Blind Football: The season begins with a top six

Wisła Blind Football Kraków kicked off the PGF Blind Football League campaign with two home victories. A perfect record put our team in the lead, a position they will aim to maintain in the upcoming rounds.

On April 5th and 6th, teams from across Poland gathered at the MOS Kraków Zachód stadium to play the first round of the second season of the local blind football league. Wisła had two matches to play in the first round, which, combined with observations of the remaining matches, showed that the season that kicked off at Wawel Castle would be different from the first.

We felt and saw that all the teams were approaching this year differently. The experience gained by the relatively younger teams translated onto the pitch in the form of a more balanced game with a focus on defense, resulting in just five goals in the first round. Last season, they scored a whopping seventeen," notes Martin Jung, a White Star BF striker whose goals this season are already making a significant impact.

Wisła opened their new league campaign against teams from Bielsko-Biała and Wrocław. Both matches were extremely demanding for their attacking players, who managed to find the back of the net three times between them. Against Rekord Bielsko-Biała BF, who had been holding out for a long time, Martin Jung and Marcin Ryszka found the back of the net, respectively, scoring before halftime to make it 2-0. The score could have been higher, but the posts and the excellent performance of the Rekord goalkeeper prevented it.

The match against Śląsk, potentially their most dangerous rival for the league title, saw a lot of action – not all of it positive. Paweł Zinkow suffered an injury in the first half and was forced to leave the field. Initial tests indicated that last season's MVP would be sidelined for several weeks. The forced change in formation and the loss of a key player had a galvanizing effect on the rest of the team, led by Jung, who, early in the second half, intercepted the ball in his own half and then outmaneuvered several opponents with a well-placed shot. A few minutes later, Biała Gwiazda BF could have doubled the lead, but the ball merely hit the aluminum frame of the opposing goal. A strong wind made it difficult to hear the ball, which became a real challenge in the closing stages, which turned into a tense but effective effort to get to their own goal.

"These were two demanding matches, and we're very happy with the results. The win against Śląsk is a solid advancement for the upcoming matches. As Martin mentioned, it was a completely different start for all the participating teams, so we respect our achievements even more," emphasizes team captain Marcin Ryszka, who also suffered an injury during the first match.

The entire team faces a tough task of preparing for the May round in Wrocław. The coaches must ensure they are ready to compete in four matches in two days, and the medical staff must ensure Paweł Zinkow and Mateusz Krzyszkowski are back on their feet after nearly five months off.

Congratulations and we keep our fingers crossed for further victories on the national stage!