For the first time in nine years, Sportfreunde Hamborn will play in the Oberliga Niederrhein. There they will meet the Regionalliga relegated VfB Homberg.

In addition to the match between ETB SW Essen and FC Kray, there will be another derby in the Oberliga Niederrhein this weekend. On Sunday (07 August, 3 p.m.), Sportfreunde Hamborn 07 are guests of VfB Homberg. The euphoria among the Sportfreunde is great, as they are playing in the Oberliga for the first time in nine years. “The anticipation is naturally huge, because the entire preparation is geared towards the start of the season. A derby at the start of the season is of course particularly nice for the spectators and the players are also extra motivated,” emphasises Hamborn coach Julian Berg.

With VfB Homberg, relegated from the regional league, the Sportfreunde face a supposedly strong opponent at the beginning of the season. However, after their relegation from the Regionalliga, VfB Homberg has undergone a major upheaval and is therefore difficult to predict. The Sportfreunde coach agrees: “With 18 newcomers, Homberg is difficult to assess. But we’d rather look at ourselves than at the opponent.”

SF Hamborn 07’s preparation was divided into two parts. After winning the first three test matches, they recently lost three in a row. The last test match, which took place on Sunday (31 July) against Arminia Klosterhardt, was also lost 1:3. Nevertheless, the Sportfreunde coach is confident: “I saw a lot of good approaches in the test matches. Against Arminia Klosterhardt, we lacked a bit of determination in front of goal, otherwise the result would have been different as well. “

Although four Hamborn players are out with long-term injuries, Berg expects to start the first half of the season with the current squad. However, he adds, “As is often the case in football, if something comes up that suits both sides, one or two additions are still possible.”

Berg is not a fan of handing out big season goals. Instead, he prefers to set his sights on “achieving many small milestones during the season”. For the start of the new Oberliga season, this means “getting as many points as possible from the first English week and taking the euphoria with us. “