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#Post#: 1963--------------------------------------------------
The Wurst is yet to come : generally jaundiced jottings from
German jaunts.
DIR By: JCFC
Date: October 27, 2018, 12:20 am
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An overcast morning meant that the Autumn colours did not glow
as they had recently in Yorkshire, but they were sufficiently
varied to be attractive even so. There was an added bonus, as
the slight haze lent Frankfurt, not normally the most appealing
of cities, an almost romantic appearance when seen in the
distance across the fields. A mediaeval Florentine, roused from
half millennium of slumber, might have thought he was nearing
San Gimignano. But hang on, this is supposed to be about
football...
The Friday Regionalliga matches were out of range, so it was one
step down to Oberliga level for
Friday 26th October 2018
Hessenliga
FC 1931 Eddersheim 1 v 2 SV Bad Vilbel
Adrian Kokott (Limburgerhof); Julian Kuhn, Jonas Isulay
There was time for a visit to the pleasant clubhouse before
heading out in search of an evening meal - Bratwurst once
again: what a pity that the Germans have not discovered decent
British cuisine such as pie and peas or ... erm ... the
Hamburger.
Herr Kokott is tall, slim and fairly young-looking, despite
having borrowed Desperate Dan's razor. He rapidly collected
Brownie points - long sleeves and a handkerchief put him well in
credit. This was slightly eroded when a couple of early
attack-stopping fouls - one each way - drew free-kicks, but not
the word of warning that would have been the minimum in the
NCEFL and above.Each keeper had one decent save to make, Herr
Kuhn raced down his line to stop a minor spat developing, but
towards half-time play became scrappy, with numerous free-kicks.
Eddersheim had two of these in attacking positions, the first
being headed wide, the second fired just over.
The first half had been fairly even, but Eddersheim had a
definite territorial advantage in the second period, which was
unfortunate for JCFC, whose vantage point was towards the other
end.Herr Kokott reappeared in short sleeves. What he lost in
Brownie points, he gained in freedom of his arms and he was soon
able to reach for his yellow card for the home number 8, another
following on the hour for the Eddersheim number 5, accompanied
by a gesture of illicit use of the arm.Eddersheim took the lead
soon afterwards. There was a yellow for a Bad Vilbel defender,
but within minutes his side had launched a rare attack,
culminating in an excellent finish on the turn. The winner came
on 78 minutes in splendid style, a cross beyond the far post
being touched back first time for a colleague to bury it.
Eddersheim had one late chance, but put it wide.
Herr Kokott moved well, though not an obvious fan of working
wide and controlled the match effectively in the expected German
way - that is to say without seeming to lead the game. A steady,
unspectacular performance, which did the job well enough.
On the 20 minute walk back to the station, Eddersheim seemed to
be taking its role as a dormitory town seriously - not that
there had been much sign of life two hours earlier.
#Post#: 1984--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Wurst is yet to come : generally jaundiced jottings from
German jaunts.
DIR By: JCFC
Date: October 28, 2018, 4:05 am
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It was up two levels for
Saturday 27th October 2018
3. Liga
SV Wehen-Wiesbaden 0 v 0 FSV Zwickau
Eric Müller (Bremen); Lukas Benen, Simon Rott.
Wehen was originally a club from a small township in the Taunus,
but rose through the ranks. In 2007 their ground was unsuitable
for a short-lived promotion to the Zweite Bundesliga, so they
moved to a new stadium in the nearby city of Wiesbaden, amending
their name accordingly. Despite creating a new (rather
pedestrian) anthem, the crowds -on this occasion 1830 - leave
most of the stadium unoccupied. Zwickau, meanwhile - a town in
many areas as grey as the team's shirts - have been upwardly
mobile. The town is known for being the birthplace of Robert
Schumann ... and the Trabant.
Herr Müller was promoted to the 3.Liga list in 2016 as part of a
job lot of three unrelated Müllers, one of whom has this year
been promoted to the Zweite Bundesliga list. Referees on the
third and second division lists act as assistants on the league
above as well as refereeing in divisions below, so they normally
receive just eight games per season at their official level,
nine if they are lucky. This was Herr Müller's third of the
season - and oddly his second at Wiesbaden.
The officials were in long-sleeved yellow shirts, Herr Müller
pushing his above the elbow, but retaining the black trim. He is
quite tall, fair-haired and broad-shouldered and was to have a
straightforward first period: a warning for a tug, a correct
yellow for a late slide and a quiet word for something said when
a team-mate was penalised - all to Zwickau players. Even so, the
home captain, from his viewpoint as goalkeeper, wanted a word at
the break.
Wehen came close soon after the restart, courtesy of a
deflection which looped over the keeper, but safely out for a
corner. It was apparent that Zwickau were content with what they
had and their foul count increased, with three more yellows
along the way. On 86 minutes one of the fouls was in the penalty
area. There was jubilation in the home camp, but to a neutral it
was no surprise when it was saved. Herr Müller had done a decent
job of chivvying players along, but might possibly have added a
couple more minutes at the end.
Herr Müller's sprinting is effective rather than elegant -he has
to wind himself up to get going - but he was always on the spot,
with use of reverse gear to adjust position. His lateral
movement, by no means a given in Germany, was particularly
impressive. His decisions appeared accurate and his general
demeanour less detached than in many of his peers, in a way that
pleased JCFC, but may not be what his lords and masters are
expecting.
Two steps down again this afternoon!
PS: Two further things added to JCFC's confusion about
regulations.
The first was when a trainer was warming up 6 subs in the
corner.
The second when a player from each side collided in the goal
area and were both required to leave the pitch after treatment.
I shall have to do some swotting!
#Post#: 2012--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Wurst is yet to come : generally jaundiced jottings from
German jaunts.
DIR By: JCFC
Date: October 28, 2018, 3:48 pm
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Yellow was again the officials' colour scheme at
Sunday 28th October 2018
Hessenliga
SpVgg 03 Neu-Isenburg 1 v 5 SG Barockstadt Fulda-Lehnerz
Sebastian Betz (Bad Soden); Martin Maienschein, Steffen Krah.
Until this Summer the visitors were known as TSV Lehnerz, a
suburb of that splendid hymn-tune Fulda, but took over the first
team of Borussia Fulda, who promptly resigned from the league,
and they adopted the new name.
The features of the cheery referee had a strangely familiar
look: had he been a little shorter and a shade less blond, JCFC
would have sworn that he was Lee Hible's long-lost German
cousin. (Do the Germans have a word for Doppelgänger?) As the
match was played in light drizzle, we even had the Hible sweep
of the rain from his hair. In the course of the match he had
plenty of by-play with AR2, an older chap, with a lived-in look,
whose signalling of offsides was desultory, but accurate. AR1
was a bright and eager-looking young man with prominent ears.
The match got off to a lively start, Herr Betz being grabbed by
the shoulder by the home number 17 as his side were awarded a
free-kick. Perhaps he thought it had been inside the penalty
area. In the end it mattered not a jot as the free-kick was
fired home. For Neu-Isenburg, that was as good as it was to get
as the visitors took control. The home number 17 received a "no
more" indication for a tug back before Lehnerz equalised on 28
minutes.A home defender received a yellow card for an
attack-stopping trip before half-time.
A Neu-Isenburg defender made a hash of a header back to his
keeper, but the attacker put the ball wide. Herr Maienschein
flagged for a foul on 62 minutes, Herr Betz acquainting a second
home man with his yellow card.The home keeper made a desperate
lunge to turn the ball away, but within 30 seconds the visitors
had gone ahead - though a small posse of home players had
questions they wanted answered. Neu-Isenburg had a decent spell,
during which two yellow cards went to the visitors, but the last
five minutes brought Lehnerz three more goals, the announcer
sounding more lugubrious with each one.
There was much to like about Herr Betz's manner and amiable
relaxed approach, though the waving of a card from a distance is
not something that appeals. Even less so the interminable blasts
of the whistle for the most minor things. The moment of
controversy about the visitors' second goal apart, Herr Betz
made refereeing look quite easy: why make it sound difficult?
#Post#: 2018--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Wurst is yet to come : generally jaundiced jottings from
German jaunts.
DIR By: bmb
Date: October 28, 2018, 4:39 pm
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--- Quote from: JCFC link ---
>
> Yellow was again the officials' colour scheme at
>
--- End Quote ---
Disgraceful conduct from all concerned...
#Post#: 2051--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Wurst is yet to come : generally jaundiced jottings from
German jaunts.
DIR By: JCFC
Date: October 30, 2018, 4:00 am
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Up three steps to a 2. Bundesliga match, with a 1. Bundesliga
official - albeit one of the as yet lesser lights - in charge
and long sleeves.
Monday 29th October 2018
2. Bundesliga
VfL Bochum 1848 3 v 3 SSV Jahn Regensburg
Martin Petersen (Stuttgart); Christian Gittelmann, Katrina
Rafalski.
The switch to Winter Time on Sunday had encouraged the weather
gods to switch to Winter temperatures. Arriving far too early,
having overestimated the time the trip would take, JCFC was
faced with a wait of 90 minutes before kick-off. Fortunately he
was well provided with reading matter: a book and the morning
paper; unfortunately it was too cold to take hands out of
pockets to hold them. Herr Petersen and Frau Rafalski plodded
their separate ways through their warm-up. Herr Gittelmann
branched out at right angles with a long series of marvellous
footwork, leaps and gyrations. If the producers of Strictly Come
Dancing were watching, he would be a shoo-in for the next
series.
It was the visitors who opened the scoring on ten minutes, a
move from a corner ending with a header. Thereafter Bochum did
the bulk of the attacking, without really testing the keeper -
until added time when they equalised with a powerful drive.
The seating plan had not indicated that the gangway next to
JCFC's seat would see regular comings and goings of security
men. So it was that JCFC was unable to say how on 54 minutes,
with the Regensburg keeper about to take a free-kick, the next
thing seen was a Bochum attacker 30 metres out on the point of
rolling the ball into an empty net. The keeper had plenty to say
when the goal was awarded, with a few colleagues in support -
but there was no general sense of outrage. There was no doubt
about Bochum's third, ten minutes later, as the visiting right
back gave away possession, leaving the opposing winger to square
the ball for another simple finish. Regensburg had a regulation
penalty saved on 68minutes, but converted a second -slightly
dubious-looking from a distance - to make it 3-2 with a quarter
of an hour to go. Bochum hung on until the 93rd minute, when
Regensburg scored to earn a point.
Herr Petersen does not seem to be the most charismatic of
officials, but refereed in a generally sensible manner, not
looking for offences where none existed and keeping things
moving well - even helping out with the checks at a late triple
substitution. There were two clear-cut cautions to Regensburg,
one in each half. A solid, unspectacular evening's work.
JCFC is not a fan of 20.30 kick-off, with 22.20 finishes, but
was back in Gelsenkirchen to start thawing out before midnight,
wishing that he had stayed in and watched the Regionalliga on
TV. There may be a similar decision tonight - live in Wuppertal
or a cup tie on TV.
#Post#: 2064--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Wurst is yet to come : generally jaundiced jottings from
German jaunts.
DIR By: JCFC
Date: October 30, 2018, 10:02 am
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Well, the die is cast! It remains very cold, with a biting wind,
but a morning visit to C & A saw JCFC equipped with woolly
gloves and an extra sweater. Wuppertal it shall be. After all,
it is hard to resist the chance to see a referee named after an
item of footwear. A figure to rank alongside tennis player Jack
Sock, Slipper of the Yard, Evelyn Waugh's wonderful creation
William Boot (or Jesse of that ilk for our Nottinghamshire
friends) fifties man-about-town Algernon Winkle-Picker and
exotic dancer Mandy Cornplaster. OK, the last two might be
products of JCFC's fevered imagination - that's what comes of
spending too long in freezing football grounds.
#Post#: 2084--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Wurst is yet to come : generally jaundiced jottings from
German jaunts.
DIR By: JCFC
Date: October 31, 2018, 8:10 am
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For a long time it seemed the wrong decision. Late trains,one
being stopped and turned round two stations short of its
destination, and heavy rain saw a soggy and unhappy JCFC arrive
at
Tuesday 30th October 2018
Regionalliga West
Wuppertaler SV 2 v 3 Fortuna Düsseldorf
Alexander Schuh (Mönchengladbach); Torsten Schwerdtfeger, Cedric
Gottschalk
The officials took to the field in yellow, and with black cuffs
and collar looked very smart - sorry bmb! Herr Schuh is 27 and
is fair-haired and slightly built. So too AR1 and a hand-changer
to boot. AR2 was older, heavier, with an awkward gait and total
commitment to his right hand.
From the off there were numerous bumps and spills -let's put
that down to the conditions. Professional U-23 sides are
normally pretty disciplined, but Fortuna's was well practised in
the art of making the most of any contact to win free-kicks, as
Herr Schuh in time came to realise.. The rain grew even more
intense and on the quarter hour those spectators standing in the
open were invited into the stand. Most took advantage, but the
ultras and their **** choirmaster bravely stayed put throughout.
Wuppertal did most of the attacking, but on 36 minutes,
non-existent marking allowed Fortuna to take the lead. There
were yellow cards within a minute for the home full-backs, the
second leading to a free-kick at the edge of the area, which
sailed into the net from a narrow angle. A splendid shot in
stoppage time gave Fortuna their third.
Bmb must have been on the phone as the officials returned in
black. Wuppertal soon had a handball appeal waved away - Herr
Schuh reasonably deciding that the ricochet from foot to hand
was inadvertent. On 55 minutes Herr Gottschalk raised his flag
for offside; a second later Herr Schuh awarded a penalty. Herr
Gottschalk briefly lowered his flag but thought better of it.
Fortuna players drew the referee's attention and the decision
was changed. Now it was Wuppertal's turn to protest. As all
retreated for the offside free-kick, Herr Schuh went and spoke
to his assistant, returning to reaward the penalty, duly
converted by Wuppertal. A challenge by the home number 10 sent
an opponent through the air. It looked a clear yellow, but he
went through a whole rigmarole of praying gestures before it
could be administered - he was of Italian stock after all. Good
interplay and a fine shot led to Wuppertal's second on 71
minutes. A foul by the Fortuna number 12 brought a reaction from
his opponent and a lecture for both. Wuppertal had two clear
chances, putting the first wide and the second over the bar.
The third was stopped by a foul, leading to some milling and a
red card for the Fortuna 4. Wuppertal pressed hard, one attack
producing four blocks in the goalmouth, but could not find the
equaliser.
It had been the least straightforward of the five matches
watched. Herr Schuh had moved well,used his whistle sensibly and
not done too badly, but without quite convincing in terms of
authority.
Happily the rain had finally relented and an uncomfortably brisk
walk to the station enabled JCFC to catch the train with seconds
to spare.
NB The **** replaces a word indicating that the young man was
without a shirt. Or 'baht top as they don't say on Ilkley Moor.
#Post#: 2097--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Wurst is yet to come : generally jaundiced jottings from
German jaunts.
DIR By: bmb
Date: November 1, 2018, 10:31 am
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: JCFC link ---
>
> The officials took to the field in yellow, and with black
cuffs and collar looked very smart - sorry bmb!
--- End Quote ---
Naughty step for you... The only thing yellow looks is vile!
--- Quote from: JCFC link ---
>
> Bmb must have been on the phone as the officials returned in
black.
>
--- End Quote ---
You know it [emoji6]
#Post#: 2753--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Wurst is yet to come : generally jaundiced jottings from
German jaunts.
DIR By: JCFC
Date: November 24, 2018, 3:44 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
The ground was just a short walk from the hotel ,but it was as
well that I had set off 55 minutes before kick-off. The ticket
had a plan of the ground, but no indication of the appropriate
entrance. I found what seemed to be the right one, only to be
turned away by a steward, who directed me to the opposite corner
of the ground, which entailed a roundabout walk through the
streets - and a police checkpoint . Once there it became
apparent that the steward had been wrong, so the trek back had
to be undertaken, meaning that there was no time for food before
Friday 23rd November 2018
2. Bundesliga
SpVgg Greuther Fürth 3 v 2 1.FC Magdeburg
Markus Schmidt (Stuttgart); Manuel Bergmann, Fabian Maibaum.
Having hoped to see an up and coming young referee in charge, I
was slightly disappointed when Herr Schmidt was appointed. True,
he did once merit that description, when he was the youngest
referee in the top leagues, but that was two decades or so ago.
He was promoted to the 1. Bundesliga in 2003 and is currently
the longest serving member of that list, without ever hitting
the heights, averaging just over ten matches a season, only
partly explained by an injury. From photos I had formed the
impression that he was fairly small, but in reality he is pretty
tall and thin. (A similar surprise had occurred many years ago
when Harry New made a rare appearance at Leeds Road and was much
taller than he appeared on television.)
Greuther Fürth is an established club at this level and have had
a good first half of the season, while newly-promoted Magdeburg
are in danger of speedy relegation.
Herr Maibaum was quickly in action with a flag for a foul within
the first minute; not to be outdone, Herr Bergmann followed just
30 seconds later. The early stages saw some nice imaginative
touches, but they came to nothing, thanks to good defensive work
- and occasional not so nice touches. Midway through the half,
however, Magdeburg twice came close within seconds, first an
attacker was within inches of getting his foot to a cross and
next a defender was back in time to clear a ball rolling
goalwards. It was against the run of the play when a rapid
attack saw the home side go ahead on the half hour, but they
then enjoyed a good spell. The Magdeburg number 11 was called
for an exchange of views when showing dissent but seemed to come
out on top, having, if not the last word, definitely the last
flouncing gestures. The Fürth winger lofted the ball over the
onrushing keeper, but saw it slip just off target. It was the
opponents' tricky winger whose run and cross set up the
equaliser on 39 minutes.The home number 15 received a yellow
card before the break for hauling down an opponent.
Magdeburg went ahead on 48 minutes with an excellent run and
finish. Extended holding by the Magdeburg number 6 drew a
free-kick but not the expected card. On 71 minutes a Magdeburg
attacker had run clear of the defence when he went down,
seemingly clipped from behind. Herr Schmidt raced to the spot to
show a yellow to the home number 38. If this was intended to
settle matters, it did not succeed both sides, for different
reasons, being horrified at the verdict. Greuther Fürth were
then denied by a good save and had penalty appeals for handball
waved away. A leaping save by the home keeper turned the ball
for a corner; the home number 17 was cautioned for dissent
towards Herr Maibaum. On 87 minutes Fürth won a free kick a few
yards short of the penalty area. Before the kick was taken Herr
Schmidt insisted that an attacker standing on the 6 yard line
come back to an onside position - and the kick was fired home
for the equaliser.There followed gripping last few minutes, with
both sides looking for a winner. Dissent earned the home number
29 a yellow card. The home keeper tipped a shot over the bar,
while at the other end a header hit the side netting. In added
time a corner. was headed home to give Fürth a winner they
scarcely deserved. Substitutes and staff.raced across the pitch
to the opposite corner to celebrate. Herr Schmidt headed
towards the centre, taking no action ... And after some seconds
blew the final whistle. The Magdeburg number 6 was
understandably not impressed with this and received a yellow
card as I left in search of sustenance.
For most of the game it had.not offered many problems and Herr
Schmidt had not been greatly exercised. His manner was relaxed,
but he managed to be there or thereabouts throughout. His style,
though, was not totally convincing in either consistency or
authority and the end of the match left much to be desired -
common sense or copping out?
#Post#: 2777--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Wurst is yet to come : generally jaundiced jottings from
German jaunts.
DIR By: JCFC
Date: November 25, 2018, 3:33 pm
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A late-running train meant a missed connection in Treuchtlingen,
leading to the discovery of a memorial stone. On the 23
February 1945, as part of Operation Clarion, Treuchtlingen was
one of the railway junctions to suffer a heavy American bombing
raid. As the raiders' approach was discovered the top priority
was to move a munitions train into the safety of a nearby
tunnel. People who could not make it to a bunker took refuge in
the station underpass, where a direct hit resulted in the loss
of some 300 lives.
The day's destination was Eichsttät, a small town with an
important ecclesiastical history and a present-day Catholic
University, leading to the sight of a man of a certain age
experiencing the difficulty of climbing over the seats in the
stand while wearing a cassock. It has a handsome centre and
would make a good stop for a stroll and a coffee - provided that
you bore in mind the lugubrious PA announcer's claim that the
local traffic wardens are always glad to treat visitors to a
parking ticket - of the penalty variety.
And so, not before time, to the game
Saturday 24th November 2018
Regionalliga Bayern
VfB Eichstätt 0 v 3 FV Illertissen
Patrick Hanslbauer (Zirndorf); Philipp Eckerlein, Christoph
Stühler.
The home side has made is way up through the league and a great
point was made of the fact that they currently top the league -
dizzy heights indeed. With Illertissen in the lower half of the
table, a home win seemed assured.
AR2 was a hand-changer, AR1 was not..Eichstätt forced a good
save from the keeper on 10 minutes, but it was the visitors who
took the lead direct from a free-kick on 17 minutes and put
another chance just wide shortly afterwards.A couple of visiting
players were spoken to - number 29 for two fouls, number 23 for
childishly delaying a throw. Midway through the half an
Eichstätt player took a free-kick, aiming at an opponent who had
not retreated far enough. Herr Hanslbauer was luckily able to
indicate a rolling ball. On 27 minutes he called an excellent
advantage, returning to caution the Illertissen number 18 for
the very late challenge. Two minutes later the home keeper came
out to collect a high ball, but an attacker beat him to it to
double the lead. They came close to a third, hitting the post,
before their number 30 was cautioned for a stray arm. Eichstätt
did manage a late chance, but had looked poor in the first half.
They emerged for the second half with the air of a side on the
receiving end of a hair-dryer, and their number 4 was cautioned
for a high foot. In attacking, however, they left gaping holes
at the back and Illertissen's third came all too easily. In a
repeat of the first caution, it was the home number 33 who saw
yellow after advantage had been played. The visiting keeper had
one decent save to make, but the home side's efforts subsided.
Three further yellows were shown, one to the visitors,two to
Eichstätt..The teams have a match this coming weekend, but then
the Winter pause means that they then have to wait until March.
For me, Herr Hanslbauer - another operating below his pay grade,
having been promoted to the 3rd Division for this season - put
in an impressive afternoon's work, receiving not only handshakes
but several pats on the back from the losing side. His triage
had been very accurate, with sensibly restrained use of the
whistle and open body-language. His movement was good and he
used his reverse gear to good effect. It would be nice to think
that at 28 he might move higher still - but that is probably the
kiss of death.7 yellows is possibly quit e a lot by English
standards, but here represented a referee doing his job
accurately and well... and "you ain't seen nothing yet!" ...
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