NK Neretvanac Opuzen

Neretvanac

Full name	NK Neretvanac Opuzen
Founded	1932; 93 years ago (1932)
Ground	Stadion Podvornica, Opuzen, Croatia[1]
Capacity	3,000
Chairman	Matko Babić (Bagurić)
League	3. NL – South
Home colours Away colours

NK Neretvanac Opuzen is a Croatian professional football club from Opuzen founded in 1932, currently playing in the 3. NL – South. Neretvanac played four seasons in the Croatian second division in the 1990s. The club is named after the river which runs through Opuzen.

History

In 1976, Neretvanac hosted Hajduk Split in a friendly organised after Opuzen fans sent in over 50,000 coupons to match sponsor Slobodna Dalmacija. Hajduk won 6:0 in front of 6,000 spectators, which was noted to be twice the number the population of Opuzen at the time.[2]

Neretvanac played in the Croatian second division from independence to 1995, when they finished last and were relegated.[3][4]

NK Neretvanac most recently qualified for the 2016 Croatian Cup, losing to NK Istra 1961 in the first round.[5]

In 2017, Neretvanac signed a cooperative development agreement with nearby 1.HNL club Hajduk Split.[6]

Derby

NK Neretvanac share a longstanding rivalry with NK Neretva from Metković, entitled "El Clasico" which dates back to 1946.[7] NK Neretva won the first derby match 3–0.[8] They also have a smaller derby with Jadran Ploče.[9]

As of 2021	GP	W	D	L
All	54	24	14	16

Former players

• Marko Grgić
• Nikola Katić (2014–15) returned to Neretvanac after joining Hajduk Split and being placed in their reserves team. Katić was capped once by Croatia in 2017.[10]

References

1. "NK Neretvanac Opuzen". soccerway.com. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
2. Zonjić, Nenad (6 February 2016). "40 godina od utakmice Neretvanac-Hajduk". nogometplus.net. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
3. "Croatia 1992". RSSSF.
4. "Croatia 1995". RSSSF.
5. "Neretvanac Opuzen vs Istra 1961". Soccerway.
6. "Hajduk i Neretvanac u zajedničkom projektu: 150 dječaka sanjaju bili dres!". Slobodna Dalmacija. 16 October 2018. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
7. "Danas neretvanski "El Clasico": U Metkoviću očekujemo dobar nogomet i pune tribine". 5 September 2014. Archived from the original on 28 December 2018. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
8. "Narona iz Metkovića Sigurno Pobjeđuje Neretvanca iz Opuzena". Slobodna Dalmacija. 1946.
9. "Neretva se nada dobroj igri i pozitivnom ishodu". Metkovic News.com. 18 September 2018.
10. "Odbio sam Hajduk da bih igrao za Neretvanac, a nastup za Hrvatsku bio mi je nestvaran osjećaj". 100posto.hr. 22 December 2017.