 Four seasons later, in the 1979–80 season, they won Liga Alef South division and were promoted to Liga Artzit, the second tier of Israeli football at the time.After 9th-place finish in their debut season in the second tier, they finished 3rd in the 1981–82 season and were promoted to Liga Leumit (then the top division) for the first time in their history.In 1985 they won the Toto Cup, beating Beitar Jerusalem 2–1 in the final.