Rooting for home
It was the team's final, and primarily a practice, match before squaring off with England's national team in Wembley last Saturday. The footballers, dressed in white and red, beat Olimpia handily, 3-0.
The exhibition game was a treat for fans who showed up to watch the nation's biggest soccer heroes before their much-touted match against English coach Kevin Keegan's players.
"We are Legia fans," said one 14-year-old spectator, who goes by the nickname Szuler (maverick).
"We come here from Marki (a town near Warsaw) to watch every match," added Szuler's friend, whose nickname is "Sep" (vulture). "We are Polish hooligans."
March 27 at England's Wembley stadium the national team played its third match to qualify for the European championship, "Euro 2000." The first round was last September against Bulgaria and the second in October, when the team took on Luxembourg. The fourth and the last opponent that Poland will have to beat is Sweden on March 31 in Chorzow.
The return match, to be held in Poland, will take place in coming months. In that contest, Poland's 23 best players will have a second chance to battle it out with the English. The prestige and the money associated with the event, especially if Poland wins, is significant.
"If they win the matches with England, the whole team will get $200,000," said Tomasz Jagodzinski, a spokesman with the Polish Soccer Association. "If the result is a draw, $120,000 will be divided up."
More than just die-hard soccer fans turned out for the exhibition match last week. Government celebrities such as Prime Minister Jerzy Buzek dropped by to admire the footballers' skills. Before the sparring match against Olympia, coach Janusz Wojcik received a present from Buzek: an "ulanskie czako," a special cap worn by Polish cavalrymen (uhlans), to lend some of the cavalry's courage to the players.
The team, which has to struggle with two important games in a four-day time period, spent last week under constant supervision and protected from unruly fans.
Wojcik was appointed the coach of the national soccer team in 1997, but his career started many years ago when he ran the Jagiellonia Bialystok soccer team. It was under his tutelage that the country's Olympic team won a silver medal in Barcelona in 1992.
Since Wojcik became the national team's coach, the meetings for the national soccer players have taken place in the Jan III Sobieski Hotel, Wojcik's favorite in Warsaw. "Janusz Wojcik likes it because it gives him a sense of splendor," Jagodzinski said.
The hotel guarantees special care for the players. For the meeting last week, the team occupied more than 20 rooms with extra security to protect players from eager fans.
During such hectic times, a big responsibility weighs on the shoulders of Robert Sowa, the hotel kitchen's head chef. Sowa is also the team's cook and travels with it on trips.
Sowa admitted last week that he had to give priority to the football players' stomachs over those of other hotel guests.
"I make the menu for our players and doctors accept it (or don't)," Sowa said. According to Sowa, the players have to eat a lot of seasonal salads and fruits. "They (the athletes) are aware that pork chops or golonka are not allowed."
The exhibition game was a treat for fans who showed up to watch the nation's biggest soccer heroes before their much-touted match against English coach Kevin Keegan's players.
"We are Legia fans," said one 14-year-old spectator, who goes by the nickname Szuler (maverick).
"We come here from Marki (a town near Warsaw) to watch every match," added Szuler's friend, whose nickname is "Sep" (vulture). "We are Polish hooligans."
March 27 at England's Wembley stadium the national team played its third match to qualify for the European championship, "Euro 2000." The first round was last September against Bulgaria and the second in October, when the team took on Luxembourg. The fourth and the last opponent that Poland will have to beat is Sweden on March 31 in Chorzow.
The return match, to be held in Poland, will take place in coming months. In that contest, Poland's 23 best players will have a second chance to battle it out with the English. The prestige and the money associated with the event, especially if Poland wins, is significant.
"If they win the matches with England, the whole team will get $200,000," said Tomasz Jagodzinski, a spokesman with the Polish Soccer Association. "If the result is a draw, $120,000 will be divided up."
More than just die-hard soccer fans turned out for the exhibition match last week. Government celebrities such as Prime Minister Jerzy Buzek dropped by to admire the footballers' skills. Before the sparring match against Olympia, coach Janusz Wojcik received a present from Buzek: an "ulanskie czako," a special cap worn by Polish cavalrymen (uhlans), to lend some of the cavalry's courage to the players.
The team, which has to struggle with two important games in a four-day time period, spent last week under constant supervision and protected from unruly fans.
Wojcik was appointed the coach of the national soccer team in 1997, but his career started many years ago when he ran the Jagiellonia Bialystok soccer team. It was under his tutelage that the country's Olympic team won a silver medal in Barcelona in 1992.
Since Wojcik became the national team's coach, the meetings for the national soccer players have taken place in the Jan III Sobieski Hotel, Wojcik's favorite in Warsaw. "Janusz Wojcik likes it because it gives him a sense of splendor," Jagodzinski said.
The hotel guarantees special care for the players. For the meeting last week, the team occupied more than 20 rooms with extra security to protect players from eager fans.
During such hectic times, a big responsibility weighs on the shoulders of Robert Sowa, the hotel kitchen's head chef. Sowa is also the team's cook and travels with it on trips.
Sowa admitted last week that he had to give priority to the football players' stomachs over those of other hotel guests.
"I make the menu for our players and doctors accept it (or don't)," Sowa said. According to Sowa, the players have to eat a lot of seasonal salads and fruits. "They (the athletes) are aware that pork chops or golonka are not allowed."
