Galatasaray Lions saved by 'Light'

The Galatasaray Lions got their 2005-06 Super League campaign off to a winning start with a hard-fought 1-0 victory at gritty Konyaspor.

The only goal of the match was scored by 17-year-old Aydin Yilmaz in the 90th minute, with a cracker of a shot from outside the Konya box.

However, the joy was marred by a confrontation at Konya's Atatürk Airport between Konyaspor and Galatasaray supporters. Following the fans' unruly behavior, Galatasaray was forced to stay in Konya after the rough and ready match.

It all started when a small riot that broke out at the airport, as the team was making its trip back to Istanbul, forced the delay of the plane's flight. It was eventually canceled due to the snowy conditions. A mob of Konya fans, journalists and soccer players had an open confrontation after one fan swore at striker Necati Ates while the team was boarding their plane at the airport. The team was late in boarding and eventually had to cancel the flight because of worsening the weather conditions.

Lions defy the odds:

With regular starters Sasha Ilic and Ayhan Akman suspended, Ergun Penbe and Karl Heinz out due to injury and Cameroonians Rogobert Song and Allioum Saidou on Africa duty, poor Belgian coach Eric Geretz could hardly form a team for the Konya trip.

And given the nature of problems the Lions faced during the winter break, which included mounting debts, unpaid players threatening to boycott matches and the long list of absentees before the Konya match, it's ironic that teenager Aydin (whose name means "Light" in Turkish) made himself an instant hero with his last-minute goal. The rising star was on all the front pages of Monday's Turkish sporting media.

Storm subdued:

The Trabzonspor Black Sea Storm squandered an early 2-0 lead to bow 4-2 at Kayserispor in a match where all the goals came in the first half. This defeat is not a good omen for Bosnian coach Vahid Halilhodzic, who was already under immense pressure before the winter break from impatient Trabzon fans.

Inclement weather:

In a related development, the Turkish Football Federation announced on Monday that all Fortis Turkish Cup matches scheduled for today and tomorrow have been canceled due to the harsh wintry conditions. The matches will be rescheduled for a later date.