For decades, Crvena Stijena from Tološ was the only Podgorica club from the right bank of the Morača River - in "lucky" times, a huge hotbed of talent.
Things have changed in the past decade, and many clubs at that level have come to the brink of existence - or no longer exist. Crvena stijena exists, fights, survives, despite the fact that, for purely administrative reasons, it is not competing this season in the Senior League of the FSCG Centar Club Association.
The team is not competing, but has an international match coming up - and the occasion is special.
- Football club Peroj is a club of Montenegrin emigrants in Croatia, from Vodnjan in Istria. 369 years ago - I remembered that number - Montenegrins, mostly from Crmnica, moved there. They have their own club with which we have been cooperating for some time, and two years ago they were our guests, in Tološi. They were delighted, and even then they announced that they would invite us as guests. And then that day came, they invited us to be special guests at the opening of the new stadium. We will play a friendly match, it is a great privilege and honor, and of course a pleasure - says the president of Crvena stijena Šajo Mrvaljević.
The expedition from Tološ will travel along the Adriatic to Vodnjan next week. Funds are needed for everything, including this beautiful journey.
- This is more than just football. We are a poor club, which is not competing this season due to administrative matters, but the team gathers at least a few times a week, we train, we prepare and we can't wait for August and the new season. We contacted the Ministry for Diaspora, because this is an international match, a return match, with a very rare occasion. That occasion is also to maintain ties with people from the diaspora - I hope someone will recognize that - Mrvaljević points out.
Brnović Brothers - Dragoljub i Branko, before them Cvetko Savkovic, p Milonja Djukic, Dejo Raičković... are just some of the great football names, legends, who originated in Crvena stijena.
Mrvaljević explains what Crvena stijena is, what it once meant - a local club of much wider scope and influence.
- Legendary Miljan Miljanic in the early 80s of the last century he came to visit. And he spoke in the style: 'I am often invited to various congresses to give lectures, and you won't believe it - you are my inspiration! I start my speeches with the words - have you heard of Red Rock? It is a small club from the suburbs of Titograd that at one point had more national team players born there than Hajduk from Split' - Mrvaljević remembers.
He notes that Crvena stijena received the Silver Star - the Order of Merit for the People - in 1989, and he also recalls some of its younger successes.
- The Crvena stijena cadets were the champions of Yugoslavia in 1998, ahead of Red Star and Partizan - imagine that success. Our senior team won the Montenegrin Cup in 2005 and 2006, and those are successes we are proud of - Mrvaljević points out.
Today's Crvena Stijena is on the verge of extinction, but it's heading to Croatia: the match against NK Peroj is more than just a friendly match. The emotion of that match is warm and symbolic - the joy of the encounter, respect and quiet nostalgia. Similar dreams of lower league players collide on the pitch, but also two stories connected by a common space, history and love for football and Montenegro.
New pitch, changing rooms, floodlights...
The Crvena stijene Stadium in Tološi will soon have a new look! There is hope for football in this large part of the city, where there is no other stadium within a radius of several kilometers.
- With the help of the Football Association of Montenegro, which approved the funds, but also the selfless help of the Capital City, and all in cooperation with the Fudbalito Football Club, we have reached a situation where we will soon be building a plastic surface. This will help a lot in the work, especially of the youngest teams, because the field was our big problem - says Šajo Mrvaljević, president of Crvena stijena.
Locker rooms will also be built, and lighting has already been installed, allowing for playing and training at night.
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