Jeju United recently finished its most successful season since the club moved from Bucheon. After finishing the regular season in second place, United lost in the playoff final to top seed FC Seoul.
The final was decided in a two-game playoff. Game 1 ended in a tie at Jeju World Cup Stadium with goals from Bae Ki Jong and Santos for Jeju and Dejan and Kim Chi Woo for Seoul.
Jeju started the scoring in game 2 in the 27th minute off a Santos Junior strike. Jeong Jo Guk tied it up for Seoul in the 29th on a controversial penalty kick.
Brazilian fullback and Man of the Match Adilson gave Seoul a 2-1 lead on a header from a corner in the 73rd to ice it for Seoul.
The title is the club’s fourth overall, but first under the FC Seoul banner and first under Portuguese head coach Nelo Vingada.
Jeju’s remarkable turnaround this year has been the result of many changes to the club; from coaches, to players, and also in the locker room. After their 1-0 win against Jeonbuk to send them into the finals, the players and staff were kind enough to let The Jeju Weekly into their clubhouse to have a look at the team from the inside.
One usually associates the “common” lives of professional athletes with McMansions and Maserati’s. However life at the Jeju United clubhouse is far from glamorous. Instead, life as a footballer for Jeju United more closely resembles life for a university athlete.
When they’re off the pitch, Jeju’s players spend most of their time at United’s brand new practice facility and clubhouse in Seogwipo. The grounds themselves are huge, housing a number of natural grass practice pitches and a large clubhouse that overlooks the campus.
Inside the clubhouse are several offices, a locker room complete with sauna, dorm rooms for players, and even a cafeteria for players and coaches to dine in. While it is an excellent facility, it is apparent that the players don’t live in the lap of luxury that has become the standard for many an international football star.
Fresh off the win that sent them to the K-League championship; the players were all in good spirits. Some organised to grab dinner outside the compound with family or friends, while others were happy to hang out in common areas where they can play billiards, read, or challenge each other to numerous video games on a large-screen LCD.
Every player has a room and is expected to sleep there the night before home games. Players with families usually own an apartment off site, but the majority of players spend every waking moment on campus. The rooms themselves look like they are right out of an upscale college dormitory.
While this way of life is constricting, it does build a sense of family amongst the players. Ku Ja Cheol, who first came to the team when he was 18, said that he had a tough transition at first. But now, when he is outside the country for international matches, he says he actually misses the clubhouse.
Hong Jeong Ho, another member of Korea’s 2010 Asian games team, looks up to and seeks advice from players like team captain Kim Eun Jung. It is clear that United has bonded off the pitch, and that has translated to success on it.
Like any good household, there is a reigning video game champ. Before I could even ask who it was, Hong Jeong Ho declared that Ku Ja Cheol was the current champ.
Visiting the clubhouse really did feel like visiting the players’ home. They laughed and joked and felt comfortable enough to chat easily with us. When I asked Ku Ja Cheol how he would react if he were to sign with a European club and be featured on the game in which he apparently dominates, he said that he would “give Park Ji Sung a call” to challenge him to a match.
After going from the bottom of the league table to the top, Jeju United is poised to be a contender in the K-League in years to come. This season’s success can certainly be attributed to the changes in coaching staff and player personnel, but there’s no doubt that the chemistry built off the pitch played a major role as well.
(Interpretation by Chris J. Park) <Jeju Weekly>
<David Ederer contributor@jejuweekly.com ⓒ Jeju Weekly All rights reserved>
