Scored Against Hajduk on His Birthday and Didn't Celebrate: 'I'm a Child of That Club'
Luka Mamić, a former Hajduk youth player, scored the winning goal for Varaždin against the Split side in the SuperSport HNL season opener.
Luka Mamić, a former Hajduk youth player, scored the winning goal for Varaždin against the Split side in the SuperSport HNL season opener.
Hajduk's footballers opened the new SuperSport HNL season with a 2:1 defeat away to Varaždin. The hero of the home victory was Luka Mamić, a 24-year-old from Split who came through Hajduk's academy and who refused to celebrate after scoring against the club he supports.
The match played on Sunday, August 2, 2026, held special significance for Mamić, as it was his 24th birthday. He was born on August 2, 2002, in Split. After a goalless first half, the game exploded in the second period. Varaždin took the lead in the 53rd minute through Mario Mladenovski, but Hajduk responded quickly. Just three minutes later, Rokas Pukštas equalized with a precise strike from 18 meters to make it 1:1.
However, only six minutes later, in the 62nd minute, Hajduk's defense made a cardinal error. Mamić capitalized on the gift, found himself one-on-one with goalkeeper Toni Silić, and calmly slotted the ball into the net for the final 2:1. Despite the importance of the goal, he did not celebrate. "He is a child of Hajduk," writes DalmacijaDanas, and he spent nearly his entire youth career at the club from Poljud, from the younger pioneers to the juniors.
The Split side had a golden opportunity to equalize in stoppage time. In the 90th minute, following a VAR intervention, a penalty was awarded to Hajduk for Duvnjak's foul on Bamba. Marko Livaja stepped up to take it, but his spot-kick was saved by home goalkeeper Josip Silić, preserving all three points for Varaždin.
Although he went through all of Hajduk's youth categories, Mamić never got a chance in the senior team. He began his senior career at Solin, where he played from 2021 to 2023. After that, he spent one season at Široki Brijeg in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He arrived in Varaždin in 2024 and quickly became an important cog in the team. In June of this year, he extended his commitment to the club until May 2029. So far, he has made 63 appearances for Varaždin, scoring 12 goals and providing five assists.
Now he has added a particularly emotional goal-one against the club where he grew up. He didn't celebrate, but his goal brought down Hajduk and secured Varaždin's victory in the season opener.
