Lech Poznań’s 1-0 loss in Tarnobrzeg to third-league Siarka in a Polish Cup Round of 32 match is not the first embarrassment the Poznań club has suffered in the competition in the Podkarpacie region. “Kolejorz” (“The Railwaymen,” as Lech is nicknamed) was also knocked out in Stalowa Wola and Rzeszów.
This season’s Polish Cup has been full of unexpected results, but the defeat of the Polish champions on Wednesday against Siarka topped all the upsets so far. The Poznań side arrived in Tarnobrzeg buoyed by a prestigious 2-1 win over Legia in Warsaw, and advancing to the Round of 16 seemed a formality.
Instead, the third-league side, coached by former Poland international Sławomir Majak, stood up to Lech’s stars and took advantage of a numerical edge, as the visitors had to cope with ten men for more than half the match after Yannick Agnero was shown two yellow cards. A goal by Arkadiusz Kaś in the 64th minute secured the win for Siarka, which had already caused a sensation by eliminating Zagłębie Lubin in the Round of 64.
Two years ago, Lech faced second-league Resovia in the first round of the Polish Cup. The Poznań team, coached by Niels Frederiksen, had to swallow the bitter taste of defeat, even though in that match it was the opponents who finished with fewer players, when two players from the Rzeszów side were shown red cards late in the game.
Seventeen years ago, Lech suffered a humiliation in Stalowa Wola. In the Round of 32, the Poznań side, whose lineup included Robert Lewandowski, Bartosz Bosacki, Semir Stilić and Sławomir Peszko, lost on the road to the last-place team in the first league, Stal, 1-4 on penalties. No goals were scored in 120 minutes. Interestingly, Lech’s coach in 2009 was Jacek Zieliński, a former player for Siarka, among other clubs, who watched the national champion’s stunning defeat from the stands on Wednesday.
The club from the capital of Wielkopolska has been unexpectedly knocked out of the Polish Cup not only by teams from Podkarpacie. In 2013, it was eliminated in the Round of 32 by first-league Olimpia Grudziądz (2-1 after extra time). A year later, Lech fell short in the Round of 16 against another first-league side, Miedź Legnica, losing 0-2.
Lech has five Polish Cup wins to its name but has disappointed in the competition in recent years. It last lifted the trophy in 2009, and although it has reached the final five times since, it has lost every one of them. (PAP)
