Well, our first stream of the season at Wharf Chambers was a success, with about 30 people watching a tactical, incident-free draw at Aue. It was great to see

some old friends and plenty of new faces too, and following this stream our membership has increased to 33, with a few of last season’s stalwarts hopefully making their first appearance this weekend for our Sandhausen

stream.

There have been a few interesting messages posted by the Fanclubsprecherat recently. Did you know that for every FCSP away game a fanclub from that area is presented on the official

FCSP website? By way of example, the Freibeuter Dresden fanclub appeared when we played in (relatively) nearby Aue. I guess we can only dream that one day the unmistakable team bus of the

magical St Pauli will trundle its

way along the M621 towards Elland Road!

There will be a delegates meeting of official fanclubs on 6 October at 12 noon in the Clubheim (unless it clashes with the 1FC Union game

when the league finally releases its schedules). Each fanclub is entitled to send two delegates. Hand on heart, I know I won’t be able to attend. If any of our Hamburg-based members would

like to attend, please let us know.

One Love, One Heart…

Great news that our sisters and brothers at Ultra Sankt Pauli will be celebrating their 10th anniversary on 8 September. As you would expect, they have

planned a bit of a do, with snacks, music and drinks, followed by a large party at the Knust venue. All welcome and entry is €10 a pop, should you find yourself in town!

For our stream against Sandhausen (1 September) we will be planning to mark the anniversary of USP with our own celebration, with banners, songs and a little splash of colour – more fun than you are officially allowed to

have in Yorkshire!

Finally, the AFM Radio station is in need of financial support. AFM Radio helps fans listen to games, particularly blind or visually impaired fans. The service is run by volunteers and is in need of financial donations to help continue the

excellent service. We are running a collection for AFM Radio at our stream on Saturday, but if you can’t attend and would still like to donate you can send us a donation via

PayPal to YSP@live.co.uk.

YNWA

Rob.

Membership matters

August 2012

UPCOMING

STREAMS

1st September Sandhausen (Home) Stream shown from

4.30pm.

All streams are held

at Wharf Chambers in Leeds city centre.

For more information, please

visit yorkshirestpauli.com

Contact Us

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@YorksStPauli

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yorkshirestpauli.com

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hirt.co.uk/

“People will always come and

they’ll pay much more than we do. And they’ll keep their

mouths shut. And they won’t grumble and question everything all the time. I’m sure

the club can find a much better crowd than us.” I’ve not been able to shake the above quote from Felix Grimm’s excellent Das Ganze

Stadion documentary. For a while now I’ve had the feeling that German football culture stands at a crossroads with fans wanting one thing and the authorities wanting another. It’s difficult as a detached (by distance, not

by emotion) observer, to pin down the

nuances of what is going on with the standing/all-seat debate in Germany, but having watched as the football authorities/government/TV companies set about destroying a century of terrace culture in

England in the late ‘80s/early ‘90s, I feel something strangely familiar about the rhetoric being bandied about by Germany’s Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich, amongst others. I’m not sure whether Friedrich’s threat to

remove standing places in German stadiums carries any weight, or is just political sabre-

rattling, but as someone, who travels regularly to watch German football precisely because I can stand, it sends a shiver down my spine.

There have been plenty of incidents involving supporters during the course of the 2011/12 season which presented in the right light and with amount of media spin, would appear to suggest German football is on the abyss, about to be overwhelmed by a

tidal wave of football hooliganism, but is it really so?

As FC St. Pauli fans we’ve had a few flash points: the lobbing of the till-roll (one fan, even then not deliberate) that nearly caused the closure of the both Südkurve and

Nordkurve (before a rare bout of common sense broke out at the DFB and we were instead ‘let-off’ with a hefty fine); we’ve been attacked by a motly collection of right-wing hools at a indoor tournament during the winterbreak (and more worryingly

suffered at the hands of what can best be described as bonkers policing of the incident); and, we’ve had fireworks launched at us by those delightful folk at Hansa Rostock. All worrying incidents, but I wonder how they

compare in number and ferocity to other incidents of FCSP fans being set-upon/attacked/abused at games over the preceding years? I can think of a few examples from previous seasons that were as troubling as the events of last season.

Elsewhere in German football, the media seem to grabbed the opportunity to indulge in some sustained ultra-bashing. There have been incidents of course, much of it linked to or caused by the authorities (and fans) reaction to the issue of pyrotechnics in the stadium and never helped by the frequent heavy-handed,

over-reaction by the police. Dynamo Dresden’s copped a one-year ban from the German Cup as a result of their fans antics with pyrotechnics and laser pens during their cup game at Dortmund. Trouble flared (uurgh…) again during relegation

play-off between Fortuna Düsseldorf and Hertha Berlin. Hertha fans lobbed flares onto the pitch, then, in the time added on for that disturbance,

Page 2

STANDING UP FOR YOUR RIGHTS

Fortuna fans invaded the pitch causing the referee to return the players to the changing rooms before order was restored. There were other examples too, but again, more than in previous seasons? I’d love to

see the stats. It was the high-profile disturbance in the relegation play-off that prompted the Interior Minister to issue his threat about standing. The move to all-seater stadia

would be a bitter pill to swallow and would

change the German fan scene forever. It would also inconvenience a fair few clubs, not least FCSP, who are this summer replacing the much loved Gegengerade with a new stand containing 10,000 standing places. Worryingly though, a club spokesman confirmed that the new

Gegengerade although built for terracing has been designed in such a way that it could be converted (albeit at considerable cost) to seats should the need ever arise. Although most clubs would baulk at the

expense and hassle of converting to all-

seater, there’s that nagging doubt that there’s more than a few club officials who would welcome the move: following the ‘Premiership model,’ you can charge a hell of a lot more for the luxury of a seat rather than a spot on the terrace. And that price

hike, is usually enough to weed out all those undesirable fans (ultras, or otherwise.) It’s gentrification by any other word. Or, as my old pal, Norbert Elias would have it, part of an all too inevitable ‘civilizing process’ surrounding the modern game.

The European Cup final didn’t do us any favours either. I was rooting for FC Hollywood against Chelski, partly because they were the lesser of two evils (there was no better example of the differences between the two football cultures than the free plastic flags waved by the Chelski fans

and the impressive choreo organised by the Bayern fans before kick-off,) but also because I was worried that a Bayern defeat would increase the appetite for all-seater amongst the elite.

No one came out and said it, in the wake of the defeat by Chelski, but there must have been someone, somewhere in the Allianz Arena, thinking that the way to make German clubs competitive on the international stage is to go all-seater and raise those all important matchday

revenues, so they can match the ridiculous wages of the top clubs in the English,

Spanish (& Italian) leagues. Although, arguably it’s the Premiership’s TV deal with Sky, recently

negotiated ever-upwards that drives the continued spending power of the upper-echelons of the English game. I just hope the German fan scene unites against the threat of all-seater stadiums. There is

simply too much to lose. It sounds dramatic, but we know from bitter experience here in the UK, the very soul of German football depends on the freedom to stand at football. Replace standing with seats and, over time, you replace real fans with passive dupes. Out with the atmosphere in with the anodyne.

To go back to that initial quote, I too am sure they could find a much better – revenue-generating – crowd than us, but for anyone that has ever spent an afternoon at Stamford Bridge or the Emirates, that better crowd, is considerably, irreversibly worse.

It’s time to make a stand. Money and greed have already destroyed fan culture in the UK, it mustn’t be allowed to happen in Germany. Gegen den modernen Fußball! Forza Sankt Pauli!

Editor’s note - This piece was written by Nick,

AKA @outside_left. You can read more of Nick’s brilliant pieces on football and politics on his website, here.

Page 3

After playing them in the pre-season campaign of 2011, St. Pauli again lock horns with Swiss side FC Winterthur during early September for a test match. Like St. Pauli, FC Winterthur apply their trade in

the national second division (Swiss Challenge League), and there are also many intriguing surface comparisons between the

two clubs. Both clubs crests display their cities coat of arms, and both clubs are located in the northern region of their homeland; however the similarity between

the two clubs goes much further than this. FC Winterthur play their home games at the Stadion Schützenwiese, their home since 1900, four years after the club was formed. Originally the ground could capacitate 14,987 supporters however this has been reduced over the years. Despite not being

one of the Swiss heavyweights, the club has its own piece of innovative history. The club played in the Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy,

which is also regarded as the First World Cup. It was held in Turin between 1909 and 1911, FC Winterthur lost their only game in the competition against West Auckland

amateur side however the prestige of playing in one of the first international club fixtures was much sweeter than victory.

In recent decades, Swiss football has been far from financially sound. Seventeen times

champions Servette went completely bankrupt, Neuchâtel Xamax were excluded from the Swiss first division and sent into

the fifth tier after severe ownership troubles prompting their bankruptcy in January 2012 and FC Sion were stuck in a transfer storm, going back an fourth from UEFA to be

eventually banned from European competition. For many years, FC Winterthur tried to follow the lead of the top Swiss clubs. Tying themselves in financial knots, FCW couldn't keep a sustainable model for which the club

could be ran from, from here on in the club changed and hasn't looked back since. Current club president Andreas Moesli

emphasised that FC Winterthur should become a 'social asset for the city'. Essentially FC Winterthur converted into a

community based club, a hub for the area, a place where locals could join together behind one cause; in the same way that terraces of Millerntor unite like minded supporters of FC St. Pauli. The club revolutionised it's youth set up, ensuring that it was used as an efficient channel for

young players to make the first team. Again, a utility for local footballers to potentially wear the

shirt of their local team, representing their community.

The running of the club is a mixture between the committed locals and

the local bourgeoisie of whom provide the main funds for the club - joining passionate comrade Moesli in trying to make the club beneficial to the community rather than one man/shareholder; the exact thing that has been displayed by the selfish owners of many other Swiss clubs.

The socialistic values of FC Winterthur reflect nicely on the culture of Winterthur city itself.

The post industrial town is also known as 'Red Winti' for its popularity of radical left-wing politics. In addition the Social Democratic Party have a stronghold in the

city, exemplifying the main political orientation within city. The city also has an extremely diverse population with its large immigrant community - FC Winterthur's attendance at the FC St. Pauli anti-racism tournament in 2007 shows that the club is

proud of its diversity. Winterthur is also home to the alternative rock culture, this is also carried into the fan base of FC Winterthur as they congregate on the Bierkurve terrace.

Beginning in 2001/02 the Bierkurve has became FC Winterthur's equivalent to the Südtribüne or Gegengerade of St. Pauli's

Millerntor, here you will see hand made flags mocking the big boys of Swiss football and quite frequently opposing racism and discrimination.

At the other end to the Bierkurve is the Syrupkurve - here young FC Winterthur fans congregate, often standing on orange boxes

to peek over the advertising hoardings around the pitch. FC Winterthur remain an alternative cult football club in Switzerland, choosing to

go their own way for a sustainable, healthy and uncorrupted future. A fly in the face of modern trends of football.

Liam Scarth

Website: http://footballscope.blogspot.co.uk

Page 4

Alternative football in the red winti

It was a tricky first game of the season, with a long away trip to Aue. Aue is a small town with only 18,000 inhabitants, which lies close to the German border with the Czech Republic. St. Pauli had lost their last

3 games against Aue, including a disappointing result towards the end of last season when they let a 1-0 lead slip and

conceded two very poor goals in the final minutes. St. Pauli ultimately missed out on the playoff spot on goal difference.

St. Pauli had started the game on the front foot, with Lennart Thy impressing on his debut. Thy had two early opportunities, firstly controlling and turning in the box to get his shot away which was blocked by a defender. Thy then picked the ball up on the right hand side of the box, skipped passed

two Aue defenders with his pace and then unleashed a fierce shot that forced a good save from the Aue goalkeeper.

St. Pauli went close again shortly after, with Fin Bartels sliding a teasing low cross across the 6 yard box, but the outstretched leg of

Marius Ebbers missed the ball by inches. Aue's main threat came from set-pieces, and they had two very good efforts within 4 minutes of each other to open the scoring. Vlad Munteanu came close on both occasions, firstly hitting the top of the net

and then hitting one narrowly over. Just before half time, Florian Bruns went close for St. Pauli but found his shot from the

edge of the box well saved. Aue started the second half well, creating problems down the left hand side, but the

next big chance fell for Marius Ebbers. Bruns played in a looped cross towards Ebbers at the back post, but Ebbers' header hit the ground and bounced up handily for the 'keeper to tip it over the bar. From the resulting corner, Boll's header was well saved again. St. Pauli were testing the Aue

defence, but were unable to open the scoring. Bruns found space in the box and fired a low cross across the box but no-one

was available to tap the ball into the empty net.

It was the home side who looked more dangerous in the latter stages of the game, creating a couple of half chances that were squandered. The best chance of the game fell to Jakub Sylvestr for Aue, who found space down the left hand side, ran into the

box under little pressure and sliced a shot against the inside of the post which somehow

bounced back across goal without putting the home side ahead.

The final chance of the game fell to Marius Ebbers in the last minute. Ebbers beat the defender to a low cross in the area, but his low shot towards the near post could only find the side netting. Whilst St. Pauli were favourites to win the game, it was a decent away point against a difficult side. St. Pauli showed plenty

of promise to suggest we'll do well this season, with Thy particularly impressive. Schubert has already said that he wants 1 or 2 more players

to add to the side, and with a couple of good signings to improve weak areas we stand a very good chance this season.

Schubert on the result: "After the game, you can see the statistics and results in all categories and I think it is surprising that such a game ends 0-0. Both sides had a number of scoring chances. The first two thirds of the game we were very dominant and had two or three really good chances that we didn't take.

From the 70th minute, then we have given them good chances and we looked confused for a while. The home side had some

opportunities. We are lucky that we got a clean sheet. Marius Ebbers had a chance in the last minute for the first goal, but it was not

enough. The weather was not easy for players, in addition, we have seen aggressive battles. We've also had bad luck in the past conceding last minute goals, I'm glad that it was not the case this time . I think it was an entertaining game for the spectators."

Page 5

August REVIEW: A point in Aue

Copyright: Magischer FC

The first home game of the season saw Ingolstadt visit the Millerntor. The game had been met with good news on the eve of the game, with the club given the go-ahead to provide tickets to 4000 season ticket

holders on the new 'gegengerade' stand, albeit still only partially built.

Ingolstadt have been tipped by many to have a good season, due to the funds injected into the club by Audi, whose head quarters are based in the Ingolstadt. The

large sponsorship deal has meant that the club have managed to secure several high profile signings from the Bundesliga, including a couple of St. Pauli targets. Striker Christian Eigler and young defender Danny da Costa were both targets of André Schubert but opted to join

Ingolstadt, and lined up for the away side at the Millerntor.

The teams came out to 'Hell's Bells' for the first time this season, before the crowd and

the players paid their respects to St. Pauli legend Günter Peine, who died just over a week ago. The two sides gathered on the half way line as the crowd fell silent, and the club played a video of Günter talking about the club during the centenary celebrations two years ago. It was a moving

tribute, which was followed by an impromptu chorus of "You'll Never Walk Alone" which echoed round the stadium as

the game kicked off. Schubert had named an unchanged side

from the side that started the season with a draw in Aue, and St. Pauli should have taken the lead in the opening minutes with Ebbers missing a good opportunity inside the box. St. Pauli started to struggle having missed several early chances, and Ingolstadt started to see more of the ball.

On 37 minutes St. Pauli were almost made to pay for their lacklustre start, when Ingolstadt striker Caiuby launched an unbelievable shot from the edge of the box which flew past Tschauner but rattled off the top corner of the

woodwork. The warning signs were there. The home side started the second half slowly,

and a moment of genius from Caiuby put the home side ahead. The striker showed great skill to beat a couple of defenders on the edge of the box, before squaring the ball across goal for

Eigner to finish from close range. As was the case many times last season, St. Pauli would have to come from behind again. The spirits of the home side and the fans inside the Millerntor were immediately lifted though, with an immediate response. A good free-kick from Daube found Mohr with a free header inside the

box, and the defender found the net for his first league goal in a St. Pauli shirt. Two goals in the space of a minute.

Schubert rotated his strike force, bringing on Saglik for Thy on 68 minutes, before replacing Ebbers with Ginczek on 82 minutes. Both

strikers were involved in the final stages and missed good chances to secure the victory in the last ten minutes. The final chance of the game fell to Ginczek who had looked lively since he came on, and having played a neat one-two on the edge of the box he only needed to find

the corner of the net however he timidly hit his shot straight at the goalkeeper. It just wasn't to be from St. Pauli, who had played below par for the majority of the game, but could have won it

with a host of chances in the last few minutes. Although St. Pauli had created a number of

chances, the overall play was disappointing. The player seemed to struggle in the new 4-4-2 formation. Hopefully this is down to the players needing time to adapt to the new system, and not a major problem. Schubert: We have given a lot to the

performance, and we were the team who looked to win. Ingolstadt were defensive, we knew that from last year. After conceding, we

were only briefly shaken and pulled it back. We have given a lot, and it's obviously disappointing if you have so many chances and

don't score. We have to just play more effectively, in some situations we were too hasty and hectic. But we must have patience. Particularly with our young players. We will continue to give them confidence and they are us and reward yourself for it.

Page 6

AUGUST: HELD AT HOME

St. Pauli travelled to Offenburg on weekend 3 of the season for the first round of the DFB Pokal, a cup they'd struggled to progress in during previous seasons. Offenburg lies on the German border with France close to

Strasbourg, so it meant a 700km trip from Hamburg for the team and supporters.

St. Pauli, who we wearing the famous

camouflage shirts from the 2005/06 cup run for the game, had the better of the early possession with Offenburg defending deep in their own half, but it was the home side who

had the first real chance of the game. A quick counter attack saw the Offenburg striker through on goal, however thankfully Tschauner saved one-on-one to deny Offenburg a shock lead.

The pace of the game was slow, perhaps down to the temperatures approaching 40

degrees! It was so warm that the fire department used their water hoses to give

the away fans a shower to cool them down. See the picture below.

Eventually though the superior quality and overwhelming possession of Schubert's side paid dividends, and Mahir Saglik showed a

touch of quality on 23 minutes. Saglik beat a couple of players with some neat footwork before drilling a low shot into the bottom corner. Offenburg's goalkeeper Streif was in

fine form, preventing the away side from doubling their lead on numerous occasions, but Saglik again found the net, this time with a free header on 68 minutes to seal the victory.

After the second goal of the game, the temperature seemed to catch up with both sides and the game was almost played at a

walking pace. Ginczek, who had replaced Thy, then finished from inside the box to complete the scoring, 3-0 it ended. The result means that the club will go into the second round,

but will also net prize money of around €250,000. The draw has since been made, and St. Pauli will travel to Stuttgart for the second round. The tie will be played on either the 30-31 October.

Schubert: We were welcomed with a warmth and friendliness that was sensational. They

had thought of everything. The fire department even provided our fans with a

cold shower (note - due to 40 degree temperatures). I'm satisfied, we wanted to control the game, not concede and keep playing. With this, the team did well.

Editor’s note - The club have now released the

camouflage kit which will be used for the DFB Pokal this season. It can be bought online via the official club shop here.

Page 7

AUGUST: CUP-SET AVOIDED

After the cup win in Offenburg, St. Pauli travelled to Energie Cottbus looking for their first win of the league campaign. However, the result simply didn’t go to plan.

St. Pauli started off sluggishly, and Cottbus

were much the better of the two sides in the opening exchanges. The opening goal summed up the way that FCSP had started. Cottbus had the better possession during the first 20 minutes and created a couple of early chance, firstly hitting the woodwork

and then firing a shot wide, but they were gifted the opening goal by Tschauner on 21

minutes. Tschauner took an awful first touch inside his box, and then misplaced his clearance which was intercepted. Cottbus striker Steipermann had a shot from the edge of the box which should have been

saved from Tschauner however the keeper could only push the shot into his own net.

Tschauner didn’t recover from the mistake, and almost made an even greater error shortly after. He controlled a backpass and hadn’t noticed Boubacar Sanogo closing him down. Tschauner tried some neat footwork

to avoid the Cottbus striker, but Sanogo

intercepted the ball from the keeper inside the box. But off-balance Sanogo could only find the side netting.

It could, and should, have been game over at half time. Schubert aimed to change the

game by bringing on Ebbers and Avevor at half time, but the substitutions did little to change the game and it was Cottbus who

scored the second goal on 66 minutes. Banovic had plenty of time on the ball 20 yards out, evaded the challenges and struck a sweet low drive into the bottom corner via the post.

The game wasn’t over though, and despite lacking any attempts in the game before the

second goal, St. Pauli still could have snatched a draw. However Ebbers was too slow to get his shot away in the box, Saglik had a shot cleared off the line, and then Saglik again couldn’t reach an Ebbers cross

which flew across goal. It wasn’t to be, and a truly awful performance was eventually brought to a game.

The performance against Energie Cottbus was simply not good enough. In truth, the 2-0 final score flattered us. On another day, Cottbus may have had 4 or 5 goals. However,

the most concerning aspect of the game was

that it wasn't just one bad performance from a player or two, it was the whole team. The team didn’t play together at all, both defensively and offensively the team looked like a bunch of amateurs who had been thrown together on the morning of the game.

Cottbus controlled the game and should have scored more. St. Pauli had little quality on the ball, didn't have enough movement going forward and seemed nervous defensively.

The exact cause of the poor performances is unclear, and there’s probably more than one

logical reason behind the weak start to the

season. Even during defeats in previous seasons, St. Pauli have battled and fought and put on a performance, but in recent weeks this hadn't been the case. In the aftermath of the defeat, Schubert has questioned the formation and has said he may consider

reverting to 4-5-1, and Boll has said that the players need to go back to doing the basic things, and need to work together as a team rather than individual.

Do the team need more more time to gel, or are the problems with the management? The signs in pre-season were quite positive, but

only 2 points from the opening 3 league games of the season simply isn’t good enough.

Things have to improve on the pitch, otherwise it's going to be a very long and difficult season. That said, the rendition at the

end of the game summed up the feelings perfectly - You'll Never Walk Alone.

Page 8

calamity in cottbus

The first Managerial casualty in 2.Bundesliga has arrived just 3 League games in as Duisburg have dispensed with the services of Oliver Reck. The Zebra’s have endured a torrid start to the season which began with a

4-1 thumping at home to newly promoted Aalen followed by a defeat at another promoted side Jahn Regensburg. The 3-1

home defeat by Dynamo Dresden was the final straw for the men in suits at the Schauinsland-Reisen-Arena & they are on the lookout for a new Coach.

The only bright light in Duisburg’s season so far was the 1-0 DFB Pokal win at high flying 3.Liga side Hallescher FC. Duisburg’s new signings didn’t help Reck’s chances of success albeit early days yet, Ranislav Jovanovic was brought in from Fortuna Dusseldorf to score goals & he is yet to find the net & Adil

Lachheb, brought in to sure up the defence from Aue is currently suspended after his

sending off (1 of 2 Duisburg players dismissed) in the defeat at Jahn Regensburg.

Eintracht Braunschweig sit proudly at the summit of 2.Bundesliga after 3 games, the only team to have 9 points. Torsten

Lieberknecht has been keeping faith in his starting XI so far only changing when injury dictates, new signing Orhan Ademi has found this to his cost as he still hasn’t managed a start despite bagging a late winner in the opening game against FC Koln from the

bench. Elsewhere, Paderborn have enjoyed a solid start but tasted defeat for the first time

last weekend in Braunschweig despite taking a 1st half lead through Yilmaz (his 3rd in 3 league games since joining on loan from Mainz.)

Cottbus & FSV Frankfurt both have 7 points

from 9 & will be delighted with their starts, Cottbus came from 2-0 down at Ingolstadt with 10 minutes remaining on the opening day and have not looked back since backing that point up with two strong home wins against Aue & St Pauli. FSV Frankfurt can point to 3 attacking summer signings who

have between them hit 5 of the 6 goals

scored so far. Rennes loanee John Verhoek scored twice in the opening 2 games before being dropped to the bench as fellow loanee Matthew Leckie & former Augsburg man Edmund Kaplliani took over goalscoring

responsibilities, both have hit 2 goals each with Kaplliani’s double against Ingolstadt & Leckie’s brace coming in an impressive win over Hertha Berlin & the winner in the 1st

round of the DFB Pokal.

New boys Aalen & Sandhausen have proved to be no pushovers in the early stages of the season, Aalen in particular have looked impressive recording away wins at Duisburg &

Bochum whilst Sandhausen remain unbeaten including a hard fought draw in Koln & with last

season’s top scorer Frank Loning finding the net in the last 2 games they will be confident of continuing in a similar vein.

Whilst the promoted teams can point to respectable starts the same cannot be said for

the sides relegated from 1.BL. FC Koln have had a torrid start under Holger Stanislawski & currently sit in a relegation spot. Many people have forecast a tough season ahead for Koln & it appears that could well be the case. The other 2 relegated sides are expecting to fair much better but neither have hit the ground

running, Hertha had to come from behind twice

to earn a point at home to Paderborn on the opening day & lost at FSV Frankfurt before claiming their 1st win of the season at home to Jahn last time out, whilst Kaiserslautern kicked off the campaign with a thrilling 3-3 home draw with Union Berlin after coming from 2-0 down

to lead before being pegged back with a last minute leveller. Their 1st win of the season followed at Aalen before a 0-0 draw with the much fancied 1860 Munich in front of over 37,500 fans.

St Pauli have flattered to deceive so far & their

supporters expect much better than what was

offered to them by the way of a 2-0 defeat in Cottbus last weekend although that was their 1st defeat following draws in Aue & at home to Ingolstadt. 1860 Munich opened the campaign with a fortunate 1-0 win over Jahn Regensburg in front of an excellent 45,300 crowd before

picking up 2 draws in 2 difficult away games at Dresden & Kaiserslautern. However, a serious injury to summer signing from AEK Athens Grigoris Makos has rocked the squad but the Allianz Arena based side have strength in depth to cope.

The 3rd weekend of the season saw the 1st

round of the DFB Pokal take place & 13 of the 18 2.Bundsliga sides progressed to the 2nd round. Of the teams that bowed out of the competition at the first hurdle 2 lost to fellow 2.BL sides, Cottbus surprisingly went down 3-0 at Sandhausen & Ingolstadt were beaten by

the same score line at another newly promoted side Aalen. Jahn Regensburg were comfortably beaten by a strong Bayern Munich side & Paderborn, following a good start to the

Page 9

August: 2-Bundesliga review

season were on the receiving end of a 3-1 loss by local rivals & 3.Liga side Arminia Bielefeld.

The major shock came in the South Westerly town of Worms where, by the banks of the

Rhine River, Hertha Berlin went down by 2 goals to 1 to Regionalliga Sudwest Wormatia Worms in the hosts modest 5700 capacity EWR Arena. Elsewhere Union Berlin needed an extra time Simon Terodde goal to beat Regionalliga West side RW Essen. The result of the round however was Aue’s 3-0 win

against Eintracht Frankfurt where over 9500 witnessed Jakub Sylvestr, on loan from

Dinamo Zagreb grab his first goals for Aue with a 2nd half double. Duisburg, Koln, Kaiserslautern, Bochum & Dynamo Dresden all had good away wins at tough 3.Liga opposition.

The draw for the 2nd round has thrown together some interesting ties, the highlights of the draw are, Aalen v Dortmund, AK Berliner (4-0 victors over Hoffenheim) v 1860 Munich, Stuttgart v St Pauli, Bayern Munich v Kaiserslautern & Wormatia Worns v FC Koln.

Review done by Lee, AKA @tiertwofooty

Page 10

Aachen ultras

If you look in the German newspapers, you’ll surely find the story of the Aachen Ultras (ACU) these days. They were attacked again and again by the right-winged Karlsbande

Ultras (KBU), which is unfortunately the more important and bigger Ultra Group of Alemania Aachen. The reason for this at-tacks is obviously the anti-discrimination-policy of ACU, which is according to the Karlsbande political extremism. But showing racist and sexist banners is of course abso-

lutely ok.

Those attitudes can you find in so many clubs all around Germany. Lots of antiracist or left-wing supporters groups had to leave the standing sections or dissolve them-selves. But the antiracist Ultras of Aachen

want to continue their work, even if the per-spective is really bad.

As a reaction of the attacks the club officially abolished the Karlsbande, but also punished ACU. For example is it them no longer al-lowed to visit the fan project of Aachen.

Disgusted persons and fan clubs like “Sankt Pauli Mafia” wrote letters to Alemania Aa-chen wanting them not to repress ACU, but focusing on the real problem: the neo-Nazis

at the ground and all over the region of Aa-chen, a centrum for right-winged people in Western Germany.

I just can’t understand why all the other fans of Aachen don’t protest against the racists at their stadium. At least the attacks against other fans of the same club should give them

reasons enough to do so. I’m not very hope-ful, but maybe there will be some kind of change in the minds of the people of Aachen after this story was so big in the media.

I’d like to wish all the best to the Aachen Ultras and hope the club will think again over

its strategy for fighting discrimination and racists. There is still lots of work to do.

@Bucanero1910

Picture taken from http://kleinertod.wordpress.com/

It's five years since my first ever game, St. Pauli's 1-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen in the DFB Pokal on a boiling hot August afternoon. So, it seemed fitting to mark the anniversary by attending another game at

exactly the same stage in the competition. In 2007, with promotion just secured from the Regionalliga, St. Pauli were the

underdogs, and as such were guaranteed a home draw against a team from the top two divisions. This time, as established residents of 2.Liga, the roles were reversed and we'd

be drawn away. We were paired against Offenburger FV, one of the lowest ranked teams in the competition, who had secured their place by winning the Südbadischer Pokal at the end of last season with a 2-0 victory over SV Linx. Plying their trade in the Oberliga, the fifth tier of German

football, they were such minnows that for a few moments after the draw was made they were confused with – on twitter – the more

illustrious Kickers Offenbach of 3.Liga. A quick look at Google Earth revealed Offenburg was just across the French

border, about thirty minutes from Strasbourg, making the trip eminently possible by train. A further bit of research showed that they played in a wonderfully basic looking stadium that was predominantly terracing. Despite, St. Pauli's

appalling recent record in the DFB Pokal (crashing out two years running to lower ranked opposition,) this looked like it had potential to be a great trip.

So, once again train, timetables were consulted, tickets purchased and I was on

my way to Germany. I decided to base myself in Strasbourg, as I could get there in good time the night before the game and leave myself with a short train ride over the border on match day. I have to admit, that although I quite enjoy the solitude of these long trail trips (it's an only child thing) I'd

much rather be making the journey with friends or family. Journeys are better shared, and my most memorable

experiences have come when I've travelled with my Dad, my family or mates.

It also seems like a good opportunity to thank K and the girls for tolerating these trips, they've shown tremendous patience with me over the last five years, and although they'll always be the most precious things in my life, they understand the grip

that football exerts over me. Okay, enough of the emotional stuff, that'll teach me for typing this waiting for the train home to London.

Strasbourg, more chocolate box than I'd expected, was already bathed in early morning sunshine as I headed for the station. By the time I arrived in Offenburg the predicted heat wave was in full-effect. Temperatures were

forecast to be over 30 degrees by kick-off. The city itself was picturesque, the central street bustling with a Saturday morning market. One thing I couldn't quite work out was the

predominance of nautical statues dotted around the main street, Offenburg seems just about as landlocked as you can get, but I spied what

looked like Neptune and the Loch Ness monster immortalized in bronze. It wasn't quite midday, but there were a fair number of St. Paulianer milling about, instantly recognisable in an assortment of black and brown shirts, which did absolutely nothing to

reflect the building heat! The ground was a 20-minute walk from the centre, and with nothing much else to do, I headed out to the Karl-Heitz-

Stadion. The stadium looked as simple as it had done

on the internet, the shallow curves of terracing looking like they'd been cast from the same stone and laid to the same plan as the original terraces of the Millerntor back in the 1960s. The only thing slightly spoiling the ambience was the addition of temporary (I hope)

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magic of the DFB Pokal

security fencing around three quarters of the stadium. The guest-bloc had higher, maximum security, fencing, which I'm led to believe will remain, to allow the club to fulfil any safety requirements in the event of

promotion. It's a shame, as it did spoil the look of the ground and I was pretty sure there was no real need for it, for this game at least. I met Stefan from the Fanladen about two hours before kick-off, fresh from a minibus

journey from Hamburg that had begun at

5am that morning. By now the area around the stadium was starting to buzz with fans eager to get into the ground when the gates opened at 1.30pm. The vibe was very relaxed, with the air and charm of a pre-season friendly or a particularly well

organised school fête. With just 500 seats in a tiny main stand, corporate hospitality (oh yes, even in the first round of the DFB Pokal) consisted of a giant wedding marque and some trestle tables with parasols to deflect the sun.

Rather than do the sensible thing of finding

some shade to sit in for the two hours before kick-off at 3.30pm, I opted to get in the ground early. Maybe it was our abject summer, that prompted me to soak up as many rays as possible, but after about half

an hour baking in the heat, I regretted not going for the shady option (Stefan had very sensibly based himself under a large bush,

as he handed out tickets and passes for the game) The 'home' sections of the ground seemed to be fairly full already, although there was a

high proportion of St. Pauli fans mingling with the locals. The guest bloc filled up gradually as people made their way either from the town centre bars or from their coaches after the long journey from Hamburg. The noise levels and the colour perked-up as USP arrived carrying with them the usual variety of

flags and banners for this afternoon's choreo.

One that particularly caught my eye (it might not have been the USP’s, I couldn’t be sure) was an excellent portrait of Woody Guthrie augmented with the legend, 'All you fascists are bound to lose.' A great piece of artwork, I wonder if it had been produced to coincide

with the centenary of Woody's birth? Note to self: must find a picture on the web and forward it to Billy Bragg, he'd be mighty impressed. It also made me reflect on another of the many differences between British and German

fan culture. On the internet that morning I'd read a report of the Cardiff v Huddersfield game from the previous evening. The main photo accompanying the piece referred to Cardiff's decision to ditch their traditional blue kits for red ones and depicted a homemade

banner proclaiming that Cardiff fans 'bleed blue.' I don't have a problem with the sentiment or the protest against this particular strand of ludicrous commercialisation, but the banner itself looked like it had been hastily painted by enthusiastic primary school kids. The British

Trade Union movement has a long tradition of

beautifully crafted protest banners, unfortunately this ethos has not quite made the transition to our football fans where an old bed sheet and some emulsion are still the norm. Perhaps, Mr Gove, rather than trying to take education back to the dark ages, should

prioritise art a little higher in his curriculum vision. It would provide welcome rest bite from Latin, the lash and whatever other insanity he has in mind as he prepares a generation of youngsters for the rigours of life in the 19th 21st Century. Anyway, back to the

football. The sun was beating down as kick-off

approached, teams of volunteers were wandering the terraces with buckets of water, splashing it enthusiastically over anyone that requested it, but it didn't really make much difference. It was a case of refilling buckets of

water while we burned. Then something highly unexpected happened: they brought out the water canon. Normally, when we are

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talking St. Pauli and water canons, it spells trouble, usually a result of some over-zealous policing. Not this time. The local fire brigade had decided to turn their jets on the fans. It was pretty spectacular, and a first

for me. The chant of 'Hamburger Wetter' spread across the terrace as everyone danced in the deluge. Within minutes the entire terrace was totally drenched, literally soaked to the skin. Fortunately, the heat was such that by kick-off we were just

comfortably damp.

The surprises continued as the teams came out to the polite applause of a sold-out stadium. There had been some debate leading up to the game about St. Pauli's oft ill-fated 'cup-kit.' In recent years, the club have take to producing a special kit for the

DFB Pokal, an act of total commercialism that has had its impact massively undermined by the fact the St. Pauli have taken to crashing out after just one game. Perhaps, with this in mind, no 'cup-kit' was

released this year, but as the teams emerged St. Pauli were wearing their

popular camouflage kit, last worn during their march to the semi-finals in 2005/06. Whether this was an inspired piece of retro marketing or just a case of the manufacturers, Do You Football, having a

stockpile of old kits wasn't quite clear. Either way, it was back to the future and though former striker, Felix Luz was conspicuous by his absence, my Facebook stream did indicate that DYF got St. Pauli legend, Michél Mazingu-Dinzey in for the

press shots (and by the time I’d returned

home the shirt was available for purchase from the club shop for a whopping €59.95.) The heat was such that the game never really rose above walking pace (even the ICE trains that passed along the track behind the home fans on the Nordkurve

slowed to a crawl.) And, aside from an early chance for Offenburger FV well blocked by Tschauner, it was played almost exclusively in Offenburg's half. They had parked the bus, and possibly the fire engine too (after it had returned to give us another soaking

early in the first half.) It was going to be down to us to find a way through their eleven-man defence. Eventually, Mahir Saglik, starting instead of Marius Ebbers, showed some neat footwork to create enough space to get his shot away, it beat the keeper and found its way into the

bottom corner. 1-0 up. Perhaps, the

camouflage cup-kit was going to bring us back

some luck? That's how it remained at half-time after some outstanding reflex saves from pint-sized Streif in Offenburg's goal. Despite the USP's best efforts the atmosphere

had been distinctly muted with the usual selection of songs sung at reduced volume, the

heat didn't help either and by now there were a large number of sunburnt necks and faces. The second-half was even more pedestrian than the first. Saglik scoring again on 68 minutes with a neat header to put the game beyond doubt, Offenburger hadn't really looked like scoring

one, let alone two. And on 78 minutes, substitute,Ginczek got off the mark with a simple tap-in. It finished 3-0 to St. Pauli. After a couple of seasons where the second round of the cup had seemed like some unobtainable promised land, we were in the hat for the next

round. And, it was all down to the camouflage

cup-kit. Well, mostly. Whilst the game itself had never really been a fair contest, St. Pauli winning without ever having to get out of first gear, it had been a delight to take in another DFB Pokal game, especially in such old-school surroundings. The

only thing left to do was to rightly applaud the opposition on their well deserved lap-of-honour and then head to the station to begin the journey in reverse. Five years on: another sweltering hot

afternoon of cup football, and no sign of my love affair with FC St. Pauli starting to wane. I still wouldn't swap these three or four trips a year for a season ticket in the Premiership. There'd be no water canons for a start. Nick

Twitter: @outside_left.

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