Badge of the Day #102: Radnicki Nis

Today featuring the second of the pair of badges freely & very kindly gifted by Tomislav via Delcampe, this one representing, in Serbian Cyrillic, Radnički Niš, a name with which TOoT is familiar & would have come to prominence in 1982, when, in the quarter finals of the UEFA Cup, the club was drawn against Dundee United & subsequently overcame a 0 – 2 first leg reverse with a 3 – 0 win in the return to progress to the semi-finals of the tournament.

Other than this, & the continuing awareness of at least their existence, I can’t say I’ve particularly considered following or favouring Radnički, but it’s a jolly nice badge of a certain vintage that invariably appeals, featuring as it does a Yugoslavian red star, with a very interesting & distinctive ‘kite’ shape, that will be welcomed into the collection.

World Cup '74 Portrait Collection: Squad #15 (Yugoslavia)

all drawings graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil, each 30x21cm

World Cup '74 Portrait #247 (Blagoje Paunovic: Yugoslavia)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

World Cup '74 Portrait #233 (Enver Maric: Yugoslavia)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

World Cup '74 Portrait #223 (Jurica Jerkovic: Yugoslavia)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

The latest drawing in the project features a particularly ghostly representation of Jurica Jerkovic, who was pictured in the FKS ‘Wonderful World of Soccer Stars World Cup 1974’ sticker album & subsequently included in the Yugoslavia squad for the tournament, at which he appeared in each of the Yugoslav’s 3 Second Phase matches, as a late substitute against West Germany (too late to effect the course of events after his team had just gone 0 – 2 down), as an early replacement for Brane 'Branko' Oblak against Poland, & then retaining his place from the start in the final defeat to Sweden, none of which registered upon my consciousness at the time.

World Cup '74 Portrait #220 (Vladislaw Bogicevic: Yugoslavia)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

The Project snowballs on with this latest accretion to the mass, a re-mediation of an image of Vladislav Bogićević, who was represented in both the FKS & Panini sticker albums, & chosen as a member of the official Yugoslavia squad for the Finals, at which he appeared in/throughout five of the Yugoslav’s matches, scoring once, in the 9 – 0 rout of Zaire, missing only the opening Second Phase defeat to the hosts West Germany (none of those 3 named states existing any longer, of course, a further hauntological aspect of the memorabilia), although his name, like the great majority of those involved in the event,  remained unknown to me until the inception of this project.

World Cup '74 Portrait #213 (Mayanga Maku: Zaire)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

Another drawing in the project, the portrait subject of this one being Mayanga Maku, who was one of the elite selection to be featured representing Zaire in both the FKS & Panini World Cup ’74 sticker albums (the latter being of only 6 players), subsequently being chosen for his nation’s official squad for the Finals, where he appeared in all 3 of the Zairean’s matches, substituted against Scotland, as a half-time replacement in the 0 – 9 defeat to Yugoslavia, & finally for the whole game against Brazil.

World Cup '74 Portrait #182 (Herbert Wimmer: West Germany)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

The latest subject in the project is an image of Herbert Wimmer, who was represented in the Panini ’München 74’ sticker album, which provides the original source material for the drawing in this instance.

Selected as a member of the official West Germany squad for the 1974 World Cup Finals, Wimmer made two appearances at the tournament, as a substitute against Australia & then starting against Yugoslavia before being replaced himself late in that game.

It would be a little later, possibly during the 1976 European Championships (he played the first half of the Final), certainly during his club career with Borussia Monchengladbach, that Herbert Wimmer’s name would become memorable to me.

World Cup '74 Portrait #179 (Kazadi Mwamba: Zaire)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

The subject of this drawing is Kazadi Mwamba, who was represented in both the FKS & Panini World Cup ’74 sticker albums (honoured to be amongst the streamlined 6-player selection in the latter) & included in the Zaire squad for the Finals, appearing as first-choice goalkeeper in each of his country’s 3 matches, although he was substituted after 21 minutes of the second of these, with Zaire already 0 – 3 in arrears to Yugoslavia (his replacement fared no better, conceding a further 6 goals before a joint-record World Cup loss was concluded).

World Cup '74 Portrait #174 (Conny Torstensson: Sweden)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

The latest drawing in the Project features as its subject Conny Torstensson, who was represented in both the FKS & Panini ‘World Cup ‘74’ collectors’ sticker albums previewing & commemorating the tournament (the former publication providing the original source material from which the ‘re-mediation’ proceeds in this instance), & subsequently selected as a member of the official Sweden squad for the Finals, during which he went on to make 5 appearances, scoring once, the late winning goal in the Swedes’ last match, against Yugoslavia (2 – 1).

Although his name was one that would emerge into consciousness within the year, as a member of the Bayern Munich team that beat Leeds United in the 1975 European Cup Final, Torstensson’s is another of the great majority that would not have registered during my experience of the television coverage of the 1974 World Cup.

World Cup '74 Portrait #165 (Ivan Buljan: Yugoslavia)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

This latest drawing in the project represents Ivan Buljan, who was featured in the Panini ’München 74’ sticker album (from which original source the drawing, as a ‘re-mediation’, has ultimately been processed) & subsequently selected as a member of the Yugoslavia squad for the Finals, where he played throughout all six of the Yugoslavs’ first & second round group matches, his name quite possibly becoming memorable because of this & the television exposure it would have enjoyed as a consequence.

World Cup '74 Portrait #130 (Enver Hadziabdic: Yugoslavia)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

World Cup '74 Portrait #128 (Josip Katalinski: Yugoslavia)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

World Cup '74 Portrait #99 (Dusan Bajevic: Yugoslavia)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

The latest randomly-chosen ‘star’ of the project is Dušan Bajević, a sticker representing whom appeared in each of the FKS & Panini albums published to preview & commemorate the 1974 World Cup, & who was selected in the official Yugoslavia squad for the tournament, where he went on to appear in 3 matches – the First Round group record-equalling thrashing of Zaire, to which he contributed a hat-trick of goals (one of the two achieved at the ’74 Finals); the subsequent 1 – 1 draw with Scotland, being substituted for Stanislav Karasi, who scored the Yugoslavs’ goal; & the Second Round group match loss to Poland.

Dušan Bajević was another of the unknown names to me of World Cup ’74 prior to engaging/indulging in this particular drawing project, but research reveals that the club for whom he played at the time was one of our then-Yugoslavian favourites, Velez Mostar, being thus a team-mate of Vahid Halilhodzic, which information necessitated another delve into the original Yugoslavian football memorabilia ‘Fudbaleri i Timovi’ 1974/75 season album to discover that ‘Duško’ Bajević is indeed featured in portrait sticker form.

World Cup '74 Portrait #94 (Paul Breitner: West Germany)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

Today’s iconic subject is Paul Breitner, resplendent in his trademark 'fro-esque hairstyle, one of those relatively few memorable figures/names from the 1974 World Cup, who played in all 7 of West Germany’s matches on their way to winning the tournament (after being represented in both the FKS & Panini commemorative sticker albums), nominally at left back but often popping up in attack in the manner of ‘total football’ (as practised by not only the Dutch), socks habitually worn around his ankles, scoring the only goal in the opening victory against Chile with a spectacular long-range right-footed strike, breaking the deadlock in the first Second Round group game, the 2 – 0 win over Yugoslavia, in similarly impressive fashion, & then converting the equalizing penalty in the Final against Holland. 

World Cup '74 Portrait #91 (Ivica Surjak: Yugoslavia)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

Our latest subject is Ivica Surjak, strikingly-coiffed in the Seventies’ manner, a sticker of whom was included amongst the selection of Yugoslavian players represented in the Panini ’München 74’ collectors’ album & who was chosen for his nation’s official squad for the World Cup, where he went on to appear – ‘memorably’, for the name of Surjak is one of the relatively few I can recall from exposure to the television coverage of the tournament, where Yugoslavia would have enjoyed a higher profile than some teams by dint of being drawn in the same First Round group as the sole British representatives Scotland – in each of their six matches, scoring twice, in the 9 - 0 rout of Zaire & then the final second phase group fixture, a 1 – 2 loss to Sweden.

World Cup '74 Portrait #80 (Jan Tomaszewski: Poland)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

This evening might see the kick-off of the 2014 World Cup, with the hosts Brazil playing Croatia in the opening match, but here at TOoT, whilst we will doubtless keep an eye on proceedings over the next month, we’re very much still & settled in 1974 in World Cup terms (when, in a curious coincidence, then-holders Brazil faced the former Yugoslavia - from part of the ashes of which Croatia has subsequently re-emerged, of course - in the tournament’s inaugural fixture), as the project concerning the representation of some of those players who featured in, & some of those of those who didn’t, continues.

That being the case, the latest subject to emerge from the drawing process is the legendary Jan Tomaszweski, who was selected for inclusion in both the FKS & Panini ‘World Cup ‘74’ sticker albums, the Poland squad for the Finals &, subsequently, the team for each of the Poles’ 7 matches in the tournament, where he excelled to the extent of becoming the first goalkeeper to save two penalty kicks at a World Cup, all this in addition to his prior heroics in famously keeping England at bay in the 1 – 1 draw at Wembley that saw Poland qualify for the Finals at their hosts’ expense.

Having already such a high profile enabled Tomaszweski’s to become one of the few names I recognized (quite a few, though, whom were goalkeepers: obviously it’s the singularity of the position that renders its incumbents memorable, more so than many an outfield player) during my first real, concentrated exposure to football as a televised spectacle, & remain in the consciousness, able to be recalled instantly, thereafter.

World Cup '74 Portrait #79 (Miroslav Pavlovic: Yugoslavia)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

Today’s subject to emerge from the random generator is Miroslav Pavlovic, stickers of whom were included in both the FKS & Panini collectors’ albums published to coincide with the event & who was selected for the official Yugoslavia squad for the 1974 World Cup Finals, but went on to play in only 78 minutes of one match, the final second phase ‘dead rubber’ 1 – 2 defeat to Sweden (the winner coming after Pavlovic had departed proceedings).

Again, the image quality of the photocopy of another of the Yugoslavian photo-stickers displays a particularly bleached result, with the consequence that the drawing based upon this immediate visual reference, with consultation also of a 1:1 scale colour copy of the source, reflects this, suggesting the ‘ghostly’ atmosphere that surrounds the project as a whole – Pavlovic being another of the great majority of the players to feature at the ’74 World Cup who made no impression upon my consciousness at the time of the event & televisual exposure to its action, only emerging from the depths of time over the past couple of years, via the conduit of the sticker albums, when research & preparation for the project began in earnest.

Further to the ‘memorial’ aspect of the drawings, Pavlovic is another of those to feature at the 1974 World Cup no longer with us, having passed away over 10 years ago, early in 2004, & Yugoslavia, of course, is one of those states to be represented at the tournament that no longer exists as such.

World Cup '74 Portrait #72 (Ilija Petkovic: Yugoslavia)

graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

This most recent addition to the gallery features the palely loitering Ilija Petkovic, who appeared in both the FKS & Panini ‘World Cup 1974’ collectors’ albums, & was selected for inclusion in the Yugoslavia squad for the tournament, where he played in the first five of his country’s matches (although merely as an 84^th minute substitute against West Germany in the opening second phase fixture), scoring once in the 9 – 0 rout of Zaire, only missing the final inconsequential defeat to Sweden (interestingly, the only one of those four named states to still exist as such).

Choosing the sticker from the FKS album from which to make an enlarged photocopy to serve as the immediate visual reference for the drawing process resulted in a most ghostly image, highly suitable for another of the many players who made no inroads into my consciousness at the time of my experience of the television coverage of the ’74 World Cup &, indeed, remained unheard-of until coming into relatively recent possession of the sticker albums that both preview & commemorate the event: given such a source, the drawing  consequently condemns the portrait subject to remain in a state of some obscurity.

World Cup '74 Portrait #41 (Stanislav Karasi: Yugoslavia)



graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm