December 31, 2009: December Round-Up:

As we’re still in the midst of the silly season is, there isn’t too much happening in the football landscape at the moment, although there is always something, though. The transfer market seems to be more quiet that it has been in recent years. That’s likely because of the financial situation at the clubs, as they don’t have as much leeway now as they used to have. Another factor that partially plays a part is that clubs are now more often signing longer contracts than previously, when contracts typically lasted for a year only. Now many clubs are signing two year-contracts and occasionally 3 and 4-year contracts.

But still, there seems to be some spare change at mainly B36 Tórshavn who have made a couple of major signings at the end of the year.

Let’s go to December’s roundup:


B36 Tórshavn, who seriously flirted with relegation last season, have made two high-profile signings towards the end of the year.

On Christmas Eve B36 announced that they had re-signed Serbian defender Dmitrij Jankovic who also played for B36 in 2008 and was considered as one of the very best players in the league. After the 2008 season he went back to Serbia to play for FK Sevojno. He originally came to the Faroe Islands to play for VB/Sumba at the half way stage in 2006 and played there the following season also.

And two days before the end of the year, B36 announced that they had also signed winger/forward Hjalgrím Elttør from relegated KÍ Klaksvík. Elttør started last season with NSÍ Runavík where he was playing superbly, but during the summer break he switched to KÍ Klaksvík. Reportedly, NSÍ were behind in paying his wages. Elttør scored 12 goals in the 2009 season which made him number 6 on the top scorer list. 5 of the goals were for NSÍ and the other 7 for KÍ.

Elttør is in contention for a place in the national team, but is struggling in really convincing the coaches.

Suddenly, B36 seem to have one of the very strongest squads in the Vodafone Division, and with coach Sigfríður Clementsen’s organization, B36 could be a team that will be very difficult to beat in 2010.

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The 2009 league top scorer, Víkingur’s 20 year old Finnur Justinussen has reportedly been a target for Swedish top division club Gefle IF, after justinussen was on a trial there after the end of the Faroese season and apparently did very well at the Swedish club. But although Faroese players are not the most expensive in the world, Gefle’s economy doesn’t allow investing in the Faroese top scorer, the word is.

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VB/Sumba - who change name to FC Suðuroy from 01 January (that’s in a few hours) and who are back in the top flight after 2 seasons in the 1st division - have announced that Jón Pauli Olsen will continue as coach. He has been their coach for the last two years. The club also says that they are looking to strengthen their team and are looking at home as well as overseas.

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AB Argir have signed 22 year old defensive midfielder Gunnar Haraldsen from relegated 07 Vestur where he mostly played in defence, however.

Last season, AB were coached by Allan Mørkøre and John Petersen in tandem, but as AB have just appointed Hans Jacob Thomsen as assistant coach, it appears like John Petersen is not staying put.

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Former NSÍ Runavík midfielder Bogi Løkin, who moved to Denmark at the end of the season to study, has joined Danish 1st division club BK Frem, where he’ll team up with compatriot Jónas Tór Næs. Both are Faroese internationals.

Several other Faroese players have played for Frem during the last years.Frem’s coach, Christian Andersen, once coach for FC Copenhagen, expects a lot of Bogi Løkin. When asked who was the most promising talent in Frem’s squad, the coach answered that Løkin was one of two.

But because of the club’s economic situation, Frem are not allowed to sign contracts, so Løkin will strictly be playing as an amateur.

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Earlier in the month, Faroese U-21 players Jóan Símun Edmundsson (B68) and Christian Mourtitsen (B36) played a training match for Newcastle’s reserves against Scottish Hibernian. The match ended 2-2, after Newcastle had been leading 2-0. Edmundsson played the whole 90 minutes of the game while Mouritsen was taken off after some 60 minutes.

But not all of Newcastle’s supporters like to have trialists from such a tiny place like the Faroe Islands, as this website makes evident.

One makes this point:
"Faroe Islands population 48,353

For crying out loud. There are bigger villages I can't even name in England than this godforsaken place."

- But he obviously forgot that these two lads (Edmundsson and Mouritsen) from the the Faroes with 48,353 inhabitants beat mighty Russia with 142 million inhabitants when the U-21 teams from these two countries met in the Faroe Islands earlier in the year.

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Faroe Islands, the Fast Food Nation

We’ll end this roundup – and the year - with a somewhat amusing story from Rumania.

A Rumanian television station found it hilarious that the Faroese national team visited MC Donald’s to get some food after their 3-1 defeat in October and labelled the Faroe Islands as the Fast Food Nation.

We don’t understand what the Rumanian TV presenters are saying, but they are laughing a lot, so obviously they find it very amusing.

If a Rumanian visitor (I know you are here occasionally :-) would send us an English summarizing of what is being said, that would be appreciated a lot: information (AT) soccerandequipment.com .

In all fairness, it should be mentioned that the junk food "party" is happening after the match and that it was the last game in the campaign. The domestic league had also ended.

The video clips are embedded below:

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Well, that was the last roundup in 2009 and now it’s time to wish everybody a happy new year! :-)