Not The Benelux Weekend.

Monday 24^th May was a bank holiday in large parts of Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany, and I could have continued my Benelux weekend with another play off for the Belgium League. However, instead I turned further east and decided instead to go into Germany. When the Third division was created in Germany; the number of Regional leagues was increased from two to three while dropping to be the fourth level of German football. This meant that the Oberliga would be the fifth level, and would lose all lose teams to the new structure. If nothing had changed, then the existing nine Oberliga before the changes would have become the feeders to the new Regionalliga with the nine champions promoted, and three teams relegated from each. But this not fit in with the wishes of all the clubs. Six of the Oberliga remain unchanged in area, and each have one promotion slot. In the North region, the clubs protested at the amount of travelling for a reduced standard of football, and decided to break up the area into five area, Niedersachsen had both an East and West league, Schleswig-Holstein has its own league and the two Hanseatic city states, Hamburg and Bremen have one each. These was the same as the organisation at the next level down. Even with five leagues, there is only one promotion to be had. In the most populous areas of Westfalia and Nordrhein, the distances are not so large, and there are a number of big clubs. These decided not to make the leagues smaller, but to go the other way, and the two Oberliga merged to form the NRW-Liga. This league keeps both its promotion places.

Typically the leagues in Germany continue until the end of May, and some in the East may go on into June. So this holiday Monday is the penultimate round of fixtures in NRW-Liga. SC Wiedenbruck 2000 have already won promotion and the title, while Arminia Bielfeld’s second team lead Germania Windeck by one point for the second place, (there are no limitations on reserve teams getting promoted here). So my destination for the day is the Stadion am Schloss Strünkede, listed as the largest in the division, to see SC Westfalia 04 Herne at home to Windeck.

Only €5 to stand here – the programme was A4 size and quite thin and cost an extra 50 cents. I did not check how much extra it was to sit – the seating area had a separate entrance to the main terracing, and there was no movement between the sections. The stand provides the only covered accommodation available. The rest of the ground has been built up, with around 30 steps of concrete to provide a large bowl. When you enter the ground, you climb a slope that leads you to the top, behind one goal. From here, there is a path at the top of the terracing that would once have led all the way around the ground (with entrances to the top of the stand at each end). The only exception to the ability to make a complete circuit is a gap near where one starts, where there is a cutting to allow the players access to the field.

This ground has been built up from scratch – the pitch is at the same level as both the road one side, and the stream that runs behind the far terracing. You can no longer walk all the way along, as various pens have been fenced off. The few away fans appeared to be in the section between the entrance and the stand, (I saw no one wearing their colours, despite the importance of the game), and the end furthest from the entrance was completely closed and empty. Still, in such a big stadium, the 500 or so spectators rattle around – either sitting or standing in small groups towards the top of the terrace.

There are two reasons for keeping to the high ground. One is that the path is at the top, and you have to step down to you position, while the other one if that a nice 10 foot fence which means that the few is restricted for anyone standing in the front ten rows. Not that anyone was doing so.

Behind the goal, there are a few stalls selling beer and bratwurst, etc., and a souvenir stall where I bought a pen and a postcard. Most of the stalls appeared like hastily erected shacks, while the “VIP zone”, (the blue building overhanging the terrace behind the goal) has the appearance of a portacabin – as far as I could see, it was not in use. The white building you can just see behind the terrace if the dressing room and office block, where they happily handed me a copy of the team sheet on request.

Herne, playing in blue, lose sight of the ball as another attack is easily cleared.

As for the match, it will soon be forgotten. Herne kicked off, held the ball for best part of a minute – Windeck moved it upfield, crossed from the inside left position to Hayer who was left completely unmarked. He headed the ball into the net, and that was it – game over. Despite needing to win the game to have a chance at promotion, Windeck never committed players in an attacking position. They played in a 4-4-1-1 formation, and never allowed both wingers to move forward together. This meant they had limited options, and the defence had an easy day. Herne committed five players to defence – a flat back four with a midfielder playing just in front. If they were to make an excuse for not scoring, then I guess it would be “we are incompetent”. It was soon clear that the 1-0 away win was suitable to both teams, as the game slowed down and both employed time wasting tactics. The referee went along with this – no injury time in the first half, two minutes only in the second – despite several stoppages, and six substitutions. The biggest cheer of the day game twelve minutes from time, when Herne substituted their goalkeeper, Oliver Bautz. This action itself took longer than the total injury time allowed for the half. Bautz left the field to what can only be described as a sitting ovation, (no one got up to cheer him). I assume he is moving on next season, and this was his last home game for Westfalia.

A late free kick threatens the empty terrace more than the goal.

As Arminia Bielefeld II won 2-0 in their game, Windeck will start the final day of fixtures still one point behind in the promotion race