Excursionistas
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| Full name | Club Atlético Excursionistas | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Excursio, Verde, Villeros | ||
| Founded | 1 February 1910 | ||
| Ground | Belgrano, Buenos Aires | ||
| Capacity | 8,000 | ||
| Chairman | Angel Lozano | ||
| Manager | Néstor Rapa | ||
| League | Primera C | ||
| 2011-12 | 11th | ||
| Website | Club home page | ||
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Club Atlético Excursionistas (familiarly called Excursio by fans) is an Argentine football club based in the Belgrano district of Buenos Aires. The squad currently plays in the Primera C, the fourth division of the Argentine football league system.
History
The beginning
The club was founded in 1910 in the Belgrano neighborhood of Buenos Aires. The name "Excursionistas" (which could roughly be translated as "Voyagers" in Spanish) was given due to the founders used to make trips (voyages) to Paraná River and Isla Maciel to compete in athletic tournaments. They initially named the club as "Club Unión Excursionistas".
The first jersey worn was green (the color of the grass) with a horizontal blue stripe (white referred to the table clothes used in the picnic they usually did).
Entering to football league
Excursionistas disputed its first tournament in 1911, playing its home games at "Club Florida", an institution of Florida neighborhood in Greater Buenos Aires. Before the 1912 season, the club acquired a land in Belgrano neighborhood, where its stadium was built, more precisely on the corner of La Pampa and Miñones streets.
The team won the 1916 Segunda División title after defeating Sportivo Palermo 1-0, and therefore promoted to División Intermedia. In 1919 the club changed its name to current Club Atlético Excursionistas, also modifying its jersey, which became white and green in vertical stripes.
Promotion to first division
In 1924, in the San Lorenzo de Almagro old stadium, Excursionistas defeated Talleres de Remedios de Escalada 2-1 proclaiming champion and promoting to Argentine Primera División. More than 10,000 attended the match.
In 1931 goalkeeper Fortunato Grimoldi was called up to Argentina national football team. He also appeared on the cover of El Gráfico (the most important sports magazine in Latin America) in 1930.
In 1934 the Asociación Argentina de Fútbol (which Excursionistas was affiliated to) merged with Liga Profesional de Fútbol, forming the Argentine Football Association. This restructuring sent Excursionistas to the second division along with many other teams that decided to continue as amateurs. Since then, the club has disputed the lower divisions tournaments.
In 1942 Excursionistas finished 2nd after Rosario Central. That team, coached by Pedro Tilhet, is regarded by fans as the best Excursionistas team of all-time. In 1957 Excursionistas had to play a playoff series against Argentino de Quilmes in order to define which team would be relegated to second division. After a 2-2 draw in the first game, Excursionistas achieved a great 6-1 win in the second match, so the team kept its place in Primera División and sent off Argentino to Primera B.
The dark years
In 1972 Excursionistas was relegated to Primera C, where remained until 1995 when the team promoted to Primera B, although its lasted there just for a season, being relegated again one year later. During the 1998-99 season Excursionistas made a great campaign, remaining 16 fixtures unbeaten. The following season (1999–2000) the squad, coached by Néstor Rapa, achieved a historic landmark of 10 consecutive wins, placing 1st and near to be promoted. Nevertheless, the institution was punished with a 21 points loss due to the riot caused by some part of its fans during the match against Club Comunicaciones. The hooligans jumped into the field to attack Comunicaciones players. As a result of the brutal aggression, striker Adrián Barrionuevo, had to be hospitalized.[1] As a result, Excursionistas missed the chance to promote.
In 2001, Excursionistas won the Clausura tournament, although the team did not promote due to it was not established by the rules. That championship only allowed the squad to play a semi-final of a small tournament. The rival was Deportivo Laferrere which eliminated Excursionistas due to goal average, after winning the first game 2-0 and losing the second 2-3.
Honours
- Primera B (1):
- 1924 AAm [lower-alpha 1]
Notes
- ↑ The "Asociación Amateurs Argentina de Football" (AAm) was an amateur league which organized its own championships from 1919 to 1926 when merging with rival Argentine Football Association.
References
- ↑ "La AFA atendió los reclamos y tomó una decisión histórica", La Nación, 2000-05-05
External links
- Official website (Spanish)
- Bajo Belgrano (Spanish)
- Pampa y Miñones (Spanish)
- Camisetas de Excursio (Spanish)
- Excursionistas Encyclopaedia (Spanish)
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