Jerry Beit haLevi
Encyclopedia
Moshe "Jerry" Beit haLevi was an Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

i football player and manager.

Playing career

Jerry played on the field with his brother Avraham. In 1939, during a tour of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, Avraham decided to stay in the country and it was the last time that Jerry would see his brother who ended up dying in battle against Japanese forces in New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...

.

Maccabi Tel Aviv and Israel

After the retirement of Egon Pollack
Egon Pollack
Gustav "Egon" or "Erwin" Pollak was an Austrian footballer who played for the famed, SC Hakoah Wien . He was also the first ever manager of the Israeli national football team in their 3-1 loss to the United States just after gaining independence.-Club career:Pollak began his career with SC Hakoah...

, Beit haLevi took over the rein
Rein
Reins are items of horse tack, used to direct a horse or other animal used for riding or driving. Reins can be made of leather, nylon, metal, or other materials, and attach to a bridle via either its bit or its noseband.-Use for riding:...

s of the club that made him famous as a player. He built a strong side that was arguably the strongest side in the country. Star players Eli Fuchs
Eli Fuchs
Eli Fuchs was an Israeli international football player and manager of Maccabi Haifa. Aside from managing in Israel, he has managed clubs in South Africa and Cyprus. He died at 1992 as an Arkia employee....

, Itzhak Schneor
Itzhak Schneor
Itzhak Schneor was a successful Israeli footballer and manager. The peak of his managerial career was when he, alongside Ya'akov Grundman had jointly coached Israel from 1988 to 1992, and were one goal short of qualifying for the 1990 World Cup.-As a Player:...

 and Shiye Glazer
Yehoshua Glazer
Yehoshua Glazer is a former Israeli footballer who played for Maccabi Tel Aviv and for the Israel national football team his entire career. He is regarded as one of the greatest footballers in his home land of Israel.-Honours:...

 and tough tactics helped Beit haLevi capture two league championships in 1951 and 1952 as well as a double in 1954. He left Maccabi for a brief stint at city rivals Hapoel Tel Aviv before bringing Maccabi another league title in 1956.

During his time with Maccabi, Beit haLevi served two terms as manager of the Israel national football team
Israel national football team
The Israel national football team is the national football team of Israel, controlled by the Israel Football Association .Israel National Football is the direct successor of the Eretz Yisrael National Team during British Mandate...

. His bunker tactics led to the national team's style of play being referred to as "Jerry's bunker". After the 1956 season with Maccabi, Beit haLevi was fired, though he returned in the 1960s and is credited with the development of such national team stars such as Giora Spiegel
Giora Spiegel
Giora Spiegel , is a former Israeli footballer and coach. As a footballer, he holds the record for the longest Israeli career, spanning 14 years and 357 days.-Biography:...

. After retiring from coaching, he served as the chairman for the club.

Nigerian national team

In 1960, Jerry received an offer to coach the Nigerian national football team, which he accepted. In his first match against Ghana, Nigeria were crushed 3-0 in front of 100,000 fans in Lagos
Lagos
Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...

 and the press called for Beit haLevi to be fired. He decided to stick with the job and helped build up a better Nigerian side. During this time he was also heavily involved in trying to exhume the body of his brother for burial in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

, but was unsuccessful.

Footnotes

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