1923 – THE FIRST TITLE, RIGHT AFTER THE FEATURE AMONG THE BIG CLUBS
The first champions among the big clubs
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In the following year, with the “Cariocas” still crying the death of Ruy Barbosa, the team got into the dispute for the principal title of soccer in the city. Vasco, an unbelieved club came from a championship of which the opponents were weak teams. Would play the big ones now, such as Flamengo, Fluminense, Botafogo and América.
Another fact rose curiosity. While the teams which disputed the series A were formed exclusively by youth of the Carioca elite, Vasco was coming to the championship fulfilled by black and worker players, all of them gathered on the unplaced fields of the Cariocas’ suburbs. The coach Ramón Platero, submitted the players to a hallucinating rhythm of practicing, would make them run daily from the soccer field of Vasco, at the time situated in the Moraes and Silva street, Quinta da Boa Vista, to the Square Barão de Drummond, in Vila Izabel. The other big teams, despite the fact that they were curios, didn’t notice the power of Vasco’s team.
After the draw of 1 goal with Anadaraí, in General Severiano, the team worked hard in the championship and started to smash its rivals, always using an unfailing technique. As the physical preparation was evidentially superior to the others, Platero made his team play the first half in a smooth rhythm, to, in the 2nd half, destroy them. All the 11 victories in the championship were reached in the last 45 minutes.
At the end of the first turn, Vasco was already presenting unexpected numbers to its rivals: 6 victories and only a single draw, to its feature in that championship. The Cruzmaltina team went through its success paths along in the 2nd turn, when had to confront its already know rival from rowing, Flamengo. In the first time in history that both team confronted, in the anterior turn, Vasco got to the victory by the score of 3x1. The denominated “black shirts” nickname given to the Vasco’s players in consequence to their uniform, they were all the way long making a massacre to its rivals and the team “Rubro-Negro” (Flamengo) was only another one to fall down.
Sunday, 08th of July, 1923. The classic title of Millions, that a little later was named the confront between the two rivals, could have already been invented in that afternoon, on the Fluminense’s field, situated at the time on the Guanabara street.
The LMTD, responsible for the organization of its championship and looking forward for the big collection, put lots of tickets on sale. The result was counted on the papers at the time “more than 35 thousand of people, not exaggerating, fulfilled the such big stadium of the tri-color team”, wrote, “The impartial”. With all the space reserved to the crowd already fulfilled, many cheers jumped the fence that would separate the field to watch the game from the running tracks. The interest in that match was justified: Vasco team had been winning all the Cariocas teams and what we saw in that afternoon was a meeting of cheers from all team against the terrifying “black shirts”.
Flamengo first started in front of Vasco and soon after the “Rubro-Negro team” amplified its vantage for 2x0. At the begging of the 2 half Cecy, scored for Vasco, but a little after the “Rubro-Negro” scored again. From 4 minutes to the end Arlindo, stroke again for Vasco, leaving the results in 3x2. In the sequence, there was a strong pressure from the Vasco team, but Flamengo was able to maintain the result. The match created a historic polemic. The Cruzmaltinos affirm, till today, have scored a 3rd goal, badly annulled by the referee. But there are no records of this situation in the Carioca journalism.
There are still some doubts in the heads of some Vasco cheers: Is it possible that, with a crowd fulfilled, the stadium, the journalists were also cheering against those “black shirts”? Although, the defeat for our rival didn’t tremble the confidence of Vasco, which launched with everything it had in sake of the title.
Very well fed by the meals they ate at the restaurant, “Filhos do Céu” (Sons of Heaven), on the Praça da Bandeira (Flag Square), and feeling ready, thank to the rest offered by the sleeping room of their club, the players Cruzmaltinos confronted, in the following América, Fluminense, and São Cristóvão. Rubros and Tricolores fell for the same tactics of all Vasco’s victories and were liquefied in the 2nd turn for the sufficient score of 2x1. A victory over São Cristóvão, on the last tournament, would give the title in anticipation for the Cruzmaltinos. And because of that the rival came on and scored the first goal, amplifying its advantage in a few minutes. Having a score of 2x0, the crowd that was cheering against Vasco believed that it was over. Although, once again the strategy of Ramón Platero worked and at the last minutes, the team came on with more disposition and turned over the score for 3x2, with a goal of Cecy and 2 of Negrito.
The “black shirts”, in its year of feature in the series A of the 1st division, became champion with all possible honor, with the following base team: Nelson, Leitão, Emingote, Nicolino, Claudio Honor, Artur, Pascoal, Torterolli, Arlindo, Cecy and Negrito.
1923 – VASCO CREATES “THE GAME OF ANIMALS” IN SOCCER
In this championship, Vasco instituted a very creative form of paying its players. In the market of wet and dry of Saúde Street and Russel Street, the Portuguese had the habit of betting the victories of Vasco.
As they almost won all matches, they decided to split the profit with the players. Although, the Athletes couldn’t receive money, reminding the fact that they were amateurs. Was created, a board of rewarding animals, ruled by the importance of the rival that Vasco defeated. The América, the champion in 1922, was valid a cow with 4 legs. Flamengo twice champion in 1920/1921 was valid a cow with 3 legs. Two sheep and a pig exchanged a victory over the tri-color Carioca. Winning the Botafogo and other teams would also profit some animals, always from rooster above.
There was then created “The Game of Animals”, a kind of award for a good result in a game, which would become an institution in the national soccer.
1924 – A RESISTANCE TO THE RACIAL AND SOCIAL DISCRIMINATION
There while in the politics, the leader was the president Arthur Bernardes, in the soccer field, the team from Vasco was used to win almost all matches and competitions. After running over its rivals in the past year, in 1924 Vasco was already considered the enemy number 1 to all the cheers from all teams in the state of Rio. A rival to be taken down under any circumstances.
As it was hard to bring Vasco down on the field, the rulers of soccer from Vasco’s rival teams decided to investigate the professional and social positions of those who were denominated “the black shirts”, because soccer was still amateur and soccer players couldn’t receive money for the practice of thy sport. An amazing, but terrible way to take Vasco away from the fields.
Although Vasco’s team found a way to make it trough the laws of the Metropolitan League by registering its players as employees of commercial establishments from the Portuguese.
Not satisfied yet, the members of the investigation party decided to seek the basement of all this information. The tricolor Reis Carneiro, the rubro Armando de Paula Freitas, and the rubro-negro Diocesano Ferreira got tired of knocking on the club’s doors and hearing that the players, or better, the employees were realizing external chores.
The inspection on the players’ professions was illegal. Under the law, many athletes from the big teams of the state of Rio were already receiving money just to play soccer. What really bothered the opponents was the origin of those players: a team formed with black and workers, gathered in the really poor areas of the city of Rio de Janeiro. And more than that, with the award of State champion held in their hands.
After they worn out all the possibilities of taking Vasco out of the fields, by the laws of the Metropolitan League, the opponents appealed to the creation of a new institution, the Metropolitan Association of Athletic Sports (AMEA).
They accepted the signing of all big team and of course, they rejected Vasco’s. With an argument which would convince nobody. According to the rulers of rival teams, Vasco’s team was formed with athletes of doubtable professions, and the club couldn’t count on its stadium, which was in a bad condition.
It was true, the field at Moraes and Silva street didn’t have the structure required, but the real problem wasn’t this one. And it became clear with the proposal received from AMEA, they wanted Vasco to exclude 12 players from the competition, guess who? The black and workers. Vasco refused the proposal with an amazing and extraordinary letter from José Augusto Prestes, at the time, the president, to the president of AMEA, Arnaldo Guinle:
“We are absolutely right that your excellency will be the first one to understand that it would be an undignified position of ours to sacrifice, the desire to affiliate AMEA, some players who fought so we could have, in midst of many victories, the championship of Soccer in the city of Rio de Janeiro in 1923”, Prestes argued. And he continued to defend his athletes. “They are 12 players, young, almost all of them are brazilians, at the begging of their careers. A public act, which would injure them, will never be performed with the solidarity of those who run the house who took them, neither under the ceiling that with such courage they filled up with glories”. And ended, deciding not to affiliate to the new Association. “On these terms, we are sorry to communicate to your Excellency that we give up the chance to be part of the AMEA.”
Without a field in good conditions and fighting the racism of its opponents, there was rest over to Vasco dispute with other 21 teams of lower expression, the championship of the Metropolitan League of Terrain Disports (LMDT). After 16 victories, with no ties or defeats, “the black shirts” raised up the title again with no difficulties. In the final triangle, on the Andaraí field, Vasco scored and won for 5x0 the Egenho de Dentro, and went trough Bonsucesso with no difficulties at all, with a simple victory. The base team was almost a repetition from last years’ team, with only 2 substitutions: Nicolino for Brilhante and Arlindo for Russinho. Ramón Platero was still firm in the reigns of this team.
In the following year, thank to the interventions of Carlito Rocha, director of Botafogo soccer team and referee of the so commented match against Flamengo, in 1923, Vasco was accepted into the AMEA. The club had its game realized on the field of Andaraí, where today is located Iguatemi Mall, but its directors were already moving to build and enormous and comfortable soccer stadium. And along with it give a lesson to those who one day stopped the “black shirts” from disputing with the big teams.
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