Turgay Semercioğlu

Turgay Semercioğlu — Biography

Turgay Semercioğlu was the right back of the Trabzonspor side that became the first Anatolian club to win the Turkish league, and he is regarded as one of the best-known defenders in the club's history. Together with Şenol Güneş and Necati Özçağlayan he is named among the three players who took part in every one of Trabzonspor's league titles. Alongside football he was active in basketball for a time.

He started out at Trabzon Çimentospor and then became one of the fixtures of Trabzonspor's Trabzonspor Efsanesi team of the late 1970s and early 1980s. Besides his solid defending he was known for his runs into the opposition half. In the claret-and-blue shirt he won league titles (sources give the number as five or six) and two Turkish Cups. His 402 Süper Lig appearances place him second in the club's history behind Hami Mandıralı, who made 468. For Turkey he set the record of the time with 29 consecutive international matches; his total number of caps is given as 31 in some sources and 35 in others.

After retiring he worked in Trabzonspor's long-established youth academy and helped develop many players who later reached the first team. As a coach he led Şanlıurfaspor and Trabzonspor's PAF side. In the 2003-04 season, while a new manager was being sought, he took charge of the first team for a short spell and stepped down after Atay Aktuğ was elected president.