Elektrons Riga
Encyclopedia
Elektrons Rīga was a Latvia
n football
club from Riga
that was one of the leading clubs in the Latvian league in 1970s and 1980s.
-concrete
factory under the name RABR Rīga (Rīgas asfaltbetona rūpnīca). Its first season in the Latvian top league came in 1967 and brought a 5th place finish and a Latvian Cup final in which it lost to Osta Ventspils
.
In 1968 the club was renamed to Elektrons and it won the silver medals of the Latvian league, with 36 points they were a single point behind league winners Starts Brocēni
. The next year Elektrons won its first Latvian Cup and had revenge over the club from Ventspils
in the cup final. Results in the Latvian league varied for Elektrons - in 1974 they were second again, but in 1976 the settled with a 6th place. In 1974 came the second cup victory, however the best period in the clubs history started in 1977.
In 1977 and 1978 the club won two more Latvian cups, in 1979 - the first Latvian league title. With former Daugava Rīga players Laimonis Laizāns
, Roberts Skadats
and Jānis Dreimainis Elektrons had experience, next to them was growing the talent of Aleksandrs Dorofejevs and for several years in a row Elektrons under the head coach Gunārs Kungs was a very strong team. In every season over the clubs best years Elektrons won either the league title of the Cup or both.
In 1981 Dorofejevs scored 37 goals for Elektrons - a result which still is unsurpassed in the Latvian league, and Elektrons won both the league and the cup. After the season Dorofejevs left for VEF Rīga but in the 1982 season even without Dorofejevs the club won another league title (without a single lost match in the season). 1983 brought another cup victory.
In 1984 the club changed the name to FK Alfa and for the first time in several years didn't do well either in the league or in the cup. But in 1985 the club won its last league gold with newcomer Jurijs Andrejevs
. Jānis Dreimanis had become assistant coach with Gunārs Kungs. The 1986 and 1987 seasons were very disappointing for the formerly strong club - two finishes in 9th place - and it didn't play in the top Latvian league after 1987. In 1992 Alfa played in 1. liga
and disappeared after the season.
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
n football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
club from Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
that was one of the leading clubs in the Latvian league in 1970s and 1980s.
History
Elektrons was founded somewhere in the 1960s (exact year has to be determined) as a football club with the Riga asphaltAsphalt
Asphalt or , also known as bitumen, is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude petroleums and in some natural deposits, it is a substance classed as a pitch...
-concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
factory under the name RABR Rīga (Rīgas asfaltbetona rūpnīca). Its first season in the Latvian top league came in 1967 and brought a 5th place finish and a Latvian Cup final in which it lost to Osta Ventspils
FK Venta Ventspils
FK Venta was a Latvian football club based in Ventspils. They were established in 1964 and were named after the Venta River, in 1967, they won the Latvian cup. In 1969 they won the Latvian championship. In 2004 after earning promotion to Virslīga the club moved to Kuldīga...
.
In 1968 the club was renamed to Elektrons and it won the silver medals of the Latvian league, with 36 points they were a single point behind league winners Starts Brocēni
Starts Broceni
Starts Brocēni is a Latvian football club. Currently it plays in the 2nd Latvian league under the name Saldus FK/Brocēni . It was one of the leading Latvian clubs in 1960s-1970s.-CSK Brocēni:...
. The next year Elektrons won its first Latvian Cup and had revenge over the club from Ventspils
Ventspils
Ventspils is a city in northwestern Latvia in the Courland historical region of Latvia, the sixth largest city in the country. As of 2006, Ventspils had a population of 43,806. Ventspils is situated on the Venta River and the Baltic Sea, and has an ice-free port...
in the cup final. Results in the Latvian league varied for Elektrons - in 1974 they were second again, but in 1976 the settled with a 6th place. In 1974 came the second cup victory, however the best period in the clubs history started in 1977.
In 1977 and 1978 the club won two more Latvian cups, in 1979 - the first Latvian league title. With former Daugava Rīga players Laimonis Laizāns
Laimonis Laizans
Laimonis Laizāns is a former Soviet Latvian football goalkeeper who played for FK Daugava Rīga and Torpedo Moscow. He is considered one of the best Latvian goalkeepers of all time.-Playing biography:...
, Roberts Skadats
Roberts Skadats
Roberts Skadats is a former Latvian football midfielder and forward who played with FK Daugava Rīga for most of his career.-Playing biography:...
and Jānis Dreimainis Elektrons had experience, next to them was growing the talent of Aleksandrs Dorofejevs and for several years in a row Elektrons under the head coach Gunārs Kungs was a very strong team. In every season over the clubs best years Elektrons won either the league title of the Cup or both.
In 1981 Dorofejevs scored 37 goals for Elektrons - a result which still is unsurpassed in the Latvian league, and Elektrons won both the league and the cup. After the season Dorofejevs left for VEF Rīga but in the 1982 season even without Dorofejevs the club won another league title (without a single lost match in the season). 1983 brought another cup victory.
In 1984 the club changed the name to FK Alfa and for the first time in several years didn't do well either in the league or in the cup. But in 1985 the club won its last league gold with newcomer Jurijs Andrejevs
Jurijs Andrejevs
Jurijs Andrejevs is a former footballer who is currently the sporting director of Liepājas Metalurgs.Previously he was the manager of the team but was released in 2008 after an unsuccessful season....
. Jānis Dreimanis had become assistant coach with Gunārs Kungs. The 1986 and 1987 seasons were very disappointing for the formerly strong club - two finishes in 9th place - and it didn't play in the top Latvian league after 1987. In 1992 Alfa played in 1. liga
1. Liga
1. Liga is the third-highest ice hockey league in Switzerland, behind Nationalliga A and Nationalliga B. Thirty-six teams compete in three divisions – East Switzerland, Central Switzerland and West Switzerland.-East Switzerland:*EHC Arosa*GDT Bellinzona...
and disappeared after the season.
Honours
- Latvian league:
- Winners: 4 (1979, 1981, 1982, 1985)
- Runners-up: 4 (1968, 1974, 1977, 1978)
- Latvian Cup:
- Winners: 7 (1969, 1974, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1983)
- Runners-up: 2 (1967, 1971)