Sarosi’s goal-scoring feat

When Ferencvaros visited Malta during the Christmas period of 1937, they had a great reputation in Europe.

Only a couple of months before, in October 1937, they were crowned champions of Central Europe after beating Lazio in the Mitropa Cup final.

Ferencvaros had a formidable team and, judging by the results obtained against Maltese teams, they were probably the greatest club side ever to visit our islands at the time.

Their goalkeeper was Hada, a Hungarian international. The full-backs were Tatrai and the famous international Koranyi. The half-back line was made up of Magda, Polgar and Lazar. The latter was very short but he made up for his lack in height with his skills and positional play.

The forward line was the best department of the Hungarian team. It is enough to say that in the seven games played in Malta, they scored 55 goals, an average of eight per game.

The bulk of their goals came from the formidable duo Sarosi and Toldi.

The Hungarians’ reputation was so impressive that the Malta FA took immediate steps to prepare the national team for the tourney. A squad of 17 players was chosen for special training and a trial match was arranged against the Navy on December 8.

The Navy had a very strong team. Only a week before the warm-up with the MFA XI they had beaten the Army 8-1.

Still, the Maltese were not awed by the sailors’ reputation and the National XI won the match 5-1. Salvu Sammut, who played one of his best ever games, scored a hat-trick.

The Maltese were elated by the team’s performance and a good game was anticipated against the visitors but all these expectations came to nought against the slick Hungarians.

On January 9, Ferencvaros outclassed the MFA XI, 12-3.

Gyorgy Sarosi, a lawyer from Budapest, set a local record by scoring eight of his side’s 12 goals. He was a truly great player, the likes of which have rarely been seen on our islands.

The versatile Sarosi played in various positions for Ferenc-varos and Hungary. Essentially a second striker, he could also operate in midfield or central defence.

He helped Ferencvaros win five league titles between 1932 and 1941 and scored a goal in the 1934 World Cup.

However, his finest hour came when he captained Hungary to the 1938 World Cup final.

Sarosi hit five goals in that tournament, including one in the final to narrow Italy’s lead to 3-2 although a Silvio Piola goal eventually finished off the Hungarians.

Sarosi finished third in the tournament’s top scorers’ list to win the Bronze Ball trophy.

In all, he played 62 games and scored 42 goals for his country.

After his retirement, Sarosi moved to Italy where he coached a number of clubs, including Juventus, Bari and Roma. He died in 1993, aged 80.

The MFA XI, strengthened by five foreign players, were no match for Sarosi and company.

The Hungarians weaved their way through the Maltese defence at will.

It was a great performance hardly ever seen at the time but also a great disappointment for the locals who had expected so much from their team.

The match brought to an end one of the greatest football events ever held in Malta. For many years Ferencvaros were used as a yardstick to gauge the strength of other visiting teams.