Hapoel Beersheba coach ends 3-year tenure with emphatic win

Elisha Levy spent three years as the coach of Hapoel Beersheba.

By ALLON SINAI
Elisha Levy (photo credit: ADI AVISHAI)
Elisha Levy
(photo credit: ADI AVISHAI)
Elisha Levy’s three-year tenure as Hapoel Beersheba coach ended on a sweet note on Saturday night. Beersheba beat Beitar Jerusalem 4-0 at Vasermil Stadium to ensure Levy left the club with a smile on his face after a rough couple of weeks.
The announcement that his contract would not be renewed was followed by a 4-0 league defeat to Maccabi Haifa, a 6-2 humbling at the hands of Maccabi Tel Aviv in the State Cup final and a 3-1 loss to Ironi Kiryat Shmona last week, which ensured Beersheba would end the campaign in third place regardless of the result against Beitar.
However, Levy will at least have fond memories from his final match at the helm of the team, with William Soares (32), Dovev Gabay (41), Maor Melikson (56) and Roei Gordana (64) finding the back of the net for the hosts, who might have played their final match at Vasermil ahead of the opening of their new stadium next season.
“It was very important to finish on a positive note,” said Levy. “It was very nice to see the fans appreciated my work. I’m leaving the club with my head held high. I made Beersheba a top club once again and the team is moving in the right direction.”
Maccabi Haifa ended its disappointing season with a 4-1 win over Ironi Kiryat Shmona at Sammy Ofer Stadium. Dekel Keinan’s opener (40) was canceled out by Kiryat Shmona’s Adrian Rochet (45), but Eliran Atar (58), Ruben Rayos (61) and Itay Shechter (83) gave Haifa all three points.
“I’m disappointed I’m not continuing, but it was out of my control,” said outgoing Haifa coach Marco Balbul, who will be replaced by Roni Levy.
The 2014/15 Premier League season will officially come to a close on Monday night when champion Maccabi Tel Aviv hosts Maccabi Petah Tikva at Bloomfield Stadium.