Polissya Zhytomyr

Timeline of name changes and creations

1960–1966: Polissya Zhytomyr (Spartak sports society)

1992–1997: Khimik Zhytomyr (factory team)

1997–2005: FC Polissya Zhytomyr (adopted former factory team)

Historical background

The club traces its history back to 1959, when the first Zhytomyr "team of masters" (Soviet term for a professional team) was formed and was admitted to the All-Union competitions. However, the team operated before 1959 at the republican level, which was considered amateur. For example, in 1958 Avanhard Zhytomyr became the champion of Zhytomyr Oblast.

The newly formed team of masters, Avanhard Zhytomyr, made their debut in the 1959 Soviet Football Championship, Class B when, on 18 April 1959, they hosted Spartak Minsk (today FC Dinamo Minsk). The Zhytomyr team won the match 1:0. Yuriy Nikitin scored the only goal for the Zhytomyr team midway through the second half at Stadion Dynamo in Zhytomyr. It so happened that the future president of the Ukrainian Association of Football, Viktor Bannikov, also made his professional debut in the game as a goalkeeper for Avanhard. The 1959 Soviet Class B (second tier) consisted of 7 groups; Avanhard played in Group 2. They finished 9th among 15 participants. During their maiden season, on 3 July 1959, Avanhard made their debut at the 1959–60 Soviet Cup, where they were eliminated at the qualification stage by Arsenal Kyiv.

In 1960, the Zhytomyr team of masters was transferred from the Avanhard sports society to the Spartak sports society, yet adopted a region-specific name, Polissya (Polesie, at the All-Union level). Polesie, which means a woodland, is a geographic area located between Ukraine and Belarus. Coincidentally, there was a notable change in the format of the Soviet Union football competitions for Class B (second tier), which was split, creating the RSFSR Class B, the UkrSSR Class B, and the Union Republics Class B. The organization of the football competition in the UkrSSR Class B was entrusted to the Ukrainian Republican Football Federation. The football competitions in the 1960 UkrSSR Class B were composed of 2 parallel groups split geographically, and both winners of the groups contested the republican title, after which the republican champion challenged another Ukrainian team from Class A for promotion. Polissya started their season on 10 April 1960 by visiting Chornomorets Odesa, where they lost 0:2. They finished their second season 7th among 17 group participants.

After the 1962 season, the Soviet football pyramid was reorganized again, and the Class B competition was moved to the third tier. Polissya Zhytomyr, while being among the contenders, was not selected for the second tier. Polissya remained in the Class B (now the third tier) until 1967. Coincidentally, just before the 1967 Class B, Polissya changed their name to Avtomobilist (car owner or car operator), and the same year the team won the republican competitions. It was their first major trophy. Sixteen players were honored with the sports title of Master of Sports. In addition, Polissya qualified for the 1966–67 Soviet Cup for the first time by winning their qualification group. During the tournament proper, the team competed as Avtomobilist and were eliminated in the Round of 64 by Tavriya Simferopol.

(first number indicates games played, second - goals scored (or allowed))

Goalkeepers: Tomash Sytsynskyi (34, -?), Mykhailo Forkash (23, -?).

Defenders: Valentyn Andryushchenko (23), Petro Bilyi (23), Rostyslav Hordeyev (27, 1), Volodymyr Humenyuk (38, 1), Viktor Kotlyarenko (24, 1), Ishtvan Shtefutsa (36).

Midfielders: Anatoliy Bohovyk (23, 3), Boris Galoyan (22, 1), Ferents Kokolnyk (41, 2), Ishtvan Shandor (32).

Forwards: Oleksandr Horelov (42, 18), Valentin Kosov (39, 8), Volodymyr Popov (32, 9).

Avtomobilist remained in the second tier not too long. After the 1969 season, there was another reform of the Soviet football pyramid, and the Class A Second Group, where Avtomobilist played, was also moved down the pyramid, becoming the third tier for the 1970 season. Avtomobilist placed 4th during the season and qualified to stay in the second tier; however, Karpaty Lviv, which placed 6th, were spared instead for winning the 1969 Soviet Cup. Avtomobilist also played quite successfully in the 1969 Soviet Cup, reaching the Round of 16, where they were eliminated by CSKA Moscow after a replay when the original match ended in a scoreless draw. During the replay, CSKA beat Avtomobilist 1:0.

From 1970, Avtomobilist remained in the Soviet Second League until 1989, after which another reform of the Soviet football pyramid took place, sending the Zhytomyr team down to the fourth tier. For the first five seasons after playing in the Second League, Avtomobilist came very close to gaining promotion, particularly in 1973 and 1975. During the 1975 Soviet Second League, Avtomobilist placed second behind Kryvbas Kryvyi Rih, trailing only by a point. During that time (1972 to 1976), the Ukrainian Republican Football Federation was conducting a parallel Ukrainian Cup tournament created specifically for Second League Ukrainian clubs in addition to the original, which since 1957 has been organized for amateur-level teams. Avtomobilist became the winner of the inaugural 1972 Ukrainian Cup for the Second League clubs by defeating Shakhtar Donetsk 1:0 in Kyiv, and, two years later they returned to the 1974 final of the competition where they were defeated by Tavriya Simferopol.

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Polissya joined the football competitions in Ukraine and was admitted to the 1992 Persha Liha. They finished the season in the relegation zone. However, the club went bankrupt. Their place in the 1992–93 Ukrainian Second League was granted to the factory team from Zhytomyr, Khimik, which represented the local factory "Khimvolokno". Previously, Khimik Zhytomyr had competed in the KFK competitions and placed 6th in their group during the 1991 season. During the 1992–93 season, Khimik finished second behind Dnipro Cherkasy, tying with them on points, but they received the promotion along with the Cherkasy team. Thus, Zhytomyr regained a professional team, under a different brand, in the second tier just one season later. The factory lasted until 1997, when Khimvolokno disbanded their team, and it was re-registered as a region-sponsored team under the new-old name of Polissya.