FK Naša Krila Zemun

FK JRV Naša krila (Serbian Cyrillic: Наша крила; lit. "Our Wings"; commonly referred to as Naša krila Zemun or just Naša Krila) was a short-lived Yugoslav football club originally established in 1947 as a section of the eponymous sports society affiliated with the Yugoslav Air Force (JRV). Based in Zemun, SR Serbia, the club acted as the Air Force's official team, and relied on players serving their mandatory military service with the branch, also headquartered at Zemun.

Despite being active for only a few years before being disbanded in 1950 the club was very successful in domestic football during its existence, winning promotion to Yugoslavia's top division in 1947–48, and finishing 5th in the 1948–49 and 6th in the 1950 league seasons. They also reached two Marshal Tito Cup finals (1947, 1949) and one semi-final (1948).

History

The club was formed by the Yugoslav Air Force soon after the end of World War II. The club's name, which translates from Serbo-Croatian as "Our Wings", was inspired by the pre-war magazine of the same title published by the Yugoslav Royal Aero Club. In April 1948, during the existence of the sports club, the civilian aeronautical association was re-established as the Aeronautical Union of Yugoslavia (VSJ), which also re-launched the magazine.

The club's logo featured an eagle with wings spread positioned atop the five-torch emblem of Yugoslavia, with a laurel wreath in the background and a red five-pointed star on top. During its existence, the club featured a players who were serving their mandatory military service in the Air Force—some of these had already been established professional footballers before 1945, while others were young prospects. The club used the Air Force's own ground in Zemun to host matches, although they occasionally hosted some of their bigger home games at larger stadiums in Belgrade.

1947–48

Since its foundation Naša Krila competed in the Yugoslav league system. Along with a similar club formed by the Yugoslav Navy (JRM), NK Mornar Split, the club first entered the country's second-tier level in the 1947–48 season. Initially led by player-manager Zvonko Monsider, an accomplished goalkeeper seconded from Dinamo Zagreb in the first half-season, the club finished third, level on points with earning promotion to the First Federal League.

Still as a second-level side, the club also entered the inaugural edition of the Marshal Tito Cup, Yugoslavia's national cup competition, played during November 1947. They managed to beat Spartak Subotica to qualify for the "final four" tournament held at Stadion Avala in Belgrade. Naša Krila finished as runners-up, losing the final 0–2 to Partizan, the multi-sports club affiliated with the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA), i.e. the country's armed forces.

1949–50

In the next 1948–49 season, the first one in the national top league, the club finished 5h, behind only the "Big Four" clubs of Yugoslav football (Partizan, Red Star, Hajduk Split, Dinamo Zagreb). In the 1948 Marshal Tito Cup in November Naša Krila beat Budućnost to reach the final four in Belgrade again. They lost the semi-final to Red Star 3–4, and then also lost the third-place match to Dinamo Zagreb 1–5.

In the second half of 1949 there were no championship games, as the national league was rescheduled to a single calendar year cycle. However, the 1949 Marshal Tito Cup was played again in November. Naša Krila beat Budućnost again in the semi-final, to reach their second domestic cup final, the first final staged at the newly built Stadion JNA in Belgrade. They finished as runners-up again, after a 2–3 defeat to Red Star.

In the 1950 season, played over 18 rounds from March to November 1950 (including a three-month break between May and August for the 1950 FIFA World Cup in Brazil), Naša Krila finished the season in 6th place, with their last game a 2–1 home win against Lokomotiva on 12 November 1950.

The win against Lokomotiva proved to be their last competitive match, as the club was dissolved shortly thereafter. By the first round proper of the 1950 Marshal Tito Cup, played two weeks later on 26 November, the club was already disbanded. The scheduled games—which were supposed to involve Naša Krila and their reserve side Naša Krila II—were registered as 3–0 forfeits.

Players

The club's best league scorer in both top-level seasons was Vladimir Pečenčić (11 goals in 1947–48 and 6 goals in 1950). During the 1950 summer break, the only Naša Krila player called up by Yugoslavia manager Milorad Arsenijević for the World Cup in Brazil was defender Siniša Zlatković. He spent the tournament as an unused substitute in all of Yugoslavia's three matches. Although he later played for five more seasons at Red Star he was never actually capped for the national team. No other Naša Krila player was ever called up for the national team.

Notable teams

The team that played the cup final in 1947:

• Players: Živko Popadić, Miroslav Lazić, Ljubiša Filipović (c), Lenko Grčić, Milan Brnjevarac, Antun Lokošek, Aleksandar Panić, Vladimir Pečenčić, Siniša Zlatković, Vasilije Damnjanović, Franc Borovic.
• Head coach: Negoslav Radosavljević

The team that played the cup final in 1949:

• Players: Živko Popadić, Ljubiša Filipović (c), Miroslav Jovanović, Milan Kobe, Ivan Zvekanović, Vladimir Adamović, Aleksandar Panić, Lenko Grčić, Milutin Popović, Siniša Zlatković, Franc Borovic.
• Manager: Negoslav Radosavljević

External links

• Club profile Archived 2017-03-01 at the Wayback Machine at Foot.dk.
• Club profile at fkvojvodina.com