Former Dnipro goalkeeper Sergiy Krakovskyi recalled how in the autumn of 1983, the team from Dnipropetrovsk won the gold medals of the USSR championship for the first time.
Sergiy Krakovskyi (on the left)— In November 1983, the tournament situation was such that in the last round according to the schedule, two teams equally contending for the championship met — ours and Moscow’s Spartak. In the decisive match, which had the status of “golden,” Dnipro managed to defeat the Spartak players in a tough battle — 4:2. For me personally, that match is one of the most memorable in my professional career.
— What other rewards, besides gold medals, did the team receive for the championship?
— There were various privileges. Each of us received a color television (at that time it was quite a valuable gift), we were given the right to purchase a car out of turn. We were also awarded honorary certificates and bonuses. From the "Pivdenmash" factory, whose sports honor Dnipro defended, each team member received about 3000 karbovanets, and from the Football Federation of the USSR — 127 rubles each. Although money is money, the gold of the USSR championship, agree, is worth a lot.
— The creators of the “golden” Dnipro were the duo of coaches — Volodymyr Yemets and Hennadiy Zhizdik. What do these personalities mean in your life?
— For me, everything connected with football was these two people. They were not different, but complemented each other in various areas of their club activities. Yemets understood more about issues directly related to football, while Papa, as we called Zhizdik, was strong in psychology and organizational matters. However, Yemets was not far behind him in psychology.
Vyacheslav Kulchytskyi
