WHEN CROATS AND SERBS WORK TOGETHER: Two football teams from Vukovar united to help sick VASILIJE
Under the slogan "For Vasa", these guys showed with their example that Vukovar is not just broken plates on two languages, partisan bickering, insinuations, protests...
A game played for humanitarian causes to help Vasilije Sentivanac (17), who suffers from leukemia, shows that a lovely story can come from Vukovar about joint fight of two sworn football opponents "Croatian" HNK Vukovar '91" and "Serbian" NK Vuteks Sloga.
Under the slogan "For Vasa", these guys showed with their example that Vukovar is not just broken plates on two languages, partisan bickering, insinuations, protests... Of course the result remained in the background, because the purpose of the game was to show that Vasa is not alone, and that his life is worth fighting for together without divisions.
Slavko Baketa, from the football school Mali Vukovar, which is a component of HNK Vukovar '91, said that there are no words about nationality within them.
- Every member is our player, no matter if he is Serb, Croat... Besides, during the time we had many Serbian players, some were even captains - said Baketa, while the captain of the opposing team Dejan Spasic, who wore the jersey of HNK Vukovar '91, said that Vasilije also changed both jerseys.
Namely, he played for NK Vuteks Sloga, and before that he was in HNK Vukovar '91 team.
- Schools and students joined the action, so there was a lot of people on the game. Something like that hasn't been seen in Vukovar for a long time - said Danijel for Lokalni.hr.
The initiator of the tournament is Croatian war veteran Davod Tomic.
- The game was organized in order to help Vasilije Sentivanac (17) who is suffering from acute leukemia, and his family. I have been working with his father for years, who is Serbian, and this game is just one of the results of that friendship. We wish to help as much as we can because he played for both clubs! - he said.