Lipták Grund was buzzing with life!
It was good to look around one of the iconic locations of football in Kispest, because where the old town houses once stood (József Bozsik and Ferenc Puskás both grew up here), Honvéd supporters now took over the space.
The youngest visitors happily took over the bouncy castle, with face painting and balloon modelling also waiting for the children nearby. Older fans could also enjoy themselves at the event organised for our club’s birthday, with a photocell speed-measuring goal and a Honvéd puzzle providing entertainment. Recreating memorable Kispest photographs inspired young and old alike, and even our lion mascot, Leo (III), selected one of the photos on the table and perfectly copied the pose shown in the picture.
Alongside the games and good atmosphere, we could also meet our legends. Before the match, members of the 1983/1984 championship-winning team signed autographs at Lipták Grund, and to mark the 40th anniversary we greeted them on the pitch at half-time to a huge ovation from the Kispest supporters.
And we have not yet mentioned that the Honvéd anthem was performed live this time by Ákos Merényi and his young son, while after the teams walked out, our women’s players released 115 red and black balloons into the sky to mark the 115th birthday of football in Kispest!
So a lovely afternoon developed before the first home match of the season, and we hoped the evening would continue in the same way, because a victory would crown an eventful Sunday and provide a fitting tribute to Honvéd’s 115th birthday and the memory of Gergő Bordás. Our supporters said farewell to one of the leading figures of the Kispest support, who tragically lost his life at only 29 years of age, with a choreography covering the central part of Sector B and the message “You will stay with us forever”. The match began with a minute’s silence in honour of Gergő Bordás (and Béla Melis, who passed away last week), while our team also wore black armbands in memory of “Bordi”.
Then we started the match exactly as a first home fixture should be started. In the 83rd second, Branko Pauljevic crossed and Zoltán Medgyes tried to direct the ball goalwards in the air. We continued to attack more and create chances. In the 9th minute Zalán Kerezsi’s corner landed in goalkeeper Lóth’s hands, while a minute later Attila Lőrinczy’s cross-shot dropped onto the roof of the net. Lőrinczy remained active, trying from outside the penalty area in both the 22nd and 25th minutes. His first effort bounced wide of the right post, while his second, powerful attempt flew past on the other side.
In the 36th minute Noel Keresztes received an excellent ball in behind, but his shot was blocked, while in the 44th goalkeeper Lóth claimed a cross. The biggest save, however, came at our end in the 43rd minute, when Márk Gyetván denied a Tatabánya one-on-one chance, the young goalkeeper getting down to the ball with excellent timing. The first half ended with a header flicked wide of our goal.
At half-time came the celebration of the championship-winning team (managing director Gergely Kun presented each of the champions with a commemorative plaque, and they then walked around the pitch to a tremendous ovation and surprised supporters with signed footballs). The atmosphere surrounding the greats of the past was heart-warming, and it was clear how good it felt for them to experience the supporters’ affection again.
All that was missing was the victory – we sighed at half-time, and in the 56th minute we took a big step towards collecting the three points. An attack broke down on the left, but we won the ball back, then Branko Pauljevic passed to the right. Zoltán Medgyes arrived for Noel Keresztes’s cross and showed that it is possible to score a headed goal even at 172 centimetres, brilliantly nodding the ball into the left side of the goal: 1–0 to us!
After we took the lead, Tatabánya also tried to move up a gear. In the 65th minute Márk Gyetván made a brilliant low save by the right post from Jelena’s header, and in the 66th he pushed another header over from under the bar following a corner, already his third important save of the match!
The closing stages began with a Zalán Kerezsi cross and a Dávid Holman attempt (the latter sliding in to try to shoot past the onrushing Lóth). In the 82nd minute there was a small scramble in front of our goal, but the ball went over. In the 86th minute we could have settled the match: Attila Lőrinczy sent Zalán Kerezsi through with the outside of his boot, the goalkeeper parried his shot, and substitute Benedek Simon scrambled the ball into the net, but according to the referee a foul had already occurred, so it remained 1–0. The score was still unchanged in the 88th minute, when the visitors cleared after an Ábel Krajcsovics shot.
By then only 2+3 minutes remained. Our team defended with discipline and kept the ball well, so the celebrations could begin: on the weekend of the 115th birthday of football in Kispest, we won our first home match of the season!
Bordi, we hope you saw the success from above as well. These three points are yours too!
MERKANTIL BANK LIGA, 2024/2025, ROUND 2
BUDAPEST HONVÉD FC–OPUS TIGÁZ TATABÁNYA 1–0 (0–0)
Bozsik Arena, attendance: 3066
Referee: Róbert Nagy (Punyi Gy., Nagy V.)
Goal: Medgyes Z. (56)
Honvéd: Gyetván – Pauljevic, Ene, Szabó A., Benczenleitner – Keresztes (Szabó T., 78), Nyitrai (Simon B., 78), Lőrinczy – Kerezsi (Kundrák, 90+1), Holman (Sigér, 78), Medgyes Z. (Krajcsovics, 85)
Head coach: Aurél Csertői
Tatabánya: Lóth – Buna, Jagodics, Harsányi, Katona (Varga D., 75) – Soltész B. (Bertus, 71), Szegleti – Csernik, Eördögh (Kiprich D., 78), Vass P. (Vida, 60) – Jelena (Kocsis G., 78)
Head coach: Gergely Gyürki
