In today’s episode of Culto Francesco Bugnone tells us about Grande Torino’s last match at Philadelphia: a hard-fought victory, outnumbered to bid an unconscious farewell to his people
On 17 April 1949, Torino hosted Modena at Philadelphia. The draw in Trieste allowed Inter, victorious over Roma, to reduce the gap from the top maintained by the Granata to four points. With seven rounds to go and with two points for victory, the margin would still be decidedly reassuring if it weren’t for the fact that, in two games, there will be a direct clash at San Siro. The match against the “canaries” becomes delicate because the Modenese, who have already beaten Juventus at home with “a race full of fire and determination” as reported by La Stampa, they are fighting for salvation and every pitch is good for scoring points, even that of the strongest team there is. Nobody knows that this match will become symbolic for a reason that no one could or would have imagined: it will be the last match that Grande Torino will play at the Fila.
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The sacred liturgy of the Toro formation that everyone knows by heart today undergoes a change because Grezar is kept at rest and the number four goes on the shoulders of Danilo Martelli. The start was a nightmare: in the 13th minute from Bertoni to Cavazzuti who kicked so hard from a favorable position that Bacigalupo, who came out to meet him, could not prevent the ball from ending up in the back of the net even if he touched it with his leg. It didn’t end there: during the action Virgilio Maroso suffered a groin strain. For a few minutes he tries to place himself on the right wing, in the “lame” position, more to occupy a portion of the pitch than anything else, but then he has to raise the white flag and leave the pitch. Down a goal and down a man, with no substitutions yet scheduled, Toro finds itself climbing a small mountain.
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While Lievesley reorganizes the Granata set-up, the yellows try to take advantage of such grace and continue to attack, hitting the post with the unleashed Cavazzuti and missing the double on the counterattack. Toro slowly gets back into shape and the match becomes heated with referee Cappucci of Rome struggling to keep it under control. In difficult situations you need to have someone to hold on to and Taurus certainly has that. He has the number ten, the captain’s armband and his name is Valentino. In the 35th minute the hosts benefit from a free kick which Ossola touches to Mazzola whose low shot surprises Corazza and rebalances the situation. Modena holds firm and the end of the half reads 1-1 exactly like in Bologna where Inter took the lead with the twentieth goal of the season by “Fornaretto” Amadei before being joined by Franco Marchi more or less at the same time as the equalizer. .
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In the second half, Toro starts off again with great enthusiasm, but with the almost heroic defense of the desperate opponents it is difficult to come up with the usual plots and so we rely on scrum after scrum. Minutes pass and concern grows, given that Inter are winning in Bologna thanks to a free kick from Campatelli deflected by Ballacci before Nyers rounds off the result, making the Nerazzurri capable of conquering Bologna even without “Veleno” Lorenzi. As time passes, however, paradoxically it also begins to play against Modena who, with mounting fatigue, progressively leaves some more space for Toro who begins to build better. There’s a quarter of an hour air in the air.
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Goalkeeper Corazza makes two great interventions on Mazzola (cross from Menti and assist from Gabetto) and on a fireball from Castigliano. Then, in the 85th minute, it was time to reap the benefits of constant pressure: Ossola crossed, Castigliano deflected and the ball went to Romeo Menti who, after a clash with Corazza, found himself limping for a few minutes. If not with ten, Toro is now with nine and a half, but that half is enough as the number seven scores with a precise low shot. The scenes of jubilation from the Granata and those of desperation of the people of Modena, some even on the ground in tears, indicate that the match is definitely on its way even if there are still a handful of minutes left.
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Two are enough to close the score. Gabetto escapes to the right, long cross for Ossola and support for Aldo Ballarin who disengaged himself forward. Yes, because in the Grande Torino which is winning with numerical inferiority, a few minutes from the end the defenders also throw themselves into attack. The number two native of Chioggia scores his first goal of the season and closes the score. Mazzola even came close to scoring the fourth goal, but it would have been too much. Toro maintains a four-point lead over Inter in a round that seemed favorable, but was turning out to be a trap. We can look at the two consecutive away games in Bari and Milan with a certain optimism.
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Not knowing the future is sometimes a privilege. The players didn’t know that the one they heard when they entered the field would be the last roar that would welcome them to Philadelphia. Maroso, who came out first, didn’t know that he would be going down those steps for the last time in the championship. Aldo Ballarin didn’t know that the only center of the year would be the last one scored by Grande Torino on friendly soil. Above all, the fans who left Fila with a smile on their faces because of a difficult success did not know that they would never again see their heroes running on that pitch before their eyes, winning matches and shattering records. They would have gone home thinking that they couldn’t wait for May 8th to come and watch Torino-Fiorentina. Yes, in certain circumstances not knowing tomorrow is truly the best thing that can happen to a human being.
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Born in 1979, Toro fan since 1985 thanks to Junior (or rather, to one of his stickers). The first memory is a goal by Pusceddu at San Siro, the first anger is the elimination against Tirol, I have a secular cult for Policano, Lentini and…Marinelli. Sometimes I think about Sordo’s crossbar and realize that it hasn’t passed me yet.
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May 1, 2024 (changed May 1, 2024 | 10:05 pm)
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