P.A.S. GIANNINA was established in 1966, after the unification of two historical clubs of the city of Ioannina, Averof and Atromitos. The name that was selected for the new team was: Panipirotikos Athlitikos Syllogos (P.A.S.) Giannina. The first match of PAS was against Olympiakos Piraius (0-2). In 1971 came in the team, six Argentinian players with Greek roots. The players were : Edouardos Kontogiorgakis (Rigani), Alfredos Glasmanis (Glasman), Hose Pasternakis (Pasternac), Edouardos Lisa, Huan Montez, Oscar Alvarez. The players because of their origine, they served in the Greek Army, and after the end of their career most of them remained in Ioannina. This was the golden period of PAS Giannina in which the team was the most powerful of the Greek periphery. In 1973-74 PAS won the championship of the Greek Second League (with 20 points difference from the second team) and promoted to the National Greek league. In it's first year the team finished in the 9th place (from 18 teams). In 1975-76 PAS finished the championship on the 5th place after PAO, Olympiakos, AEK and PAOK. In 1977-78 PAS finished also in the 5th place, and in 1979 was declared the best team of the Greek province.So, participated in the Balcan Cup (regional European cup). In 1980 came to PAS Giannina the famous Polish coach J.Gmoh. In 1984 the team lost the play-out match in Larissa from Panionios and degraded on the Second League. After 1984-1985, PAS upgraded again on the National League and played there two years. In 1990 upgraded again to the National Division but economic problems and mismanagement from the administration send the team again one league down. In the season 1999-2000 PAS won the promotion to the National League after an exciting match with Aigaleo in Athens, where 8000 PAS fans celebrated the triumph during the whole night. In the season 2000-2001 although the team played a very beautiful and impresive football, a very negative and subjective treatment of the Greek Arbitraj Commitee sent the team in play-out games against OFI Creta in a distance of 2500 km away from Ioannina city.The referee of the match continued the work of the commitee and sent the team in the Second League.The Cretans of OFI together with the local Police provoced several incidents. In one of them a PAS fan lost his eye. During the season 2001-2002 the team played in the Second League and won the championship, so it promoted in the Greek First League.
But for another time the "Greek" football authorities, had other plans. Although the team finished in the 14th place (out of 16) and normally had the right to fight for its participation in a play-out game against Kalamaria, the "Athenian bosses" decided to relegate automatically PAS Giannina due to debts in former players. Although PAS payed these debts within the prescribed time the final decision sent the team in the
Second League. The huge unfairness was not supported by the whole Epirotian people, who demonstrated its anger in weekly manifestations and roadblocks around Ioannina District. The unfairness became bigger when was proved that other teams such as AEK, PAOK, ARIS, PANAHAIKI altough had debts to former players which where 100% or 150% bigger than the PAS debts, remained in their league position without any form of sanctions. The epilogue in this "low comedy" was the statal help in the previous referred teams, in order to pay their debts.
The team of PAS Giannina is now struggling to survive economically and is playing in the Second League.
O tempora, o mores! |
