Garbarnia Kraków
 | |||
| Full name |
Robotniczy Klub Sportowy Garbarnia Kraków | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1921 | ||
| Ground |
Kraków, Poland | ||
| Capacity | 5,000 | ||
| Chairman |
 Jerzy Jasiówka | ||
| Manager |
Krzysztof Bukalski | ||
| League |
Polish II Liga Group: East | ||
| 2010/11 | 1st | ||
| |||
RKS Garbarnia Kraków is a Polish football and sports club from Ludwinow - a historical district of the city of Kraków. The club’s unusual name (Garbarnia in English means Tannery) comes from the nearby tannery of the Dluzynski brothers, which was the original club sponsor. Garbarnia currently plays in the II Liga (3rd level of Polish football).
History
Founded in 1921, Garbarnia’s best years were the late 1920s and early 1930s. In 1928, after winning both regional and national qualifiers, the team was promoted to the Polish Football League. Then, in 1929, after an excellent campaign, they finished second to champions Warta Poznan, thus cementing their position as one of the top teams in Poland.
In 1931 Garbarnia went one better, becoming Polish Champions. Containing little home-grown talent, the Krakow starting lineup consisted of players brought in from other clubs. Among the top players were Otto Riesner and Karol Pazurek (both the natives of Katowice), and both of whom played for the Polish national team.
In 1937, after 9 years in the top division, Garbarnia were relegated. They returned in 1939, in a season cut short by the outbreak of WWII.
After the Second World War Garbarnia never regained its status, playing mainly in the Polish Second Division, occasionally managing to win promotion to the First Division, only to be relegated after a year or two. 1957 was the teams final year in the First Division and since then, Garbarnia have never made it back. Worst was yet to come, as in 1971 the team was relegated to the Third division, the Regional Krakow district league. Now they play in the Fourth Division.
Honours
- Winners (1): 1931
Notable players
Garbarnia’s most famous player is Robert Gadocha, who started his career here.
External links
- (Polish) Official website
- (Polish) Fans' Association website