| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Basil Gorgis Hanna | ||
| Date of birth | September 6, 1961 | ||
| Place of birth | Ankawa, Iraq | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1977-1979 | Al Saadoon | ||
| 1979-1982 | Al Amana | ||
| 1982-1990 | Al Shabab | ||
| 1990-1991 | Al Talaba | ||
| National team | |||
| 1981-1989 | Iraq | 55 | (?) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Basil Gewargis Hanna or Basil Korkis (Arabic: باسل كوركيس ) (born September 6, 1961 in Iraq) was a former Iraqi, and ethnic Assyrian Christian international football player. Despite having a short career, he is considered to be one of the best players of all time in Iraq, being known for his tenacity and attacking threat.
As a player, Basil took the national team to uncharted territory, where he was part of the Iraqi "golden team" of the 1980s that included Hussein Saeed and Ahmad Radhi.
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Like all up and coming Iraqi players, "It all started in the streets" as Basil was once quoted. As a teenager, he played with the youth league team Homentmen, a youth club belonging to Nadi Al-Armeni (Armenian Club). At the age of 16, he moved on to the club of Tammuz, a Junior team belonging to Nadi Al-Athori, where he caught the eye of the then first division Al-Amana coach Mustufa Auda. Throughout his youth, Basil points to Zaya Isaac as the one who coached him into the player he would become. Basil remained in the Iraq Super League for all his career, where he went on to play for Al Shabab and Al Talaba.
Basil made his debut for Iraqi on the national level in 1981 against Jordan, in Baghdad. In 1984 he participated at the Gulf Cup, despite losing to Qatar 1–2 - the game saw Basil scoring an own goal - Iraq won the tournament beating Qatar on penalties in the final.
He stayed on the national team roster and became a big part of the team in the 1985 Pan Arab Games in Morocco. Coach Anwar Jassam and the IFA chose to go ahead with their B team and 5 players from the A team, that included Basil and Ahmed Radhi. The team went on to win the tournament, where Basil scored on a header in the final game, giving Iraq the title.
In the 1986 World Cup qualification stage, Iraq found itself against Syria on a head-to-head match to determine the Asian representative. The first game in Damascus ended in a 0–0 tie, but in the second leg, Basil led Iraq pass Syria 3–1. The win gave Iraq is first appearance in The World Cup. Iraq did not surpass the group stage round in the World Cup, and Basil received a red card against Belgium.
In 1988, Basil helped Iraq to claim the third and personally his second Gulf Cup, scoring a goal at the decisive 2–0 vicitory over hosts Saudi Arabia at the King Fahd Stadium in Riyadh. Three months later he scored the equalizer again Syria during the final of the Arab Nations Cup, Iraq went on to win on penalites. Basil also participated at the Summer Olympics in Seoul later.
Basil was forced out of Iraq and led to his professional retire at the young age of 30 in 1992. He arrived in Canada where he currently resides and waited for the arrival of official release from the Iraq Football Association, but never received them, thus not allowed to play in the Canadian league.
Basil's own personal favorite goal was against Al Shorta in the 1981 Iraqi league final.
He is quoted as saying "I dream of the day when I can go back and walk through the facilities at Al Shabab club in Baghdad." He returned back to visit Iraq after 18 years on December 5 the same day expatriate players Falah Hassan, Sadiq Ghanim and Emad Elias arrived in Baghdad.
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | 16 August 1985 | Rabat, Morocco | Morocco |
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1985 Pan Arab Games |
| 02. | 25 February 1988 | Tunis, Tunisia | Tunisia |
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Friendly |
| 03. | 16 March 1988 | Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | Saudi Arabia |
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1988 Gulf Cup of Nations |
| 04. | 21 July 1988 | Amman, Jordan | Syria |
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1988 Arab Nations Cup |
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