From leadership roles to football passes: officials from Mykolaiv and Kherson kicked the ball around

Yesterday, November 11, teams from Mykolaiv Oblast and Kherson Oblast met for a friendly football match. The game was dedicated to the anniversary of the liberation of Kherson and the right-bank part of Kherson Oblast from Russian occupiers.

Before the match began, the participants sang the National Anthem of Ukraine. They observed a minute of silence to honor the Ukrainian defenders who were killed and the civilians whose lives were taken by Russian aggression.

The following players took to the field for the Mykolaiv Oblast team:

• Heorhii Reshetylov — acting head of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration;
• Viacheslav Bon — chief of staff of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration;
• Ramil Agabekov — deputy head of the Mykolaiv District Administration;
• Oleksandr Balakin — head of the Football Association of Mykolaiv and Kherson Oblasts;
• Yevhen Benzar — community head;
• Mykola Vivchar — community head;
• Valerii Rymchuk — community head;
• Vasyl Kompaniets — first deputy head of the Sofiivka community;
• Andrii Shostak — deputy head of the Department of Culture, Nationalities and Religions of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration.

The Kherson Oblast team included:

• Oleksandr Prokudin — head of the Kherson Regional Military Administration;
• Yaroslav Shanko — head of the Kherson City Military Administration;
• Mykola Kucheriavyi — head of personnel management at the regional office of the National Police;
• Dmytro Yunusov — director of the Department of Agricultural Development and Irrigation of the Kherson Regional Military Administration;
• Vitalii Shtuchenko — director of the infrastructure department;
• Ruslan Rusal — head of the Chulakivka Village Military Administration in Skadovsk District;
• Mykhailo Balatskyi — deputy head of the Department for Organizing Medical Care for the Population of the Kherson Regional Military Administration;
• Oleh Yaroshak — chief of staff of the Kherson Regional Military Administration;
• Oleh Akimchenkov — head of the Volunteer Council under the Kherson Regional Military Administration;
• Vadym Melnyk — Khersonkomuntransservis;
• Oleksandr Yarkovyi — starosta of the village of Stepanivka in the Kherson City Territorial Community.

“Mykolaiv Oblast and Kherson Oblast are united by a shared struggle, history, and mutual support. We understand how difficult things are for our neighbors, as we ourselves are close to the line of contact. So Kherson Oblast can always count on our support. Today’s match is a symbol of unity between our regions, authorities, communities, and people. It is also a reminder of those who gave their lives to liberate Mykolaiv Oblast and Kherson Oblast,” said Heorhii Reshetylov.

“Mykolaiv Oblast has always stood by Kherson Oblast and supported us through the most difficult times. We remember well what both regions have had to endure, and we value this friendship and mutual assistance. I am confident that, together with such reliable neighbors and friends, we will certainly prevail,” said Oleksandr Prokudin.

In Oleshky, Kherson Oblast, Russian occupation forces used the ceasefire to return to positions from which Ukrainian forces had been pushing them back for nearly a year.

We previously reported:

• They regained their positions and brought in weapons: occupiers took advantage of the truce in Oleshky
• Young but fierce players from Olimп in Korabelnyi District win silver at Kherson-Mykolaiv futsal tournament
• Helping our neighbors: humanitarian hub for Kherson residents opens in Mykolaiv
• After the liberation of Kherson, occupiers stopped shelling Mykolaiv, — Senkevych
• To mark the liberation of Mykolaiv, naval servicemen, port workers, and schoolchildren played football in Korabelnyi District