in order, Rubin Kazan were able to prepare for the season under more relaxed circumstances. As head coach, the experienced Igor Volchok was hired; he too devoted himself to the goal set out by Iskharov. Eighteen new players came to Rubin Kazan, including some who had played for the club previously: Sergey Moiseyev, Rashid Zainutdinov, and Oleg Mironov. In addition, two skilled forwards joined the proceedings: Vladimir Pantyushenko and Rustam Zabirov. The result was that Rubin Kazan finished in 6th place in 1996. In the following year, 1997, the goal to reach the first league became more complicated through the fact that, according to the rules, only one club from the central zone of the second league could qualify. For this year, Rubin Kazin was strengthened by the return of some of its best players: Sergei Kharlamov, Rustem Bulatov, Airat Ahmetgaliev, Rustem Khuzin. Valery Aleskarov from Nizhnekamsk performed duties as goalkeeper, and Andrey Knyazev from Magnitogorsk played at the top. Having taken the lead in their zone after the third round, the club went on to soldify its position and were actually able to finish first, scoring 102 points out of 120 possible. Thus, the goal of returning the club to the first division was fulfilled. Furthermore, adding to the success of the club in this season, Rubin Kazan managed to win 13 games in a row. Andrey Knyazev was the best scorer of the season, scoring 30 goals (25 of them in the championship). The 1997 season is also notable for Rubin Kazan in that it was the first time in 22 years that the club had a reserve team. Rubin Kazan went on to excel in the Cup of Russia in 1997–98. First, they beat Fakel Voronej, then Lokomotive Nizhniy Novgorod, and then Arsenal from Tula. In the game against Tula, a goal by Airat Ahmetgaliev became decisive, as it was scored only two minutes before the end of the match, delighting the 15,000 fans in the Tsentralny stadium. Later in 1998, Volchok retired as head coach, and was replaced by Alexander Sergeyevich Irkhin, although he would only last for the remainder of the season. In the first division championship of this year, Rubin Kazan finished in 7th place. In December 1998, one of Russia's most acclaimed coaches, Pavel Sadyrin took over training duties from Irkhin. He too, however, would only stay for one contract year, enjoying little