schweitzer substituted midfielders Jacob Cohen and Elior Baranes with strikers Gili Landau and Eli Yani, and Hapoel increased their attacks. At the 86th minute,

Eli Cohen Eliyahu Ben-Shaul Cohen (‎; ‎; 26 December 1924 – 18 May 1965) was an Egyptian-born Israeli spy. He is best known for his espionage work in Syria between 1961 and 1965, where he developed close relationships with the Syrian poli ...

passed the ball to Moshe Sinai in midfield. Sinai lobbed the ball over the Maccabi Haifa defense towards the rushing Landau, while at the far left side of the defense, Eli Yani was running back from an offside position. Referee Zvi Sharir allowed the play to continue and Landau struck the ball over the Maccabi Haifa goalkeeper

Avi Ran Avi Ran (; August 25, 1963 – July 11, 1987) was a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper at the Israeli football club Maccabi Haifa F.C., Maccabi Haifa. Widely considered one of the greatest football players in Israel, he had a promisi ...

to break the deadlock. Eli Cohen was sent off for a tackle made on Rafi Osmo, but the score did not change. Hapoel Tel Aviv won the championship with a two-point lead.

Details

Post-match

While Hapoel Tel Aviv celebrated their championship, Maccabi Haifa sounded claims against the validity of the winning goal, pointing to Eli Yani's offside position during the final pass.Scharf: We'll Haunt Sharir Everywhere; Yelled at His Players: "You Made a Laughing Stock of Yourselves, You Played Like Suckers
Yehonatan Haleli, 25 May 1985, Ma'ariv, Historical Jewish Press Referee Zvi Sharir defended his decision, stating that Eli Yani was in a "passive offside".

References

External links

RSSSF
The Leumit Table
Maariv, 25.5.86, Historical Jewish Press {{DEFAULTSORT:1985-86 Liga Leumit Hapoel 1986 Maccabi Haifa F.C. matches Liga Leumit matches Liga Leumit seasons 1985–86 in Israeli football

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...