Year 1978

The times of stagnation.

In 1978, the organizers of the competitions have identified "Rubin" in internationalist fourth zone, where in addition to Russian clubs were 13 teams of three republics - Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. Kazan started poorly, taking on a long Georgian-Armenian exit, which consisted of 6 matches, only 2 points. But slowly the team began to build momentum, and, eventually, ended the season in 6 th place.

The leader of "Rubin" attacks became its debutant Sergei Agafonov, invited from Kazan "Raketa". Having scored 22 goals, he set a record of the club for one season. Distinguished, newly scorer and a year later, again hitting the opponent gate 22 times. But it did not help to "Rubin".

Year 1980.A goalkeeper and later
a coach of Rubin Aleksei Semenov

In the season of 1979 Kazan set anti-record - 19 th place in the second league. During the season in 23 guest matches had been won only 1 game.

In 1980, instead of Aleksei Alekseevich Beryuchevskogo, who led the "Rubin" in two previous seasons, to the post of head coach came Valeriy Salnikov. Together with him came from Taganrog: goalkeeper Ivan Kikhtenko striker - Sergey Suslin, from Makhachkala midfielder - Anatoly Vetrov. "Rubin" was first included in the second (the Volga-Urals) zone of the second league, which became his "home" for the next 10 years. To the end of the season Kazan came in tenth place, and again left without a head coach.

The next attempt to find a suitable mentor for the team finally succeeded in 1981. Credibility, which was enough for the next 7 years (with a break in 1983-84), get Vladimir Mikhailov, in past well-known football player of Moscow Torpedo. Mikhailov invited to Rubin striker Vadim Popov, who immediately set to work - 20 goals in his debut season. At the gate of Gorky's "Volga" Vadim scored 4 goals - the second "poker", made by a player in our team (first in 1958, distinguished Gennady Berezin). In the final table in 1981, Rubin was on 5 place.

Vladimir Mikhailov.
Head coach 1981-1982 and 1985-1987

In the next in 1982 an attempt was made to win in the zone. In a bitter struggle with Chelyabinsk "Lokomotive" Kazan in the end gave the first line to the Ural team. Vadim Popov scored 24 goals, updating the club record for the season. Season-1983 did not become a logical continuation of the 1982-th, only a 5 th place in the zone. In 1984, Rubin participated even worse. With the transfer Vadim Popov to Omsk Irtysh in the attack appeared unsolvable problems. Toothless team action in the attack was partly offset confident playing defensive line, led by Kikhtenko and Martynov, so Rubin could not fall below 10 th place.

The game in attack was fixed in season 1985, when to the team came Vladimir Gavrilov, best scorer of "Rubin" in its history. His scoring quality Gavrilov showed in the season-1986, when with 27 balls he became the best scorer of the second league. We can only guess how things would have developed for "Rubin" in the next 1987, if Gavrilov stays in the team. But he decided to try his strength in the first league and moved to the Voronezh "Fakel", and when in autumn after the injury he returned to Kazan, the fans saw on the field only a pale shadow of a formidable striker.

Year 1987. Rubin in Sochi.

Two of the final season of 80-ths did not bring positive emotions. Moving up did not work, and Rubin began to sink lower and lower on the standings. In 1988, the team score points, mainly due to competently organized games in the defensive by the coach Alexei Alexandrovich Semyonov, who replaced Mikhailov.

At the end of the season-1989, which Kazan finished on 12 th place, to the post of head coach of "Rubin" came one of the oldest and most respected football coaches of the country, honored trainer of Russia - Ivan Zolotukhin. " Grandfather" - respectfully called  Zolotukhin players and fans.

Ivan Zolotukhin.
Head coach 1990-91

In 1990, before the team set the goal - to get into the "buffer" league (intermediate between the first and second), for which it was necessary to take place not less than the second. After a magnificent season, Kazan scored equal points with Togliatti "Lada" and gave her a second line due to a smaller number of victories. The following season, "Rubin" make up for all the previous failures. During the Championship from Moscow came a striker Sergei Surov, who together with Vladimir Gavrilov and 20-year-old Oleg Nechaev for three scored 44 goals, making the most formidable line of attack in the zone. Most of all got "EVM" from Ruzayevka, which Kazan scored seven unanswered goals (the biggest victory of the "Rubin" in the championships of the USSR). As a result, the first round Rubin passed without a single defeat. Unbeaten run was interrupted only in the 32 round, but by the time Kazan was unequivocal leader of the tournament. To finish of  the championship in 1991, Rubin came first, finishing with dignity "Soviet" phase of its history.