Andrey “Kelt” Liniichuk is a fan of the football club “Polissya” (Zhytomyr), a representative of the team “White ZT Family”.
Andrey Andriyevich Liniichuk was born on July 25, 1997 in the village of Kyryivka (Zhytomyr region). He studied at the school of his native village, after which he entered the Kiev Polytechnic Institute, but after studying for 1 year, Andrei realized that the chosen specialty was not his vocation, so he left the university. Subsequently, he entered the Polis National University, where he studied at the Faculty of Forestry and Ecology. As a child, he was calm and even shy, played football and most of all loved fishing, which he went with friends and with his father. He was engaged in boxing and hand-to-hand combat.
The beginning of the fan path of Andriy was closely connected with both football and his public activity. Even before the appearance of the famous tattoo with the Celtic cross, friends began to call him “Celtic” for devotion to his principles, courage, patriotism.
After starting his studies in Zhytomyr, he joined the Azov Civil Corps and the National Corps, and later headed the local branch of the National Wives. In these structures, Andriy proved himself as a real organizer, able to unite people around the ideas of protecting Ukraine and community development.
For Andriy, the support of “Polissya” was a continuation of love for his native land and all of Ukraine. He started going to matches back in the days of FC Zhytomyr in 2016, when the team did not have a wide support and played in the lower leagues. It was people like the “Celts” who did not let the cheer for “Polissya” fade away in the most difficult years. His presence in the sector was for younger fans an example of commitment to the city and the club, because Celtic sincerely believed that supporting his home team was also a manifestation of patriotism.
Over time, Andriy became part of the fan group “White ZT Family” and one of those who formed the modern look of the Zhytomyr movement. He did not miss home matches, actively traveled and was among the first to support initiatives for the development of the fan scene. For him, the sector was a place of unity, where love for football was combined with love for Ukraine. It was this internal discipline and worldview that became the basis of his further choice - to become a military man and defend the country.
According to the memories of his relatives, Andrei from childhood wanted to be a military man. Even during the selection of the university, he submitted documents to the National Academy of Land Forces named after him. Sagaidachny, but he was late with the submission of documents and had contraindications for health, so he stopped at the civil specialty. After graduating from the university, he said that he plans to enter the military service. He considered the opportunity to serve in “Azov”, actively went to schools.
In the summer of 2020, he signed a contract with the 95th Brigade, served as the commander of the car. The brothers recall that the “Celtic” always asked the commanders to put him on combat tasks. The beginning of a full-scale war was met near Gorlivka in Donetsk region. As one of the most capable and active fighters of the unit, he was sent for training in Poland, which he passed as one of the first among the Ukrainian military.
He met his future wife Anastasia in 2020 in the hand-to-hand combat section. Beloved supported Andrew's desire to become a military man. In the fall of 2022, the couple married while on vacation in Zhytomyr.
During exercises abroad, he mastered and used the Martlet portable anti-aircraft missile complex (modification of Starstreak) in combat. With the first missile, Andrei hit the enemy helicopter Ka-52, becoming the most effective anti-aircraft gun of the Armed Forces at that time. Also on his account were the defeat of 16 drones “Orlan-10” and the 1st drone “Zala”. During the full-scale war, he was wounded twice, but each time he sought to return to health as soon as possible. Could have been written off due to being wounded, but convinced the command not to do so. Relatives recall that in the army Andrei was “in his place” and in the future saw himself only as a military man.
Having received the Order “For Courage” of the III degree in May 2022, already in early 2023, the 25-year-old defender became a full Knight of the Order “For Courage”. He fought in the rank of sergeant, rejecting offers to train for an officer position.
Andriy Liniichuk died on April 28, 2023 as a result of enemy shelling. He was buried at the Smolyan military cemetery. Zhytomyr. By the decision of the Zhytomyr City Council dated December 19, 2024, Andriy Liniichuk was awarded the title “Honorary Citizen of the City
Zhytomyr”. On January 2, 2025, Andriy Liniichuk was awarded the title of “Hero of Ukraine” with the award of the Order “Golden Star” (posthumously).
Eternal glory to the Hero!
