December 9:
— Ferenc Kónya was born 133 years ago. He was a defining figure in the early history of football in Kispest. As a player, coach and sports official alike, he contributed to making the name of Kispest an important chapter in the history of Hungarian football.
— On this day Gábor Árki celebrates his 56th birthday. He became champion with Kispest-Honvéd in 1992/93 and won the silver medal in 1993/94.
— Rezső Gaubek was born 143 years ago. A dance and etiquette teacher, he played before the foundation of Kispesti AC for the independent team called Kakasok, then for KAC. He was a board member of the 1908 initiative, a founding member of Kispesti AC and later an auditor of KAC.
December 10:
— Lajos Szűcs, the outstanding former footballer of Bp. Honvéd, would have turned 82 today. Through his play and attitude he rightly earned the respect of the Kispest community. He was one of those who played not only with their feet but with their heart as well — his name and memory will remain part of the club’s history forever.
December 11:
— Our midfielder Ádám Szamosi celebrates his 19th birthday.
December 12:
— Former Nigerian midfielder of Bp. Honvéd Marshal Mfon Johnson celebrates his 36th birthday. During his short spell in Kispest he won a league bronze medal in 2013.
— The tragically fated Jenő Füzesi (Fürst) was born 105 years ago. The left half played for both amateur Kispesti AC and professional Kispest FC.
December 13:
— Ferenc Sipos would have turned 93 on this day. In addition to a league silver medal and a Hungarian Cup triumph with Honvéd, he also achieved lasting success at international level. He was a member of the national team that won the bronze medal at the 1964 European Championship.
December 14:
— Béla Bodonyi, who celebrates his 69th birthday, won five league titles as well as one silver and one bronze medal in the colours of Bp. Honvéd. In 1985 he celebrated a Hungarian Cup triumph. He also enhanced the reputation of his club internationally when his team reached the silver medal in the Central European Cup in 1977.
Those who passed away
December 8:
— Nándor Bányai, an emblematic figure of Hungarian football, passed away 22 years ago. For years he formed a reliable half-back partnership with József Bozsik, and together they were pillars of Honvéd’s defence. Kispesti AC signed him in the autumn of 1944, and he made his NB I debut at just 17 years of age. During his career in Honvéd colours he became a five-time champion, four-time silver medallist, two-time bronze medallist and a Central European Cup winner.
December 14:
— Jenő Tapolczai, a prominent figure in Kispest public life and football, passed away 49 years ago. Between 1945 and 1948 he served as deputy mayor of Kispest, and in 1947 he became the city’s chief clerk. During the same period he also played a significant role in the development of Kispest football: from 1948 he guided the club as co-president of Kispesti AC, and later as president of KAC. In 1949
he was elected the first president of Budapesti Honvéd SE, a position he held until 1951.
