16 Czechoslovakians #21 MFK Skalica

We’ve already had three Slovakia related football blogs in a row, and now here’s a fourth in the form of MFK Skalica, though they are situated right on the Czech border. It was almost walking distance from Hodonín as we discovered on a particularly mild Saturday, but more of that later.

 

We’d chosen a slightly later train to get us to our first stop of Hodonín under the assumption that there would be a bus from there to get us to the ground in time for kick off. Oh no. That would have been far too convenient.

 

On arrival to this charming border town, we’d discovered the next bus to Skalica would arrive well after kick off time. Plus we had to walk to the ground. We could have taken a taxi which would have been reasonable and wouldn’t break the bank too much, but we decided on a much more unconventional route to Skalica.

 

Given that I’ve mentioned the walking distance, you can probably tell where this is going, but yes we walked there. In actual fact, we walked from Hodonín to the Slovak village of Kátov, which ironically seemed heavily populated by dogs barking at us from their front gardens.

We’d walked the best part of an hour and a half to this village, which was perhaps closer than the time it took, but it was a beautiful detour across the border and through the gorgeous Slovak countryside. We could have walked the extra hour from Kátov, but we decided to wait for the train instead, if it actually existed.

 

The station was practically a one-track stop with a shelter and a sign, and not much else. Even the information board wasn’t much use, and we had nowhere to buy tickets. I forked out a euro for the 4 minute journey via some spotty 4G to Skalica and the train thankfully arrived with only a ten minute delay.

We took the short walk to the ground through the charming town of Skalica, the alleged birthplace of Prague’s favourite dessert to shove down tourist’s throats – the Trdelnik. We didn’t have any, but we did have some delightful pork schnitzel at Reštaurácia Srdiečko after the game.

 

Speaking of which, it was a relegation six-pointer between Skalica and Trenčín, with both teams on the same points total hovering dangerously above the drop zone of the Slovak First League. As it turned out, Skalica wouldn’t even need to break a sweat to emerge 2-0 winners over a very poor Trenčín side, as Yann Michael Yao and Roman Haša’s first half goals were enough to see the away side off.

The ground itself is excellent if modestly sized at a mere 3,000 capacity, though it’s to be expected given their promotion to the top tier was only as recent as last season. Despite the running track, it has a certain charm with its remarkable floodlights and picturesque backdrop of the town. It’s off the beaten track, but definitely worth a visit.

 

Who are ya?

Founded in 1920 under the name ŠK Skalica, MFK Skalica have spent much of their history in the lower divisions, with top tier appearances only happening recently. Not a lot of information exists about the club given its relative stature in the Slovak game, but their history from 1963 onwards is at least somewhat traceable.

 

From that year to 1993, the club were firmly around the 7^th tier or below; barely a flicker on the radars of their nearby heavy hitters Spartak Trnava or Slovan Bratislava. Promotion from the 6^th league would occur in 1994, follow by promotion from the 5^th league in 1997.

 

2010 saw the club make their debut campaign in the 3^rd league, before dropping immediately back into the 4^th league again. This would only be a two year stint, however, with the club bouncing back in 2013, and rising further to the 2^nd league in 2014. Then, the unthinkable rise would be complete in 2014 in typically Czechoslovak style, as the club were administratively given promotion to the top tier due to the expiry of FC VSS Košice’s licence.

 

They would drop immediately to the 2^nd tier of course, though they would return in 2022 to find themselves in an incredible position. They currently sit just above the relegation zone, 4 points clear of Zlate Moravce. It’s look very likely they’ll live to fight another season in the top tier, which is remarkable given their relatively obscure and modest history.

 

If their performance against Trenčín is anything to go by, they could be staying in the top tier for a while yet, though it won’t be easy. That said, Skalica is definitely a town and a club worth ticking off.