Sportfreunde Niederwenigern clinched the championship in the Landesliga Niederrhein 2 last Sunday. The plans for the coming season are already in place.
Last Sunday, Sportfreunde Niederwenigern celebrated the championship in the Landesliga Niederrhein 2 thanks to a 3:1 win against VfB Speldorf. With a six-point lead over second-placed SV Biemenhorst, Sportfreunde can no longer be caught before the final matchday.
When asked what the celebrations were like, coach Marcel Kraushaar replied: “Intense. Intense and exuberant. The way it is when you achieve something you’ve been working towards for a long time.”
Niederwenigern were relegated from the Oberliga Niederrhein in the 2021/22 season. After two seasons in the Landesliga, Sportfreunde are now back in Germany’s fifth-highest division.
However, coach Kraushaar’s team will not be celebrating until after the final matchday, even though there was already a reception at their own pitch after the game in Speldorf.
For much of the season, Kraushaar emphasized that his team does not want to think about promotion and that the table is secondary. Now he reveals that his team actually only openly communicated among themselves before the last matchday that they wanted to go all the way from now on.
With regard to the season, the talks took place some time ago. Kraushaar cannot confirm whether there were calls for some of his protégés from the upper leagues: “We tend to talk to the boys very early on. The focus is always on planning, which is always based on something not working out,” he explains.
“Back then, we spoke to the lads regardless of the league. We did the same this time. We got a commitment from all of them quite early on. I don’t even know if there were any calls, at least not directed at us,” he added.
Plan for the Oberliga is clear
For the upcoming season, Sportfreunde already know how they want to approach the Oberliga: “We want to stick to the fundamental themes we have at the club. We want to maintain that.”
Kraushaar is referring in particular to the continuity in squad planning, which will also be maintained in the top division. “We’re not going to do anything crazy, but continue where we left off. “
The Sportfreunde want to continue to focus on young players and offer them a platform. The style of play should not change rapidly either, but Kraushaar emphasizes: “We are not naive now. We know that we often won’t be the favorites, so you have to adapt your style of play.”
For the last game of the season on Sunday against Arminia Klosterhardt, the coach wants to rotate a little again. In particular, players who will end their careers at the end of the season should get playing time. Kick-off is at 3.00 p.m.