The Smorgon Herald
Market8 Mar 2027
Vadim Galko has said yes to Naftan
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Smorgon have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Player ratings8 Mar 2027
No sign of nerves from Artem Stankevich at 21 — 7.91
The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Artem Stankevich did not need any: 7.91, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
The dugout8 Mar 2027
Max Zhestarev keeps the receipts
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Smorgon may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Match6 Mar 2027
Smorgon end the wait against Niva
It had gone 8 games. The players did not celebrate like men who had won a match; they celebrated like men who had been let out of something.
Transfer targets8 Mar 2027
Abdoul Aziz Touré turns down Smorgon
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Dinamo Minsk keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Squad8 Mar 2027
Tempers go at Smorgon
Vladislav Kabachevskiy was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Boardroom8 Mar 2027
Graduation day at Smorgon
1 boys move up, and somewhere in the building the people who coached them at twelve are quietly having the best morning of their working year. Nothing about this shows up in a result and it is why the academy exists.
Transfer targets8 Mar 2027
Smorgon rebuffed over Maksym Dehtiariov
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Molodechno have kept their man, and Smorgon go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
The terraces8 Mar 2027
One of their own: Artem Stankevich
He is 21 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
In brief
- Player ratings Daniil Tkachik beats them one at a time
- Market Smorgon promote Stanislau Laptev from within
- Match Smorgon find a way past Niva