1955–56 Liga Alef
The 1955–56 Liga Alef season was the first in which Liga Alef was the second tier of Israeli football due to the formation of Liga Leumit, and was the first nationwide second tier season (replacing Liga Bet North and South regional divisions).
Hakoah Tel Aviv won the league and qualified for the promotion play-offs against Maccabi Jaffa (10th at the 1955–56 Liga Leumit).
League matches were completed on 2 June 1956,[1] however, Hapoel Balfouria appealed against the results which were set in its matches against Hapoel Nahariya (a walkover loss of 0–3) and Hapoel Jerusalem (which was abandoned with a score of 4–0 to Hapoel Jerusalem),[2] as Balfouria could be spared from relegation with two wins in these matches. The first replayed match was played on 28 July 1956, and as Hapoel Balfouria lost 2–4 to Hapoel Nahariya,[3][4] Balfouria gave up its claims regarding the match against Hapoel Jerusalem, agreeing to set the score to 0–4 to Hapoel Jerusalem.
An 18th round match between Hapoel Nahariya and Beitar Jerusalem wasn't played due to misunderstanding between the teams regarding the time of the match,[5] and was left unplayed at the end of the season.[6]
Final table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hakoah Tel Aviv | 22 | 17 | 2 | 3 | 47 | 19 | +28 | 36 | Promotion play-offs |
| 2 | Hapoel Kiryat Haim | 22 | 13 | 4 | 5 | 60 | 30 | +30 | 30 | |
| 3 | Hapoel Jerusalem | 22 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 38 | 33 | +5 | 25 | |
| 4 | Hapoel Rehovot | 22 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 28 | 29 | −1 | 23 | |
| 5 | Hapoel Nahariya | 21 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 40 | 36 | +4 | 22[lower-alpha 1] | |
| 6 | Hapoel Mahane Yehuda | 22 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 38 | 33 | +5 | 20 | |
| 7 | Hapoel Hadera | 22 | 9 | 2 | 11 | 42 | 38 | +4 | 20 | |
| 8 | Maccabi Ramat Gan | 22 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 31 | 34 | −3 | 20 | |
| 9 | Ahva Notzrit Haifa | 22 | 9 | 2 | 11 | 31 | 40 | −9 | 20 | Relegation play-offs |
| 10 | Beitar Jerusalem | 21 | 7 | 3 | 11 | 26 | 45 | −19 | 17[lower-alpha 1] | |
| 11 | Hapoel Ra'anana | 22 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 20 | 49 | −29 | 16 | Relegated to Liga Bet |
| 12 | Hapoel Balfouria | 22 | 5 | 3 | 14 | 29 | 44 | −15 | 13 |
Notes:
- An 18th round match between Hapoel Nahariya and Beitar Jerusalem wasn't played due to misunderstanding between the teams regarding the time of the match,[7] and was left unplayed at the end of the season.[8]
Relegation playoff
Liga Alef winner, Hakoah Tel Aviv face Liga Leumit 10th-placed club, Maccabi Jaffa. The matches took place on June 10 and 17, 1956.
| Maccabi Jaffa | 3–1 | Hakoah Tel Aviv |
|---|---|---|
B. Cohen  Kalev |
Davar | |
| Hakoah Tel Aviv | 0–1 | Maccabi Jaffa |
|---|---|---|
| Davar | |
Maccabi Jaffa won 4–1 on aggregate and remained in Liga Leumit. Hakoah Tel Aviv remained in Liga Alef.
Relegation play-offs
A promotion-relegation play-off between the 9th and 10th placed teams in Liga Alef, Ahva Notzrit Haifa and Beitar Jerusalem, and the winners of the regional divisions of Liga Bet, Maccabi Sha'arayim and Maccabi Hadera. Each team played the other three once.
| 17 August 1956 | Ahva Notzrit Haifa | 0–3 | Maccabi Hadera | Kfar Saba |
| Yehuda |
report (p. 6) (in Hebrew) | |
Stadium: Hapoel Ground Attendance: 800 Referee: Sulami |
| 17 August 1956 | Beitar Jerusalem | 1–0 | Maccabi Sha'arayim | Tel Aviv |
| Zion |
report (p. 6) (in Hebrew) | Stadium: Hatikva Neighborhood Stadium Attendance: 1,500 Referee: Palman |
| 25 August 1956 | Ahva Notzrit Haifa | 0–3 | Beitar Jerusalem | Kfar Saba |
| report (p. 6) (in Hebrew) | |
Stadium: Hapoel Ground Attendance: 1,000 Referee: Palman |
| 25 August 1956 | Maccabi Hadera | 1–3 | Maccabi Sha'arayim | Tel Aviv |
| Gvirzman |
report (p. 6) (in Hebrew) | |
Stadium: Hatikva Neighborhood Stadium Attendance: 1,500 Referee: Sulami |
| 1 September 1956 | Beitar Jerusalem | 4–2 | Maccabi Hadera | Jaffa |
| Ashkenazi Hasson |
report (p. 6) (in Hebrew) | |
Stadium: Maccabi Ground Attendance: 500 Referee: Sulami |
| 1 September 1956 | Maccabi Sha'arayim | 1–1 | Ahva Notzrit Haifa | Tel Aviv |
| Rokvan |
report (p. 6) (in Hebrew) | |
Stadium: Hatikva Neighborhood Stadium Attendance: 1,500 Referee: Palman |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beitar Jerusalem | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2 | +6 | 6 | Liga Alef |
| 2 | Maccabi Sha'arayim | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 3 | |
| 3 | Maccabi Hadera | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 8 | −3 | 2 | Liga Bet |
| 4 | Ahva Notzrit Haifa | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 6 | −4 | 1 |
Notes
1.^ Abandoned at the 70th minute with the score of 2–1 to Maccabi Hadera as Ahva Notzrit Haifa players protested awarding Hadera's second goal, which they claimed was stopped by the goalkeeper before the goal line.
References
- Beitar Jerusalem in top of the play-offs table Maariv, 26.8.56, Historical Jewish Press (in Hebrew)
- Beitar Jerusalem 4-2 Maccabi Hadera Heruth, 2.9.56, Historical Jewish Press (in Hebrew)
- Previous seasons The Israel Football Association (in Hebrew)
- Hapoel Balfouria and Ra'anana to Liga Bet Davar, 3 June 1956, Historical Jewish Press (in Hebrew)
- Hapoel Balfouria's Appeal Given Ma'ariv, 17 June 1956, Historical Jewish Press (in Hebrew)
- Replay Match in Liga Alef: Hapoel Nahariya – Hapoel Balfouria 4:2 (1:1) Davar, 29 July 1956, Historical Jewish Press (in Hebrew)
- The Trick That Didn't Work… Herut, 29 July 1956, Historical Jewish Press (in Hebrew)
- Hapoel J-m – Hapoel Balfouria 4:0 Davar, 15 April 1956, Historical Jewish Press (in Hebrew)
- Liga Alef Justified Its Existence Herut, 10 June 1956, Historical Jewish Press (in Hebrew)
- Hapoel J-m – Hapoel Balfouria 4:0 Davar, 15 April 1956, Historical Jewish Press (in Hebrew)
- Liga Alef Justified Its Existence Herut, 10 June 1956, Historical Jewish Press (in Hebrew)